The Big Wolf Great Hall contains a lean-to and the glacial ice wall and is the site for the center's live animal encounters.

Other exhibit areas include the Flammer Panoramas Theater where films are screened, and Planet Adirondacks, an installation of the NOAA's Science on a Sphere with shows focusing on the relationship between the Adirondacks and the rest of the Earth.

High definition films in a wide-screen theater explore the region and showcase fascinating reports from field scientists researching everything from moose to loons to alpine summits.

[3] The center plays a role in a range of Adirondack projects, sponsoring a community maple sugar operation, sponsoring an annual youth summit that brings college and high school students together to research climate impacts and develop campus action plans.

The building and the exhibits were designed by The Office of Charles P. Reay with Fish Partners and the St. Louis architectural firm HOK.