MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Halloween will be the last day park visitors will be able to drive through most of the roads in Yellowstone National Park, the National Park Service announced on Tuesday.
They noted that the West, South and East entrances to the park, plus nearly all of its roads, will be closed to regular traffic starting on Nov. 1 until Dec. 15.
Roads that will remain open during this time run between the North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana, and the Northeast Entrance in Cooke City/Silver Gate, Montana.
The hiatus is part of the park’s annual road closures during this time of year, allowing park officials to prepare the roads for the winter season, along with snowmobile and snowcoach travel, the NPS said.
NPS officials advise visitors planning to drive in the park this fall and winter to do the following:
While this closure is an annual occurrence each fall, Yellowstone has closed all of its entrances due to inclement weather.
YELLOWSTONE’S HISTORIC FLOODS ONE YEAR LATER
In June 2022, rapid snowmelt and heavy rain caused historic flooding, rockslides and mudslides to flow across a number of roads. Some areas received at least 3 inches of rain, while others saw 6 inches or more.
Combined with the rapid snowmelt, the rainfall caused the Yellowstone River to reach levels not seen in over a century