The breathtaking beauty of Yellowstone National Park and its stunning hydrothermal features may have you exclaim: "Hold on to your hats!"

The U.S. Geological Survey asks you to take that literally.

The park draws over 4 million visitors a year, with the vast thermal pools and hot springs among the most popular attractions.

But the rugged and sweeping terrain leads to consistently gusty winds, and that in turn leads to "a near-constant stream of trash and hats being blown into the delicate hydrothermal areas," the USGS said in a social media post highlighting the work of their Yellowstone Geology Program.

To reach the debris, which is often literally floating in boiling water, the USGS says the team uses a collection of tools — some of which they've built themselves.

"From 2-foot

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