If the recent weather has sent you digging in the closet for your running shoes or dusting off your bike, make sure your favorite trail or path is open before heading out. Winter wildlife closure regulations remain in effect until May 1, meaning many trails in the Snow King, Gross Ventre, Cache Creek, and Game Creek areas are closed for another 8 days.

The winter closures are designed to protect local wildlife populations that rely on decreased activity and an isolated food supply to survive the winter months. Detailed maps of the closures are available at the bottom of this page on the Bridger-Teton National Forest’s Web site.

Alternatively, the automobile-free exercise opportunities on Teton Park road in GTNP will only last until May 1, when the road opens to vehicle traffic for the summer season. Park spokeswoman Jackie Skaggs added the new pathway running from Dornan’s to South Jenny Lake is not open for public use yet. Once the snow has melted and construction is completed, the park will issue an official announcement of the opening, which is anticipated to be in the end of May.

For those looking to exercise on paved pathways, the majority of the paths within the town and county are  ready for spring and summer use. While most pathways have been swept and cleared of snow, users should be aware of isolated patches of snow or gravel lingering from the winter, explained Tim Young from Friends of Pathways.

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