Fall 2019 Yellowstone Closings

Yellowstone’s summer season is winding down, but there are still quite a few campgrounds and lodges open for business—not to mention all roads are still open for the season. That said, you don’t want to get your heart set on a specific campground or hotel just to find out it’s closed for the season when you arrive! If you’re planning a fall visit to the world’s first national park, keep the following closing dates in mind:

Fall Road Closing Dates

October 15: Tower Fall to Canyon (Dunraven Pass). Beartooth Highway (US 212 to Red Lodge, MT)
November 4: All roads close at 8 am except the road between the North Entrance (Gardiner, MT) and the Northeast Entrance (Cooke City, MT).

yellowstone map grand loop

Fall Campground Closing Dates

September 9: Indian Creek Campground
September 15: Grant Village Campground
September 22: Bridge Bay, Canyon Campgrounds
September 29: Norris, Tower Fall, Pebble Creek Campgrounds
October 15: Slough Creek Campground
October 20: Madison Campground
November 3: Lewis Lake Campground
Open Year Round: Mammoth Campground
Closed for the 2019 Season: Fishing Bridge RV Park

Fall Lodging Closing Dates

September 2: Roosevelt Lodge & Cabins
September 22: Lake Lodge and Cabins
September 29: Old Faithful Lodge Cabins, Grant Village Lodge
October 7: Lake Hotel and Cabins, Old Faithful Inn
October 13: Canyon Lodge, Mammoth Hot Springs Cabins
November 3: Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, Old Faithful Snow Lodge

A Few More Fall Planning Tips

For more lodging convenient to Yellowstone National Park, check out the Gardiner, Montana lodging directory. We’re just minutes from the park’s North Entrance and offer a wide variety of dining, lodging, services, and activities in the fall months.

Yellowstone’s Northern Range—which includes the road from Gardiner to Mammoth Hot Springs and on to Cooke City—is open year-round to private vehicles. There are plenty of things to do all year long on the Northern Range; click here for a guide to this lesser-traveled, wildlife-rich region of Yellowstone National Park.

Fall weather in the Rocky Mountains is usually characterized by crisp, cold mornings and cool to mild afternoons, but the weather can change quickly this time of year. Keep an eye on all park road conditions or call the Gardiner Montana Visitor Information Center at 406-848-7971.

Blog Post from Visit Gardiner MT

Posted by Yellowstone Raft Co. Crew Uncategorized

Record-Smashing, Historic September Snowstorm

At a Glance

  • A snowstorm is slamming the northern Rockies this weekend.
  • Some parts of Montana may see blizzard conditions at times with well over a foot of snow.
  • Wet snow and high winds will lead to tree damage and power outages.
  • Other lower elevations in the northern Rockies and High Plains may see their first snow of the season.
  • Record cold with dangerous wind chill temperatures is expected as well.
  • A historic September snowstorm is blasting parts of the northern Rockies with heavy, wet snow and high winds, leading to power outages and tree damage, and will be accompanied by record cold temperatures for the end of September and early October.

Happening Now

Snow continues to fall from eastern Washington across the high country of Idaho and western Wyoming, western and central Montana, and as far south as the Great Basin or eastern Nevada.

 

Several locations in northern Montana have already picked up over a foot of snow. The highest snowfall total so far is 23 inches in Browning, Montana. East Glacier Park has already measured 21 inches of snow.

Over 9 inches of snowfall was recorded by the National Weather Service in Great Falls, Montana, Saturday, alone, an all-time record daily snowfall in September, there. Their total of 14 inches since Saturday is closing in on an all-time autumn two-day snowstorm record of 16.1 inches from Nov. 26-27, 2005, according to NOAA’s ACIS database records dating to 1937 and is already the snowiest September, there, topping September 1934’s 13.2 inches of snowfall.

Tree limbs were reported downed on “most, if not all, side streets” due to the weight of 14 inches of wet snow and winds in Choteau, Montana, about 45 miles northwest of Great Falls along the Rocky Mountain Front Range, according to a report relayed to NWS-Great Falls. Two to three-foot drifts were reported in Augusta, Montana, Sunday morning.

 

View the Rest of the Article on the Weather Channel

 

 

Posted by Yellowstone Raft Co. Crew OUTDOOR

Beartooth Pass closes in Wyoming

The Beartooth Pass has closed in Wyoming for the season but remains open from Red Lodge to Montana’s border with its southern neighbor.

The Montana side of U.S. Highway 212 is expected to close sometime over the Columbus Day week, but adverse weather could lead to an earlier closure, according to the Montana Department of Transportation.

Read More

Photo by Billings Gazette

Posted by Yellowstone Raft Co. Crew OUTDOOR