Afternoon: check-in between 4 and 5 pm

Dinner: Catered welcome dinner on site.

Evening: orientation, introductions, get acquainted activity

Lodging: Yellowstone Lodge

Meals Included: Dinner

The Wonder of Yellowstone: When, where, how, what, who, why? Fire's role in the ecosystem and the National Smoke Jumper Center/Junior Smokejumper Program. Yellowstone's great mammals: grizzlies and wolves. Mountain Men.

Breakfast: Breakfast on site.

Morning: Intro to geology of the Yellowstone Caldera: molten rock, explosions, crater, hot spot, dome, steam vent, sulfide gas, mudpot, cone, earthquake! What's it all about? Pictures, kid friendly graphs, displays, hands-on. Mid morning break is structured large motor activity at city park. Overview continues with intro to Yellowstone's inhabitants from well known critters like mule deer, elk, bison, bears, bighorn sheep and wolves to lesser known, but equally wonderful, critters including golden mantled ground squirrels, ravens, pikas, pronghorn, marmots, otters and more. Who is predator; who is prey? Who lives out in the open? Who lives in the shelter of the forest and why? Who lives above tree line? Who lives next to the water or in it? Who lives on the cliff face? Fur, feathers, hair, scales; why? They eat that!!! What's scat? Owl pellets? What's in 'em? Grose! Discuss ethical behavior while in wildlife country. Find out how tracks tell a story. Begin working on your plaster cast of a paw print.

Lunch: Lunch at nearby restaurant.

Afternoon: Walk to nearby, historic Madison Ranger Station which houses the National Smoke Jumper Center. Generations will separate for age appropriate learning activities. Grandchildren will be involved with the Junior Smokejumper Program; learn about the history of smokejumpers, fire's role in the ecosystem, fire behavior and suppression. Handle tools and a parachute and try out some physical fitness activities. Grandparents will head another direction to consider fire's natural role in the ecosystem, the history of smokejumpers, fire behavior and fire suppression. Walk to Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center for naturalist-led tour to see grizzly bears and a wolf pack, up close. The Center's primary mission is to provide the opportunity to Yellowstone visitors to appreciate these creatures who have been removed from the wild due to their dangerous behavior. Finding out about their natural history and why they are in the Center teach an important lesson of how man needs to shoulder the responsibility of helping bears stay wild. Seeing and learning about wolves helps show how important wolves are in the Yellowstone ecosystem.

Dinner: Dinner at nearby restaurant.

Evening: Evening presentation: "Mountain Men and the Fur Trade Era." Mountain men were the first white visitors to the Yellowstone area; hear of great discoveries and tall tales.

Lodging: Yellowstone Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

A Day of Discovery in Yellowstone: A kayak adventure on the great lake, hiking the Upper Geyser Basin and wildlife viewing.

Breakfast: Breakfast on site.

Morning: Field trip into Yellowstone National Park for kayaking on Yellowstone Lake, North America's largest high elevation lake at 20 miles long, 14 miles wide and more than 390 feet deep at its deepest point. During travel to the Lake area, stop where road intersects caldera rim to view and talk about the "Great Caldera". Kayak instruction and safety meeting at the lake. Interpretation during kayaking includes Yellowstone fisheries, human activity in the lake region and current volcanic activity in Yellowstone Lake. Kayak about four hours.

Lunch: Picnic lunches on the lawn.

Afternoon: Continue kayaking adventure. Mid afternoon, travel to the Old Faithful area to hike its geyser basin to experience all four thermal features - geysers, mudpots, fumaroles and hot springs. See them, walk through and feel clouds of steam, smell sulfur, hear hissing fumaroles or steam vents and bubbling, plopping mudpots. Enjoy a wonderland of unique features, beautiful colors and spouting geysers. Find out about life forms in boiling water. Geyser Hill trails offer exploration of the Old Faithful area. Several moderate hikes (altogether about 2 1/2 miles) on boardwalks, stairs, trails, asphalt paths; the trail to Old Faithful Overlook is moderately steep and rocky.

Dinner: Dinner at Old Faithful Cafeteria.

Evening: Evening return to West Yellowstone. Review ethics of wildlife watching and enjoy this optimum opportunity for wildlife spotting or.....a nap.

Lodging: Yellowstone Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The Yellowstone Caldera: Hiking a hot spot, a mighty canyon, thundering falls and a great valley.

Breakfast: Breakfast on site.

Morning: Field day in Yellowstone National Park begins with expedition to Norris Geyser Basin and historic Norris Museum, built in 1929. Hear about the Park's most active thermal area then walk a basin trail to explore its hottest, most exposed region. Walk 1 to 1 1/2 miles on boardwalks, stairs and asphalt or gravel paths.

Lunch: Sack lunches in the Park.

Afternoon: Continuing eastward, and still within the caldera, exploration continues to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone where lovely pastel shades describe perpendicular canyon walls, beautifully tinted by hot water's action on volcanic rock. Learners of all ages gain a sense of the canyon's immensity at Lookout and Artist's Points. Hike down into canyon depths for a sensory "HELLO" - thundering noise, churning waters, cool mist, unique vegetation zone. At the foot of 308' Lower Falls, see and learn about the canyon's geology and flora. Hiking back to canyon rim, upriver to magnificent Upper Falls and across Chittenden Bridge includes a look at waterfowl, perhaps osprey and water ouzel. Exploration continues into Hayden Valley for wildlife viewing. Hikes at Mud Volcano and Sulphur Caldron areas offer a final, heady blast of "rotten egg" sulfur and further examination of thermal features. Hikes range from 1/2 to 1 1/2 miles on asphalt paths, trails, boardwalks and stairs.

Dinner: Catered dinner on site.

Evening: Evening presentation: the rare and seldom seen - mountain lion, fisher, mink, wolverine, lynx, bobcat and mountain fox. Look at furs, photographs and pictures; compare silhouettes and practice identification. Where do they live, what do they eat, why are they rare and seldom seen? Short video.

Lodging: Yellowstone Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The Yellowstone Caldera: Biking a riverside trail and horseback riding a forest trail

Breakfast: Breakfast on site.

Morning: Walk to biking headquarters for bike and helmet fit, instruction and safety talk. No experience necessary. Bike to trailhead. Two and 1/2 mile mountain bike ride on gently rolling trails that wind through tall stands of lodgepole pine and open meadows. Biking is on either the Rendezvous Trail system - West Yellowstone's training site for US Nordic and Biathlon Ski Teams - which encompasses 30 kilometers of trails OR, on nearby Riverside Trail which traces the original entrance into Yellowstone Park before threading along beautiful Madison River, one of the three headwaters of the Missouri River.

Lunch: Sack lunch on the lawn.

Afternoon: To trailride destination to meet your horse, find out about horse handling and tack. Together with mountain horses, beginner or experienced riders will enjoy a one-hour adventure on scenic forest trails. Riding quietly through prime wildlife habitat affords the opportunity to see deer, birds of prey, fox and other fur bearers that inhabit the Yellowstone area. PLEASE NOTE: Weight limit for horseback riding is 220 pounds. Closed-toed shoes; no sandals.

Dinner: Dinner at nearby restaurant.

Evening: "Talking Stick"

Lodging: Yellowstone Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast on site.

Morning: Your Yellowstone wrap-up brings the adventure to a meaningful conclusion. Finish discussion about how tracks and scat tell a story and put finishing touches on your plaster cast. Talk about other things that will be taken home - something that is invisible, that doesn't weigh anything; a thought, a feeling, a discovery. Time for goodbyes to new friends. Motel check-out.

Brunch: 11:00 a.m. catered brunch on site.

Afternoon: Airport shuttle departs at 11:30 a.m. Best to schedule return flights after 2:30 pm.

Meals Included: Breakfast, Brunch