This page offers current backcountry conditions and is updated frequently. It is always good practice to check this page regularly leading up to your trip’s start date.
The map offers a quick snapshot of current trail status. Below the map are more detailed information regading the condition of the trail, further descriptions of trail closures,warnings, and known hazards. Please make sure to review both the backcountry conditions map, and the Area Conditions Detail Section of this page
Conditions reports offer specific details about a given trail on a given date. However, Yellowstone's backcountry is vast and some trail status reports may not be updated for several weeks, or even months for lesser used trails. For this reason, Backcountry Conditions reports only offer a snapshot of trail conditions and should be used in conjunction with other tools such as weather reports, prior backpacking experience in Yellowstone, and assessment of your own backpacking skill level.
Trail status for stock (horse and llama) use will not be depicted on this map until trails open for stock use on July 1.
General Information
Many of the park's trails are still snow covered. Check out the snowpack map (right side of linked page) to see estimated snow depths.
Most streams are starting to rise, and as temperatures warm streams will soon begin to become too high and dangerous to cross. Streams which are crossable in the morning may rise to unsafe levels by afternoon. Don’t get caught on the wrong side of a stream. If you must cross – scout out the safest location, the best crossing may not be in the exact location where the trail meets the stream. Above all use caution and be safe around all streams. Yellowstone’s backcountry does not have many bridges, please evaluate planned travel routes for any potentially hazardous stream crossings.
Fishing season is open. Learn about regulations and guidelines in Fishing in the Park.
The boating season is open. See Backcountry Conditions Map and Area Condition Details below for site-specific information.
All watercraft require Yellowstone AIS inspection and registration. Inspections are at Bridge Bay and Grant Marina's (Lewis Lake inspection station scheduled to open May 26). New: A thirty-day dry time is required for all sailboats, boats with inboard motors, and boats with inboard/outboard motors. See Boating in Yellowstone for more information.
All trails are currently CLOSED for overnight stock use (horse and llama). Overnight stock use is closed until July 1. Blacktail, Rescue Creek from the Blacktail trailhead, Hellroaring, and Slough Creek trails are open for day use. See below in the Area Conditions Detail section for futher information on stock use along those trail. Day ride permits are required for day riding in the park. Get prepared for the season by reviewing Yellowstone's horse riding pages.
There are no current fire restrictions, however please note not all campsites allow for fires. Check your backcountry permit to see if your permited campsite allows for fires, or view our backcountry trails and campsite map. In addition, please note that fires are only allowed in designated firepits. If the firepit is under snow visitors will need to dig out the firepit and downed wood.
Bridge Bay Backcountry Office: Open. Hours 8 - 4:30.
Grant Village Backcountry Office: Open. Hours 8 - 4:30.
Bechler Ranger Station/Backcountry Office: Scheduled to open June 3.
West Yellowstone Backcountry Office: Not staffed 5/29 & 5/30. Otherwise hours 8 - 4:30.
Snake River Ranger Station/Backcountry Office: Open. Hours 8 - 4:30
Old Faithful Backcountry Office: Closed for the 2024 season.
Canyon Backcountry Office: Closed for the 2024 season.
Backcountry Offices are closed for lunch.
Area Condition Details
Trails are listed by region as shown on the map below. Scroll down or select a region name to view backcountry conditions for the area: NorthwestNortheastCentralSouthwestSoutheast
A Minimum group size of four people is recommended for hiking and camping withing the Gallatin Bear Management Area.
Wet, muddy and snowy conditions prevail throughout the area. (4/24/24)
Expect wet and muddy conditions with ice at lower elevations and deep snow at higher elevations.(5/3/24)
Daly Creek Trail is mostly snow free for the first few miles. Campsite WF2 is still under snow. (5/3/24)
Sky Rim trail has some areas that are exposed along a ridge and are not advised to attempt while there is lingering ice and snow. (5/3/24)
Specimen Creek TH off of Hwy. 191 cleared first 4 miles. Wet and muddy then snow. (5/14/24)
Beaver Ponds Trail is mostly snow free and cleared of down trees. (5/3/24)
The barricade at the Mammoth Terraces is open. (4/29/24)
Snow Pass Trail has areas of snow cover at upper elevations. (4/29/24)
Sepulcher trail is mostly snow covered. Hiking not recommened. (5/6/24)
Sportsman's Lake Trail from Glen Creek Trailhead has patchy snow to start and then is mostly snow covered west of junction with Sepulcher Trail. (5/6/24)
Electric Peak is snow covered. Hiking not recommended.(5/6/24)
Fawn Pass Trail from Glen Creek Trailhead has patchy snow to start with areas of deep snow on the hill going into Gardner's Hole. (5/6/24)
Fawn Pass Trail west of Garner River is snow covered. Not recommended for hiking. (5/6/24)
Bunsen Peak still has snow at upper elevations. Hiking is not recommended. (05/3/24)
Osprey Falls trail is CLOSED due to trail damage from the 2022 Flooding event.
