On its 151st birthday, March 1, Yellowstone National Park released the 2023 State of the Park report. The report tells the story of the past year of Yellowstone’s history, including major events and statistics.
The report declares that Yellowstone visitation dropped 32% in 2022. In 2021, Yellowstone saw the most visitors in park history.
One possible reason for the decrease in visitation is the flooding that the park experienced in June 2022. Yellowstone was closed for eight days in June, after which the park opened sections at a time. The report gives a detailed explanation of the impact of the flood.
According to the report, the highest recorded flow in the Corwin Springs area of the Yellowstone River was 32,000 cubic feet per second. The park reported a flow of over 50,000 feet per second during the flood.
Also included in the flood section of the report are the details of the road repairs that Yellowstone performed. It asserts that the park received a total of $60 million in emergency funds from the Federal Highway Administration, as well as how they used that money.
The report also details all of the initiatives that Yellowstone participated in this year, the park’s expenses, and statistics regarding many aspects of the park.