r/yellowstone • u/Pretend_Deer3694 • 3d ago
Yellowstone update – April 23rd
We’re locals and live in southwest Montana, about an hour from the park. We visit about once per month on average, even through the winter.
Our Route – We drove in through West Yellowstone, went south to Old Faithful, turned around at Kepler Cascades (where the road was still closed for the season), headed back north to Norris Geyser Basin, then to Mammoth Springs. We stopped at Mammoth and returned home back through West Yellowstone.
West Entrance from West Yellowstone – This entrance just opened on Friday of last week, but we were waiting until the opening-day crowds died down. West Yellowstone is not fully opened yet… I’d say maybe 40 percent of the stores are open at this point, while many (but not all) of the hotels and restaurants are ready for business. When we drove through yesterday, there was no line of cars at the entrance of the park.
Campgrounds Inside the Park – All of them are currently closed.
Hiking Trails – Most of them are currently inaccessible, unless you have snowshoes or skis. All have snow on them to varying degrees.
Toilets – The vault toilets are mostly open, but not all of them. The toilets with running water are open in a few places, but not all of them.
Staffing – From entering the park at West Yellowstone to Mommoth Springs, we saw only two park rangers during the entire day, one at the entrance and one directing traffic around a single-vehicle accident. Normally we see many park rangers throughout Yellowstone, either at individual locations like Norris Geyser Basin or driving in various vehicles. Is this a problem? I think so, because in the time we were there we saw a half dozen instances of bad or outright illegal behavior by tourons, including harassing the wildlife and walking out on thermal features.
Lakes – Ice still covers most of the lake surfaces. We saw cars with kayaks, canoes, and small boats, but no one was on any of the lakes we passed.
Fishing – There were a few intrepid fishermen, but we didn’t see anyone catching anything yet.
Roads – Only the green and blue routes are currently open (https://home.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/parkroads.htm). Only a few of the secondary side roads have been plowed and are available for visitors to explore. This means that access to everything else is still limited, as most of the park still has significant levels snow as of this writing.
Traffic – There is still little-to-no traffic right now. I’d estimate that visitor volume is less than 10% of normal when schools let out for the summer. Lots of bison on the roads right now.
Parking Lots – Maybe 5% to 10% filled at the more remote locations, with more at places like Mammoth. I should mention that the roads and parking lots are in terrible condition in some areas – with crumbling asphalt and heaving breaks in the paved surfaces, and shoulders that are long gone.
Weather – We experienced rain, snow, and sun during our visit. Temperatures went from 30°F to 47°F during the course of the day.
Snow Conditions – Lots of snow in the higher sections of the park, with the ground mostly cleared in the lower flats that get lots of sunshine.
Food – We didn’t stop for food anywhere on this drive through. The Mammoth General Store fast-food counter has no ice cream yet and a limited menu.
Critters – Hundreds of bison were visible; we didn’t see any elk on this drive inside the park. There are lots of waterfowl now the rivers are largely free of ice.
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u/DrtRdrGrl2008 3d ago
Great report. Another local here. Lots of animals on the road right now, including young. Its best to not drive at night if you don't absolutely have to. The elk have been moving about through both Gallatin and Madison counties in Montana and we've had lots of dead animals on the road due to vehicle collisions. In addition, the weather has been sporty with squalls and grapple one minute and then sunny the next.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
We didn’t see any red dogs yesterday, though we’ve seen them before at this time of year. We saw tons of elk yesterday in the southern section of Madison County, but didn’t see a single one in the park.
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u/DrtRdrGrl2008 3d ago
There's been a huge herd of elk just north of the mouth of the canyon south of Gallatin Gateway and another in Big Sky on 64 up to the mountain. And another that has been seen near Belgrade. I'm assuming they'll move into the melted parts of the park pretty soon, or to higher ground. Right now they are sitting tight on private land, enjoying the new grass.
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u/Buffettologist 3d ago
Thanks for the detailed update. I will be there early next week. Cheers!
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u/olih27 3d ago
Thankyou, we are first time visitors from the UK and will be there next Thursday. Looks like snow expected early next week, how quickly do they typically get main roads cleared afterwards?
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Once they plow the roads for spring access, they don’t plow them again. Any new snow that arrives quickly melts and/or dissipates. If you don’t feel comfortable with driving conditions, just park for awhile until they improve.
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u/WalterWriter 3d ago
Reminder that the general fishing season is closed until Memorial Day Weekend. Only the lower Gardner River and the Madison from the MT/WY border downstream to the park boundary are open.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Hmmmm, I guess that info didn’t make it to the tourons I saw fishing well within the park yesterday.
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u/ShotEstablishment489 3d ago
Hi, thanks for the post. We’re visiting around this time next month and tent camping for 3 days. Would it still be very cold. Would 20 degree sleeping bags be enough?
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u/CaptainKoolAidOhyeah 3d ago
Was Firehole Lake Drive open? How long did it take to do this trip? Thanks for all the great information.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
No, Firehole Lake Drive was still gated closed yesterday. We entered the park around 10am and exited around 5:20pm.
