Man jumps barricade to soak feet in Yellowstone’s scorching hot springs

Man jumps barricade to soak feet in Yellowstone’s scorching hot springs

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK — In the latest edition of Stupid Tourists Doing Stupid Things, an unidentified man was caught on video washing his feet in the boiling-hot geyser basins of Yellowstone National Park.

The basins, which are clearly marked with signs warning people to stay a safe distance away, have an average temperature of 143 degrees Fahrenheit, but they have been known to reach much higher temps. This clearly did not deter the man from jumping the barricades to enjoy a scorching-hot soak.

The incident, which occurred on Sept. 14, was caught on video by a woman who told the San Francisco Chronicle that she and her family watched the man cross the barricades, take his shoes and socks off and attempt to put his feet in the water. She also said that the man did not look up and make eye contact with any of the passersby who yelled for him to get out and to be careful.

In the video, the man is seen rubbing his feet with his hands. The woman said he stayed behind the barricade for approximately 10 minutes before returning to the trail.

We can only assume that the man in question had no idea the park’s thermal springs are hot enough to boil people alive. In June 2016, a brother and sister from Oregon ventured off the designated boardwalk and hiked into Yellowstone’s Norris Geyser Basin, also in search of an illegal soak. Their story ended tragically after the brother slipped and fell into a hot spring. His body was never recovered.

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