i

YELLOWSTONE

NATIONAL PARK

STATE OF THE PARK 2023
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Table of Contents

Boundary marker near Lamar Mountain

Introduction	 2

Message from the Yellowstone Senior Leadership Team ● 

Yellowstone Strategic Priorities ● Yellowstone at a Glance

150 Years of Yellowstone 7

The World’s First National Park ● Commemorating 150 Years ●

Working with Yellowstone’s Associated Tribes

2022 Flood Event 13

Emergency Response ● Flood Recovery Timeline ●

Flood Recovery Efforts

Focusing on the CORE 21

Supporting the Yellowstone Team ● Financial Income Sources, Expenditures, and Trends ● 

Improving Telecommunications Infrastructure ● Improving Employee Housing

Strengthening the Yellowstone Ecosystem and Heritage RESOURCES 33

Resource Conservation Efforts ● Sustainability Efforts ●

Threats to the Yellowstone Ecosystem

Delivering a World-Class Visitor EXPERIENCE 43

Understanding Impacts from Increased Visitation ● Responding to Increased Visitation ●

Connecting People to Yellowstone ● Protecting People and Resources

Investing in INFRASTRUCTURE	 51

Infrastructure Projects and Funding Sources ● Recently Completed Projects ● 

Ongoing Projects ● Approved Projects

Building Coalitions and PARTNERSHIPS	 59

Working With Our Partners

Conclusion and Acknowledgments	 64

Looking Ahead ● In Memoriam
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Message from the Yellowstone Senior Leadership Team

We are pleased to present this 2023 “State of the Park” report 

to the team and partners of Yellowstone National Park. The past 

two years have been filled with many successes and challenges. 

From the historic 2022 flood event to the commemoration of 

the 150th anniversary of Yellowstone, the park has continued to 

make substantial progress in a wide range of high priority areas.

In 2019, we set five major strategic priorities each supporting 

the overarching National Park Service (NPS) mission and each 

critical to the success of the Yellowstone. These priorities are: 

1) Focusing on the Core, 2) Strengthening the Yellowstone 

Ecosystem and Heritage Resources, 3) Delivering a World-Class 

Visitor Experience, 4) Investing in Infrastructure, and 5) Building 

Coalitions and Partnerships. Within each of these strategic 

priority areas, we have established a wide range of actions 

designed to help us achieve success.

We will continue to make Yellowstone one of the best places 

to work by improving our workforce recruitment and retention 

efforts, focusing on the mental health and wellness of our team 

members, and completing our ongoing employee housing 

improvement efforts. 

We will continue to strengthen the Yellowstone ecosystem 

and heritage resources by using the best available science and 

data to inform our decisions. Our ability to respond to climate 

change, improve our sustainability efforts, and ensure wildlife 

and ecosystem health is paramount, as is our ability to effectively 

manage the park’s vast natural, cultural, and geologic resources.

We will continue to provide a safe and enjoyable experience 

for our visitors through the best available public safety (law 

enforcement, fire, emergency medical services), education and 

interpretation, facility operations, and the highest service levels. 

We will continue to reduce the park’s deferred maintenance 

backlog by investing in our park’s $4 billion asset portfolio.

We will continue to build lasting and collaborative relationships 

with our many partners who are interested in protecting 

Yellowstone for the future. Our efforts over the past years to 

build and improve relationships, including with our associated 

Tribal governments, have set a firm foundation for the future, 

and one we look forward to building upon.

Whether you are reading this report as a Yellowstone employee, 

one of our many partners, or a member of the public, you can be 

proud of the enormous amount of work occurring in America’s 

first national park, none of which can be done without your 

support. We hope you enjoy this sampling of work occurring 

across the park and we thank you for your commitment to the 

future of Yellowstone and the mission of the NPS.

INTRODUCTION

Introduction

Yellowstone Strategic Priorities

Focusing on the CORE

Focus Areas

• Support the Yellowstone Team First

• Improve Strategic Management and Business Acumen 

Platforms 

• Advance Operational/Organizational Alignment and 

Effectiveness

Strengthening the Yellowstone 

Ecosystem and Heritage RESOURCES

Focus Areas

• Advance and Sustain the Yellowstone Ecosystem 

• Protect, Preserve, and Improve Cultural Resources

• Ensure Resource Compliance 

• Advance Sustainability 

Delivering a World-Class 

Visitor EXPERIENCE

Focus areas

• Understand and Respond to Increasing Visitor Use 

• Protect People and Resources

• Connect People to Yellowstone 

• Improve Visitor Services and Amenities 

Investing in INFRASTRUCTURE

Focus areas

• Build Strategic Administrative Framework 

• Improve Condition of Employee Housing and Workspace 

• Improve Condition of Transportation-Related Infrastructure 

• Improve Condition of Historic Structures and Other 

Cultural Resources

• Improve Condition of Visitor Service/Public-Health-Related 

Infrastructure 

Building Coalitions and PARTNERSHIPS

Focus Areas

• Become a Higher Performing Yellowstone Team

• Strengthen Yellowstone Forever and Philanthropic Capacity

• Build Trust with Gateway Communities

• Honor Tribal Legacies and Heritage 

• Cultivate Relationships with Elected Officials

• Strengthen Conservation, Environmental, Business and 

Recreation Coalitions

“Despite the tremendous number of challenges 

we have faced over the past several years, 

we continue to make substantial progress 

in our key priority areas. More than ever, we 

recognize the outstanding value of the team 

here in Yellowstone and the incredible partners 

who help us achieve success in so many areas.”

– Cam Sholly, Superintendent

INTRODUCTION
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Yellowstone at a Glance

INTRODUCTION

2.2 million

Acres across three states

2,500

Miles of rivers

540

Volunteers

27

Associated Tribes

845

Historic structures

67

Mammal species

1,160

Native plant species

750

Employees

1,100

Miles of trails

452

Miles of roads

4 Million+

Annual visits

10,000+

Hydrothermal features

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Native fish species

150

Breeding bird species
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150 YEARS OF YELLOWSTONE

On March 1, 2022, Yellowstone turned 150. This significant milestone was 

commemorated throughout the year by highlighting many of the successes 

within the Yellowstone ecosystem, with a special emphasis on increasing 

our engagement with the park’s 27 associated American Indian Tribes. 

150 Years of Yellowstone

Yellowstone Revealed performance “Rematriate” 
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Signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, 

America’s first national park was set aside to preserve and 

protect the scenery, cultural heritage, wildlife, and geologic and 

ecological systems and processes in their natural condition for 

the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations.

Yellowstone serves as the core of the Greater Yellowstone 

Ecosystem, one of the last and largest nearly intact natural 

ecosystems on the planet. Yellowstone has the highest 

concentration of hydrothermal features and half the world’s 

active geysers. The park is also rich in cultural and historical 

resources with a combined 25 sites, landmarks, and districts on 

the National Register of Historic Places.

Based on the park’s location at the convergence of the Great 

Plains, Great Basin, and Columbia Plateau, 27 American Indian 

Tribes have historic and modern connections to the land and 

its resources. For over 11,000 years before Yellowstone became 

a national park, it was a place where American Indians lived, 

hunted, fished, gathered plants, quarried obsidian, and used 

thermal waters for religious and medicinal purposes.

150 YEARS OF YELLOWSTONE

Yellowstone’s team has learned many lessons during 

Yellowstone’s 150 years. In the early 1900s, the government 

killed nearly all predators in the park, and the bison population 

was hunted to less than two dozen. Later that century, the 

fires of 1988 burned more than one-third of the park, and 

the introduction of nonnative lake trout decimated native 

Yellowstone cutthroat trout populations. Through modern 

resource management efforts involving bison, grizzly bears, 

native fish, gray wolves, wildland fire, and others, Yellowstone’s 

ecosystem is the healthiest it has been in over a century.

The Yellowstone team goal for this milestone has been to 

reflect on 150 years of protecting Yellowstone National Park, to 

highlight successes within the ecosystem, and to open dialogue 

on the lessons learned from yesterday, the challenges of today, 

and vision for tomorrow. The team used this commemoration 

not just to celebrate, but to strengthen relationships with Tribes, 

partners, and the public to make a lasting positive impact on the 

next 150 years of Yellowstone.

The World’s First National Park

15th Biennial Scientific Conference on Yellowstone

Hosted by Montana State University, the theme of the conference 

was, “Expanding the Scope of Science Together: The Next 

150 Years.” Over 300 participants including researchers and 

practitioners from academia, state and federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and Tribal communities gathered 

to reflect on the science and conservation accomplishments that 

have brought us to the present day and to envision solutions for 

some of the grand challenges facing Greater Yellowstone’s future.

University of Wyoming’s Symposium on Yellowstone’s 150th

The University of Wyoming College of Law and the Haub 

School of Environment and Natural Resources, in partnership 

with Yellowstone National Park, hosted a symposium marking 

Yellowstone National Park’s 150th anniversary. The event 

featured keynote talks and panel discussions to examine the 

park’s history and look to the future. 

Virtual Video Series

Yellowstone’s social media team moderated a series of 

conversations with subject matter experts who shared their 

knowledge about the past, present, and future on strategic priority 

issues. The 15-part video series was shared on Yellowstone’s 

social media platforms and website: go.nps.gov/YNP150videos

Black People Who Hike

Yellowstone hosted members of the group Black People Who 

Hike, who were awarded a National Park Foundation ParkVentures 

grant. The ParkVentures grant program is designed to help 

eliminate barriers and increase representation of Black people 

in National Parks—currently at less than 6%. This grant supports 

their mission to empower, educate, and reengage Black people to 

the outdoors through wellness campaigns, health advocacy, and 

community-based activities.

Xanterra Parks and Resorts: 150 Years of Inspiration

Yellowstone’s lodging concessioner, Xanterra Parks and Resorts, 

hosted a public event on May 6, 2022, coinciding with the 

summer season opening of the Old Faithful Inn. The event 

included remarks from NPS and Xanterra representatives, free 

Historic Yellow Bus tours of the Old Faithful Historic District 

area, and a Native American art exhibition and marketplace.

Additional 150 Anniversary Events

The park hosted an employee wellness ski challenge to 

commemorate the 150th anniversary and promote mental 

wellness. The park also hosted ribbon cuttings to celebrate the 

completion of the park’s new employee modular housing and 

the Tower-Roosevelt to Mount Washburn Road project. The 

Yellowstone Environmental Coordinating Committee hosted a 

community town cleanup in Gardiner, Montana.

Commemorating 150 Years

150 YEARS OF YELLOWSTONE

Black People Who Hike at Cleopatra Spring ©D’Andre Lyons

University of Wyoming’s Symposium on Yellowstone’s 150th Anniversary

150 Years of Inspiration Event: artist Robert Martinez
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Although Yellowstone National Park is the oldest in the country, its history as a national park is only 

a small fraction of its larger human story, which dates back over 11,000 years. There are 27 Tribes 

with historic and modern connections to the lands and resources now found within Yellowstone 

National Park. To commemorate these connections, the Yellowstone team worked with Tribes 

and Tribal consultants in 2022 to increase Tribal presence in the park and create opportunities for 

Tribes to tell their stories directly to visitors during the 150th anniversary and into the future.

Left: “Rematriate” performance at Old Faithful

Right: Nez Perce Appaloosa Horse Club parade

Bottom: Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center performance

150 YEARS OF YELLOWSTONE

Wind River Inter-Tribal Virtual Gathering 

The Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes of the Wind 

River Reservation hosted a virtual gathering to commemorate 

the park’s 150th anniversary while elevating the Tribal 

community’s voice in conserving and managing Yellowstone. 

Panel discussions addressed Tribal consultation and coordination 

in the stewardship of federal lands, waters, and wildlife, and 

Indigenous cultural connections to Yellowstone National Park 

and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. 

Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center

In partnership with Yellowstone Forever, Yellowstone piloted the 

Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center. The center brought together 

Indigenous artists, scholars, and presenters from Yellowstone’s 

associated Tribal Nations to directly engage visitors through 

formal and informal education, demonstrations, and storytelling. 

The project was informed by and staffed by Indigenous partners. 

Presenters from 13 Tribes interacted with the public and 

conducted over 140 programs, activities, and presentations. 

Plans are underway to continue the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage 

Center in future years.

Nez Perce Appaloosa Horse Club Ride and Parade

Members of the Nez Perce Appaloosa Horse Club rode a section 

of the Nez Perce Trail, rode through Canyon Village in traditional 

regalia, conducted horse trail rides accompanied by Yellowstone 

staff, and presented fireside chats on the history and culture of 

the NiMiiPuu (Nez Perce). These events connected Nez Perce 

youth and adults to the trail, their history, and ancestors, and 

created an opportunity to share their experiences and stories 

with Yellowstone employees and visitors.

Tribal Fellowship Program

In partnership with Salish Kootenai College (SKC), the Tribal 

Preservation Historic Office, and the National Parks Conservation 

Association, Yellowstone is implementing a Tribal Fellowship 

Program for recent graduates of SKC. The candidate(s) will 

gain experience through work with each partner during the 

year-long program. Funded by the National Parks Conservation 

Association, the 2022 candidate is working on a geodatabase 

of Indigenous place names in Yellowstone. The park anticipates 

expanding the program in future years.