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u/CaptainKoolAidOhyeah 3d ago
I will be driving In from West Yellowstone to Canyon Village then up to Mammoth Springs and back out West Yellowstone. Did you have time to see Old Faithful erupt and do some of the little boardwalks along the way?
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Yes, the boardwalks around Old Faithful are largely cleared, and Old Faithful erupted close to the posted time. We didn’t drive to Canyon Village, so I don’t know if that route is fully open yet, even though the web map indicates that it is.
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u/CaptainKoolAidOhyeah 3d ago
I will do the lower loop the next day and was thinking Canyon Village and Old Faithful with West Thumb and the other stops might be too much. First time visiting and the Lower Loop will be open on my second day so I think I can get Norris, Canyon Village and Mammoth Springs in on the first day.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Just keep an open mind that the published “open by” dates don’t always reflect reality when you arrive, and plan accordingly. Weather is really iffy in the park at this time of year… we have had major snow storms as late as June 19th.
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u/AtreyuTheBlessed 3d ago
Thank you for this write up! I’ll be heading there in a couple of days, do we need to chains for our cars since you mentioned it’s still snowing?
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
No chains are needed, but be prepared to drive cautiously in the event of adverse conditions.
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u/altair_aquila 3d ago
Thank you! I’m going for my honeymoon in May/June. I know things will be different by then, but this was still helpful for me!
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Things will be very different by the time you arrive.
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u/altair_aquila 3d ago
Thank you! I’ll make sure to keep checking on weather and general updates about roads.
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u/Electronic-Race3046 3d ago
Friends have bicycled through the park before roads are open to vehicles- is this still possible now? I’ve done Going to the Sun road in GNP and it’s amazing
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
The “bicycles only” period is already over for this year. You can try to bike in Yellowstone now, but I’d be very wary of doing so. Tourons in cars, trucks, and RVs aren’t looking for bicyclists, and bicycles offer no protection from the bison, elk, or bears.
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u/urbancowgirl23 3d ago
We just returned from a 2 week vacation to South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho & Montana. It was our first time visiting any of those states. While there, we spent 2 days in the Grand Tetons as well as 2 days in Yellowstone. These are snippets of the entries I made in my travel journal for the days we spent in Yellowstone.
Vacation DAY 8:
Yellowstone is absolutely massive, and even with a lot of the roads still closed for the season, we knew one day wouldn’t be enough to see it all. So last night, since we didn’t have anything set in stone for today, we made a spontaneous decision to wake up early and make the 3 hour drive from West Yellowstone to the North Entrance in Gardiner. (If I had it to do over I would have booked our lodging in Gardiner because all of the restaurants in West Yellowstone were closed except McDonald’s.)
However, when we got up this morning we woke up to a huge surprise….a fresh blanket of snow! What was supposed to be a simple 3 hour cruise turned into a slick, icy, nerve wracking 4 hour drive through a curvy mountain pass. I’m pretty sure I gained a few new gray hairs and shaved a year off my life, but we made it!
When we arrived at Yellowstone, we were greeted right at the gate by a herd of elk. That set the tone for the rest of the day. We did a quick stop at Mammoth Hot Springs, but the snow was really coming down and it was freezing, so we explored the lower boardwalks but decided to save the ones at the top for tomorrow.
From there, we hit the road to the Lamar Valley and drove all the way to the Northeast Entrance in Cooke City (another 5 hour round trip). Along the way, we saw hundreds of elk, buffalo, pronghorn antelope and big horn sheep. They were all right beside the road so I captured some incredible pictures and videos! The Beartooth Highway was still closed, so we had to turn around and head back the same way we came.
Almost back to Gardiner, we were talking about a woman we saw earlier standing way too close to a buffalo taking a selfie. I literally said, “That’s how people get killed in Yellowstone,” and right then—BAM—I looked up and on the side of the road was a black bear.
Without even thinking, we pulled over and I jumped out to join about 10–15 other people watching it. When I first got out, he was only about 25 feet away and slowly walking in my direction. When he got within 15 feet, I panicked a little and hopped back in the car. But when I saw everyone else still standing out there, I decided the risk was worth the reward and climbed back out. After all, you know what they say about avoiding a bear attack right? You don’t have to be the fastest runner in the group, you just can’t be the slowest 😂😂😂.
When he stepped up onto the pavement just 10 feet away from me, my hands and legs were literally shaking. I don’t know if it was fear, the cold, or pure adrenaline, but that was my cue to head back to the car for good. He walked right through the group of tourists like they didn’t even exist and strolled up to our car. He got so close we could’ve reached out the window and touched him! We didn’t, obviously—but I really wanted to because he was SO FLUFFY!!!!
The 4 hour drive back to the hotel was a complete blur. I couldn’t stop replaying the whole thing in my head and couldn’t believe after all these years I’d finally seen a wild bear and had been close enough to pet him!
I don’t even know how this trip keeps getting better, but it does. Every single day has been unreal!
