Yellowstone National Park reopening May

Yellowstone National Park to fully re-open thru May, weather permitting

The Yellowstone National Park entrances and roads that are not open year-round will re-open to the public throughout May. Find everything you need to know straight from park officials below.

Firstly, Yellowstone’s North Entrance (Gardiner, Montana) and Northeast Entrance (Silver Gate and Cooke City, Montana) are open year-round to all traffic with no restrictions. Both have seem complete repair after 2022’s historic Yellowstone Flood event.

Many park roads and entrances close public vehicle access each winter due to dangerous conditions, however. As the busy season kicks in throughout May, park roads will reopen in rollout fashion.

First up, the following Yellowstone National Park roads will reopen on Friday, May 5 at 8 AM:

  • Weather-permitting, the road from the East Entrance near Cody, Wyoming, to Fishing Bridge Junction (Sylvan Pass), and Canyon Village to Lake Village, will open Friday, May 5 at 8 a.m. to public motor vehicle traffic.

Then, the following roads will reopen on May 12 at 8 AM:

  • South Entrance to West Thumb
  • West Thumb to Lake Village
  • West Thumb to Old Faithful (Craig Pass)
  • Tower Junction to Tower Fall

The following will open May 26 at 8 AM:

  • Canyon Village to Tower Fall (Dunraven Pass)

As Yellowstone National Park roads reopen, officials ask that visitors please:

  • Anticipate temporary road closures near Sylvan Pass because of increased avalanche danger from recent snowfall and warm temperatures.
  • Watch for quickly changing weather conditions. Many areas of the park are still experiencing winter conditions and snow and ice may cover sections of road.
  • Stay informed about up-to-date road conditions in Yellowstone:
    • Visit Park Roads.
    • Call (307) 344-2117 for recorded information.
    • Receive Yellowstone road alerts on your mobile phone by texting “82190” to 888-777 (an automatic text reply will confirm receipt and provide instructions).
  • Come prepared. Services in the spring are limited. Visit Operating Hours & Seasons for area-specific season opening dates.
  • Stay at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves, and 25 yards from all other wildlife. Do not crowd or push wildlife. Due to a severe winter of above-average snowpack, wildlife such as bison, elk and moose are stressed and weak. Be mindful as they endure this hardest part of the year. Bison and elk often use roads as travel corridors when the snow is deep, and higher than usual snowbanks this year prevent them from easily moving off the road.

For additional details, please visit the park website at www.nps.gov/yell before each visit. You can also download the National Park Service App for offline help.

To plan the best trip to Yellowstone, see Outsider’s guides: