Enter the dragon

The first geothermal activity we encountered in Yellowstone was on the Eastern side (between Tower-Roosevelt and Canyon Village). Similar sites are scattered across the park, but these made a particular impression on us. It is difficult to say whether that is because they were intrinsically interesting, or if it was lack of familiarity.

Mud Volcano: novelty probably won this battle

Looking back, the Mud Volcano was not much to look at. Across the road, however, was the Dragon's cave. The name and the plateau outside the entrance looked like it may hole more appeal.

Outside the dragon's mouth cave

When the wind was blowing in just the right direction, the dragon's cave lived up to its name:

Dragon's mouth cave: probably would have made it without the novelty factor

Note:
I wonder who gets the privilege of naming the sites in Yellowstone. There are some very poetic and descriptive names (such as Dragon's [mouth] cave), descriptive names with some thought (Old Faithful, Castle Geyser), boring descriptive names (Riverside Geyser), not-at-all useful names (Grand Geyser, Giant Geyser -- what is the difference?), and finally just plain old boring names (Norris Geysers, presumably named after Norris).