The Madison River flows westward out of Yellowstone N.P., Wyoming, the world's first national park. The Madison River joins up with the Jefferson and the Gallatin Rivers at Three Forks, Montana, and forms the Missouri River. Yellowstone National Park was created in 1872 and protects exotic looking hydrothermal features found throughout the area. The river supports a wide variety of wildlife. These elk graze here and show no sign of alarm from the constant flow of tourist traffic.
In the background of this photograph and throughout the park many dead and decaying lodgepole pines and other fir trees show the result of an enormous and widespread fire. Almost 800,000 acres were charred in 1988. It was the largest fire fighting effort in United States history, costing 120 million dollars and employing 25,000 fire fighting personnel.