Yellowstone National Park Just Set Another Attendance Record

People keep flocking to the park in record numbers this year.

Eager travelers are continuing to opt for safe ways to get out and see the world without getting too close to anyone. One popular way to do this, of course, has been to spend time outdoors, making national parks like Yellowstone a hit with folks suffering from major wanderlust coupled with safety concerns.

In fact, Yellowstone National Park just broke another monthly attendance record in September, the US National Park Service said in a press release. Approximately 872,695 people visited Yellowstone in September—a 4% increase from the same month in the previous year. In August, Yellowstone saw a record number of visitors, with more than 920,000 people flocking there to enjoy the views and everything else the area has to offer.

"Never in Yellowstone's history have we seen such substantial visitation increases in such a short amount of time," Superintendent Cam Sholly said in the release. "We will continue working with our teams and partners to develop and implement appropriate short-and long-term actions for managing increasing visitation across the park."

Yellowstone isn't just smashing records month-to-month either. In 2021 alone, the national park has seen 4,463,599 visitors, according to CNN. To put that in perspective for you, the population of Wyoming is only about 586,107. 

With its increased popularity, officials at Yellowstone warn that those who want to visit should plan to do so ahead of time and prepare for crowds, potential wildlife encounters, and whatever Mother Nature may throw your way. Areas of the park including Old Faithful, Midway Geyser Basin, Norris, Canyon rims, and Lamar Valley are usually the most crowded.

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Caitlyn Hitt is Daria IRL. Don't take our word for it—find her on Twitter @nyltiaccc.