| Comments: | MAJOR ERUPTION began at 12:45pm. I was standing in the restroom parking lot at the time and I reached the geyser as quickly as possible. Four people were in front of Steamboat at the initial big burst and due to excitement their stories are a little conflicting. They agree that there was a minute or so of quiet and then both vents surged {either once twice or thrice} before the great burst. The powerful activity from the north vent lasted for about 7 minutes. At 12:55 pm the south vent began surging and the first choking occurred at 1:02 pm. At 1:05 pm the north vent was in a steam phase. Surges of water continued from the south vent until at least 1:45 pm. Within a very few minutes after the eruption started 30 to 40 people were on the scene and I would guess that over 100 people were at the geyser by 1:15pm. The weather was unfavorable for photography as the sky was solidly overcast. The only possible indicator to imminent eruption are the noticed burst from the north vent at 11:45 am the high water level in the north vent {at least up until noon} the sustained agitation of the water and perhaps the behavior of Echinus |