The park, which covers parts of Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, and many surrounding cities have been flooded with record rainfall and flooding since last weekend, prompting officials to close all entrances to Yellowstone.
“At 8 a.m. Wednesday, June 22, Yellowstone National Park will begin allowing visitors access to the park’s southern loop,” the park said in a statement. “Access the southern loop from the east (Cody), west (West Yellowstone) and south (Grand Teton / Jackson). Accessible areas include Madison, Old Faithful, Grant Village, Lake Village, Canyon Village. and Norris “.
To ensure that the southern loop is not overwhelmed by visitors, the park said it will use an alternative license plate system:
- Vehicles with license plates ending in an odd number can be visited on odd days of the month
- Vehicles with license plates that end in an even number, including zero, can enter on even days of the month.
While the northern loop is closed, “park staff have hired more than 1,000 business owners, park partners, business operators and residents of surrounding walkway communities to determine how to handle summer visits.” say Yellowstone officials.
Visitors should check Yellowstone’s website and social media for more updates, the park said.
Over a three-day period last week, Yellowstone National Park received about two or three times the typical June rainfall.
And this month’s rainfall has already been more than 400% of the average in northwestern Wyoming and southern Montana, according to the National Weather Service.
At one point, the Yellowstone River rose to its highest level in more than 100 years, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
CNN’s Paradise Afshar contributed to this report.