The Yellowstone National Park road between Mammoth Hot Springs and Tower Junction is now open, as road crews remove several car-sized boulders from the roadway; the move opens access to the Park from Cooke City.

The reopening comes several days in advance of what was considered possible by Yellowstone National Park geologists, road maintenance crews and representatives of the Federal Highway Administration, who had earlier estimated it would be the weekend before safe access would be restored after a large rockslide closed the road. However, the three groups were at the slide area just east of Blacktail Plateau Drive and determined the road was safe for vehicle travel after heavy equipment operators removed several car-sized boulders from the roadway.

If you're traveling in the Park, you won't miss the affected area: falling rock warning signs and no-stopping signs have been installed along a 4/10th-mile stretch through the slide area as a precaution for visitors, as the road has historically been a site for occasional bear jams. No new material has fallen from the hillside since the original slide.

Image by Dan Hottle, courtesy of the National Park Service.

RELATED STORIES: Road Closures Still Impacting Yellowstone Visitors; Yellowstone's Mammoth-Tower Road to Remain Closed Indefinitely; Planning Your Memorial Day Weekend Yellowstone Visit; Opening of Beartooth Highway Delayed; Cooke City/Chief Joseph Highway Link Now Open; Sylvan Pass Closed Indefinitely; Snow Causes Other Damage in Yellowstone; Snow Still Factor in Slow Yellowstone Spring, as South Entrance Opens Tomorrow

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