One of the less glamorous aspects of working as a national park ranger includes cleaning trash out of some of the country’s most beautiful, sacred spaces.
With more than 4.5 million annual visitors, Yellowstone National Park rangers work constantly to remove litter from the park — especially its popular hydrothermal areas like the Old Faithful and Midway Geyser Basin.
Some items are the kind of trash that’s common everywhere: Food wrappers, tissues, and water bottles. But with unexpectedly high gusts commonly sweeping through the park, visitors may also lose more than they expect on a visit to the iconic geysers.
“No matter the type of debris, it needs to be removed,” an article by the United States Geological Survey explained. “Foreign material of any kind can damage or permanently alter a hydrothermal feature, whether from clogging its water supply, blocking or diverting its runoff channel, or polluting it with chemicals and sediment.”
In fact, the USGS continued, Morning Glory Pool in the Upper Geyser Basin famously changed its color in the twentieth century as a result of trash and items thrown in by visitors.
So far this year, Yellowstone’s geology team has removed more than 20,100 pieces of trash, along with over 5,000 rocks and sticks — and shockingly, 280 visitor hats — from the park’s geothermal areas.
“Favorites this year include a FIFA 2026 Men’s World Cup hat, a baseball cap with ‘COWBOY HAT’ on it, and a Roblox bucket hat from St. Kitts and Nevis,” the USGS reported of the hundreds of hats. “After the 2026 season is over, any re-wearable hats will be washed and donated to local organizations.”
While visitors would likely be bummed to lose a hat in the high winds of the park, there are other interesting items that park rangers see a lot of.
And that includes a lot of coins.
“Contrary to (apparently) popular belief, hot springs are not wishing wells! In addition to clogging hydrothermal feature vents, throwing in coins can harm bacterial and algal formations in hydrothermal areas, damage that can take months to years to undo,” the USGS stressed.
As of September 2026, Yellowstone staff have collected more than $18.00 in coins. Some are intentionally thrown into hot springs and geysers, while others may be accidentally dropped between boardwalk planks. Coins found this year also include other types of currency, including pesos, yen, euros, and Canadian dollars.
The most common items found in the park this year include:
- 54 camera lens caps
- 47 hair ties
- 17 baby pacifiers
- 20 hotel key cards
- 42 pencils
- 36 pairs of sunglasses
Items winning the title of most bizarre include Airpods, golf tees, an inhaler, six different Invisalign retainers, 15 fake nails, floss picks, and a lump of glittery slime, likely a children’s toy.
Plenty of other kids’ toys find their way into the park, like mini figures, bouncy balls, fidget spinners, and rubber ducks.
The USGS also listed some staff-favorite items, which included seven Polaroid photos — many depicting the hydrothermal feature they were found in — Yellowstone souvenir pennies, and Pokémon cards.
“The park’s Geology Program staff, trained in safe hydrothermal navigation, do the bulk of this removal work,” the USGS explained, “roving the park’s hydrothermal areas to take out trash, hats, rocks, sticks, and anything else that doesn’t belong — all in addition to their other work of chemical and temperature monitoring, hydrothermal area incident assessment, and public education.”
To make the work easier on park staff, visitors are encouraged to “stash their trash,” which includes stowing away any wrappers, paper items, or “other easily windblown items” deep in pockets, bags, or, ideally, trash cans.
And one final reminder from the USGS?
“If you’re adventuring in a windy area, consider tightening or taking off your hat.”
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Featured Image: Dietmar Rabich/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
