Yellowstone Forever Announces Voices of Yellowstone: First Peoples Celebration & Cultural Tours

Yellowstone Forever Voices of Yellowstone

Teepees at Yellowstone's North Entrance in Gardiner

Weeklong Gardiner Event Aug. 2-8 Elevates Indigenous Voices Through Art, Music, Storytelling and Immersive Experiences in Yellowstone National Park

Voices of Yellowstone creates space for Tribal artists, educators and cultural leaders to share their own stories and perspectives.”

— Amanda Hagerty, Chief Program Officer at Yellowstone Forever

GARDINER, MT, UNITED STATES, July 30, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Yellowstone Forever, the official nonprofit partner of Yellowstone National Park, is proud to announce Voices of Yellowstone: First Peoples Celebration, taking place Aug. 2-8, 2026, in Gardiner, Montana. The weeklong gathering honors and celebrates the diverse cultures of the Indigenous Peoples of Yellowstone, past, present and future, through cultural tours, Native art, music, storytelling, traditional games and the nightly illumination of teepees at Yellowstone's North Entrance.

A centerpiece of the celebration is a series of five limited-capacity cultural tours inside Yellowstone National Park from Aug. 3-7. Each full-day experience departs from Yellowstone Forever headquarters at 9 a.m. and returns by 4 p.m. Tours are limited to just 12 participants and cost $99 per person, creating an intimate opportunity to learn directly from Indigenous educators, storytellers and cultural leaders while experiencing the park through perspectives that are rarely part of a traditional Yellowstone visit. All tours will also include an accompanying Yellowstone Forever field educator.

Mike Jetty, an enrolled member of the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation and a Turtle Mountain Chippewa descendant, will lead tours Aug. 3 and 4 focused on rediscovering the Indigenous histories of Yellowstone and the enduring relationships Tribal Nations have maintained with this landscape for more than 10,000 years. Chris La Tray, a citizen of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians and Montana Poet Laureate from 2023-2025, will lead tours Aug. 5 and 7 along Yellowstone's Northern Range exploring the original language of the land and reciprocal relationships with the natural world. On Aug. 6, Cheyenne River Lakota and Taino singer-songwriter Ryan Littleeagle will guide participants through the Northern Range while sharing Lakota stories.

“Voices of Yellowstone creates space for Tribal artists, educators and cultural leaders to share their own stories and perspectives,” said Amanda Hagerty, Chief Program Officer at Yellowstone Forever. “The cultural tours are a signature part of the week because they invite visitors to experience Yellowstone through Indigenous histories, languages and relationships to the land. With only 12 participants per tour, these are personal and meaningful days of learning that can transform the way people understand the park.”

The celebration opens Sunday, Aug. 2, with a Native Art Market at Yellowstone Forever headquarters, an opening ceremony at Arch Park and the first lighting of illuminated teepees at Yellowstone's North Entrance. Throughout the week, visitors can meet Indigenous artists and purchase original work, attend music and speaker programs, participate in traditional Native games and gather for a Gardiner-Mammoth community potluck. The Pretty Shield Foundation and Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council will present Legacy of Light, the evening illumination of the teepees, as a powerful tribute to Tribal presence, culture and connection.

Voices of Yellowstone is hosted by Yellowstone Forever in partnership with Yellowstone National Park and in collaboration with the Pretty Shield Foundation, Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council, and Gardiner Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center. Support from event sponsor glassybaby foundation helps make the celebration possible and elevates Tribal voices.

The event builds on Yellowstone Forever's commitment to helping visitors move beyond sightseeing and develop a deeper understanding of Yellowstone's ecological and cultural significance. By learning directly from Tribal artists, educators and knowledge keepers, participants are invited to see the park not only as a natural wonder, but as a living cultural landscape with enduring connections to Indigenous Peoples.

Cultural tour reservations are now open, and space is extremely limited. View the complete schedule and book a tour.

About Yellowstone Forever
Yellowstone Forever is the official nonprofit partner of Yellowstone National Park, dedicated to protecting, preserving, and enhancing the park through education and philanthropy. The organization connects people to Yellowstone through outstanding visitor experiences and educational programs while raising funds for priority projects that protect the park's ecosystem and wildlife, preserve its heritage, history, and trails, and enhance visitor education and engagement. Yellowstone Forever offers educational programs for visitors of all ages through the Yellowstone Forever Institute and operates educational Park Stores in and around Yellowstone National Park. Through these efforts, the organization supports enduring stewardship of one of the nation's most treasured natural landscapes. For more information, visit yellowstone.org or follow along on social media @ynpforever.

Blythe C Beaubien
Bigger Fish PR
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Voices of Yellowstone

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