Yellowstone National Park will partially reopen next week after flooding caused damage to roads, buildings, and infrastructure in the park.
Officials from the park stated that visitors would be permitted to enter through the three southernmost entrances of the park starting Wednesday at 8 a.m. A license plate number system will limit entry.
“Thanks for the incredible efforts of our partners and teams, we are ready to reopen Yellowstone’s south loop. Cam Sholly, the park superintendent, stated in a press release that it is impossible to reopen just one loop during the summer without creating a system to manage visitor flow.
Officials stated that the park will restrict visitors to its site by using an alternate license plate system. Officials stated that vehicles may only enter the park on the odd days of the month if their final license plate number is odd. Even-numbered plates (including zero) may be entered on even days. For entry purposes, custom plates with all letters may be considered odd. People with reservations and commercial vehicles will not be permitted in.
They stated that park officials will refuse to accept vehicles that don’t comply with their rules.
Officials explained that the license plate system was designed to “ensure that the south loop is not overwhelmed by visitors” and to balance economic interests of nearby communities and park resource protection.
Sholly stated that while we have made great progress in a short time, there is still much to do.
Yellowstone’s main route is shaped like a figure 8. The northern loop, which includes Mammoth Hot Springs and the Lamar Valley, was hit the hardest.
Multiple roads in the northern loop were washed away. Some roads were blocked by downed trees and mudslides. Just outside the park’s northernmost entry, Gardiner, Mont. was shut off from the road for 24 hours. The drinking water infrastructure is still damaged.
Officials wrote that they expect this park area to remain closed for a significant length of time in an update posted on the park website.
The park’s southern loop will reopen Wednesday and includes some of its most iconic features, such as the Grand Prismatic Spring and Old Faithful Inn.
Yellowstone’s busiest time of year is summer. Yellowstone saw more than one million visitors in July 2021, making it the busiest month ever.
