September is a magnificent month in Yellowstone Country. As carloads of summer visitors depart, the true Yellowstone adventure-seekers start to appear. It’s that perfect blend of warm, sunny days with crisp, cool nights. It’s the time of year when a palette of colors emerges with golden meadows, indigo rivers, pale blue skies, and charcoal mountains.
It’s also the time when feisty trout challenge every fisherman, novice or pro, and the lakes are perfect for kayaking and boating. Bikes and kayaks adorn every other passing vehicle. As traffic winds down, pedal-powered people take over the roads. Reserve your spot for the annual Old Faithful Cycle Tour. It’s perfect cycle event for family and friends through Yellowstone’s best biking season.
   September heralds the beginning of  the annual elk mating season where huge bull elk battle for their harems with eerie echoing bugles across wide valleys. Yellowstone Park is at its best for scenery and wildlife watching.  Cooler fall temperatures create spectacular photo opportunities at Old Faithful and other geysers in Yellowstone Park as thermals send out billowing clouds of steam into the fall air.
   Don’t waste a single Fall day this year! Make plans to get outdoors to take the hike you promised yourself you would do all summer, but haven’t. Rent a kayak and paddle along on Hebgen Lake. Spend a quiet evening listening to the Madison River elk bulls bugling just a few miles in from Yellowstone’s west entrance.
   This fall’s fishing is some of the best of the year thanks to a cool summer and plentiful rain. Pick a blue-ribbon trout stream and spend a sunny afternoon pursuing the trout as being their annual upstream fall migration. Stop by one of the local fly fishing shops to found the latest hot spot or best tied flies.  (West Yellowstone was just named one of the “Top Ten Trout-Fishing Towns in North America!”)
     Fall is also the best time to get kids off the couch and into the outdoors. Take advantage of the Junior Smoke Jumper and Yellowstone Junior Ranger Programs to get kids active and involved. If visiting the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone (a natural sanctuary for wolves and bears), don’t miss the two new wolf pups or the chance to be a “Keeper Kid!” (Call the GWDC at 406-646-7001 for more information.)

•    The Junior Smoke Jumper Program for Kids-
 Meet a real smokejumper, learn about smokejumping, and become an official Junior Smokejumper with hands-on activities covering fire suppression, fire training, fire tools, parachute techniques, and plant identification.
This free program is open to children ages 6-12years, Monday-Saturday (through September). Located on Dunraven Street in West Yellowstone, sign up begins at 8:30 a.m., program starts at 9:00 a.m. Contact: (406) 646-7209.

•    Free Yellowstone Interpretive Ranger Talks:
Explore Yellowstone! Morning Talks daily (through September) at 9:30 AM at the West Yellowstone Visitor Center where rangers offer ideas on how to spend your time in Yellowstone.
   Afternoon Talks in West Yellowstone (September 8-30th) where a ranger will present a talk on a captivating aspect of Yellowstone’s natural or cultural history. The Yellowstone Historic Center Museum is located at the corner of Yellowstone Avenue and Canyon Street. The Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center is located at 201 South Canyon Street. Talks are free and open to the public.

•    Learn to Kayak!
Nothing compares to paddling silently along the shoreline of a beautiful mountain lake! See wildlife and mountain landscapes from the unique perspective that being on the water provides. Rent a kayak or take a lesson from local experts. . Contact:  (406) 646-7701 for more information.

•    West Yellowstone to Old Faithful Cycle Tour-
This bicycle tour, from West Yellowstone to Old Faithful and back, is 60 miles long. It's a terrific way to wind up a summer of riding and, again this year, a portion of the proceeds from the ride will be donated to the Yellowstone Park Foundation.
Gather your family and friends together!  Feed stations at Madison Junction and Old Faithful will keep your engines fueled while you provide the power. Ride all the way, or just until you're tuckered. A Ranger-led tour at Old Faithful, T-shirts, shuttles and dinner round out a great day. Registration is limited. Contact: (406) 599-4465 www.cycleyellowstone.com.

•    September 27th Ken Burns Premiere at the West Yellowstone Visitor Center
Join Yellowstone visitors and local folks as we all watch the first episode of Ken Burn’s Premiere of “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea” at the West Yellowstone Visitor Center,  30 Yellowstone Avenue. This first episode of the 12-hour, six-episode series will focus on Yellowstone National Park. Filmed over six years, the program includes more than 50 interviews as well as footage from the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone,  and Acadia National Parks.  Contact:  (406) 646-7701