Yellowstone — West Entrance Station

This camera watches the West Entrance of Yellowstone National Park at West Yellowstone, Montana — the busiest of the park's five gateways and the main road in toward the geyser basins. Yellowstone was the world's first national park, established in 1872, and sits atop one of the planet's largest active volcanic systems, which powers its 10,000 geothermal features. The view here captures the changing seasons at 6,600 feet on the park's western edge, along the Madison River corridor. Summer brings a steady stream of vehicles heading toward Old Faithful and the Grand Prismatic Spring. In winter the road closes to cars and the entrance becomes a hub for snowcoaches and snowmobiles, with deep snow and temperatures that routinely drop far below zero. Wildlife — bison, elk, and the occasional wolf or grizzly — moves through the Madison Valley year-round, most actively at dawn and dusk. Yellowstone is on Mountain Time, three hours behind Hawaii. West Yellowstone is the closest town to the geyser basins and the Lower, Midway, and Upper Geyser Basins. From here it's a short drive to Old Faithful, the Firehole River, and the wildlife-rich Hayden and Lamar Valleys — the "American Serengeti" — farther into the park.