Yellowstone National Park is reporting a big drop in the number of visitors for the month of October.
The park says visitation was down 22 percent from a year ago.
Park statistics show this year was also down
12 percent from the five year average.
Park officials are blaming the dip in visitation on the weather. They say several park entrances and some roads were closed due to winter weather. Other roads in the park were closed or restricted to one lane due to construction.
So far this year , the total number of people visiting Yellowstone is down 2.5 percent from last year and down about one percent from the five year average.
Until the winter season opens in mid December, travel in the park right now is limited to the road from Gardiner to Cooke City. The park service warns that weather conditions can change quickly at this time of year, so be sure to check conditions on the park's website before visiting right now .
