Yellowstone National Park resumes regular operations

The following is a news release from Yellowstone National Park.

With the enactment of the continuing resolution, staff at Yellowstone National Park have resumed regular operations. Employees are happy to return to work serving the American people and welcoming visitors to Yellowstone. Here are the details for the next few days:

• On Sunday, Jan. 27, visitor centers that are normally open at this time of year reopened. This includes the Albright Visitor Center, the Old Faithful Visitor Education Center, the lobby of the Canyon Visitor Education Center, and the ranger-staffed desk at the West Yellowstone Visitor Information Center. As soon as visitor centers open, the public was able to obtain backcountry permits.
• The park resumed collecting entrance fees on Sunday.
• On Monday, Jan. 28 a majority of furloughed staff will return and open the remaining park functions. For example, employees will begin to process the backlog of applications for special use permits, film permits, commercial use authorizations, and research permits. By midday Monday, the public will also be able to obtain permits for the non-commercially-guided snowmobile access program. The public affairs office will reopen on Monday.
• The park asks for patience as employees work to reopen facilities and operations in a manner that is safe for them and the public. There is a lot of snow removal needed around buildings and safety checks that must be completed.
• Again, the park extends a special thank you to the concessioners, especially Xanterra Travel Collection, who made donations during the shutdown enabling NPS staff to groom roads and allow oversnow access to continue. In addition, we thank our local gateway communities and partners who provided incredible support over the last 35 days, not only for the park, but also for our NPS family.