Down in the basins, you feel like you were transported to another planet. The ground in this area suddenly grew extremely hot (over 200 degrees), killing the trees and forcing park officials to re-route the wooden boardwalk. Yellowstone is noted for its rapid changes in terrain -- springs come and go very quickly as the hot spot under the caldera shifts with time. In Yellowstone, even a decade can bring visible changes, something unheard of in parks like Yosemite and Zion, where major changes can take thousands, if not millions, of years.