Yellowstone National Park Visitor Centers ~ Yellowstone Up Close and Personal

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Yellowstone National Park Visitor Centers

Yellowstone National Park Visitor Centers
Albright	Junior Ranger Station	Old Faithful
Canyon	Madison	Ranger Programs
Fishing Bridge	National Park Ranger Museum	West Thumb
Grant	Norris Geyser Basin Museum	West Yellowstone Entrance

Albright Visitor Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2263	01 Jan -21 May 22 May - 30 Sep 01 Oct - 31 Dec	9:00 am - 5:00 pm 8:00 am - 7:00 pm 9:00 am - 5:00 pm	Mammoth Hot Springs - 5 miles from the North Entrance. Exhibits on wildlife and history; films on Yellowstone and the national park idea. The Albright Visitor Center and Museum (open seven days a week) will be closed on Thursday, November 11th for Veterans' Day and Thursday, November 25th for Thanksgiving. The visitor center (formerly bachelor officers' quarters) now houses a museum with its major theme being history: Native Americans (pre-1800), the mountain men (1807-1840), early exploration (1869-1871), the Army days, and early National Park Service. In early 1998, new exhibits with a predator-prey theme were installed upstairs. Of special note are the Moran Gallery where fine reproductions of watercolor sketches by the painter and expeditioner Thomas Moran are displayed and the Jackson Gallery where original photographs by William Henry Jackson, also of the 1871 Hayden Survey, are exhibited. There is a theater in the visitor center where Park Rangers show film and video presentations every half hour in summer and on request in winter. Films include The Challenge of Yellowstone(1979, 25 min) on the history of Yellowstone and the evolution of the national park idea and Thomas "Yellowstone" Moran (1997, 12 min) on Moran's contribution toward the establishment of Yellowstone National Park and are shown year-round and Yellowstone Today on orienting yourself to the wonders and activities Yellowstone has to offer during the summer (18 min). Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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Canyon Village Visitor Center - NPS Photo

Canyon Visitor Education Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2550	08 May - 28 May 29 May - 30 Sep	9:00 am - 5:00 pm 8:00 am - 8:00 pm	Located in the East central area of the park. Interactive exhibits about Yellowstone's super volcano and other aspects of its geology. A spectacular new film on the geology of Yellowstone: Land to Life reveals how powerful geologic forces from fire to ice have combined to create a unique landscape which supports an abundant variety of life. Enter the new Canyon Visitor Education Center and the world of Yellowstone's super volcano an idea that has captured the minds and imaginations of people around the world. For the first time, park visitors will see, hear, and learn how the Yellowstone volcano, its geysers and hot springs, and geologic history shape the distribution and abundance of all life found here. Explore these ideas through interactive exhibits, animations, audio-visual productions, and real-time scientific data. Also see Ranger Led Activities. The unique exhibits include: A spectacular new film on the geology of Yellowstone: Land to Life reveals how powerful geologic forces from fire to ice have combined to create a unique landscape which supports an abundant variety of life. A room-size relief model of Yellowstone that illuminates and narrates the parks volcanic eruptions, lava flows, glaciers, and earthquake faults for visitors on the first floor; from the second floor view, visitors can hear tribes associated with the park interpret the parks geology from their tribes perspective. A 9,000 pound rotating globe illustrating global volcanic hotspots. One of the worlds largest lava lamps illustrating how magma rises by heat convection. Computer-generated exhibits displaying real-time earthquake and other geologic data exactly at the same time it is being collected in the park. Murals and enlarged photographs showing the enormity of Yellowstone's glaciers and their lasting effect on the landscape. Detailed panoramas, dioramas, and cross sections of life in a lodge pole forest and a grassland habitats made possible by Yellowstone's fire and ice.

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Fishing Bridge Visitor Center - NPS Photo

Fishing Bridge Visitor Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2450	26 May - 30 Sep	8:00 am - 7:00 pm	Located in the northeast area of the park, one mile off the Grand Loop Road on the East Entrance Road. Built in 1931, it is a National Historic Landmark. Its distinctive stone-and-log architecture, known as "parkitecture," became a prototype for park buildings all around the country. The historic bird specimens (by Carl Russell) were installed in 1931, provide a good overview of the birds of Yellowstone. Other taxidermied animals include a grizzly sow and two cubs (formerly from the Canyon Visitor Center) and a family of river otters. Also see Ranger Led Activities. * Depends on snow conditions

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Grant Village Visitor Center - NPS Photo

Grant Village Visitor Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2650	26 May - 30 Sep	8:00 am - 7:00 pm	The Grant Visitor Center is located on the shore of Yellowstone Lake one mile off of the main park road at Grant Village Junction. The visitor center and development are named for President Ulysses S. Grant, eighteenth president of the United States, who signed the bill creating Yellowstone National Park on 01 March 1872. The facility was constructed during the 1970s and, along with the entire Grant development, was and is a controversial Yellowstone development due to its location in prime grizzly bear habitat (the area is the location of several major cutthroat trout spawning streams). The visitor center hosts an exhibit that interprets fire's role in the environment, using the fires of 1988 as the example. The movie Ten Years after Fire is shown on a regular schedule throughout the summer months. Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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Madison Information Station / Old Ranger Station - NPS Photo

