#ROADS YELLOWSTONE OPEN FULL#

The Yellowstone River Picnic Area will be enlarged to accommodate increased visitor use. New pullouts, paved parking areas, and dedicated route across the new bridge will increase access to trails, fishing and viewpoints. A new 1,285-foot-long, 175-foot-high steel girder bridge upstream will replace the existing 604-foot-long bridge to preserve year-round access to/from the Northeast Entrance and communities of Silver Gate and Cooke City, Montana. Improvements: This project includes the replacement of the structurally deficient Yellowstone River Bridge built in 1963. Visit the Backcountry Situation Report for details. Hiking trails in the area may temporarily close during the duration of the project. The Northeast Entrance Road is open year-round to wheeled vehicles.

Location: Near Tower Junction along the Northeast Entrance RoadĪccess: Beginning summer 2023 until fall 2026, expect occasional and short traffic delays. This project costs $43 million and is funded through the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund. Additionally, guardrails, culverts and other drainage structures will be replaced to enhance visitor safety.

#ROADS YELLOWSTONE OPEN FULL#

Construction will include repaving the full 30-foot-wide roadway segment, which was last repaved in 1987 and has deteriorated due to heavy usage and winter weather conditions. Improvements: This project includes the rehabilitation of 22 miles of the Grand Loop Road between Old Faithful and West Thumb, one of the most heavily traveled road corridors in the park. Location: Grand Loop Road between Old Faithful and West ThumbĪccess: Beginning summer 2023 until fall 2023, expect up to 30-minute delays along this segment of road while roads are open to wheeled vehicles (May-Oct.31). The project includes additional parking and viewing opportunities. The project costs $31 million and is funded through the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund. Improvements: The project includes the removal and replacement of the Lewis River Bridge. The existing bridge will be removed, and a new bridge will be constructed immediately downstream. Nearby pullouts and the trail to Lewis River Falls will be closed during construction. Location: Nearly 10 miles north of the South Entrance on the South Entrance RoadĪccess: Beginning summer 2023 until fall 2024, expect up to 20-minute delays while roads are open to wheeled vehicles (May-Oct.31). To further Yellowstone's investing in infrastructure strategic priority, the park is committed to developing a cogent deferred maintenance reduction plan, improving the quality of data and prioritization processes, and taking better advantage of current and future funding to improve asset conditions and protect investments. The park also has an estimated $54 million in annual routine maintenance requirements. Yellowstone has an asset inventory totaling $4.1 billion, with an estimated $1 billion in deferred maintenance and repairs associated with this inventory. Otherwise, impacts to visitors would have occurred over four to five years.Īddressing the maintenance backlog is part of the National Park Service’s core mission to preserve national parks and provide a world-class visitor experience. The National Park Service (NPS) began the Old Faithful to West Thumb and Lewis River Bridge project simultaneously in 2022 to complete both projects in a three-year window. Both road corridors were repaired after last year's historic flood event. The park's North Entrance (Gardiner, Montana) and Northeast Entrance (Silver Gate and Cooke City, Montana) are open to all traffic with no restrictions. It’s important that visitors plan accordingly for these delays located along the park’s southern and northern road corridors. All four projects will cause delays (Lewis River Bridge, Old Faithful to West Thumb, Yellowstone River Bridge and Northeast Entrance Road). It takes many hours to drive between these entrances, so be sure to check the status of roads at the entrance you intend to use while planning your trip and before you arrive.MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – There will be four major road improvement projects in Yellowstone National Park in 2023. Yellowstone has five entrance stations, and several are closed to regular vehicles during winter. Yellowstone National Park covers nearly 3,500 square miles in the northwest corner of Wyoming (3% of the park is in Montana and 1% is in Idaho).

Yellowstone Non-Commercially Guided Snowmobile Access Program.

Yellowstone National Park Fishing Permit.

Yellowstone National Park Backcountry Permits.

Today, millions of people come here each year to camp, hike, and enjoy the majesty of the park. On March 1, 1872, Yellowstone became the first national park for all to enjoy the unique hydrothermal wonders.

Roads yellowstone open