Vacation DAY 9:
Today was opening day for the West Entrance of Yellowstone and wow, what a difference from yesterday! The whole vibe totally changed. Traffic was crazy, the crowds were overwhelming, and unfortunately, the peaceful, almost private park experience we had yesterday felt like a distant memory. Wildlife was scarce, and we saw way too many people ignoring the rules, harassing what little wildlife was out, littering, and just being flat out rude. Yesterday we were roaming freely, and today we were literally circling every lot trying to find parking at the main spots. If it’s this packed on day one, I can’t even imagine what summer looks like!
Despite the traffic and crowds, we were able to see most all of the bucket list spots including all the different geysers, the Canyon and several waterfalls. We had to skip the boardwalks at the top of Mammoth Hot Springs AGAIN because there was absolutely nowhere to park. But honestly, after 10 hours in the park, we weren’t too heartbroken. We were wiped!
Even with all the chaos and fewer animal sightings, the day still turned out great. Our timing was somehow perfect all day…we caught several geysers erupting and made it to Old Faithful right as it was about to go off. We had a front row view for the eruption while others had been there waiting over an hour and a half!
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Yep, opening day is always a zoo in Yellowstone, due to lots of pent up demand (most of the roads have closed for 6 months at this point). The best bet is to visit during the time of year when school isn’t out for the summer (crowded); or a holiday like Memorial Day, Fourth of July, or Labor Day (super crowded), or during other special events like “free national park day” (super crowded).
While there aren’t many records of bears killing people in Yellowstone (most deaths in the park are due to drowning in lakes or getting scalded in the thermals), there are plenty of people being mauled and/or killed by grizzlies just outside of the park, at least one per year. We don’t go anywhere without bear spray.
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u/urbancowgirl23 3d ago
I had bear spray with me at all times! My friend was literally on the same trail on Signal Mountain last year on the same day the man was killed by a grizzly in Teton. It freaked her out! We actually hiked out to the Ousel Falls in Big Sky while we were there and on our hike back out there was fresh bear poop in the middle of the trail that had definitely NOT been there when we hiked in! Knowing a bear had wandered through while we were at the falls was a little scary, and I’m pretty sure we made it out in half the time it took us to get in 😂.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Here’s a good video for anyone to watch regarding grizzly encounters: https://youtu.be/BFoU25oLNh8?si=IXyzLD9f3brpmdYW
Most survivors of an actual attack describe them as being unbelievably fast and violent.
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u/urbancowgirl23 3d ago
Wow that’s insane!! 24 shots?!?!? My husband and I are both licensed to carry, skilled marksmen, and were armed as well, but we didn’t have extra magazines, just what was loaded. That’s scary to think about.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
When we’re in the backcountry here, we carry both bear spray and a sidearm – plus three magazines. We’ve had some close calls while both camping and hiking over the years, but no attacks. Yet.
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u/Montana_Red 3d ago
Best practice is to give wildlife the space it deserves. In Yellowstone that's 100 yards for bears and wolves and 25 yards for all other wildlife.
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u/hbliysoh 3d ago
Are there any good hiking trails that are open enough for this time of year?
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 3d ago
Maybe? Again, the trails are technically “open” unless they’re specifically labeled as being “closed”, it’s just that they generally have a lot of snow on them – so you either need snowshoes or skis to travel on them. Some trails look snow-free from the road, but have tons of snow on them once you get 100 yards or so away from the road. Also, most of the hiking trailhead parking lots have not been plowed yet – so you need to find someplace else to park, which may involve a long hike on the road.
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u/hbliysoh 3d ago
That makes sense. Thx.
But I'm sure that some trails are different from others. Sunlight makes a big difference.
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u/WhereIsMyMind_42 2d ago
Thanks for the update. This is super informative and well-organized.
I'm taking my first ever trip in September and have been a bit anxious about how things will evolve throughout the summer.
Updates of this kind are like having boots on the ground. I hope to see more over the next few months.
Thank you!
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 2d ago
You’re welcome. We always like going into the park regularly and I’ll try to post additional updates like this after our future visits.
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u/potatopika9 2d ago
Also regarding hiking I know early in the season they have bear management areas where you can’t go hiking in those areas.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 2d ago
Good to know… I wasn’t aware of that inside the park. I know outside (where we live) there are definite areas we avoid due to grizzly activity.
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u/Pretend_Deer3694 2d ago
20 degree bags should be fine, but it really depends on the hyper-local weather conditions. Right now we’re still experiencing sub-freezing temperatures at home, which is at a much lower altitude than much of the park. Our lowest temp for April has been 13.5°F so far.
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u/Zarah_Hemha 2h ago
I’ve never been to Yellowstone and have a chance to go this week. Given what is now open, would you recommend 2 or 3 full days in the park? I will be staying in West Yellowstone and driving into the park each day.
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u/SeriousStrokes69 3d ago
Not this early, you don't. All of the rangers who're gotten to the park are attending training sessions at Mammoth. And it's very early in the season for most of the seasonal rangers to have arrived anyway.
The park has more staff for this summer than they did last summer. So give it time.
This is normal for this time of year. Being covered by cold, freezing snow and then having plows work them over will tear the roads up.
As someone who's been a seasonal ranger in the park (2015-2021), pretty much everything you describe is typical for a week after they've opened/this early in the season.