How Have I Been to Saratoga But Never Seen This Before? [PHOTO]

I’ve been to Saratoga, specifically Saratoga State Park, so many times but how have I never been to this part? Yet another part of history in the Capital Region that tends to go unnoticed.

It’s the only geyser “East of the Mississippi River” according to OnlyInYourState. Known as the Saratoga Geyser or the Geyser Island Spouter has been around since the 1900s and ever-transforming. For example, the tufa deposit (a variety of limestone) surrounding the geyser has grown at a rate of two inches per year. Instead of staring at it from afar, now you walk out onto the “mineral island” and get close to the geyser itself. The water shoots water into the air that can reach up to 15 feet. No worries if you want to touch it, it’s not hot like you’d think. The geyser water temperature usually ranges from 48-56 degrees.

If you want to see it for yourself, drive down Geyser Loop Road until you come to a small parking lot. You can park there or across the street but either is in walking distance of one of the eighteen springs said to have healing powers.