The Last Hurrah at Yellowstone

Yellowstone National Park managers warn those coming for Labor Day, that the seasonal shut down will be just getting underway.

All campgrounds, lodging, stores, shops, service stations, restaurants, and other services and activities in and around the Yellowstone National Park will be open for the start of the Labor Day weekend.

Visitors can expect campgrounds and lodging in and around the park to fill very early in the day. Advance reservations are highly recommended. Visitor should plan to arrive early at campgrounds that do not take reservations. The current status of available camping and lodging in the park is available by calling (307) 344-2114.

Visitors should come prepared for a wide range of weather conditions, with daytime temperatures in the 60s F on Saturday dropping to around 50 degrees F on Labor Day. With showers or thunderstorms in the forecast as well as overnight lows approaching freezing, holiday weekend visitors should also pack a raincoat and a warm jacket.

Some visitor services begin to close for the season starting Sunday, August 31. Details are available in the park newspaper handed out at entrance stations, from the staff at visitor centers and information stations in and near the park, or online at http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/index.htm.

The road linking Old Faithful with West Thumb and Grant Village will be closed for the season starting 6 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 2, so the bridge at Isa Lake can be removed and replaced.

In addition, the road from Mammoth Hot Springs to Norris will be closed due to construction from 11 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 14, until 7 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30.

Despite these closures, visitors can still travel from any park entrance to any location in the park, or travel between any two points in the park.

For instance, visitors can still travel between the South Entrance and Old Faithful; they just need to allow a couple more hours of travel time to take the detour through Fishing Bridge Junction and Canyon Village.

In fact, with careful planning, those traveling from North to South or East to West through Yellowstone should experience limited impacts to their travel times.

Before making any changes to current plans, visitors should consult a road atlas, their favorite online road map application, or the Official Park Map, to see that they can still travel between all major destinations in the park despite the road closures.