Swan Lake is CLOSED, no entry and no boating allowed in order to protect nesting birds. (4/29/24)
Bacon Rind is mostly snow covered. Not recommended for hiking. (5/6/24)
Fan Creek Trail is mostly snow covered. Not recommended for hiking. (5/6/24)
East side of Fawn Pass cleared 4.5 from Glen Creek TH. Wet and marshy. (5/22/24)
Access road to the Bighorn Pass Tralhead parking area at the Indian Creek Campground is closed until June 14th. Until then hikers wanting to access the Bighorn Pass Trail must park in the pullouts near the access road barricade. Do not block the barricade and access road.
East side of Bighorn Pass Trail cleared 3 1/2 miles in, then hit snow. Pass not crossable. (5/20/24)
Trails from Mount Holmes Trailhead and Grizzly Lake Trailhead are mostly snow covered. (5/6/24)
The West side of Gneiss Creek is CLOSED until June 30th due to the Gneiss Creek Bear Management Area. See conditions map above.
Trail is likely snow free. (5/6/24)
Trail is snow free on lower elevations. There may be areas of snow on upper elevations of the trail. (5/6/24)
Trail appears to be mostly snow free. There may be areas of snow on upper elevations of trail. (5/6/24)
Northeast
Ticks are out.(4/29/24)
Rescue Creek Trailhead along the washed out North Entrance Road is inaccessible due to the bridge having washed out in the 2022 Floods. See map above.
Rescue Creek Trail accessed from the Blacktail Trailhead is open, likely wet with residual patches of snow in the shade.(4/24/24)
Lava Creek Trail (from Lava Creek Picnic Area or Blacktail Trailhead) is likely snow free with muddy areas. The trail can be hiked to the Gardner river, but you will need to return the same way. The bridge over the Gardner River is out. (5/3/24)
STOCK USE: Rescue Creek trail is open from stock use from the Blacktail Trailhead.
Likely wet and muddy.(4/24/24)
Bear Frequenting Warning for the Blacktail, Yellowstone River, and Hellroaring trail. Strong Bear Warning on sites 1Y6 and 1Y8. (5/26/24)
The Yellowstone River Trail is closed west of campsite 1Y1 due to a trail washout.
The Yellowstone River Trail is snow free. (5/3/24)
Cottonwood Creek (west of campsite 1R1) will start to rise as the weather warms. Hikers will need to scout for the best place to cross which is not necessarily where the trail meets the creek. (5/3/24)
Blacktail Ponds bird closure is in effect until July1. No travel along the ponds. See map above. (5/15/24)
STOCK USE: Blacktail Creek,Rescue Creek, Yellowstone River trail, and Hellroaring trail is open for day rides. The section of trail North of the Hellroaring Creek Stock Bridge to the Park Boundary is still closed to stock.Day ride permits are required to ride in Yellowstone National Park.
Bear Frequenting Warning for the Hellroaring, Yellowstone River, and Blacktail Creek Trails. (5/20/24)
Hellroaring is not likely to be crossible on foot. Visitors will need to head North along Hellroaring Creek to the foot bridge located south of campsite 2H8.
Upper Coyote Creek and Buffalo Plateau likely to be snow free in the lower elevations, with increasing snow in higher elevations. (5/3/24)
Snow cover increases going north of campsite 2C2. (5/3/24)
Hikers are seeing a lot of signs of bear activity along the Coyote Creek Trail and in the Hellroaring Creek area. Be Bear Aware. (4/29/24)
The full Bull Mountain Loop is not accessible during the early season The bridge across Horse Creek (north of the park on the Hellroaring Creek Trail) washed out in the 2022. Horse Creek is too deep and swift to cross until waters drop in mid-late July.
STOCK USE: Blacktail Creek, Rescue Creek, Yellowstone River trail, and Hellroaring trails are open for day rides. The section of trail North of the Hellroaring Creek Stock Bridge to the Park Boundary is still closed to stock.Day ride permits are required to ride in Yellowstone National Park. (5/20/23)
Floating Island Lake is CLOSED. No Entry or Boating in order to protect nesting birds.(4/29/24)
Sections of the Lost Lake Trail are currently CLOSED. See Conditions Map above.(4/24/24)
The barricade at Petrified Tree is currently open.(4/24/24)
Due to road construction, the Garnett Hill trail should be accessed from Tower Junction, and then continue on to the wagon road.
The Garnett Hill Loop is partially closed due to damage from the 2022 Flooding event. See Backcountry Conditions Map above.(4/24/24)
Buffalo Fork trail is inaccessible due to the fact that Slough Creek is not crossable.(4/24/24)
Slough Creek likely has snow between the trailhead and first meadow. Expect a few areas of snow beyond the first meadow. (5/3/24)
STOCK USE: Slough Creek is open for day rides. Day ride permits are required to ride in Yellowstone National Park.
Mostly snow covered.(4/24/24)
Pebble Creek is currently crossable.However, as temperatures rise will shortly become unfordable. At that time camspite 3P1 will be the only accessible campsite.(4/24/24)
Bliss Pass is inaccessible due to snow (4/24/24)
Snowy(4/24/24)
The Yellowstone River Picnic Area Trailhead is CLOSED for the 2024 season due to a road construction project.
Specimen Ridge trail has patchy snow west of Amethyst Mountain and areas of deep snow east of Amethyst. (5/3/24)
As spring run-off increases, the Lamar River located on the east side of the trail will not be crossable. At that point access to Specimen Ridge will only be through the Specimen Ridge Trailhead. Don't be caught on the wrong side of the river as it is a 14 mile backtrack to the trailhead (4/24/24)
Bear Frequenting for the Lamar River Trail and along Cache Creek Trail. Make sure to Be Bear Aware- make lots of noise, be alert, never leave you food unattended.(5/20/24)
Lower Lamar Trail is mostly snow free( 4/24/24)
Cache Creek which is about 3 miles from the Lamar River trailhead is currently crossable, as temperatures rise the river will soon become uncrossable. Be cautious of streams wwhich are crossable in the morning may rise to unsafe levels by afternoon. Don't get caught on the wrong side of the stream.(4/24/24)
The Pelican Valley Trailhead is closed until July 4th due to thePelican Valley Bear Management area. No through travel from Lamar River to Pelican Valley.
Miller and Frost Lake likely snowy and will become inaccessible when Cache Creek, and the Lamar River become uncrossable.(4/24/24)
Cache Creek is likley snow free in the lower elevations, and increasingly snowy with increasing elevation. Campsites 3C2 and 3C3 may be snow free. Campsite 3C4 is likely snow covered. (5/23/424).
Cache Creek is crossable currently, but will soon start to rise. Be cautious that streams which are crossable in the morning may rise to unsafe levels by afternoon. (5/20/24)
Thunderer trail is snow covered and not accessible from the Thunderer trailhead due to Soda Butte Creek being too deep and swift to cross. (5/23/24)
Most trails in the Central Region are snow covered. (5/2/24)
Snow. Hiking not recommended. (5/16/24)
Thirty to 40% snow covered beyond first mile. Running water and swampy. (5/27/24)
Due to Norris Campground being closed for the 2024 season, there is a barricade which will prevent visitors from parking at the trailhead. Visitors will need to park in the large pullout on the main road to the south of the barricade and walk through the campground to the trailhead.
About half of trail is deep snow. Areas of standing water. (5/15/24)
Trails are snow covered.
Grebe Lake Trailhead parking area has not been plowed. (5/2/24)
There are several bird closures in effect to protect nesting birds. No boating,and fishing along Ice Lake, No boating, fishing and off trail travel along Wolf Lake, and No Boating, Fishing or off trail travel along the Western half of Grebe Lake. See map above for location of closures. (5/15/24)
Mostly snow free. (5/27/24)
Trails are mostly snow covered. (5/3/24)
Trail is mostly snow covered.
Hikers report extremely muddy/sloppy conditions; gaitors recommended. Lots of bear tracks; be bear aware. (5/23)
Mary Mountain Trail is closed west of Mary Lake through June 15.