Wind River Inter-Tribal Gathering

The Wind River Inter-Tribal Gathering at the Wind River Indian 

Reservation brought together Tribal nations, federal managers, 

non-governmental organizations, and others to discuss 

conservation, current issues of importance to Tribal Nations, 

and the future of consultation and collaboration. Yellowstone’s 

27 associated Tribes, nonprofits, and NPS employees gathered 

to honor, nourish, dance, heal, and celebrate Indigenous people.

Yellowstone Revealed

In partnership with Mountain Time Arts, Yellowstone hosted 

a series of place-based projects by an intertribal group of 

Indigenous artists and scholars. Visitors had the opportunity 

to interact with members from 12 Tribes to learn about 

their heritage and culture; participate in interpretive hikes, 

demonstrations, and storytelling led by Tribal members and 

elders; and view a series of performances.

In addition to a teepee village at Madison, the Pretty Shield 

Foundation and Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council installed 

seven illuminated teepees by Roosevelt Arch in Gardiner, 

Montana. Additional event partners include Yellowstone 

Forever, Yellowstone National Park Lodges, the National Parks 

Conservation Association, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, 

and Park County Environmental Council.

Shoshone-Bannock Tribal Gathering

More than 50 Shoshone-Bannock Tribal members, including most 

of the Tribal council, held a cultural gathering at the Old Faithful 

Lodge. The public event brought together visitors, park personnel, 

and Tribal members as they gave presentations on their cultural 

heritage and connections to the Yellowstone ecosystem. The 

event culminated with a drum circle and traditional dancing.

First Peoples Mountain Renaming

Based on recommendations from the Rocky Mountain Tribal 

Council, subsequent votes within the Wyoming Board of 

Geographic names, and with support of the National Park 

Service, Mount Doane was renamed First Peoples Mountain by 

the U.S. Board on Geographic Names in a 15-0 vote.

Working With Yellowstone’s Associated Tribes

Yellowstone Revealed illuminated teepee installation DOI Secretary Haaland at Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center
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On the morning of June 13, 2022, Yellowstone experienced a 500-year 

flood event. Northern parts of the park received a combined 7.5-9.5 

inches of rain and snowmelt in a 24-hour period. The previous record 

high flow of the Yellowstone River measured at Corwin Springs was 

approximately 32,000 cubic feet per second. At more than 50,000 cubic 

feet per second, the river flow during this flood shattered that record.

2022 Flood Event

Lamar River during high water on June 13, 2022
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10K

16K

22K

28K

34K

40K

46K

52K

6/9 16:48 6/10 15:36 6/11 14:24 6/12 13:12 6/13 12:00 6/14 10:48 6/15 9:36 6/16 8:24 6/17 7:12

CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

TIME 24-HOUR

Yellowstone River at Corwin Springs

Flow Previous Records (1918, 1996, & 1997)

Emergency Response

2022 FLOOD EVENT

While damage occurred in various locations around the park, the 

largest flooding impacts occurred in the northern parts of the 

park. Multiple sections of roads were destroyed along with loss of 

wastewater infrastructure, loss of power to most of the park, and 

numerous mudslides and rockslides within the road corridors. 

After the event occurred, the park immediately set a range of 

life safety objectives, including ensuring employee and visitor 

safety, evacuating the park, restoring power, diverting damaged 

wastewater systems, and helping local communities and counties 

with emergency response. Park managers reached out to the 

gateway communities of Cody, Wyoming, and West Yellowstone, 

Montana, and Grand Teton National Park to prepare for a visitor 

evacuation via the East, West, and South entrances. Other 

partners informed on the evacuation and closure included the 

Wyoming and Montana governors, congressional delegations, 

Emergency Actions

1. 6/12, 21:26, Closed Dunraven Pass.

2. 6/12, 23:30, Closed North Entrance Road.

3. 6/12, 23:47, Closed Northeast Entrance Road.

4. 6/13, 06:08, Closed Mammoth to Tower-Roosevelt.

5. 6/13, 06:10, Started efforts to account for employees.

6. 6/13, 06:10, Highway 89 closed north of park.

7. 6/13, 08:00, Planned to locate backcountry visitors, 

perform welfare checks, and evacuate if needed.

8. 6/13, 09:24, Lost power at Mammoth, Norris, Canyon, 

Grant, and Lake. 

9. 6/13, 10:14, Closed East, South, and West entrances, 

began visitor evacuation of north loop.

10. 6/13, 10:30, Identified Mammoth wastewater line as 

severed with wastewater flowing into the Gardner River.

11. 6/13, 11:10, Started visitor evacuation of south loop 

including concession facilities.

1

2-3

4-6

7

8-11 12-16

17-18

19

20

internal park partners and concessioners, and national NPS 

and DOI leadership. The park fully evacuated frontcountry 

visitors within the first 36 hours of the flood. Within 48 hours, 

Northwestern Energy restored power and park managers 

diverted severed wastewater lines.

The park initiated daily calls with gateway communities and 

communicated with over 1,000 business owners and residents 

during week one. Yellowstone provided public updates regularly 

on the status of recovery and operations through email 

communications to news media, park website, and social media. 

Park, regional, and national NPS press teams actively responded 

to large numbers of media requests. The park conducted 

interviews with over 150 reporters about the flood event and 

will continue efforts to engage the media and share information 

with the public about the recovery process moving forward.

12. 6/13, 12:00, Initiated Gardiner, Montana, call to 

communicate with the community about their needs.

13. 6/13, 13:00, Planned to evacuate visitors and provide 

food and water to Gardiner and Cooke City, Montana.

14. 6/13, 14:00, Started to move Mammoth concessions 

employees south to lessen wastewater flows.

15. 6/13, 14:30, Conducted initial damage assessments by 

resident Federal Highway Administration engineers.

16. 6/13, 15:30, Conducted initial backcountry assessments. 

17. 6/14, 12:15, Evacuated stranded visitors from Gardiner, 

Montana, via Highway 89.

18. 6/14, 16:30, Restored power across the park. 

19. 6/15, 07:00, Started to improve Old Gardiner Road with 

NPS roads crew. 

20. 6/15, 14:00, Diverted Mammoth wastewater from 

flowing into Gardner River.

Top left: Employee housing destroyed by flood

Top right: Damage to North Entrance Road in Gardner River Canyon

Center: Damage to North Entrance Road in Gardner River Canyon

Bottom left: Northeast Entrance Road damage near Soda Butte Picnic Area 

Bottom right: Northeast Entrance Road damage near Trout Lake Trailhead 
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7/5, Started two-lane improvements on Old 

Gardiner Road by HK Contractors.

7/5, Hosted U.S. Senators Barrasso and Lummis 

and Wyoming Governor Gordon.

7/2, Suspended ALPS. Reopened north 

loop to vehicles and backcountry overnight 

use in south loop. (93% of park roads open)

7/1, Developed interim access plan for 

limited commercial use operators to enter 

with clients from Gardiner, Montana.

7/1, Finished NPS improvements to Old 

Gardiner Road allowing for one-way employee 

traffic.

6/29, Hosted senior officials from NPS, 

congressional committees, and FHWA to 

develop strategies around short- and long-term 

recovery efforts.

6/29, Reopened majority of overnight 

accommodations in the south loop.

6/28, Finalized temporary access designs for 

Old Gardiner Road two-lane improvements 

and Northeast Entrance Road.

6/22, Reopened south loop to vehicles and 

backcountry day use using the Alternating 

License Plate System (ALPS).

6/21, Completed repairs to Sliding Meadow 

south of Canyon Village.

6/13, Flood event and initial response (see 

page 14 for emergency actions).

6/14, Received $10 million in 

emergency funding from the Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA).

6/15, Started to engage gateway 

communities to discuss a limited 

reopening of the south loop.

6/14, Started assessments to identify and 

repair damaged sections of the North and 

Northeast Entrance Roads.

6/17, Started planning and design for 

long-term reconstruction strategy.

6/19, Hosted NPS Director Sams.

6/17, Received additional $50 million 

in emergency funding from FHWA.

6/15, Started to improve Old Gardiner Road 

with NPS roads crew. 

Flood Recovery Timeline

2022 FLOOD EVENT

10/30, Opened Temporary North Entrance Road 

(Old Gardiner Road).

10/15, Opened Northeast Entrance Road.

10/29, Hosted media and VIP briefing for DOI 

Deputy Secretary Beaudreau, FHWA Associate 

Administrator for Federal Lands Hess, Montana 

Governor Gianforte, U.S. Congressman 

Rosendale, and WYDOT Director Reiner.

9/8, Suspended day use reservation 

system for Slough Creek.

8/19, Hosted Western Caucus congressional 

delegation.

8/8, Started work on Northeast Entrance Road 

repairs by Oftedal Construction. 

8/2, Hosted U.S. Congressman Rosendale.

8/1, Implemented day use reservation 

system for access to Slough Creek.

7/26, Finalized temporary Northeast 

Entrance Road designs and awarded 

contract to Oftedal Construction.

7/16, Reopened overnight backcountry 

in Slough Creek to stock outfitters, 

overnight visitors, and commercial 

operators. (94% of trails open)

7/11, Finalized temporary Old 

Gardiner Road designs and awarded 

contract to HK Contractors.

7/7-7/8, Hosted Department of the Interior 

Secretary Haaland, Assistant Secretary 

Estenoz, U.S. Senators Tester and Daines, 

and Montana Governor Gianforte.
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Temporary North Entrance Road 

(Old Gardiner Road): before & after

Northeast Entrance Road:

before & after

Flood Recovery Efforts

2022 FLOOD EVENT

Temporary North Entrance Road (Old Gardiner Road)

High water during the flood event destroyed the North Entrance 

Road in several places, which cut off access to Yellowstone via 

the North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana. This road and the 

North Entrance are open year-round and serve as the only winter 

vehicle access in and out of the park. Two days after the flood, 

NPS crews began hauling and applying 20,000+ tons of gravel 

to establish a passable, single lane of travel along an historic 

dirt road. Constructed in 1879, the Old Gardiner Road was the 

original entrance road to Yellowstone until it was replaced with an 

alternative alignment through the Gardner River Canyon in 1884. 

On June 24, 2022, the park completed the required natural and 

cultural resource compliance for the emergency improvements 

to the Old Gardiner Road. FHWA awarded an emergency contract 

to HK Contractors and work began on July 5, 2022, with a project 

cost of $20.5 million. The effort to design and construct this road 

on an accelerated timeline was a direct result of the partnerships 

between NPS, FHWA Western Federal Lands Highway Division, 

RockSol Consulting Group, and HK Contractors. The Temporary 

North Entrance Road opened to public travel on Oct. 30, 2022. 

The NPS is working closely with FHWA to evaluate a range of 

permanent road alignment alternatives and identify the most cost 

effective, resilient, and least environmentally impacting option.

Northeast Entrance Road

High water during the flood event destroyed the Northeast 

Entrance Road in three places and threatened lane collapse in 

two additional places. The Northeast Entrance Road is open to 

visitor vehicle traffic year-round and provides winter access to 

the communities of Cooke City/Silver Gate in Montana and to 

Lamar Valley, a popular destination in the park.

On July 13, 2022, the park completed the required natural and 

cultural resource compliance for the Northeast Entrance Road 

emergency repairs. FHWA awarded an emergency contract to 

Oftedal Construction on July 26, 2022. Work began on Aug. 8, 

2022, with a project cost of $25.5 million. Jacobs Engineering 

Group worked on design while Oftedal teams completed 

repairs. The team of FHWA, Jacobs Engineering Group, Oftedal 

Construction, and the NPS achieved an accelerated reopening 

date, and the road opened to public travel on Oct. 15, 2022. 

The NPS will work closely with the team members as additional 

efforts continue in the spring of 2023 to finalize road sections in 

Lamar River Canyon and near the Trout Lake Trailhead.

Temporary Mammoth Wastewater System

The sewer line adjacent to the road that carried wastewater 

from Mammoth Hot Springs to a sewage treatment plant in 

Gardiner, Montana, was destroyed in the flood. Staff quickly 

rerouted the wastewater into percolator ponds used between 

the 1930s and 1960s, allowing for summer day-use visitors and 

some residents to stay in the area. A new, temporary wastewater 

treatment system is being built to serve the Mammoth area 

with an anticipated 2023 completion.

Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations

The Disaster Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2023 

(Division N, Title VII) makes available $1.5 billion to support 

recovery from natural disasters at several national park units. 

A substantial portion of that amount is authorized for the longterm flood recovery efforts in Yellowstone for the following: • Reconstruct damaged Mammoth to Gardiner North 

Entrance Road with permanent repairs. 

• Reconstruct damaged Northeast Entrance Road with 

permanent repairs.

• Replace damaged Canyon wastewater treatment facility. • Replace destroyed Mammoth to Gardiner wastewater 

pipeline. 

• Replace employee housing lost in the flood. • Construct new employee housing to support flood 

recovery work. 

• Rehabilitate Pebble Creek and Slough Creek Campgrounds 

to repair flood damage. 

• Replace trash cans, bear boxes, tables, backup power 

generators, and other equipment that was lost or failed 

during the flood event. 

• Assess natural and cultural resources damaged or exposed 

by the flood and implement mitigations.
20 21

Success in this priority is central to Yellowstone’s future and revolves 

around improving the working and living conditions of the Yellowstone 

team, how the park manages its financial resources, and how we work 

toward the most effective administrative and operating framework. 

Focusing on the CORE

Clark, park courier, loading up for a delivery 
22 23

Top left: Carpenters with newly-built staircase

Top right: Helitack crew at the helibase

Center: Ribbon cutting new employee housing

Bottom left: Harlan Kredit receives award for 50 seasons of service

Bottom right: Ranger at North Entrance sign

Supporting the Yellowstone Team

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

The Yellowstone Resiliency Project

After the death of employee Ralph Anderson in the fall of 2021, 

the park worked with multiple NPS resources and a local licensed 

therapist to provide wellness checks for all park staff. Following 

these sessions, the providers made the recommendation to 

continue in-person counseling and provide additional mental 

health support for staff. As a result, the park developed the 

Yellowstone Resiliency Project in September 2022. With support 

from Yellowstone Forever’s Resiliency Fund, this one-year pilot 

counseling program brought in several local, trauma-informed 

counselors who are familiar with NPS values and mission and 

trained to engage with employees after significant medical or 

law enforcement incidents. 

From September through November of 2022, counselors 

supported employees in person through 50 one-on-one 

confidential counseling sessions, several group meetings, debriefs, 

and informal connections with staff. Therapists will continue to be 

available inside the park through August of 2023. Yellowstone is a 

leader within the NPS on the formulation, innovation, and overall 

reach of this type of employee-focused program and is advising 

the regional leadership council subcommittee that is also working 

to address employee health and wellness. 

Yellowstone’s workforce is one of the most capable, talented, and resilient in the country. Despite 

facing unprecedented challenges over the past three years, our team has continuously worked to 

successfully protect the park’s resources and keep the park open to millions of visitors annually. It is 

critical we continue efforts to make Yellowstone one of the best places to work in the country with 

a heavy focus on improving recruitment and retention efforts, improving work-life balance, and 

ensuring our staffing levels are adequate to handle the demands of increasing visitation.

Safety and Wellness Program

The Yellowstone Safety Services Office conducted safety 

briefings with divisional work groups, developed an Operational 

Leadership key points summary for distribution across the 

agency, and hosted several after action reviews to create lessons 

learned products for distribution. 

The park Employee Safety and Wellness Team coordinated 

several projects including Safety Days, health fairs, and the 

purchase of exercise fitness equipment for employees; served 

on Critical Incident Stress Management peer support groups; 

served on the park’s COVID-19 Incident Management Team; 

assisted with COVID-19 and implementation of protective 

equipment; and expanded the park Respiratory Protection 

Program. The Safety Office also prepared a draft safety action 

plan to improve safety performance across the park.

Resource management team clearing downed trees Craft shop employee painting employee housing unit
24 25

Supporting the Yellowstone Team

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

Garage and Fleet Operations

Yellowstone has one of the largest vehicle fleets in the NPS. From 

snowmobiles, to snowplows, dump trucks, ambulances, and 

firetrucks, the garage provides vital support and maintenance to 

ensure Yellowstone’s team can operate effectively. The garage 

provides a wide spectrum of services ranging from basic oil 

changes to comprehensive engine rebuilds. The garage team 

completed 2,555 maintenance work orders in 2021-22 and 

provided critical support to the park’s flood recovery response.

Immediately following the flood, garage and fleet team members 

worked alongside the Special Projects crew to complete phase 

1 of the Old Gardiner Road upgrade, which provided access 

between park headquarters and Gardiner, Montana. They drove 

dump trucks, operated heavy equipment, ordered parts, and 

repaired broken equipment to keep this project moving at a 

rapid pace. 

Mail Courier Operations

During the winter, hundreds of employees, volunteers, and family 

members work and live in isolated conditions throughout the 

interior of the park with no postal service delivery. Yellowstone’s 

mail courier becomes the postal delivery mechanism for park 

employees. The courier travels 150 miles by oversnow vehicle 

two times per week delivering an estimated 17,000 pieces of 

mail and another 3,500 parcels to employees, volunteers, and 

family members each year.

Craft Shops

Yellowstone’s expert teams of carpenters, plumbers, and 

electricians handled 2,608 calls for service in 2021-22. The 

craft shop teams work diligently to maintain facility operations, 

improve the condition of employee housing (pages 29-31), 

improve visitor experience, and prioritize the repair of facilities 

and equipment that pose health and safety risks. 

Mail and Copy Room

The mailroom and copy center operations processed 42,808 

pieces of incoming and outgoing mail in 2022 and serves as 

a critical support unit for park operations and programs. The 

center also completes document reproduction for all divisions, 

averaging over 1,200 print requests and tens of thousands of 

pages annually.

Central Warehouse Operations

The Supply Center stocks over 1,500 unique items of consumable 

and expendable stock, including office and janitorial supplies, 

hardware, tools, and safety products. The Yellowstone team 

also relies on the receiving warehouse for delivery of critical 

supplies, property, and materials needed to operate the park. 

Yellowstone’s warehouse operations provide a central repository 

and distribution center for employees’ personal packages as 

well as work-related shipments, processing well over 15,000 

packages annually. In 2022, the warehouse team also managed 

over 12,400 property assets valued at $61,799,161. 

Technology Services

The Information Technology and Telecommunications Services 

maintains a highly complex network to support all forms of data 

and voice communication. The network supports 800 computers, 

1,265 phone lines, 60 servers, 200 network routers and switches, 

and 100 terabytes of storage.

The team inspects, tests, and maintains 292 fire and security 

systems with over 115,000 smoke, heat, and carbon monoxide 

detectors, 500 pull stations, 230 motion detectors and panic 

alarms, five clean agent suppression systems, 67 premise 

security systems, 63 combination fire and security systems, 12 

building access control systems, and 11 video security systems 

with 176 cameras.

The team provides technical support to maintain the Yellowstone 

Interagency Communications Center. Systems supported include 

an enhanced 9-1-1 call taking system, a recorder for emergency 

phone and radio communications, an alarm central station 

monitoring system, a Computer Aided Dispatch, and switch 

operated administrative phone lines.

The team maintains 1,000 portable radios, 800 mobile radios, 

four radio systems, eight mountain top repeaters, 20 radio 

base stations, 14 dispatch consoles, and nine microwave radio 

network links.

Lastly, over 1,200 team members were onboarded in 2021-22. 

Technology services issued building access identification cards 

and access codes, activated email and network access, issued PIV 

cards, provided desk and mobile phones, and programmed and 

issued portable radios for all employees.

Yellowstone Youth Conservation Corps

In 2021, YCC hosted two crews of teens for five weeks and, in 

2022, hosted two month-long sessions of three crews each, 

totaling 31 teens. The focus of this work-based education 

program is to support other work groups’ priority projects, 

including installation of more than 100 bear boxes annually, 

new trailhead signs at all 95 park trailheads, and trail portal 

signs on the Canyon Rims; collecting visitor use data at highvisitation locations; trail maintenance; and in 2022 assisted with 

park flood recovery efforts by clearing 3 miles of brush along the 

Old Gardiner Road and 300 yards of ditch and two wastewater 

retention ponds.

Water and Wastewater Treatment Operations

The park maintains 18 water and wastewater treatment systems 

throughout the park. Water production decreased by 4% in 2022 

to 260,265,431 gallons, down from 269,843,307 gallons in 2021. 

Wastewater increased 3% in 2022 to 148,216,448 gallons, up 

from 143,211,645 gallons in 2021. Park staff have identified and 

repaired water line leaks parkwide but continue to battle locating 

ongoing water system loss. A parkwide professional leak survey is 

planned for early summer 2023.

NPS Director Sams with Yellowstone Youth Conservation Corps

15,000

Packages processed

annually

291 million

Gallons of wastewater

 processed in 2021-22

2,555

Fleet work orders 

completed in 2021-22

115,000

Smoke & heat detectors 

maintained annually
26 27

Financial Income Sources, Expenditures, and Trends

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

Financial Income Sources

In addition to yearly federal appropriations from Congress, 

Yellowstone uses other income sources each year to fund 

labor and benefits, supplies and equipment, capital investment 

projects, and service agreements. Listed below are the main 

income source categories.

Federal Appropriations for Base Operations

Operation of the National Park System (ONPS), commonly 

referred to as “base,” is the annual funding from Congress to 

support basic park operations. These funds are among the most 

flexible in terms of the kinds of expenditures permitted by policy.

Federal Appropriations for Non-Base

Includes additional funding from Congress to support projects for 

natural and cultural resources, interpretation and education, road 

construction managed by the Department of Transportation, 

major construction projects, and structural and wildland fire 

operations. Specific funding sources include the Great American 

Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund, Cyclic Maintenance 

Program, Repair and Rehabilitation, Federal Lands Transportation 

Program, and the Nationally Significant Federal Lands & Tribal 

Projects. These funds generally have a greater level of restriction 

as to what they can be used for, including limitations on spending 

for permanent salaries or other ongoing operational expenses.

Commercial Fees

Includes Concessions Franchise Fees (CFF) and Commercial 

Use Authorization (CUA) fees paid to the park by concessioners 

and other commercial operators providing lodging, retail, food 

& beverage, fuel, transportation, campgrounds, tours, and 

other visitor services. Included are reimbursable payments 

from concessioners for water, wastewater, and solid waste 

management provided by the park. These funds have restrictions 

on how they can be spent, including limits on permanent 

salaries. Generally, commercial services related programs and 

projects are prioritized over other park projects and operations.

Visitor Fees

Includes entrance fees, NPS-operated campground fees, and 

fishing, boating, backcountry, and filming permits. These fees 

are used to directly support visitor services and reduce deferred 

maintenance on park infrastructure. The park retains 80% of 

collected entrance and campground fees through the Federal 

Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA).

Philanthropy

Includes donations and grants from our official nonprofit partner 

Yellowstone Forever. Funds can pass through park accounts or 

be used to pay vendors directly on behalf of the park.

Other Fund Sources

Includes employee housing rent and third-party agreements. 

The use of these funds tends to be restricted to supporting 

specific programs and projects. These fund sources have been 

relatively flat over time (no trend graph represented).

$14.6M $18.5M $11.0M $21.1M $11.0M $30.3M $12.3M $36.4M $96.1M $56.6M

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Non-base funding for repair rehab and cyclic maintenance projects increased 

by $8.2M from 2018-22. Great American Outdoors Act projects accounted for 

$73.7M and $24.7M in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

$8.7M $8.8M $11.3M $12.6M $12.9M $13.6M $13.0M $11.2M $13.7M $10.7M

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Visitor fee revenue increased from 2013-17 due to increased entrance fees in 

2016 combined with increased visitation. COVID impacted revenues in 2020, 

followed by recovery in 2021 with a rebound in visitation. The 2022 flood event 

adversely impacted these revenues by approximately $4M in 2022. The park 

expects to return to the pre-flood level of revenues in 2023 and beyond.

$4.0M $4.4M $7.0M $3.7M $4.7M $4.2M $4.3M $4.0M $2.4M $9.4M

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Philanthropic revenue declined from 2019-21 as Yellowstone Forever 

experienced fiscal challenges. Those issues have been addressed resulting in a 

rebound in 2022 that is expected to continue into future years.

$32.1M $33.8M $34.7M $34.7M $35.0M $35.5M $35.3M $36.7M $36.5M $37.9M

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Base funding has increased 18% from 2013-22 while salary and benefits have 

increased by 23%. During that time, the park spent an average of 81.5% of base 

on salary and benefits.

$5.7M $7.0M $8.1M $9.0M $8.9M $10.2M $12.2M $8.1M $10.2M $11.4M

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Commercial fee revenue increased significantly from 2013-19. This growth has 

been impacted by COVID and the 2022 flood event. The park expects to return 

to the pre-COVID trendline in 2023 and beyond.

2022 Expenditures

Total

$125.1M

$56.6M

Federal Appropriations for Non-Base

$33.8M Capital Investments

$13.3M Service Agreements

$5.9M Labor & Benefits

$3.3M Supplies & Equipment

$169K Rent & Utilities

$87K Other

$10.2M

Visitor Fees

$5.4M Labor & Benefits

$3.7M Service Agreements

$507K Supplies & Equipment

$294K Other

$180K Capital Investments

$89K Rent & Utilities

$13.4M

Commercial Fees

$5.3M Supplies & Equipment

$3.2M Labor & Benefits

$2.8M Service Agreements

$2.1M Rent & Utilities

$27K Other

$3.5M

Other Fund Sources

Financial Expenditures 2022

Income and expenditure 

categories may not total due 

to differences in the timing 

of receipt and expenditure.

Philanthropy

$3.5M

$37.9M

FederalAppropriationsfor BaseOperations

$31.2M Labor & Benefits

$3.2M Supplies & Equipment

$1.6M Service Agreements

$1.1M Rent & Utilities

$781K Other

$65K Capital Investments

Salary Benefits Step Increases

$1,192 2013 Total 

$16,777 $15,585

Seasonal

GS-05/1

2013

$17,985 2022 Total

$20,683 $2,698

Seasonal

GS-05/1

2022

$47,448 $16,939 2013 Total

$64,387

Permanent

GS-09/1

2013

$54,727 $29,290 2022 Total

$94,963 $10,946

Permanent

GS-09/7

2022

Average Employee Cost

Permanent

GS-09/1

2022

$54,727 $24,408 2022 Total

$79,135

*+23%

**+23% ***+24%

* The cost of a seasonal 

GS-05 employee has risen 

+23% from 2013 to 2022. 

There is no retention 

cost for a seasonal 

employee—they do not 

receive step increases.

** If a permanent GS-09/1 

employee hired in 2013 

is retained, there is an 

additional +24% increase in 

cost (+47% total) due to step 

increases for the GS-09/7 

employee in 2022.

***

Yellowstone Staffing Levels

In 2022, Yellowstone operated and 

managed 512 full-time equivalent 

employees (FTE). An FTE is equal 

to 2,080 hours of work per year. 

Since seasonal employees work 

1,039 hours or less each year, one 

FTE can equate to several seasonal 

employees. Therefore, the total 

number of NPS employees working 

in the park during the summer is 

around 750. Permanent Seasonal Term

2013 FTE

Total

521

316

188

16

2022 FTE

Total

512

308

2

202

It costs an additional 

$9.8 million

to employ the same 

number of FTE in 

2022 as in 2013.

Park visits have

increased by

1 million

from 2013 to 2022.

The cost of a permanent 

GS-09/1 employee has 

risen +23% from 2013 

to 2022. 
28 29

Improving Telecommunications Infrastructure

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

Fiber Optic Network Installation

Diamond Communications (DC) continues to move forward with 

their application for a right-of-way and special use permit to 

build up to 190 miles of fiber along the South Entrance, Grand 

Loop, and North Entrance roads. Natural and cultural resource 

compliance is complete with a FONSI (Finding of No Significant 

Impact), interim drawings have been provided to the park, and 

an appraisal is being completed in coordination with the DOI 

Office of Land Valuation Services. If permitted, DC would recover 

their expenses over time by billing for services they provide to 

other service providers and in-park customers. If permits are 

issued, construction would take up to five years to complete.

Satellite Internet

Yellowstone procured 10 Starlink Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) business 

class satellite kits and matching routers to connect the Starlink 

services to the DOI network. The kits replaced obsolete and weak 

connections at Bechler, Lamar, Grant, Canyon, East Entrance, 

Northeast Entrance, Madison, Norris, Mammoth, Gardiner, 

and Tower. These services provide broadband DOI connections, 

support Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) phones, and open 

internet connections to enable new traffic counters and cellular 

calling and data over Wi-Fi for government-issued mobile phones.

Broadband in Employee Residences

LEO satellite internet services like Starlink are promising, but 

the costs per unit are prohibitive and there are limits to the 

number of services allowed in a geographic area. Verizon cellular 

improvements have enabled cellular-provided internet at many 

locations through hot spots and if the DC fiber project moves 

forward, cellular services will improve. Starting in 2021, fiber at 

South Entrance is now delivered directly to the nine residences 

as a utility.

Verizon Wireless LTE Upgrades

Verizon has improved their wireless services at Canyon, Old 

Faithful, Lake, Grant Village, and Mount Washburn. Many of 

these sites are delivering download speeds of 75 Mbps and 

more during peak visitation. Extended periods of service 

interruptions are still an issue due to a variety of environmental 

circumstances.

Broadband

West Yellowstone, South Entrance, Lake, and Old Faithful were 

upgraded to 100Mbps fiber connections provided by Anthem 

(West), Diamond Communications (South Entrance), and Lumen 

(Gardiner, Old Faithful, and West Yellowstone).

Obsolete Infrastructure

If the DC fiber optic network installation moves forward, 

antiquated communications infrastructure from mountaintops 

and backcountry sites can be removed. If the applicant wishes 

to withdraw, they can pay their cost recovery and withdraw 

without penalty.

Servicing telecommunications equipment

Improving Employee Housing

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

Our ability to attract and retain talent in Yellowstone is strongly tied to the availability of affordable 

private and government housing options. The quality and quantity of available housing is directly 

tied to the success of every division, district, operation, and program. While Yellowstone has made 

many housing improvements over the past decades, our efforts have not kept pace with the rate 

of deterioration of our housing assets. We have not adequately responded to the changes in local 

real estate markets or the demands of increased visitation. Yellowstone National Park initiated 

a major, multimillion-dollar housing improvement effort to substantially upgrade NPS employee 

housing across the park that focuses on four goals:

Goal 1: Replace Trailers with High-Quality Modular Homes

Yellowstone has many employee housing trailers dating back 

to the 1960s that represent some of the worst employee 

housing in the national park system. Using modular versus onsite construction has allowed the park to build quality units in 

less time with lower costs. The park will save an estimated $36 

million from the original housing improvement plan proposal.

Goal 2: Improve Condition of Non-Trailer, Non-Historic Homes

Yellowstone’s non-trailer housing units are spread over nine 

developed areas. These housing units are the primary residences 

for NPS employees, many of whom are snowed in completely 

between December and April. The condition of these houses 

varies dramatically, with many in extremely poor condition.

Goal 3: Rehabilitate Deteriorating Historic Homes

Designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2003, Fort 

Yellowstone consists of 34 structures constructed in the 1880s 

and early 1890s. Many of these structures continue to be used as 

housing and office space, but historic preservation is the primary 

reason for these rehabilitations. Many of these structures 

are severely deteriorating. This goal is also part of two other 

Yellowstone strategic priorities–Strengthening the Yellowstone 

Ecosystem and Heritage Resources and Investing in Infrastructure. 

Goal 4: Add New Housing Capacity

Over the past decade, housing and rental prices in gateway 

communities have risen dramatically. Many communities have 

transitioned to short-term rental markets, making year-round 

rentals rare and very expensive. As increasing portions of the 

Yellowstone workforce retire, the lack of housing in surrounding 

communities like Gardiner and West Yellowstone, Montana, has 

made recruiting replacement positions difficult. 

Goal 1: New employee modular homes
30 31

Improving Employee Housing

FOCUSING ON THE CORE

Goal 1: Replace Trailers with High-Quality Modular Homes

• Completed 45 modular housing unit installations in the 

park to date at Mammoth (32), Old Faithful (10), and 

Bechler (3). 

• An additional 21 units are scheduled to be placed at Lake 

(15) and West Yellowstone (6) in 2023.

• The remaining 15 units are scheduled at South (2), Grant 

(4), Madison (2), Norris (2), Canyon (3), and Northeast 

Entrance (2) by 2025.

• Invested $30.1 million on modular housing units and site 

development since 2019.

Goal 2: Improve Condition of Non-Trailer, Non-Historic Homes

• Renovated 121 housing units in 2021-22, totaling 155 

completed turnovers since 2019. 

• Installed 89 wood stoves across seven developed areas 

across the park since 2019.

• Invested $16.5 million to renovate existing non-modular 

housing units since 2019.

Goal 3: Rehabilitate Deteriorating Historic Homes

• Received $22 million to rehabilitate historic Fort 

Yellowstone through the Great American Outdoors Act 

Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF). This project will be one of 

the largest historic preservation projects in the NPS.

• Received $21 million in funding to rehabilitate the historic 

Laurel Dorm near the Old Faithful Inn, which is part of the 

Old Faithful Historic District. This is another major historic 

preservation project funded through LRF.

Goal 4: Add New Housing Capacity

• Natural and cultural resource compliance is underway to 

locate potential areas and configurations for new housing 

(single occupancy dorms, modular cabins, etc.)

• Converted three 8-plex utility/storage areas into onebedroom apartments.

• The park is pursuing housing lease options in the gateway 

communities of Gardiner and West Yellowstone, Montana.

Key Statistics

• One quarter of Yellowstone employees earn less than 

$51,000 annually and half earn less than $64,000.

• Home values in West Yellowstone and Gardiner, Montana, 

are currently equal to or more expensive than in Denver, 

Colorado.

• Home values in West Yellowstone and Gardiner, Montana, 

are currently double the national average.

5-Year Average Home Value

45%

Housing inventory

renovated or replaced

since 2019

45

 New modular 

 homes installed

 since 2019

155

Existing homes 

renovated 

36

 Additional

 modular homes 

 installed by 

 2025

214 Remaining homes

 scheduled for

 renovation by 

 2026

$800K

$700K

$600K

$500K

$400K

$300K

$200K

United States West Yellowstone Gardiner Denver

Goal 2 exterior example: before & after

Goal 1 example: before & after

Goal 2 interior example: before & after

Goal 3 foundation example: before & after
32 33

This priority centers on taking the actions necessary to strengthen, preserve, and 

protect Yellowstone’s wide-ranging natural, cultural, and geologic resources. 

The park is committed to being a world leader in promoting large landscape 

conservation, understanding and responding to the impacts of climate change, 

protecting resources from increasing visitor use, and maintaining a robust 

scientific and research capacity to inform resource-related decisions. 

Strengthening the Yellowstone Ecosystem and Heritage RESOURCES

Cougar M228
34 35

Resource Conservation Efforts

Bison Conservation Transfer Program

Yellowstone established the Bison Conservation Transfer 

Program in 2017 to identify brucellosis-free bison and transfer 

them to American Indian Tribes for release as an alternative 

to shipping to slaughter. The success of the program depends 

on effective partnerships with the Fort Peck Tribes, InterTribal 

Buffalo Council, State of Montana, Department of Agriculture 

(Veterinary Services), and various nonprofits. The program 

was initially funded by federal and Tribal governments, but the 

park recently expanded the program with a combination of 

government and philanthropic dollars.

Key Actions

• Since 2019, 294 bison have been transferred to the Fort 

Peck Indian Reservation. 

• The park assisted the Fort Peck Tribes and InterTribal 

Buffalo Council to transfer 170 bison from the Fort Peck 

Indian Reservation to 23 other Tribes across 12 states.

• In 2021-22, the park partnered with Yellowstone Forever 

and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition to invest $1 million, 

which doubled the capacity of the program.

• In coordination with the Animal Plant and Health 

Inspection Service, the program can now support 

transferring about 100 animals to Tribes each year.

Yellowstone Bison Management Plan

The park is in the process of developing a new Bison Management 

Plan. The park released a notice of intent in January 2022, evaluated 

scoping comments, and prepared a draft Environmental Impact 

Statement which is undergoing review. Under all alternatives, 

the NPS would sustain a viable population of migratory bison 

(currently 5,900) and continue engaging with partners to explore 

the best management options for the future.

STRENGTHENING THE YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM AND HERITAGE RESOURCES

Bison Research

Yellowstone continued scientific research and data collection 

on bison grazing and grassland health. Northern Yellowstone 

produces enough vegetation to support 5,000 to 10,000 bison 

based on satellite-derived estimates of forage production, 

bison use patterns, and population data. Bison grazing benefits 

grasslands in Yellowstone by diversifying the composition of 

plants, maintaining plant production, enhancing soil nutrient 

availability, and improving soil water holding capacity. These 

benefits will help maintain the functional integrity of grasslands 

under a warming climate.

Population trend from 1901-present

6K

5K

4K

3K

2K

1K 5,900

Bison in 2022

Bison in the new Conservation Transfer Program facility

1928

1965

1990

2000

2010

Wolves

There were 108 wolves in 10 packs in Yellowstone during 

December 2022, including seven breeding pairs. The 2021 

Montana Legislature mandated a reduction in the number of 

wolves statewide, approved new harvest techniques, increased 

the harvest limit per individual, extended the harvest season, 

and eliminated the quotas from wolf management units 

adjacent to the park. The Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission 

adopted these regulations and 19 wolves from the park were 

harvested in Montana during the following winter of 2021-22, 

including most of the Phantom Lake pack and one-quarter of 

the Junction Butte pack. In response, the park worked with the 

commission to reestablish a quota of six wolves outside the 

northern boundary to prevent overharvest.

Cougars

Cougars (mountain lions) are recovered in Yellowstone and 

numbers are fluctuating naturally in a manner that does not 

threaten their long-term viability. A remote camera survey grid 

established in 2020 enabled a population estimate of 29 to 45 

cougars in northern Yellowstone. Sixteen adult cougars have 

been fitted with GPS telemetry collars to monitor predation, 

habitat selection, multi-species interactions, and energetics. 

The collars also have built-in accelerometers which continuously 

measure body movement and activity patterns. Accelerometer 

data displays discrete behaviors such as resting, traveling, killing 

prey, and feeding, and measures caloric expenditures. 

Grizzly Bears

In 2022, park staff coordinated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service (USFWS), Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, and other 

federal and state agencies to develop the Conservation Strategy 

for the Grizzly Bear in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The 

foundation of Yellowstone’s bear management program is to 

prevent bears from obtaining human food and garbage. The 

park has installed bear-proof food storage boxes in 72% of the 

park’s 1,907 campsites. The park is on schedule to complete the 

installation of bear boxes in every campsite in 2026.

Birds 

The park led efforts to recover common loons and trumpeter 

swans, including the installation of a nesting platform at Grebe 

Lake and the release of cygnets in partnership with the Ricketts 

Conservation Foundation, Wyoming Wetlands Society, and 

USFWS. Four cygnets fledged from Swan Lake in 2022, which 

was the first successful cygnet production on the lake since 

1967. The park also continued collaborative studies of the 

food habits, movements, reproduction, and survival of Clark’s 

nutcrackers, golden eagles, and ravens in northern Yellowstone.

Native Fish

Yellowstone is continuing a major effort to restore native fish and 

create resiliency in populations threatened by nonnative species 

and climate warming. Native arctic grayling and cutthroat trout 

(Yellowstone, westslope) have been released into 196 stream 

miles and 293 lake acres after non-native fish were removed.

Population trend from 1995-present

300

200

100 108

Wolves in 2022

1,100

800

500

200

GYE population trend from 1979-present

*Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem includes surrounding public lands 

1,063*

Grizzlies in 2021

Collaring a cougar Banding a bird

46

33

20

7 Population abundance trend from 1980-present

*Average fish caught overnight per 100m of gillnet

30.8*

Yellowstone Cutthroat in 2022

1990

2000

2010

2002

2008 2016 1990

2000

2010
36 37

Planning and Compliance 

In 2022, the Planning and Compliance team completed 

over 120 Natural and cultural resource compliance requests 

parkwide, which included the temporary Mammoth wastewater 

treatment plant, obsolete housing replacement, Fort Yellowstone 

rehabilitation, and numerous telecommunication projects. The 

team initiated and continued planning efforts for the Laurel 

Dormitory replacement, Canyon employee housing rehabilitation, 

parkwide water and wastewater treatment plant upgrades, the 

North and Northeast entrance road replacements, and bison 

management plan.

The team issued 139 research permits and continued 

frontcountry monitoring efforts at five focal locations and 

produced regular reports on visitor use patterns used to inform 

and support parkwide managed access systems and visitationbased decision making in response to the 2022 flood event.

The team also completed two emergency compliance Decision 

Memos for response to the 2022 flood event. The park received 

approval from the Department of the Interior and the Office 

of Environmental Policy and Compliance for the Decision 

Memorandum and Environmental Review to support emergency 

activities for improvements to the Old Gardiner Road and Northeast 

Entrance Road. Both documents approved and facilitated timely 

emergency repair of damaged sections of roadway to allow access 

to and from communities isolated by the 2022 flood event. 

Hydrology

Yellowstone responded to the 2022 flood event in coordination 

with U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), NOAA-National Weather 

Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to maintain 

streamgages, provide river forecast data to downstream 

communities, and initiate interagency agreements to secure 

critical infrastructure repairs and emergency response planning.

Hydrology staff provided assessments of wastewater discharge 

flow rates in coordination with park facilities staff to ensure 

appropriate sizing of Mammoth emergency treatment facilities. 

The park also initiated the first study of swimming area water 

quality to ensure public health. 

Wetlands

During 2021-22, crews delineated 274 wetlands between 

Canyon Junction and Alum Creek along the road corridor; 

surveyed and delineated 35 wetlands for emergency repairs on 

the Temporary North Entrance Road; and reverified wetlands 

along the road corridor between Norris and Golden Gate, which 

included proposed parking lots for Bunsen Peak, Sheepeater 

Cliffs, and Norris Geyser Basin and an expansion of Swan Lake 

Pit. Additionally, crews surveyed rare plants and reverified 

wetlands for the temporary Mammoth wastewater treatment 

plant, surveyed two areas in Bechler in support of trail projects, 

and surveyed the Gardner River High Bridge area of impact for 

wetlands.

309

Wetlands delineated 

in 2021-22

Whitebark Pine

In December of 2022, white park pine was listed as threatened 

under the Endangered Species Act. Yellowstone started a 

project to assess whitebark pine health in six core areas in 2021. 

In 2022, the project went full-scale when staff measured the 

health across 525 acres of the park. Overall, 11% of whitebark 

pine trees had evidence of blister rust infection with two stands 

comprising the highest percentage of infected trees. Fifteen 

trees were observed with evidence of recent mountain pine 

beetle attack. The park will continue these health assessments 

of the core areas in 2023.

The park also developed, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service (USFWS), an innovative approach for surveying 

whitebark pine. The USFWS shared this model with other federal 

agencies as the standard practice of monitoring whitebark pine 

into the future.

Science Communications

Yellowstone designed and published annual reports for the 

wolf, bear, bird, and native fisheries programs in 2021-22. 

The Grazing Issue of Yellowstone Science was a central focus 

and it includes crucial information about ongoing research to 

understand the effect that ungulates have on the northern 

range of the park. Reports and issues can be found at: 

nps.gov/YellowstoneScience

Resource Conservation Efforts

Geology

In 2020, Yellowstone partnered with the USGS 3D Elevation 

Program to acquire LiDAR data of the entire park. The park 

again acquired LiDAR of terrain affected by the 2022 flood event 

through the USGS Geospatial Products and Services Contracts 

program. Comparative analyses of the 2020 and 2022 postflood LiDAR data will inform park managers of landform changes 

in the park’s flood affected areas.

The Geology Program worked with the NPS Geologic Resources 

Division to engage the Department of Earth Sciences at Montana 

State University to identify and begin remapping the geologic 

maps that cover the extent of the park. Yellowstone lacks an 

accurate and complete geologic map, and accurate and detailed 

geologic maps are integral to understanding the terrain on 

which infrastructure is placed in our national parks. The Geology 

Program plans to publish a 1:100,000 scale geologic map of the 

park and create a 1:62,500 scale geodatabase for online use. 

The Geology Program installed and is testing a telemetered data 

logger system at thermal features in the Upper Geyser Basin (Old 

Faithful). Each logger station consists of a temperature sensor that 

is placed in a geyser runoff channel and an electronic logger that 

sends thermal data to a receiver that is connected to the internet. 

These data are used to monitor seasonal and other changes in 

geyser activity, analyze changes in geyser activity with other large 

datasets, and allow for better predictions on geyser activity. 

STRENGTHENING THE YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM AND HERITAGE RESOURCES

Right: Measuring a whitebark pine tree

Top left: measuring stream flow with stream gauge

Bottom left: 3D mapping hydrothermal features 
38 39

Resource Conservation Efforts

Heritage and Research Center

In 2022, the team catalogued an additional 180,053 items, 

responded to 514 internal and 1,762 external research requests, 

and managed 58 total outgoing loans with 621 items on exhibit 

at the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson, Wyoming, 

and to the DOI Museum in Washington, D.C. 

Park concessioner, Xanterra Parks and Resorts, transferred 

nearly 6,000 historic maps and architectural drawings of 

concession-managed structures.

The team re-articulated wolf skeleton 302M with the help of 

Yellowstone Forever. The wolf skull collections were 3D scanned 

and available at: Morphosource.org.

Archeology

In 2022, the archeology program performed 61 site condition 

assessments throughout the park.

STRENGTHENING THE YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM AND HERITAGE RESOURCES

Yellowstone is rich in historic and cultural resources. The park has 1,942 known archeological sites, 

300 ethnographic resources, nearly 1.2 million objects in the museum collection, and over 3.7 million 

items in the archives and library collection. The park has 25 sites, landmarks, and districts on the 

National Register of Historic Places and 843 historic structures including, trails, roads, bridges, utility 

structures, and grave markers that are listed on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.

Historic Structures and Cultural Landscapes

Through the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration 

Fund, the park received funding to rehabilitate historic Fort 

Yellowstone, historic Laurel Dorm, and part of the Old Faithful 

Historic District. The Fort Yellowstone Rehabilitation is one of 

the largest historic preservation projects in the NPS.

The team completed emergency natural and cultural resource 

compliance actions in consultation with the Montana and 

Wyoming State Historic Preservation Offices and the Advisory 

Council on Historic Preservation to facilitate emergency actions 

in response to the 2022 flood event.

The team evaluated 128 undertakings, completed 14 

determinations of eligibility, and completed 17 full consultation 

processes with Montana and Wyoming State Historic 

Preservation Offices, ensuring compliance with Section 106 of 

the National Historic Preservation Act.

Salish Kootenai College professor Dean Nikolai with students and park archeologists Trimming trees in historic Fort Yellowstone

YELL 7067: Decorated leather armband (Dakota, Sioux)

Sustainability Efforts

Municipal Waste Program Analysis

In 2022, consultants, concession partners, stakeholders, and 

NPS staff worked together to analyze the park’s municipal 

waste program and provide recommendations for improvement 

focused on three main goals: 1) increase diversion from the 

landfill, 2) reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and 3) reduce 

costs. The report is due at the end of 2023. 

Propane Pickup

In 2022, Worthington, a propane canister manufacturer, was 

awarded a contract at their expense to remove a stockpile of 

16,508 propane canisters, saving Yellowstone over $80,000.

Recycling Bins

In 2022, the National Park Foundation awarded the park grants 

from Tupperware and Coca-Cola to purchase new and replace 

129 recycling bins throughout the park.

Electric Vehicle Charging

In 2022, the park assessed its fleet replacement opportunities 

over the next five years and completed a field assessment 

through a partnership with the National Renewable Energy Lab 

and the Federal Energy Management Program. The assessment 

identified 42 locations for potential electric vehicle changing 

stations and the need for service panels, trenching, and a new 

transformer.

Light Bulb Upgrades 

With support from Yellowstone Forever, the park continues 

its effort to convert over 35,000 light bulbs to LEDs. The new 

lights require only half the amount of electricity compared to 

fluorescent and incandescent bulbs. They have also installed 

vacancy sensors in many office spaces to automatically turn 

these lights off when not in use.

Building Upgrades

To ensure better historic preservation energy conservation, the 

park is upgrading many aspects of historic structures including 

installing vapor barriers, wall and ceiling insulation, double 

pane storm windows, weatherstripping and air sealing, and 

rehabilitating exterior doors. This work is often accomplished 

with partners, through various agreements and contracting 

methods.

Sustainability Reports

Yellowstone staff coordinate the collection of data for energy, 

water and fuel use and waste operations from NPS and 

concession partners and compile it in an annual report. 

Solar Power

In early 2022, the park installed a 45kW ground mounted 

photovoltaic system in partnership with Northwestern Energy 

to provide the remote, off-grid Bechler Ranger Station with 

renewable electricity. The backup propane generator was 

unused during the new system’s first summer online. 

STRENGTHENING THE YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM AND HERITAGE RESOURCES

New photovolatic system at Bechler Ranger Station

Replacing fluorescent bulbs with LED bulbs

Stockpiled propane canisters from park campgrounds
40 41

Threats to the Yellowstone Ecosystem

Climate Change

Park staff and partners are working on tools to better predict 

near-term weather events and dangerous conditions. Near-term 

threats include an increased chance of rain on snow causing flood 

events that impact infrastructure; low summer flows combined 

with warmer stream temperatures impacting native, cold-water 

fish and recreational fishing opportunities; rapid increase in the 

spread of invasive grasses impacting native vegetation; shrinking 

wetland resources impacting amphibians and other vulnerable 

wildlife; a reduction in whitebark pine impacting alpine 

ecosystems; and extreme wildfire behavior impacting forest 

vegetation, park infrastructure, and visitor health and safety. 

Yellowstone has formed active, strong partnerships within the 

NPS (Greater Yellowstone Inventory and Monitoring Network, 

WASO Climate Change Response Program, IMR Climate 

Change Program), with other federal agencies in the region 

(Greater Yellowstone Coordinating Committee), and with 

nongovernmental entities (Montana State University, National 

Parks Conservation Association, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, 

Wildlife Conservation Society). To increase our collective 

capacity to respond to climate change, the park has sponsored, 

planned, and participated in multiple climate smart workshops 

throughout the region.

STRENGTHENING THE YELLOWSTONE ECOSYSTEM AND HERITAGE RESOURCES

The best chance of avoiding catastrophic damage to 

Yellowstone ecosystems is to anticipate the most likely future 

conditions, identify what is vulnerable under those conditions, 

and on a case-by-case basis, make intentional decisions about 

whether we should resist, accept, or direct the change. Using 

this structured decision-making process, the park has begun 

working on climate informed adaptation plans for aquatic 

resources, park infrastructure, vegetation management, and 

wildlife management.

To better understand species response to climate change, 

Yellowstone is studying insect species with different physiologies, 

behaviors, and seasonal timing. The research occurs along a 

4,500-foot elevational gradient at seven long-term ecological 

monitoring sites in the northern section of the park. Equipment 

at each site continuously monitors weather, soil conditions, 

the soundscape, snowpack, and plant phenology. The data 

generated will provide critical information for focal species 

and inform larger trends that may be incorporated into climate 

adaptation response planning.

At 3,437.5 square miles, Yellowstone National Park forms the core of the Greater Yellowstone 

Ecosystem—one of the largest, nearly intact, temperate-zone ecosystems on Earth. To protect 

this ecosystem from an increasing number of threats, continuous planning and adaptations are 

needed into the foreseeable future.

Bombus huntii, one of many insect species monitored Downloading data from a monitoring site station

Aquatic Invasive Species

In 2022, Yellowstone staff conducted 2,975 watercraft inspections 

with 1,049 high-risk inspections and 210 decontaminations 

compared to 2021, which had 3,878 inspections with 134 highrisk inspections and one decontamination. For the entire State 

of Wyoming’s inspection data, Yellowstone AIS staff conducted 

30.6% of the decontaminations for the state for September. 

In 2021, the AIS Program started using the “Colorado” watercraft 

inspection database. This database is used by other organizations 

throughout the west to collect and share inspection data and is 

key to communicating with partners about risks. 

In 2022, Yellowstone collected 190 samples as part of a new, 

eDNA-based AIS early detection monitoring to allow for rapid 

response in the event of a new AIS detection. None of the 

samples tested positive for AIS.

