Travel

Showcasing The Wonders Of A Favorite American Park

Posted: 10/15/2010

From inside the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center, you can see the famous geyser and experience hands-on, interactive exhibits and a special area for kids to embark on their own exploration of Yellowstone.

(NAPSI) - Visitors to one of America's most time-honored vacation destinations--Yellowstone National Park--now have the opportunity to learn much more and broaden their exploration of the park.

The recently opened Old Faithful Visitor Education Center features new ways for people of all ages to appreciate this natural, national treasure: hands-on, interactive exhibits, a theater for viewing films about the park, and a special area for kids to embark on their own exploration.

Yellowstone National Park features more geysers and hot springs than the rest of the world combined. The best known of its geysers, Old Faithful, is one of the nation's most recognized landmarks. Ninety percent of Yellowstone visitors stop by to see Old Faithful.

At the Center, visitors can learn about the park's 10,000 geysers and other geothermal features. They can discover what makes a geyser erupt, what microscopic creatures thrive in the scalding-hot springs and how the park's fascinating volcanic past is visible today.

The Center's exhibits are designed to help visitors better understand the broader ecosystems and natural resources in the park, and why it is so important to protect them.

The Center was made possible through an extraordinary private/public partnership. Hundreds of individuals, foundations and corporations contributed to the Yellowstone Park Foundation's (YPF) successful $15 million capital campaign to build this new Center, including major corporate support from ConocoPhillips, Unilever, Toyota and Coca-Cola. These donations were matched by $12 million in federal funding.

A fundraising campaign was necessary because government funding only covers the park's basic infrastructure, staffing and day-to-day operating needs. Private contributions funded the development of exhibits and enabled the building to be large enough to house them. The Yellowstone Park Foundation is the official fundraising partner of Yellowstone National Park.

Since 1996, YPF has raised $60 million to support more than 200 projects in the park. Such projects help to make visits to the park safer, more inspiring and more enjoyable. Examples include hiking trail rehabilitation, wildlife research and educational programs. To learn more about the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center or to become a Friend of Yellowstone, visit www.ypf.org.

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