Yellowstone National Park · seasonal road
Dunraven Pass: when it opens, year by year
Last verified NPS page updated September 21, 2026
Canyon Village to Tower Fall (Dunraven Pass), a high elevation pass that generally experiences more winter weather than other roads in the park Typically opens: Per the park's 2026 schedule: May 22 (no separate typical date is given). Closes: Per the park's 2026 schedule: October 12; 'the closing date is subject to change'.
- 2026 opening
- May 22
- scheduled
In the park's words
What Yellowstone says about Dunraven Pass
“Open May 22 - October 12, 2026 : Canyon Village to Tower Fall (Dunraven Pass). This is a high elevation pass that generally experiences more winter weather than other roads in the park—as with all other roads, the closing date is subject to change.” source
“Most park roads are closed to regular vehicles from early November to late-April, and are open to limited oversnow travel (commercially-guided snowmobiles and snowcoaches) from mid-December to mid-March.” source
“Roads typically open at 8:00 a.m. on the first day. All dates are subject to change depending on weather conditions.” source
“2026 Road Opening & Closing Dates (Projected)” source
Worth knowing
- No official year-by-year opening/closing history table was found for Yellowstone on nps.gov (searched; the Park Roads and Operating Dates pages publish only the current season's schedule), so history is empty for every Yellowstone road.
- The 2026 dates come from the 'Park Roads' page headed '2026 Road Opening & Closing Dates (Projected)' (page updated September 21, 2026; captured October 5, 2026): they are schedules, 'all dates are subject to change depending on weather conditions'. No capture confirms the actual opening of the individual segments, so opened2026 stays null and the scheduled date is in opened2026Scheduled.
- Roads typically open at 8:00 a.m. on the first day (same page).
About this page
Dates are the park’s and WSDOT’s own, captured on 2026-10-05 and re-checked at every build. Medians and extremes are arithmetic on the published rows; we do not forecast. Weather closes passes without notice, so check live alerts for Yellowstone before you drive. Other seasonal roads in the park: North Entrance to Northeast Entrance road, West Entrance, Madison, Old Faithful, Norris, Mammoth-Norris and Norris-Canyon roads, East Entrance, South Entrance to West Thumb, West Thumb to Old Faithful, Beartooth Highway, Chief Joseph Scenic Byway.
Sources · 2
- 1.Yellowstone National Park — Dunraven Pass (official page) · National Park Service
- 2.Seasonal road pages and historical opening-date tables on nps.gov and wsdot.wa.gov, read and quoted · National Park Service; Washington State DOT
FAQ
Dunraven Pass questions
- When does Dunraven Pass open?
- Yellowstone says: Per the park's 2026 schedule: May 22 (no separate typical date is given). For 2026 the stated date was May 22, 2026.
- When does Dunraven Pass close for the season?
- Yellowstone says: Per the park's 2026 schedule: October 12; 'the closing date is subject to change'. For 2026: Open May 22 - October 12, 2026 (projected; subject to change)
- Is Dunraven Pass open right now?
- Check the park's road-status page (linked under Sources) or its alerts: our “Is Yellowstone open?” page shows the live NPS alerts.
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