Junior Ranger Station
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2821	29 May - 29 Aug	9:00 am - 6:00 pm	Located at the Madison Information Center. Yellowstone National Park has an official Junior Ranger Program open to children ages 5 - 12. The goal of the program is to introduce children to the natural wonders of Yellowstone and their role in preserving them for the future. For more information go to the Junior Ranger Page. Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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Madison Information Station
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2821	29 May - 30 Sep	9:00 am - 6:00 pm	The Madison Information Station dates from 1929-30 and is a National Historic Landmark. Located at Madison Junction in the Madison Picnic Area, it is built from wood and stone materials. The building sits near the site of the legendary campfire circle of the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition. Although no evidence can confirm the authenticity of this tale, the legend gives us a strong theme for discussion of the establishment of Yellowstone National Park. In previous years, this building has been used as a museum, has housed the Arts Yellowstone program, and has sat empty and abandoned. It began its new life as an information station and Yellowstone Association bookstore during the summer of 1995. The station contains only touch-table exhibits at present, but plans are underway to design and install orientation panels. A wayside exhibit just outside the building commemorates the "campfire story," and a commemorative plaque honors Stephen T. Mather. Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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Museum of the National Park Ranger / Old Soldiers Station - NPS Photo

Museum of the National Park Ranger
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
N/A	29 May - 26 Sep	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	This museum is housed in the Norris Soldier Station, located at the entrance to Norris Campground in the west central part of the park. This building was one of the original soldier stations, built in 1908, as an outlying station for soldiers on patrol. The building has been completely rebuilt, using original materials where possible and staying true to the original floor plan. The original building was taken down on site and rebuilt. Exhibits depict the development of the park ranger profession from its roots in the military traditions through early rangers and to the present array of NPS staff specialized duties. A small auditorium shows a laser-disc production of the 25-minute movie, "An American Legacy," which tells the story of the development of the National Park Service. The staffing is done primarily by retired National Park Service employees who volunteer for short periods of time. Many of these employees retired as superintendents, chief rangers, regional directors, and from various positions in the Washington office. For more information, click here.

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Norris Geyser Basin Museum Historic Building - NPS Photo

Norris Geyser Basin Museum
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2812	26 May - 30 Sep	9:00 am - 6:00 pm	The Norris Geyser Basin Museum is located 1/4 mile east of Norris Junction just off the Grand Loop Road. It was built in 1929-30, and is a National Historic Landmark. Its distinctive stone-and-log architecture became a prototype for park buildings throughout the country known as "parkitecture" (Fishing Bridge Museum and Madison Museum date from the same time period and are of the same style). New exhibits on geothermal geology, Norris Geyser Basin features, and life in thermal areas were installed in 1995. These exhibits replaced old ones from the 1960s with similar subject matter. There is no auditorium in this building, and it consists of two wings separated by an open-air breezeway. An information desk in the breezeway is staffed by National Park Service interpreters. Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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Old Faithful Visitor Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2750	16 April - 25 May 26 May - 30 Sep 01 Oct - 06 Nov 07 Nov - Close	9:00 am - 6:00 pm 8:00 am -7:00 pm 8:00 am - 5:00 pm	The visitor center is in temporary quarters near the Old Faithful Lodge. Please look for signs or ask for directions upon arrival in the area. Showing award-winning film about hydrothermal features. Geyser eruption predictions are posted on the wall behind the ranger information desk. Evening ranger-led programs are presented during the summer and the winter seasons, see Ranger Led Activities.

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West Thumb Information Station / Old Ranger Station - NPS Photo

West Thumb Information Station
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
N/A	26 May - 30 Sep	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	The historic West Thumb Information Station, located in West Thumb, serves as a meeting place for interpretive walks and talks during the summer season. During the winter, this facility serves as the West Thumb Warming Hut. Visitors can warm up, read interpretive exhibits on history and a variety of winter topics, and get their questions answered by an Interpretive staff person. Also see Ranger Led Activities.

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West Yellowstone Visitor Information Center
Phone	Dates	Hours	Location / Services / Information
307-344-2876	16 Apr - 28 May 29 May - 06 Sep 07 Sep - 07 Nov	8:00 am - 4:00 pm 8:00 am - 8:00 pm 8:00 am - 4:00 pm	West Yellowstone Chamber of Commerce Building. Yellowstone National Park information and ranger walks and talks.

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* Closing Dates are subject to change due to weather and staffing conditions.

Ranger Activities for Spring & Summer 2009
Bridge Bay	Lake	Ranger Hikes
Canyon	Madison	Star Talks
Fishing Bridge	Mammoth	Visitor Centers
Grant	Norris	West Thumb
Junior Ranger	Old Faithful	West Yellowstone

Yellowstone National Park

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