Nonnative Lake Trout Suppression

Since 1995, more than 4.5 million lake trout have been removed 

by suppression efforts on Yellowstone Lake. Over the past 

decade, reproductive lake trout (age 6 and older) have been 

reduced by more than 80%. The abundance of young cutthroat 

trout has increased steadily over the past decade. Quality 

angling for cutthroat trout remains high because adult cutthroat 

trout are now longer (>18 inches) and weigh twice what they 

did prior to the lake trout invasion due to reduced competition. 

Grizzly and black bears have responded to increases in spawning 

cutthroat trout by returning to some lake tributaries during 

spring to feed upon them.

Increased Visitation

Visitation has increased substantially over the past decades. 

Although most visitor impacts occur within the road corridor 

and developed areas, less than 7% of the park, Yellowstone is 

developing a new visitor use management strategy (pages 44-

46) that focuses heavily on better understanding and responding 

to visitor impacts on resources across the park. The park’s 

strategy focuses on visitor impacts to 1) park resources, 2) park 

staffing, operations, and infrastructure, 3) visitor experience, 

and 4) gateway communities. 

Terrestrial Invasive Species

Invasive nonnative plants can displace native plant species, 

including some endemic to the park’s geothermal habitats, 

change the integrity of vegetation communities, increase fire 

frequency, and affect the distribution, foraging activity, and 

abundance of wildlife. 

In 2021-22, crews inventoried 18,440 acres of invasive plants, 

a 25% increase from the last reporting period. Crews treated 

103 infested acres with herbicide and manually pulled 3 acres. 

Invasive annual grasses in the park interior, namely cheatgrass, 

received additional management attention during this reporting 

period. To date, crews have mapped 189 acres of cheatgrass 

in the park mostly around park construction projects, thermal 

areas often used by wildlife, and routinely disturbed visitor 

use areas and backcountry camp sites. In 2021-22, crews 

herbicide-treated 113 priority acres to prevent these patches 

from spreading into uninvaded and otherwise intact plant 

communities.

In 2021, the park started working with various researchers, the 

U.S. Forest Service, and USGS, to develop remote sensing tools 

aimed at predicting the occurrence of small, isolated patches 

of cheatgrass and other invasive annual grasses to target them 

for aggressive treatment and revegetation. This work is ongoing 

with a product anticipated in 2024.

Wildlife Health

In 2022, the program coordinated the collection of 190 samples 

from 53 waterbodies across the park for the early detection of 

high-priority aquatic invasive species. Field crews collected 43 

swab and tissue samples from captured amphibians at six sites 

for the presence of disease agents (chytrid fungus, ranavirus). 

Bat monitoring continues to be important as white-nose 

syndrome has spread into western Wyoming near the park’s 

eastern boundary. The program deployed 32 acoustic point 

stations across the park. This monitoring effort has yielded 

hundreds of thousands of bat calls that will be used to identify 

white-nose syndrome impacts on bat populations. Additionally, 

eight winter acoustic monitoring stations were deployed across 

northern Yellowstone to monitor bat activity. 

6,853

Watercraft inspections 

in 2021-22

216

Acres treated

in 2021-22
42 43

This priority focuses on providing a high-quality visitor experience for the millions 

who visit each year while simultaneously ensuring that park resources are protected. 

The park has spent the last six years monitoring impacts of increasing visitation on 

resources, staff and infrastructure, visitor experience, and gateway communities. 

The park has implemented a wide range of short-term actions designed to manage 

visitation, provide quality public safety services, and minimize impacts to resources 

more effectively. The park is now working on a variety of potential long-term actions 

that will help address future challenges associated with increasing visitation levels. 

Delivering a World-Class Visitor EXPERIENCE

Ranger Steve presenting a program at Old Faithful
44 45

Understanding Impacts from Increased Visitation

DELIVERING A WORLD-CLASS VISITOR EXPERIENCE

In 2019, Yellowstone developed a strategy to better understand 

and respond to impacts from increasing visitation. The strategy 

focuses on visitor impacts to these four areas:

Park Resources

The park is improving its methodologies and data collection 

to better understand the impacts of increased visitation on 

resources. While data indicate minimal visitor impacts on most 

park resources, limited impacts (social trails, human waste, 

and litter) have been identified in the busiest areas of the park, 

including the Upper Geyser (Old Faithful) and Midway Geyser 

basins.

Park Staffing, Operations, and Infrastructure

Increasing visitation translates to greater impacts on the 

Yellowstone team, our operations, and infrastructure like roads, 

bridges, and wastewater systems. Popular sites now require 

more frequent cleaning at peak times, garbage and wastewater 

pump trucks must adjust their schedules to accommodate for 

traffic congestion, and additional staff is required to manage 

traffic and safety in congested areas. 

Visitor Experience 

Surveys reveal that visitors to Yellowstone are largely satisfied 

with their experience and that roadway traffic does not 

negatively impact their experience. However, surveys also 

identified issues around restrooms, congestion, and parking at 

specific sites during peak season. 

Gateway Communities

While increasing visitation can economically benefit surrounding 

communities, additional traffic and congestion has caused 

concern within communities during peak season. The 2022 

flood event and recovery efforts had substantial impacts on 

gateway communities. Following the flood, the park held daily 

calls with gateway communities for the first few weeks and 

intermittently thereafter to ensure transparency on the park’s 

efforts to reopen the park to the public as quickly and safely as 

possible and manage visitation with limited infrastructure.

Human waste near Fairy Falls parking area

Wastewater systems near capacity

Parking congestion at Canyon overlooks

West Entrance Station line backed up into town

Social Science

In 2022, Yellowstone staff, with assistance from Youth 

Conservation Corps crews, conducted over 936 hours of visitor 

use data over 14 weeks, with a two-week disruption following 

the 2022 flood event. It marks the sixth year of consecutive 

visitor use monitoring in key frontcountry locations. The park 

has established baseline conditions, captured trends over time, 

and is expanding data collection to include more complex areas 

such as Canyon, Old Faithful, and Mammoth Hot Springs. Park 

managers use this data to make decisions about where new 

strategies and tactics are needed to respond to increased and 

changing visitor use patterns, such as different infrastructure 

design, different ways to manage visitor access or flow, new 

restrooms, or additional staffing, signage, or education.

2021 was the highest visitation year on record, followed by 

2022, which marked the lowest visitation level since monitoring 

began. Between 2021 and 2022, parking conditions and impacts 

to resources improved at all monitoring locations, while visits 

to popular viewpoints stayed relatively constant and visitor 

interest in off-peak seasons has increased. 

Visitor Use Survey 2018

In 2018, the park conducted one of the most comprehensive 

visitor use surveys in the country, with over 7,000 participants 

providing valuable data and opinions. Beginning in 2019, the park 

began efforts to address visitor concerns in several notable areas.

Visitor Use Survey Key Points

• The most important experiences for visitors are to view 

scenery, see wildlife, and to see geysers and thermal 

features.

• Respondents were more likely to experience a greater 

sense of crowding, traffic congestion, and limited parking 

availability at Midway Geyser Basin and Fairy Falls. 

• Visitor experience and frustration ratings appeared to have 

little to no significant correlation with GPS-based average 

speeds across road segments in the park. Respondents 

were generally not frustrated, gave high experience 

ratings, and did not perceive major problems on roadways.

Recreational visits trend from 1904-present

*Highest visitation in park history 

2022 visits (3,290,242) affected by flood event

4,860,242*

Visits in 2021

1992

3 million 

visits

2015 

4 million 

visits

1965

2 million 

visits

1948

1 million

visits

Are you a first-time visitor to Yellowstone?

Yes - 66.5%

No - 33.5%

How much time did you spend waiting for parking?

Less than 5 minutes - 72.6%

5 to 10 minutes - 13.5%

11 to 20 minutes - 5.9%

21 to 30 minutes - 3.7%

More than 30 minutes - 4.3%

How crowded did you feel in Yellowstone?

Extremely - 5.6%

Very - 14%

Moderately - 29.3%

Slightly - 28.3%

Not at all - 22.8%

How would you rate your trip to Yellowstone?

Very Poor - 1.5%

Poor - 2.7%

Fair - 10.6%

Good - 41.3%

Excellent - 43.9%

2018 Visitor Use Survey Highlights
46 47

Responding to Increased Visitation

DELIVERING A WORLD-CLASS VISITOR EXPERIENCE

Using data from the visitor use surveys and transportation studies, the park will focus on reducing 

impacts within the Midway Geyser Corridor, Old Faithful Geyser Basin, Norris Geyser Basin, and 

Canyon Village sites. These areas have consistently been identified as having the highest levels 

of congestion and the highest impacts on resources and visitor experience. In 2022, the park 

implemented a range of solutions to achieve visitor management objectives.

Automated Shuttle Pilot

In the summer of 2021, in partnership with the NPS 

Alternative Transportation Program and the Department of 

Transportation (DOT) Volpe National Transportation Systems 

Center, Yellowstone piloted a low-speed automated (driverless) 

shuttle at Canyon Village to test emerging automated vehicle 

technology in the national park context. The Electric Driverless 

Demonstration in Yellowstone (TEDDY) had over 10,000 riders 

who overwhelmingly reported having a positive experience. 

Riders also indicated that they would like to see more automated 

shuttles in National Parks. 

The Alternating License Plate System

Nine days after the 2022 flood event, Yellowstone reopened 

to the public and implemented the Alternating License Plate 

System (ALPS) to prevent visitation from overwhelming the 

south loop of the park while the north loop was closed due to 

flood damage. An idea that came from gateway communities, 

ALPS was effective at managing visitation levels to the target 

range, between 50-60% of normal, while allowing visitors to 

keep their existing reservations. ALPS was suspended on July 2, 

2022, when 93% of the park roads were open to the public. 

Tower Junction to Slough Creek Vehicle Day Use

From Aug. 3 to Sept. 7, 2022, Yellowstone piloted a timed-entry 

reservation system for those traveling between Tower Junction 

and Slough Creek. The reservation system effectively protected 

parking availability and resources within this area while most of 

the Northeast Entrance Road closed for flood damage repairs.

Transit Feasibility Study

Yellowstone completed a Transit Feasibility Study with support 

from the Regional Alternative Transportation Program. The study 

evaluated the costs, benefits, infrastructure, staffing needs, and 

impacts to park resources and visitor experience of a potential 

localized shuttle system based at Canyon and Old Faithful. 

Completed in December 2022, the study will help managers 

evaluate whether such a system is practical or feasible.

Midway Geyser Basin Site Improvement

The main parking lots in the Midway Geyser Basin area were 

constructed in the 1980s-1990s when visitation was under 2 

million. The park installed a temporary parking lot at Fairy Falls 

in 2017 to increase parking capacity and alleviate roadside 

parking problems. After the temporary parking lot was installed, 

staff observed nearly 1,000 incidents of litter and human waste 

and increased social trails. In response, the park is starting the 

planning process to develop site alternatives including removal 

of the temporary lot, developing a new site, and providing entry 

through a timed-access system.

Campground Reservations

In 2022, all the park’s NPS-managed campgrounds were moved 

to a reservation system for the summer season months. The 

reservation system proved popular among many visitors and 

nearly all sites were booked for the season. To accommodate 

more spontaneous planning, 20% of the NPS campsites are also 

held until two weeks in advance of the date of use.

Fairy Falls parking area congestion Automated shuttles , NPS members, and Beep Inc. partners

Connecting People to Yellowstone

In the Park

Interpretive staff had 2,439,375 contacts at eight summer 

locations and three winter locations in 2022. Staff contacted 

470,113 visitors during field-based informal activities, including 

30,937 resource warnings. Formal programs totaled 30,772 

Junior Ranger participants; 38,690 ranger program participants; 

23 school groups participated in the multi-day Expedition 

Yellowstone program; 639 groups with more than 30,000 

students participated in a distance learning program; and 

57 ranger-led programs for school groups connecting 1,282 

students to the wonders of the park.

The park also oversees 68 concessions contracts that 

include nine hotels with over 2,100 rooms, 36 food services 

establishments, 12 general stores and gift shops totaling over 

12,000 square feet of retail space, camping with over 1,400 

campsites and 358 RV sites, 80 marina slips, eight gas stations, 

23 oversnow operators, 40 guided saddle and pack stock 

outfitters, and bear spray rental.

In addition, the park issued 411 commercial use authorizations 

to approximately 290 businesses providing a variety of approved 

guided visitor services, including avalanche safety courses, bicycle 

tours, environmental education tours, skiing and snowshoeing 

trips, overnight backcountry trips, painting and photography 

classes, road-based tours, motorized and non-motorized boating 

trips, stream and shoreline fishing, and portrait services. 

On the Web

Yellowstone engaged 7.6 million web users during 11.7 million 

sessions with 26.8 million page views recorded on its official 

website. It continues to be the most-visited park website of any 

single unit in the NPS. Trip planning pages topped all categories 

of interest, and a new flood recovery section provided ongoing 

updates on road repairs and park access. 

On Social Media

Yellowstone’s (@YellowstoneNPS) social media following grew 

by 17% to nearly 4 million people during 2021-22. In 2022, 

the park produced a series of 15 videos to commemorate 

the park’s 150th anniversary. Social media was also a main 

tool used to share flood updates with visitors and gateway 

communities. In 2021, The park’s #YellowstonePledge and 

#WhatWeDoWednesdays campaigns continued to generate 

news stories. Both campaigns have been replicated by other 

national parks, partner organizations, and tourism agencies 

around the world.

