A bystander caught a family of tourists at Yellowstone National Park pushing their luck when they snuck off the designated trails to snap a vacation picture. 

The anonymous witness shared a snapshot of the scene on the Facebook page, Yellowstone National Park: Invasion of The Idiots!, where commenters flocked to the post to criticize the family. 

"Multi generational family off trail at Frying Pan Spring. One of the kids also spotted littering at Clearwater Springs just before this," the original poster shared. 

The OP's picture shows an elderly man taking a picture of three younger kids posed next to a small puddle of brownish water with visible bubbles. Vapor or mist fills the air, painting an even odder picture of the family standing beside the bubbling puddles of water. 

The family strayed from the designated path, climbed onto the hydrothermal mats, and posed next to potentially dangerous hydrothermal water. 

Although the Frying Pan Spring doesn't erupt regularly, posing less of a risk to spectators, other hot springs, like the Super Frying Pan Geyser, may erupt every three to six hours, with jets reaching up to 15 feet in height, according to the National Park Service. 

"Some kid died last year falling in a pool," one Facebook user commented. 

Aside from the immediate risks of climbing near these hot, sizzling puddles of water, this trespass can disrupt or cause irreversible harm to the microecosystems that exist in these environments. 

Thermophiles, for example, a bacteria that lives in naturally hot temperatures, help scientists better understand how these organisms thrive in extreme heat — an important area of study as rising global temperatures increasingly threaten life on Earth for both humans and wildlife. 

The next time you find yourself visiting natural habitats, remember to follow the Leave No Trace principles to protect and conserve these natural spaces, ensuring that future generations may be able to experience these places as you once did. 

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"Something beautiful always gets destroyed," one Facebook commenter wrote. 

"Can't they be punished for this?" one commenter asked. "Ban them from national parks."

"Nature almost got four for the price of one," a third user commented.

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