Cradled beneath Grandfather Mountain’s iconic crest is a haven for some of the High Country’s smallest inhabitants. Salamanders slip beneath shady underbrush; earthworms wriggle in the dark, loamy earth; and bumblebees dart between vibrant native blooms.

At Yonni’s Clubhouse, a hands-on educational play-space that opened in April, children immerse themselves directly into Grandfather Mountain’s diverse habitats. A sunny pollinator garden welcomes bees and butterflies, and a three-sided window nook extending into the garden lets young explorers pop out at ground level amidst tangles of coneflowers and milkweed. “Kids can crawl into that space and really imagine that they’re a bug or a rabbit hopping through the garden and see it from a different perspective,” says John Caveny, vice president of conservation and education.

Adjacent to the pollinator room, the clubhouse serves as an interactive gathering space for the junior naturalist program. photograph by SKIP SICKLER/GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN STEWARDSHIP FOUNDATION

Built to inspire the park’s youngest naturalists, Yonni’s Clubhouse is the newest addition to Grandfather Mountain’s Conservation Campus and included with admission to the park. From a microscope station where visitors can study specimens to the drawing nook for sketching field observations, the center’s offerings help forge connections between the exhibits and the natural world, pulling lessons directly from the living landscape just beyond the clubhouse doors. 

“As we were creating the space, we wanted to make sure children could learn inside, then take it and apply it outside and vice versa,” Caveny says. “The inside-outside component is the anchor of the clubhouse.”

To guide this exploration, visitors can search for Yonni, a gray Yonahlossee salamander, depicted across trailhead signs and clubhouse murals. Found exclusively in the southern Blue Ridge Mountains, the local species serves as the center’s namesake and mascot. “Yonni is present in our junior naturalist book that leads participants on a tour throughout the entire mountain,” Caveny says.

Across the clubhouse, Yonni guides visitors through lessons on weather, climate, and ecosystems. photograph by SKIP SICKLER/GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN STEWARDSHIP FOUNDATION

Inside, the region’s diverse habitat comes to life across the clubhouse’s back wall, where a sprawling Four Seasons mural invites visitors to pause and identify blooming wildflowers and camouflaged salamanders on the forest floor. Towards the top, the understory gives way to a Carolina-blue sky as the mural sweeps onto the ceiling, showcasing silhouettes of the very raptors that circle Grandfather Mountain’s rugged peaks. “Those are all things that are found here on the mountain, so kids can learn about them inside then go out in nature and look for them in the park,” Caveny says.

Yonni’s Clubhouse grew from the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation’s mission to give younger visitors a space of their own in the park. Complementing the nearby Wilson Center for Nature Discovery, the project was supported by Stewart and Martha Gray, who provided a major gift to the center. Stewart, a dedicated education volunteer, believed in the need for an experience completely tailored to children ages five to 12. The couple helped bring to life the interactive, creative space.

The experience spills out onto the clubhouse’s spacious covered porch and Discovery Trail, where interactive exhibits line a winding forested loop leading visitors back to the pollinator garden. Rather than written signs, the trail features hand-cranked speaker boxes that generate electricity to play educational messages, making outdoor exhibits accessible to all ages.

Young visitors to Grandfather Mountain often make Yonni’s Clubhouse a return destination. “It’s a testament to the space that kids will beg their parents to let them come back and play,” Caveny says. This immediate success is only the beginning as the park is already looking to adapt exhibits, creating new learning opportunities for returning visitors.

With its focus on environmental stewardship, Caveny hopes children feel empowered to protect the natural world well beyond the mountaintop. “The end goal is to inspire kids to get outside and learn more about natural resources, not just at Grandfather, but back home as well,” Caveny says. “We really hope that this space is not only a fun place for kids to learn and play, but also helps create the next generation of naturalists and champions for conservation.”

Yonni’s Clubhouse at Grandfather Mountain
2050 Blowing Rock Highway
Linville, NC 28646
(828) 733-2013
grandfather.com/yonnis-clubhouse