Yellowstone 150; Summer Events to Celebrate a Milestone

It's an exciting year to visit Yellowstone National Park. Celebrating the 150th anniversary of becoming the world's first national park, Yellowstone and its many partner organizations collaborate to bring exciting and educational events to visitors this summer.

Twenty-seven Native American tribes are associated with Yellowstone. Native people hunted, fished, gathered plants, quarried obsidian, and used the thermal waters for religious and medicinal purposes for centuries. 

This year, Yellowstone and Tribal Nation officials are working closely together to shift the trajectory of Indigenous people in Yellowstone and include their voices as active stewards of this treasured land that is so deeply ingrained in their culture.

As such, visitors will find several opportunities to learn first-hand about Yellowstone's Native history, culture, and traditions.

From now until Sept. 30, 2022, the Yellowstone Tribal Heritage Center, a pilot program, will host a series of tribal artists, scholars, and presenters so that the public can engage in both formal and informal education. The center is located in the Haynes Photo Shop at Old Faithful.

July 28-30, 2022, the Nez Perce Appaloosa Horse Club will host a ride and parade at Canyon Village. The event begins with a club ride along a section of the Nez Perce Trail, followed by a horse parade with riders dressed in traditional native regalia. Public trail rides and fireside chats round out the event.



Teepee Village, part of Yellowstone Revealed, a multi-partner collaboration, will come to Roosevelt Arch Aug 23-28, 2022. Visitors will have the opportunity to visit numerous tribal members in actual teepees and learn about their Native heritage and culture. The village is being brought to fruition by Yellowstone National Park, Mountain Time Arts, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Yellowstone Forever, National Parks Conservation Association, and Park County Environmental Council.

Other events include the Yellowstone Historic Vehicles Display, taking place on the mall of Old Faithful throughout the summer. This historical collection is one of the largest in the National Park Service. It includes thirty horse-drawn and motorized vehicles, highlighting the different ways visitors have traveled to the park over the past 150 years.

The Dunraven Road Project is complete with a new segment of road opening between Tower-Roosevelt and Mount Washburn. The section of the road was closed to the public for the past two years while crews reconstructed the 6.1-mile section of the road, adding pullouts and parking areas, improving picnic areas, and doubling the Tower Falls Store parking lot. In addition, the 4.1-mile Chittenden Road was also reconditioned, and the Mount Washburn Parking lot was reconstructed.

If you're planning to visit Yellowstone this summer, be sure you have lodging confirmed. Most lodging in the park sells out well in advance, as do accommodations in gateway communities. Very few campgrounds are first-come, first-served, and interest is high.

Keep in mind that speed limits in the park are 25 miles per hour, so drive times will take significantly longer than expected.

For more Yellowstone trip planning tips, go to Top 10 Tips For A Summer Visit to Yellowstone National Park.