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Yellowstone road opens for ‘spring bicycling’ season

A bicyclist rides past freshly plowed snow along the road between Norris and Canyon Village in this 2012 file photo.

Bicyclists willing to brave the unpredictable elements of spring in Yellowstone National Park can now travel 49 miles of newly plowed park roads from the West Entrance at West Yellowstone, Mont., to Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyo. 
There is no bicycle access to Old Faithful or Canyon until the first interior park roads open to public motorized vehicle access on Friday, April 21. 
A bicycle trip into Yellowstone this time of year is not to be undertaken lightly. The quickly changing weather can be challenging. Snow and ice may still cover sections of road. Tall snow banks may line roads and pullouts be may be snow packed. 
Bicyclists are required to ride single file and follow all other rules of the road. Cyclists should expect to encounter and yield to snowplows or other motorized vehicles operated by park employees or construction workers traveling in conjunction with park operations. 
Bicyclists should be prepared to encounter bears, bison, elk, wolves, and other wildlife at any time. Continue Reading →

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Grand Teton road opens to bicyclists

Grand Teton National Park’s Teton Park Road between the Taggart Lake Trailhead and Signal Mountain Lodge has been cleared of snow and is now open to non-motorized recreational uses such as walking, bicycling, and rollerblading. Recreationists should be alert for park vehicles that periodically travel this roadway for administrative purposes as spring opening operations continue. Road crews may be clearing auxiliary roads and wayside areas, and visitors are cautioned to keep a safe distance from rotary plows and other heavy equipment. Recreationists are cautioned that snow and ice may persist on some sections of the roadway creating slick conditions. Dogs are permitted on the Teton Park Road, according to a statement released by the park’s public affairs office. Continue Reading →

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Winter activities in full swing in Yellowstone, Grand Teton

A visitor to Yellowstone National Park stops to take in the snowy view.

A fresh layer of snow and colder temperatures have put winter activities in full swing in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, with a wide range of travel and recreation options available. Visitors to Yellowstone National Park can travel the park’s interior roads on commercially guided snowmobiles and snowcoaches from the North, West, and South Entrances. Visitors who have proper permits can also participate in the Non-commercially Guided Snowmobile Access Program. Travel through the park’s East Entrance over Sylvan Pass is scheduled to begin December 22. Continue Reading →

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Yellowstone starts nightly closure of part of grand loop road

A portion of the Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Park will be closed each night beginning Monday, July 27. The 5.4 mile closure will prevent through-travel between Norris Geyser Basin and Mammoth Hot Springs from 11 p.m. until 7 a.m. each night. The closure is part of a multi-year road improvement project on a 16-mile stretch of road, with this year marking the final phase of the project. Nightly closures will be in effect seven days a week for the section of road just north of the entrance to the Norris Campground to the Moose Exhibit turnaround in the Willow Park area, just south of the Indian Creek Campground eight miles south of Mammoth Hot Springs. Both campgrounds will remain open and accessible 24 hours a day, according to a statement released by the park’s public affairs office. Continue Reading →

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Yellowstone road at Craig Pass opens Thursday

Auto travel will resume June 11 across Isa Lake atop Craig Pass, between West Thumb and Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone National Park visitors will be able to travel between West Thumb Junction and Old Faithful when the last stretch of park road over Craig Pass opens for the season at 7 a.m. Thursday. Construction crews removed an almost 75-year-old bridge over Isa Lake on Craig Pass, replacing it with a new bridge and widening the road to handle the current volume of traffic. Continue Reading →

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Tourism insiders expect strong summer as Yellowstone’s East Gate set to open Friday

With the East Gate to Yellowstone National Park scheduled to open Friday, tourism industry insiders are reporting strong advance bookings in anticipation of a solid summer travel season. Positive economic indicators like fall unemployment rates and the potential for low- and middle-income wage growth may be contributing to the optimistic travel outlook, along with gasoline prices that remain well below where they have typically been in recent years. Continue Reading →

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Spring snow plowing set to start in Grand Teton

Road plowing along Teton Park Road in Grand Teton National Park is set to begin April 1. (NPS photo - click to enlarge)

On Monday, March 23, 2015 Grand Teton National Park road crews will begin their annual spring plowing of the Teton Park Road from Taggart Lake parking area to Signal Mountain Lodge. As plowing operations get underway, recreation on this winter trail will cease for the season. Visitors may continue to use other winter trails, and/or areas adjacent to the Teton Park Road, for skate-skiing, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing until conditions are no longer favorable. Snow removal will also begin on the Moose-Wilson Road, once work is concluded on the Teton Park Road Continue Reading →

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Winter travel season winding down in Yellowstone

Two people share a snowmobile during a January 2012 trip into Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone National Park’s winter season is drawing to a close. Park roads that serve snowmobile and snow coach travel to iconic Yellowstone locations will be closed in stages beginning Sunday, March 1. The road from the park’s East Entrance over Sylvan Pass and oversnow travel south into the park from Mammoth Hot Springs will end at 9:00 p.m. Sunday. Closures on other road segments will occur during the next two weeks, with all oversnow travel scheduled to end for the season at 9:00 p.m. Sunday, March 15. Continue Reading →

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Grand Teton set for seasonal road closures

Grand Teton National Park will close some of its roads to seasonal travel in preparation for winter.

Residents of Jackson, Wyo. and park visitors are reminded that two roads within Grand Teton National Park will close to vehicle traffic for the season on the evening of Friday, October 31, 2014. These seasonal closures include the length of the Teton Park Road between Taggart Lake parking area and Signal Mountain Lodge parking lot, as well as the Moose-Wilson Road between Granite Canyon and Death Canyon trailheads. In addition to the annual road closures, the Moose, Moran and Granite Canyon entrance stations will be temporarily closed for the month of November and early December. They are scheduled to reopen on December 15 for the winter season. Continue Reading →

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