In the News

Yellowstone published 74 news releases, responded to 2,354 

media inquiries, facilitated 277 interviews, hosted 10 media 

events, and was mentioned in more than 2,700 news stories in 

2021-22.

DELIVERING A WORLD-CLASS VISITOR EXPERIENCE

7.6 million

Unique web 

users in 2022

3.9 million

Social media 

followers in 2022

2.4 million

Visitor center 

contacts in 2022
48 49

Protecting People and Resources

Communications Center

Yellowstone’s Interagency Communications Center handled 

over 41,000 calls for service in 2021-22, including emergency 

medical, search and rescue, law enforcement, and structural 

fire response. Additionally, the operation dispatches for nine 

agencies outside the park.

Emergency Medical Services

Yellowstone’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) operation 

has 11 ambulances stationed across eight developed areas of 

the park. The park has mutual aid agreements with Gardiner, 

Cooke City, and Grand Teton National Park. In 2021-22, the team 

responded to 1,638 emergency medical calls within Yellowstone 

and local communities.

Search and Rescue

The park handled 108 search and rescue incidents in 2021-22, 

including complex technical rescues of visitors, searches for lost 

visitors, and water-based responses.

Law Enforcement and Public Safety

Yellowstone rangers issued over 4,000 violation notices in 

2021-22 with approximately 700 criminal cases filed in the U.S. 

Magistrate Court. Yellowstone is one of the only parks with its 

own U.S. Magistrate judge and full-time Assistant U.S. Attorney. 

Rangers handled more than 750 motor vehicle accidents in 

2021-22 and a range of other criminal cases, including DUI, drug 

possession, sexual assault, and various resource crimes. The 

park is developing a range of crime prevention strategies moving 

forward to proactively reduce criminal activity within the park. 

Structural Fire

Yellowstone’s Structural Fire Company is the largest in the NPS 

with 11 engines stationed across six developed areas of the park. 

The park has mutual aid agreements with gateway communities 

in Montana and Wyoming surrounding the park and Grand 

Teton National Park. In 2021-22, the team responded to 522 

structural fire calls within Yellowstone and local communities.

DELIVERING A WORLD-CLASS VISITOR EXPERIENCE

4,000

Violation notices

in 2021-22

1,746

EMS and rescue call 

outs in 2021-22

522

Fire call outs

in 2021-22

41,000

Calls for service

in 2021-22

Wildland Fire and Fuels Reduction

The objectives of Yellowstone’s defensible space fuels reduction 

projects are to change the fuel structure to reduce crown fire 

potential and to slow ground fire spread in developed areas of 

the park. Since 2019, NPS and contract crews have treated 245 

acres in Grant Village, 95 acres in Old Faithful, 158 acres at Lake, 

and 60 acres in West Yellowstone. 

In 2020, the Lone Star Fire burned within 3 miles of the Old 

Faithful Historic District, underscoring the importance of 

proactively protecting historic structures from wildland fire 

threats. The park had 20 wildland fires in 2021-22.

Bear Management Areas

The park seasonally restricts off-trail travel, camping, and hiking 

in 16 Bear Management Areas (BMA) totaling 464,637 acres 

(21% of the park) to decrease potential disturbances to bears 

during key times of the year. Recent analyses indicate grizzly 

bears differentially selected BMAs compared to other areas. 

Males avoided hiking trails during the day but preferred trails at 

night when people were not hiking, while females avoided areas 

with predictable recreation by humans such as backcountry 

campsites. This research indicates BMAs are effective at 

preventing most human-caused displacement of bears from 

food sources and limiting human encounters with bears that 

lead to conflicts and management removals of bears.

Backcountry Management and Support

Yellowstone has over 2 million acres of backcountry, including 

1,100 miles of trails, 300 backcountry campsites, 36 backcountry 

cabins and lookouts and over 400 miles of boundary. A team 

of employees use a variety of tools to protect, manage, and 

maintain the backcountry resources that form the core of 

Yellowstone.

Backcountry rangers, trail crews, and corral operations protected 

resources, maintained trails and bridges, and packed supplies 

throughout the park in support of multiple park divisions and 

operations. Our backcountry permit offices issued over 9,900 

backcountry permits in 2021-22. The park’s backcountry 

monitoring program inventoried 59 backcountry campsites, 

tracking impacts, and making recommendations for future 

management actions. The park’s corral operation cares for and 

works 108 head of stock. During the summer and fall, corral 

employees travel throughout the park to support backcountry 

logistical needs and special projects, mostly for trail crews 

and backcountry rangers. With some animals traveling over 

1,000 miles in a season, the corrals typically go through 1,300 

horseshoes and 10,400 shoeing nails each season.

The 2022 flood event focused efforts on the north end of the 

park as crews assessed damage and implemented solutions that 

quickly allowed access to the majority of the park’s backcountry. 

Planning was completed for areas that did not open, and those 

solutions will be implemented beginning in 2023.

Before fuel reduction treatment

After fuel reduction treatment

Three years after fuel reduction treatment

9,900

Backcountry permits 

issued in 2021-22
50 51

Actions within this priority include developing a cogent deferred maintenance reduction 

plan, improving the quality of data and prioritization processes, and taking better 

advantage of current and future funding to improve asset conditions and protect 

investments. Yellowstone has an asset inventory totaling $4.1 billion with an estimated 

$929 million in associated deferred maintenance and repairs. The park also has an 

estimated $54 million in annual routine maintenance requirements. Asset condition will 

further deteriorate if the annual routine maintenance is not addressed. 

Investing in INFRASTRUCTURE

Completed Tower-Roosevelt to Chittenden Road project
52 53

1. Tower-Roosevelt to Chittenden Road 

Improvement – $28M (NSFLTP)

2. Temporary North Entrance Road – $21M (ERFO)

3. North Entrance Station Improvement – $12M (FLTP, PD)

4. Canyon Wastewater Treatment 

Plant Lagoon Relining – $3M (Re/Re)

5. Grant and Old Faithful Bridge Preservation – $3M (FLTP)

6. Historic Canteen Renovation – $1M (CMP, Re/Re)

7. Historic Peale Island Cabin Protection – $80K (CMP, Re/Re)

Recently Completed Projects: $68 Million Ongoing Projects: $230 Million

8. Employee Housing Improvements – $53M 

(CMP, LIC, Re/Re, DRS)

9. Old Faithful to West Thumb Road Improvement – $42M (FLTP)

10.Lewis River Bridge Replacement – $31M (LRF)

11.Temporary Mammoth Wastewater 

Treatment Plant – $30M (ERFO, DRS)

12.Northeast Entrance Road Flood Repairs – $25M (ERFO)

13.Historic Ft. Yellowstone Rehabilitation – $22M (LRF)

14.Historic Laurel Dorm Rehabilitation – $21M (LRF)

15.Bechler Site Improvement – $6M (CMP, LIC, Re/Re)

Infrastructure Projects and Funding Sources

INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE

Cyclic Maintenance 

Program (CMP)

Emergency Relief 

for Federally Owned 

Roads (ERFO)

Federal Lands 

Transportation

Program (FLTP)

Line Item 

Construction (LIC)

Repair/Rehabilitation

Philanthropic (Re/Re)

Donations (PD)

Operations of the

National Park Service

(ONPS)

Nationally Significant

Federal Lands & Tribal 

Projects (NSFLTP)

Projects and estimates are subject to change 

based on final scope and design efforts, 

emerging priorities, and available resources. 

This report shows formulated facility project 

investments from the following fund sources:

Disaster Relief 

Supplemental (DRS)

Great American

Outdoors Act Legacy

Restoration Fund (LRF)

North Entrance

Mammoth Hot Springs

Gardiner, MT

Tower-Roosevelt

West Thumb Old Faithful

Madison

Norris 

Grant 

Canyon Village

Lake Village Fishing Bridge 

West

Entrance

East

Entrance

South Entrance

Bechler

Village

Northeast

Entrance

28

3

1

13

34

27

26

30

31

22

21

14

19 

18

23

9

10

Completed 2022 2023-25

32

Ongoing

33

6

Projects include multiple 

locations throughout the park

29

7

11

8

15

4

5

5

24

2

12

16

17

20

25

35

36

36

Approved Projects: $892 Million Proposed Projects: $466 Million

16.New North Entrance Road – estimated $371M (DRS)*

17.Northeast Entrance Road – estimated $268M (DRS)*

18.Yellowstone River Bridge Replacement – $118M (LRF)

19.Canyon Wastewater Plant Replacement – $50M (DRS)

20.Additional Flood Recovery Efforts – estimated $32M (DRS)*

21.Mammoth Wastewater Main Replacement – $20M (DRS)

22.Old Faithful Water Plant Replacement – $18M (LRF)

23.Abandoned Old Faithful Wastewater 

Facility Demolition – $6M (LRF)

24.Madison Water Plant and Spring Collection 

Replacement – $4M (Re/Re)

25.Lamar Buffalo Ranch Photovoltaic System 

Replacement – $2M (Re/Re)

26.Northeast Entrance Road Improvement Phase 1 – $95M 

27.Canyon to Fishing Bridge Road Improvement Phase 1 – $88M

28.Norris to Golden Gate Road Improvement Phase 3 – $80M

29.Canyon Employee Area Redevelopment – $65M

30.Old Faithful Wastewater System Rehabilitation – $40M

31.Historic Lake Hotel Rehabilitation Phase 3 – $36M

32.Gardner River High Bridge Rehabilitation – $28M

33.Park Bridges Rehabilitation – $19M

34.Boneyard and Pit Sites Cleanup – $10M

35.Midway Geyser Basin Site Improvement – $5M

36.Madison River and Beryl Spring Bridge Replacement – $TBD

*Estimates subject to change once alternatives are selected.
54 55

Recently Completed Projects

INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE

North Entrance Station Improvement – $12M

Grant and Old Faithful Bridge Preservation – $3M

Canyon Wastewater Treatment Plant Lagoon Relining – $3M

Tower-Roosevelt to Chittenden Road Improvement – $28M
56 57

Ongoing Projects

INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE

Temp Mammoth Wastewater Treatment Plant – $30M

Old Faithful to West Thumb Road Improvement – $42M Lewis River Bridge Replacement – $31M

Historic Ft. Yellowstone Rehabilitation – $22M 

Northeast Entrance Road Flood Repairs – $25M

Historic Laurel Dorm Rehabilitation – $21M 

Approved Projects

INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE

Canyon Wastewater Plant Replacement – $50M

Abandoned Old Faithful Wastewater Demolition – $6M

New North Entrance Road – $371M (Estimated) Yellowstone River Bridge Replacement – $118M

Lamar Buffalo Ranch PV System Replacement – $2M 

Mammoth Wastewater Main Replacement – $20M
58 59

Yellowstone’s success is predicated on strong partnerships and coalitions. The park 

will continue to build and align priorities with a wide range of partners, including 

Tribes , elected officials, nonprofit groups, concessioners, communities, states, other 

federal cooperators, and the philanthropic community. The following examples (not 

exhaustive) highlight some of the major partnerships key to Yellowstone’s success.

Building Coalitions and PARTNERSHIPS

Partner day commemorating Yellowstone’s 150th anniversary 
60 61

Working With Our Partners

BUILDING COALITIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS

Yellowstone Forever

Yellowstone Forever (YF) is the park’s official nonprofit partner 

and provides a wide range of support in helping achieve 

conservation, education, and visitor-experience priorities. 

Through its philanthropic efforts, education, and strategic 

partnerships, YF is committed to protect, preserve, and enhance 

the park for future generations. In 2022, YF raised more than 

$9.4 million in support of 25 crucial park projects, including 

the bison conservation and Tribal internship program; wolf, 

bear, cougar, and other wildlife conservation projects; youth 

education; and many more.

YF worked closely with the park to build a range of highimpact projects to support the park’s 150th anniversary. Most 

notably, YF funded and partnered with park staff to establish 

the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center as well as broader efforts 

to incorporate Indigenous stories into education programs. YF 

also supported Yellowstone Revealed and many other 150th 

initiatives over the course of the year. 

After the 2022 flood event, YF immediately pivoted to support 

critical and time-sensitive needs in the aftermath. Through the 

Resiliency Fund, YF raised $2 million to support a Yellowstone 

Adventure Camp for children who could no longer access 

their daycare, shuttle buses for park employees to get to and 

from work in Mammoth while minimizing disruption to road 

reconstruction, a wall tent for the cougar research team after 

the Lower Blacktail Cabin was washed away, in-park counseling 

for employees, and medical services in Gardiner. The Resiliency 

Fund also filled critical gaps in park program funding from lost 

visitor fee revenue.

Tribes

American Indians have been living in and connected to the 

landscape now known as Yellowstone for at least 11,000 years. 

Today, there are 27 associated Tribes who have historic and 

modern connections to the lands and resources now found 

within the park. These partnerships are essential to ensuring the 

park is honoring its Trust responsibilities to the Native American 

heritage associated with Yellowstone.

In 2021-22, the park emphasized coordination and collaboration 

with Tribal Nations leading into and throughout Yellowstone’s 

150th anniversary. Recent dialogue has centered on how the park 

can improve partnerships and work with Tribes to expand Tribal 

presence and engagement within the park. Throughout 2021-

22, NPS leadership met with Tribal members to discuss goals for 

this year and beyond. The park plans to grow the Yellowstone 

Tribal Heritage Center, work to integrate more Tribal stories into 

interpretive and education content in Yellowstone, and continue 

to strengthen relationships and dialogue.

