Bighorn Canyon road work will impact the Lovell Visitor Center

Road work has begun, and the contractors are on schedule for the highway project underway in the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.
Milling and patching at the south district entrance road continues this week. Visitors should expect single lane closures during the day, and the road will be open overnight with traffic delineation through the active worksites.
Drivers need to be aware of narrowing traffic lanes and staged construction equipment, according to Bighorn Canyon Chief of Interpretation Christy Fleming. Work will also begin this week on the Cal S. Taggart Bighorn Canyon Visitor Center parking lot. Visitors may see some closures in the parking area this week, Fleming said.
During the week of April 29, crews will focus on milling and paving the Bighorn Canyon Visitor Center parking lot. To allow contractors the ability to finish their work safely and efficiently, the visitor center and parking lot in Lovell will be closed April 29 – May 1. Additionally, the visitor center will close at 3 p.m. on May 2 and at 1 p.m. on May 3 due to short staffing, Fleming said. The visitor center will be open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 4.   
The week of May 6, crews plan to start work on the Horseshoe Bend, Ok-A-Beh and Yellowtail Dam Visitor Center parking lots. The park will pass along closures and dates for this work once the contractor has the dates set.
Throughout the summer, contractors will work Monday through Friday. Currently, they are not planning to work weekends or holidays, Fleming said. The work times may be varied but will mostly be conducted between the hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Fleming said.
Some parking areas may be temporarily closed to allow contractors the ability to finish their work safely and efficiently, Fleming added. These closures will be announced ahead of time. For road work, visitors should expect traffic control with one lane of traffic and up to 30-minute delays.  
Schedules and locations of work are subject to change based on weather, Fleming said.
National Park Week
Meanwhile, National Park Week continues at Bighorn Canyon and concludes Saturday with Junior Ranger Day scavenger hunts. The park will be hosting a virtual scavenger hunt on the park Facebook page and an in-person scavenger hunt, Fleming said.
The virtual scavenger hunt will kick off at 9 a.m. There will be a question featured on Facebook on the top of every hour. The last question will be posted at 3 p.m. All questions need to be answered by 4 p.m.
Participants who answer all the questions will have their names entered for a Junior Ranger gift bag.
The in-person scavenger hunt will begin at the visitor center at 9:30 a.m. Participants will need to pick up the scavenger hunt sheet and directions. There are four stations throughout the park that will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Participants must go to each station to answer a question and have their sheet stamped. Once participants have been to each site, they will return to the visitor center for a Junior Ranger badge. Participant names will be placed in a drawing for a second Junior Ranger gift bag. Gift bags were donated by the Western National Parks Association bookstore.
The WNPA bookstore is also sharing in the fun. Just arrived, “You Are Here” features 50 previously unpublished poems from the nation’s most accomplished nature poets. Traci Brimhall, a Bighorn Canyon artist in residence in 2023, is one of the featured poets. Her poem “Mouth of the Canyon” brings to life the environmental characters we find when we are hiking in the park, Fleming said. This book, the pocket trail journals she wrote pieces of the poem in and other new artist in residence items are on display at the visitor center. During National Park week, items in the bookstore will be 30% off for new or existing Park Protector members (except for AIR consignment items).
Bighorn Canyon will continue to celebrate beyond National Park week and will be participating in the Lovell Arbor Day celebration May 1 at Armory Park from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.