2017-11-09 04:10:46
Outdoor aficionados, amateur paleontologists, wildlife lovers and history buffs flock to the Salt to Stone region. Those who explore its starkly beautiful landscape will find natural treasures — such as Fossil Butte National Monument, Killpecker Sand Dunes and Boar’s Tusk — and towns immersed in history serve as the gateway to epic outdoor activities, including hiking, biking, boating, kayaking, skiing and snowmobiling. That's WY WELCOME CENTERS • Bear River State Park & Travel Information Center (Evanston) • Jackson Hole & Greater Yellowstone Visitor Center (Jackson) VISITOR CENTERS • Evanston • Green River • Jackson • Pinedale • Rock Springs • Star Valley SALT TO STONE DESTINATIONS 1 ROUNDHOUSE & RAIL YARDS EVANSTON Evanston is home to the only remaining complete roundhouse on the old Union Pacific line between Omaha and Sacramento. This historic building — used by railroads to store and service locomotives — has turntables and bays that are still operational. There’s also a 17,000-squarefoot machine shop and power plant. 2 FORT BRIDGER NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE FORT BRIDGER Several restored buildings highlight the history of this 19th-century fur-trading post, which was a vital supply stop for wagon trains traversing the Oregon, California and Mormon trails. Tour the reconstructed trading post and interpretive archeological site. 3 FLAMING GORGE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA NEAR GREEN RIVER Named for the landscape’s natural kaleidoscopic hues, the 201,000-acre Flaming Gorge is a land of living color. The reservoir is perfect for boating, fishing and kayaking, and the whimsical rock formations that frame the waters change colors and perspective with varying sunlight. 4 WESTERN WYOMING COMMUNITY COLLEGE’S NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM ROCK SPRINGS See life-size replicas of the dinosaurs that once roamed Wyoming and artifacts like stones, pottery, fossils and other prehistoric items — each offering a rare glimpse into an ancient era and southwest Wyoming’s earliest human inhabitants. 5 THE MUSEUM OF THE MOUNTAIN MAN PINEDALE This museum illustrates the people and lifestyles of the fur-trade era through period artifacts, authentic reproductions and modern interpretation. Exhibits include a 17th-century Shoshone sheephorn bow (the oldest known to exist), a life-size grizzly bear attack diorama — featuring frontiersman Hugh Glass and inspired by the movie “The Revenant” — and an exact replica of a 20-foot, 1800s Sioux teepee. 6 JACKSON HOLE AERIAL TRAM TETON VILLAGE Ride the tram in Teton Village up 4,139 feet to unparalleled wraparound views of Bridger-Teton National Forest and Grand Teton National Park. Several hiking trails are also accessible from the 10,450-foot summit. STATE PARK BEAR RIVER STATE PARK Near Evanston This day-use-only park is perfect for travelers making their way through Wyoming on I-80 who want to get out and stretch their legs. The three miles of trails are ideal for hiking, biking, bison and elk viewing, as well as cross-country skiing. WY INDEED “In some ways, the Upper Green River Valley is as remote now as during the time of the mountain men — 80 percent of the land in the area is owned by the federal government, including sagebrush plateaus, forests and wilderness surrounded by three mountain ranges,” says Clint Gilchrist, director of The Museum of the Mountain Man in Pinedale.
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