Sight · Yellowstone National Park
A brief, worthwhile stop at Yellowstone's stone north gateway.
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The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Yellowstone Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Yellowstone National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Yellowstone audio tourRecorded for this place
Roosevelt Arch“You're nearing Roosevelt Arch in Gardiner, the rough stone gateway at the North Entrance.”
Plays as you drive up to Roosevelt Arch in the Parkwolf Yellowstone Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“First time driving through a national park. We used the Yellowstone tour on grand loop Road and it’s just like having a tour guide in your car with you.”
Guide
Roosevelt Arch is the monumental stone gateway at Yellowstone's North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana. It's a quick stop to walk through, look at both sides, and read the stone tablets. This is still a working road, and vehicles pass through the opening.
The North Entrance is generally the only route open year-round to regular vehicles, so the arch is both a historic marker and the park's active front door.
The Northern Pacific reached Gardiner in 1903, and visitors changed from train to coach for the trip into Yellowstone. The arch faced the depot and gave that handoff a grand entrance. It still marks the change from town to park, even if most visitors now arrive by car.
The arch was built from nearby quarried basalt, left in rough blocks for a rugged look. Its two towers rise about 50 feet, with an opening roughly 20 feet wide and stone wings on either side. Up close, the small arched openings beside the main passage are easy to miss if you only photograph the front.
The arch was not first planned as a memorial to Theodore Roosevelt. He happened to be visiting during construction and was asked to speak; on April 24, 1903, he laid the cornerstone while work was still underway. Local Masons reportedly placed a time capsule during the dedication, said to hold a Bible, a Roosevelt portrait, Masonic papers, local newspapers, and coins.
One tablet carries the phrase “For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People”; others name Yellowstone and its creation by Congress on March 1, 1872. Walk around the arch and look back through its opening. Framing the road through it shows what the monument was built to do, and the carved panels reward a closer look. Keep clear of the traffic lane while you take it in.
Wildlife
713 sightingsGrizzly BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
743 sightingsWolfMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
5,273 sightingsBisonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
3,258 sightingsElkMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
397 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,494 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Yellowstone. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyAbandoned Railroad Bed Bike Trail8 mi · 3 hr · 0.4 mi awayA mellow old railbed with Electric Peak in view.
ChallengingYellowstone River Trail15.1 mi · 9 hr · 1.9 mi awayBasalt narrows, river bends, and a long backcountry crossing.
EasyBoiling River Trail1.3 mi · 45 min · 2.7 mi awayA level riverside path ends at the Gardner's geothermal inflow.
ModerateBeaver Ponds Trail5.8 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.9 mi awayPonds and open meadows in bear country above Mammoth.
ChallengingSepulcher Mountain Trail11.5 mi · 7 hr · 3.9 mi awayA strenuous loop earns wide views over Gardiner Basin.
ModerateClagett Butte–Snow Pass Loop4.9 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.9 mi awayA steep Mammoth loop linking Clagett Butte and Snow Pass.
ModerateMammoth Hot Springs Lower Terraces Trail1.8 mi · 1.3 hr · 3.9 mi awayWalk boardwalks past colorful travertine shelves that keep rebuilding.
EasyMammoth Hot Springs Upper Terrace Boardwalk Trail0.6 mi · 30 min · 4.2 mi awaySee changing hot spring colors from the upper boardwalk.
Store · At the trailheadYellowstone Forever Headquarters & Park StoreA handy gateway stop for maps, books, and park passes.
Lodging · 3.7 mi awayMammoth Hot Springs Hotel and CabinsHistoric Mammoth lodging, a remarkable wood map, and elk nearby.
Sight · 3.7 mi awayFort YellowstoneAn easy walk through the Army post that became park headquarters.
Visitor center · 3.7 mi awayAlbright Visitor CenterA practical Mammoth stop for trip planning and Fort Yellowstone history.
Store · 3.7 mi awayMammoth Hot Springs General StoreAn 1895 Mammoth shop for ice cream and park supplies.
Campground · 3.7 mi awayMammoth CampgroundA base where elk sometimes wander among the campsites.
Gas station · 3.8 mi awayMammoth Hot Springs Gas StationA practical fuel stop in Yellowstone’s Mammoth area.
Restroom · 3.8 mi awayMammoth Hot Springs RestroomsClean, accessible toilets with a family restroom.Parkwolf’s Yellowstone ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
