Important Travel Information.

Yellowstone flood recovery update: Bicycle, hiking & fishing access between Tower Junction and Slough Creek starts July 21; Slough Creek reopens to limited day use; Day-use visitor reservation system pending for vehicle traffic to Slough Creek (Flood Recovery and Operations - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) for more details)

Yellowstone National Park will reopen the south loop beginning Wednesday, June 22 at 8 a.m. The south loop includes the East (Cody), South (Grand Teton/Jackson) and West (West Yellowstone, MT) entrances, while the north loop will remain closed for the season.

PUBLIC ENTRY ALTERNATING LICENSE PLATE SYSTEM

To balance the demand for visitor access and park resource protection Yellowstone National Park will institute an interim visitor access plan.

· Public vehicle entry will be allowed based on whether the last numerical digit on a license plate is odd or even.

· Entrance will be granted based on odd/even days on the calendar.

· Odd-numbered last digits on license plates can enter on odd days of the month.

· Even-numbered last digits (including zero) on license plates can enter on even days of the month.

· Personalized plates (all letters, for example YLWSTNE) will fall into the “odd” category for entrance purposes.

· Plates with a mix of letters and numbers but that end with a letter (for example YELL4EVR) will still use the last numerical digit on the plate to determine entrance days.

· Entrance station staff will turn away vehicles attempting to enter the park when the odd/even numerical digits do not correspond to the odd/even calendar date for entrance.

Exceptions:

· Current commercial use operators with active commercial use permits will be permitted to enter regardless of license plate number. This includes commercial tours and stock groups.  (This is a great way for visitors to enter the park for day use who otherwise could not enter if their license plate does not match the day they want to visit.  We are working to put a list together that includes all CUA’s (Commercial Use Authorizations permit holders) and will email that list to you when we have it.)

· Visitors with proof of overnight reservations in the park will be permitted to enter regardless of license plate number. This includes hotels, campgrounds, and backcountry reservations.

· Commercial motorcoaches will be permitted to enter regardless of license plate number.

· Motorcycle groups may enter on even dates only.

· Essential services like mail and delivery, employees and contractors may enter regardless of license plate number.

The interim license plate system will ensure that visitors have access to the park during this period of high demand. Park managers and staff will monitor the license plate system and impacts on resources, infrastructure, operations, and staffing, and may adjust or implement a reservation or timed entry system, if necessary, after three to four weeks.  

· More information on the alternating license plate system can be found here.

All entrances into Yellowstone National Park remain closed until Wednesday, June 22. Parts of US-14, US-16, US-20, US-89, US-191, US-212 and US-287 are also closed. Visitors planning on coming to Yellowstone in the upcoming weeks should pay close attention to the status of road conditions, as many roads around and within the park may remain closed for an extended period of time. Stay informed about road status and weather conditions here.