Commercial Service Partners

The park enjoys strong relationships with multiple major 

concession and commercial use operators. These partners were 

critical to Yellowstone’s success during 2021-22. Particularly in 

working through and supporting the park as it worked to address 

impacts from the 2022 flood event, as well as continued impacts 

from the COVID-19 pandemic, park partners also continued to 

work closely with the park in many key areas beyond operations. 

While not a comprehensive list, a few of our commercial service 

partners’ accomplishments in 2022 include: 

• Yellowstone Park Service Stations (YPSS) continued to work 

with the park to provide fuel, vehicle towing, roadside 

assistance, and repair to tens of thousands of vehicles 

per year. YPSS is also exploring ways of incorporating new 

electric vehicle charging stations to provide better electric 

vehicle access to the park.

• Medcor provided substantial support for employee and 

visitor COVID-19 testing, vaccinations, and medical aid. 

Due to flood impacts and difficulties in accessing the 

Mammoth Clinic, Medcor also set up a mobile clinic in the 

parking lot at the Yellowstone Forever facility in Gardiner 

to ensure continued medical service access for residents in 

areas north of the park and visitors. 

• Xanterra Parks and Resorts (Yellowstone National Park 

Lodges) completed the renovation of Fishing Bridge RV Park 

in 2022 and reopened it after two years of construction. The 

RV park has twice the capacity, larger sites, larger parking 

lot, a new dump station and recycling area, four new 

accessible comfort stations, and an expanded registration 

building with more showers and laundry facilities. Xanterra 

also initiated a renovation project at Lake Lodge cabins and 

several other facility projects.

• Delaware North Companies (Yellowstone General Stores) 

installed a new fire detection and suppression system 

at Canyon Adventure Store, accomplished exterior 

restoration on Fishing Bridge Dorm, and continued to 

work closely with the park to make upgrades to employee 

housing and other infrastructure. 

Federal Highway Administration

The park partners with the Federal Highway Administration 

(FHWA) Western Federal Lands Division on a wide range of 

major transportation projects. This partnership has completed 

hundreds of millions of dollars in projects over the past decade. 

The strength of this partnership was on full display this year 

with the flood response required to plan, design, and execute 

the repairs on the Northeast Entrance Road and the Temporary 

North Entrance Road. Funds came from the FHWA Emergency 

Relief Federally Owned Road (ERFO) program. The park received 

$60M in ERFO funding (pages 16-19).

NPS employees and Tribal partners at North Entrance teepee installation

YF President and CEO Lisa Diekmann, DOI Secretary Haaland, 

and Tribal Center Coordinator Alyssa McGeeley Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center

NPS and FHWA employees review design plans Xanterra partner and Deputy Superintendent Mike Tranel cut a 150th anniversary cake
62 63

Working With Our Partners

BUILDING COALITIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS

National Park Foundation

As the official nonprofit partner of the NPS, the National Park 

Foundation (NPF) worked closely with Yellowstone in 2022 to 

provide critical funding for a range of conservation priorities. The 

foundation secured over $1.7 million for native fish restoration, 

Indigenous Bison Program Interns, recycling stations, and key 

150th initiatives, such as the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center, 

Yellowstone Revealed, and Black People Who Hike visit. 

National Parks Conservation Association

In 2022, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) and 

the park strengthened and broadened their partnership. NPCA 

supports key conservation and infrastructure issues within the 

park, and this year, they played a critical role in Yellowstone’s 

150th anniversary. Most notably, NPCA supported Yellowstone 

Revealed and, in partnership with the park and Salish Kootenai 

College, launched a Tribal fellowship program that will continue 

beyond the anniversary.

Since 2008, park personnel have coordinated with NPCA and 

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to improve migratory pathways 

for pronghorn and other wildlife between the park and historic 

winter ranges to the north in the southern Paradise Valley. 

More than 1,000 volunteers organized by the NPCA removed or 

modified about 20 miles of unnecessary fences and modified or 

rebuilt other fencing to eliminate obstacles to movements while 

still meeting landowner needs.

Greater Yellowstone Coordinating Committee

The Greater Yellowstone Coordinating Committee (GYCC) was 

established in 1964 to help facilitate cooperation between the 

four federal agencies within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem 

(GYE). Through the GYCC, federal land managers pursue 

voluntary opportunities to cooperate at the landscape scale. 

In 2021-22, the GYCC incorporated state partners and focused 

on setting new strategic priorities around three goal areas: 1) 

Maintain resilient landscapes within the GYE, 2) Respond to 

increasing visitor use, and 3) Strengthen coalitions, partnerships, 

and communications. 

The GYCC has 10 subcommittees collaborating on critical work 

and resource areas across the ecosystem. Each year, GYCC 

subcommittees execute up to $250,000 in ecosystem-scale 

projects funded by the federal land units while also executing 

and coordinating critical work on their home units that 

contribute to the health of the broader ecosystem. 

United States Public Health Service

In 2021, the NPS and the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) 

commemorated their 100-year partnership anniversary. USPHS 

provides services that include surveying drinking water and 

wastewater systems, inspecting food vendors, and responding 

to and preventing illness outbreaks. 

Interagency Bison Management Plan

The park continued working closely with Tribal, state, local, and 

federal partners to manage bison exiting the park during the 

winter months. These partners work closely together to manage 

this highly complex wildlife management issue. This plan 

continues to adaptively evolve through increasing coordination 

and collaboration to meet bison management objectives. Nine 

Tribes have participated in bison hunts outside Yellowstone. 

Northwestern Energy 

Northwestern Energy (NE) partnered with Yellowstone in a 

variety of critical areas in 2021-22. NE continued to assist the 

park in upgrading decades-old utilities within developed areas to 

support the park’s housing improvement project and built a new 

solar array to provide power to Bechler Ranger Station. NE also 

provided critical support during the emergency flood recovery 

efforts and restored power back to the park within 48 hours.

Greater Yellowstone Coalition

The park has partnered closely with the Greater Yellowstone 

Coalition (GYC) in recent years. In 2021, the GYC, Yellowstone 

Forever, and the park partnered to expand bison conservation 

capacity (see page 34) and are continuing to look for additional 

partnership opportunities moving forward. 

In 2022, the park partnered with GYC to increase Tribal outreach 

and commemorate Yellowstone’s 150th anniversary. GYC 

supported a gathering hosted by the Eastern Shoshone and 

the Northern Arapaho Tribes to commemorate the anniversary 

and discuss collaboration between federal managers and Tribal 

Nations.

Elected Officials

Yellowstone has a large congressional delegation with 10 

Members of Congress representing the park’s four congressional 

districts across three states. The park’s delegation for the 118th 

Congress (effective January 2023) includes:

• WY: Sen. John Barrasso, Sen. Cynthia Lummis, and Rep. 

Harriet Hageman (WY-AL)

• MT: Sen. Jon Tester, Sen. Steve Daines, Rep. Ryan Zinke 

(MT-1), and Rep. Matt Rosendale (MT-2), 

• ID: Sen. Mike Crapo, Sen. Jim Risch, and Rep. Mike 

Simpson (ID-2)

Yellowstone also coordinates with state and local elected 

officials in Montana (Park and Gallatin counties), Wyoming (Park 

and Teton counties), and Idaho (Fremont County).

The park received tremendous support from the congressional 

delegations and committee staff, state, and local elected officials 

in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho during the 2022 flood event 

and recovery. The park briefed 115 congressional members and 

staff on the flood recovery progress. 

Montana Conservation Corps and Groundwork USA

Through youth and young adult partnerships with Montana 

Conservation Corps (MCC) and Groundwork USA, the park 

hosted teens and young adults to complete priority work 

projects and data collection. MCC brought five crews for 10 

weeks of work in 2021-22.

As an urban youth corps in cities across the country, Groundwork 

USA brought four crews of nine diverse youth each August to 

continue the work YCC had started. Crews installed bear boxes, 

replaced boardwalks at Norris Geyser Basin, and rebuilt the 

Firehole Canyon Swimming Area stairs. The park has partnered 

with MCC for at least 20 years and Groundwork for 12 years.

Property and Environmental Research Center 

The Property and Environmental Research Center supported 

the park in a variety of key areas including the park’s deferred 

maintenance backlog, improving employee housing, managing 

increasing visitation, and 150th anniversary planning efforts.

Veterans Supporting Yellowstone

Warfighter Outfitters, a nonprofit organization supporting 

U.S. combat veterans, established a partnership with the park 

starting in 2009. In 2021, The park hosted 35 volunteers to work 

on constructing horse corrals in the Canyon and South Entrance 

areas. Their rehabilitation and construction projects have 

contributed nearly 200,000 hours of volunteer labor totaling 

$4.8 million and over $1 million in materials funded by grants 

from their partner, Arch Venture.

Research, Education, and Conservation Partnerships

The park relies on a variety of research, education, and nonprofit 

partnerships with Montana State University Bozeman, Brown 

University, Rice University, Oceanographic Institute, University 

of Utah, University of Victoria, University of Wyoming, University 

of Montana, University of Maryland, and University of California. 

Wyoming Wetlands Society and the Ricketts Conservation 

Foundation (RCF) partnered with the park to release trumpeter 

swan cygnets and increase territorial pairs of swans, which have 

undergone a decades-long decline in the park. The park and RCF 

also initiated an effort to conserve common loons across the 

Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Mountain Time Arts was a key partner in Yellowstone’s 150th 

commemoration. 

Defenders of Wildlife and Bear Creek Council helped support 

the park in several areas including bison management.

State Historic Preservation Officers

The park partnered regularly with state historic preservation 

officers, primarily in Wyoming, to guide and inform important 

cultural and historic preservation decisions.

DOI Secretary Haaland with Groundwork USA crew

GYCC partner meeting in Red Lodge, Montana

Wounded Warrior veterans group at Canyon corrals

Superintendent Sholly briefing Senator Daines and Congressman Rosendale
64 65

Looking Ahead

CONCLUSION AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Photos from this report are available at: 

flickr.com/YellowstoneNPS

Printed versions of this report made possible 

by a generous donation from our official 

nonprofit partner, Yellowstone Forever.

The state of the park is strong, and the Yellowstone team is 

resilient. The team made significant progress on its strategic 

priorities over the past two years as outlined in this report, despite 

major disruptions and challenges caused by COVID-19 and the 

2022 flood event. Park staff are well positioned to continue 

making progress toward strategic goals in 2023 and beyond. 

The park will continue investments in employee development, 

strengthening supervisory skills, and housing improvements to 

continue attracting and retaining world-class talent.

Yellowstone will focus on adapting and combatting 

threats to the ecosystem from climate change, improving 

sustainability, expanding Tribal engagement, and strengthening 

interdisciplinary participation with the compliance team. The 

park will complete and implement a new bison management 

plan and make progress on the northern range plan.

The park will continue to understand and address increasing 

visitation and changing visitor use patterns. The team will 

diversify its emergency response staff and utilize new staffing 

models to improve efficiency, and work toward enhancing 

real-time visitor information and communications. The park 

will conduct and implement a parkwide education strategy in 

collaboration with Yellowstone Forever.

The park has a once-in-a-lifetime funding opportunity 

through the Great American Outdoors Act, disaster relief 

supplemental funding, and other congressional appropriations 

to address much needed infrastructure improvements, deferred 

maintenance, and implement major flood recovery projects. 

There will be many significant transportation, infrastructure, 

and historic preservation projects happening over the next 

three to five years that will prepare Yellowstone for the future. 

One silver lining of the 2022 flood event was the opportunity 

to strengthen partnerships with local gateway communities, 

commercial operators, and elected officials. The park will 

maintain and enhance existing partnerships and identify new 

partnership opportunities with national and global conservation 

organizations. We will also build on Tribal partnerships started 

through the 150th anniversary and identify opportunities and 

coordinated ways the park can partner and work with the Tribes 

on mutual goals. 

Yellowstone’s future is bright.

Conclusion and Acknowledgments

In Memoriam

CONCLUSION AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Yellowstone lost three valued team members in 2021-22. This report is 

dedicated to their commitment and service to the Yellowstone team 

and the mission of the National Park Service.

Ralph Anderson

Backcountry Law Enforcement Ranger

1984–2021

Ralph moved to Yellowstone in 2015. He sought to 

improve the experience of his fellow employees 

and protect the physical resources that were so 

meaningful to him, particularly Wilderness. At 

his best, his passion and determination set the 

standard for what a park ranger should be.

Scott Lechner

Maintenance Mechanic 

1972–2021

Scott started working in Yellowstone in 2015. He 

enjoyed anything outdoors including hiking, fishing, 

hunting, and photography. His self-proclaimed 

greatest achievement was taking care of the Old 

Faithful geyser in Yellowstone National Park. He 

loved working for the NPS and spent time working 

at Everglades National Park.

Roger Whiteside

Supervisory Information Technology Specialist

1963–2022

Roger worked in Yellowstone for nearly 40 years 

in Computer Support Services and was promoted 

to Supervisory IT Specialist in 2018. He truly loved 

working in Yellowstone and held a great sense of 

pride knowing that he was a part of a team who 

worked to make the park an amazing place. He 

never lost sight that he was privileged to work in 

such a beautiful area.
66