All Yellowstone National Park roads except Dunraven Pass between Tower and Canyon are expected to be open by May 10. (Ruffin Prevost/Yellowstone Gate file photo)
From Staff Reports
Thanks to local funding from the community of Jackson, Wyo. to help assist in snow plowing operations, the South Entrance to Yellowstone National Park will open for the season Friday, May 10, as originally scheduled.
Beginning at 8 a.m. Friday, visitors will be able to travel through the South Entrance to Grant Village, West Thumb Junction and on to Fishing Bridge and across Craig Pass to Old Faithful.
In addition, National Park Service crews are clearing a section of US Highway 212 outside the park’s Northeast Entrance. The road from Cooke City, Mont., to the intersection with Wyoming Highway 296, the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway, will open May 10, weather permitting.
The section of the Beartooth Highway between the junction of US-212/WY-296 and the community of Red Lodge, Mont., is set to open on Friday, June 14.
After Friday, all interior roads in Yellowstone will be open for the season except for Dunraven Pass, connecting Canyon and Tower-Roosevelt. Dunraven Pass will open to travel May 24 in time for the Memorial Day holiday weekend.
Due to construction beginning May 28, there will be daytime delays of up to 30 minutes and nightly closures on the section of road between Tower-Roosevelt Junction and Chittenden Road.
Visitor services throughout the park are opening for the season. Operating dates and hours are available online at http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/ocd_locale.htm or by consulting the free park newspaper, provided to visitors at each entrance station.
Park officials advise that spring in Yellowstone is unpredictable and often brings cold temperatures, high winds and snow. Even cleared sections of roads can be narrow and covered with a layer of snow, ice and debris. Visitors should use caution when driving as road clearing operations can be ongoing at any time throughout the park. In the case of extreme weather conditions, temporary road closures are also possible with little or no advance warning.
Updated Yellowstone National Park road information is available 24 hours a day by calling 307-344-2117. Information on current conditions in the park is also available online at http://www.nps.gov/yell/conditions.htm.