Elk Bath
Photographer: Tom Murphy
Date: September 1988
Location: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
Tom Murphy photographed a cow elk standing in the Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park in September 1988, against a backdrop of forest fires raging through the park. The 1988 Yellowstone fires were the most extensive in the park's recorded history, burning approximately 793,000 acres — roughly 36 percent of the park. The fires provoked national controversy over the National Park Service's 'let it burn' natural fire management policy, which had been in place since 1972. The policy allowed naturally caused fires to burn without suppression. Congress held hearings, and the fires sparked intense public debate that led to changes in fire management policies. The fires, though devastating in appearance, ultimately spurred ecological renewal. Murphy's photograph became one of the defining images of the 1988 fire season.
← Explore all photos on the map
