Madison Information

Once we returned to Yellowstone in the early afternoon we stopped by the Madison Information Station.  It is actually the first place you can stop at when entering the park from the west, but I had skipped by several days before because I wanted to get to Old Faithful Inn in plenty of time.

It turns out that we need not have waited, there isn't much to the information station.  It is definitely the smallest of the centers, nowhere near the level of a regular visitor center.  However they do have information about the junior ranger program, so if you have kids you definitely should stop by and check it out.

I think the rock and log work quite well together in the building structure.

National Park Mountain is also worth seeing--it is visible from a distance away as you first start walking towards the center.

National Park Mountain was formed from a rhyolitic lava flow--magma that was pushed up as a result of the volcanic caldera collapsing.  The face is lava that flowed out creating a 500 to 1000 foot thick ridge that stretches to the south west.  It is 800 feet above the Madison River, and 7500 feet in elevation.--Madison Information center signage

One longstanding Yellowstone myth (it is featured in the Yellowstone IMAX film) says that near this place one of the early expeditions discussed the idea of a national park.  However, the park service believes this apocryphal.

The mountain is actually part of the lava flows that encircle the Madison Junction area. Near this site, in 1870, the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition is said to have camped and discussed the future of the region they were exploring. Legend has it that this was where the idea of the national park was discussed. It should be noted that there is no evidence of the campfire conversation ever taking place, and there is certainly no evidence to show that the idea of a national park was discussed.--NPS Yellowstone website, Madison area section

~Matt