Southwest
Expect all trails in the area to be snow covered and or muddy. (5/3/24)
Boating season is open. (5/25/24)
The Bechler Region is inaccessible.The Cave Falls Road and Grassy Lake Road west of Grassy Lake are not plowed and still have deep snow. These roads are typically not driveable until late May. (5/3/24)
The Grassy Lake Road east of Grassy Lake is closed to motorized travel until at least June 1.
Expect patchy snow (5/15/24)
Snowy. Not Recommended (4/24/24)
First 2 1/2 miles have been cleared. Snow .5 miles from lake. (5/21/24)
Snow covered (4/24/24)
All watercraft require Yellowstone AIS inspection and registration. Inspection stations are at Bridge Bay, Grant, and Lewis Lake. New: A thirty-day dry time is required for all sailboats, boats with inboard motors, and boats with inboard/outboard motors. See Boating in Yellowstone for more information.
Motorized boats are prohibited on Shoshone Lake and Lewis River.
There is a bird closure in effect at the mouth of the Lewis River Channel. No boating, fishing, or off trail travel in the closure area. See map above for closure area details.(5/26/24)
Lewis Lake has some ice in center of lake, otherwise open. (5/24/25)
Hikers report that Shoshone is ice free and trails still snow covered-snow shoes needed. (5/28/24)
All trails are snowbound. (5/10/24)
Inaccessible, rivers not crossable, and snow bound.(5/9/24)
Inaccessible due to snow packed roads, trails and uncrossable rivers.(5/10/24)
Inaccessible.
Inaccessible (5/10/24)
Inaccessible.Grassy Lake Road is closed to motorized traffic.
Inaccessible from the South due to Grassy Lake Road being closed to motorized traffic.(5/10/24)
Access to Pitchstone Plateau likely total snow bound.(5/10/24)
Snow covered.(5/10/24)
There is a bird closure in effect for the Northwestern part of the Buela Lake No boating, fishing or off-trail travel in the bird closure. See map above for closure area details. (5/15/24)
There is a bird closure for Tanager Lake. No fishing, boating, or off trail travel around the entire lake. (5/15/34)
Southeast
Most trails in this region are inaccessible due to snowpack. (5/3/24)
Boating season is open.(5/25/24)
Storm Point Trail is snow covered. North side of the loop in the trees is 85% covered in snow about 2 feet deep. Not recommended for hiking (5/13/24)
Elephant Back Trail is snow covered. Not recommended for hiking. (5/3/24)
Natural Bridge Trail CLOSED due to bear activity.(5/10/24)
Avalanche Peak is snow covered. Hiking not recommended. (5/3/24)
Boating season is open.Lake Spawn and Clear Creek Bear Management Area restrictions are in effect. (5/25/24)
All watercraft require Yellowstone AIS inspection and registration. Inspection stations are at Bridge Bay and Grant Marina's (station opening date at Lewis Lake to be determined). New: A thirty-day dry time is required for all sailboats, boats with inboard motors, and boats with inboard/outboard motors. See Boating in Yellowstone for more information.
Yelowstone Lake is ice free. (5/24/24)
Docks and hazard bouys are not yet in place. It is the boaters reponsibility to know where the hazards, mileage zones, and non-motorized boat zones are, and to abide by regulations. (5/25/24)
Use caution and be alert for floating debris and unmarked hazards. (5/25/24)
There are several Bird closures in effect to protect nesting birds. Bird closure areas are in effect near Frank Island, Stevenson Island, Molly Islands, Peale Island, Campsites 7N2, and 7L7. No travel on, or near the closures. See map above for location of closures. (5/15/24)
Areas of standing water in trail. Clear Creek ford is about thigh high. Cub Creek crossing about knee deep. (5/21/24)
Streams will be rising and become uncrossable as the weather warms. (5/3/24)
No off-trail travel is permitted along the east shore of Yellowstone Lake until July 14 or later. Refer to the above map for more information on the Clear Creek Bear Management Areas.
The Snake River at the South Entrance is typically not crossable until July 10.
Closed Bear Management Area. See conditions map above.
Submit Trail Conditions
Have you hiked the trails lately and want to submit trail conditions? Please email the Central Backcountry Office with the trails and date you hiked the trails and as much details as you can provide.
