99% of Yellowstone National Park Is Now Accessible to Visitors As Flood Recovery Efforts Continue

Yellowstone National Park reopened its northeast entrance road for the first time since catastrophic flooding forced its closure.

The park reopened the Tower Junction to the Northeast Entrance in Cooke City/Silver Gate, MT, on Oct. 15 to vehicle traffic for the first time since the summer, according to the National Park Service. Nearly all flood-damaged parts of the road have now been paved after it suffered “significant damage” to about five sections, and no restrictions remain in place. 

With this opening, 99% of the park’s roads will be accessible to visitors.

“We are very pleased to be restoring public access to the northeast corridor just four months after the June flood event,” the park’s Superintendent Cam Sholly said in a statement. “I commend the collective efforts of the National Park Service, the Federal Highway Administration and Oftedal Construction, Inc. to complete this monumental task in such a short amount of time.”

The entrance had been closed since the park suffered a devastating flood in June, which saw several collapsed roads. The majority of Yellowstone reopened weeks later. 

While most damage has been mitigated, work continues on the road leading to the popular trailhead to Trout Lake. That work will continue for more than a week and visitors should “anticipate traffic control in the area and short delays to facilitate one-way traffic through this section.”

Additionally, “extensive work” will continue on the Old Gardiner Road, a limited-access road between Gardiner, MT, and Mammoth Hot Springs. The road will remain closed to regular traffic, but is expected to open no later than Nov. 1. 

One of the best times to visit Yellowstone — which was named the best national park in the United States by Travel + Leisure readers — is in winter when there are minimal crowds and the park turns into a playground for skiers and snowshoers.

Fall is also a great time for wildlife spotting in Yellowstone, especially when it comes to bear, elk, and raptors.