2016-10-22 04:30:31
If you’re planning on setting up basecamp for your Wyoming vacation in a larger city, easy jaunts to gorgeous national forest lands, historic sites and fascinating monuments offer a chance to enhance your experience. Check out these great day-trip options. 1 MEDICINE BOW NATIONAL FOREST From Laramie: about 30 min. Perhaps one of Wyoming’s best-kept secrets, Medicine Bow National Forest is arguably every bit as gorgeous as Grand Teton National Park — but less traveled, and therefore more pristine, with glacier-fed lakes, scenic overlooks, sparkling waterfalls and old mining camps. In the forest’s Snowy Mountain range, peaks rise to 12,000 feet and dip into 6,000-foot valleys, creating a dramatic landscape that will have you snapping away with your camera. 2 VEDAUWOO From Cheyenne: about 30 min. Known to the Arapaho Indians as “Land of the Earthborn Spirit,” the rock formations of Vedauwoo (pronounced vee-da-voo) attract climbers, campers and hikers. This area is conveniently located off I-80 between Cheyenne and Laramie (exit 329) and is the first introduction to the Medicine Bow- Routt National Forest’s more than 2 million acres of public lands for westbound travelers. 3 WYOMING TERRITORIAL PRISON STATE HISTORIC SITE LARAMIE From Cheyenne: about 50 min. This 1872 prison is rich with tales of its “violent and desperate outlaws,” the most famous of which was Butch Cassidy. And after the prison closed, it became a center for scientific experimentation by the University of Wyoming, a legacy that can be explored in the “Science on the Range” exhibit. 4 WIND RIVER MOUNTAINS From Lander: about 20 min. The Wind River Mountain Range attracts rock climbers, hikers and others seeking outdoor pursuits. The range has more than 40 named peaks that are higher than 13,000 feet, including 13,809-foot Gannett Peak — Wyoming’s highest summit. Trailheads lead to more than 600 miles of hiking trails; Cirque of the Towers’ granite rock faces are popular with technical climbers, and more than 1,300 lakes offer opportunities for fishing and other water activities. 5 AMES MONUMENT From Laramie: about 30 min. Notable American architect Henry Hobson Richardson designed this pyramidal structure in 1882 to honor brothers Oliver and Oakes Ames, two Union Pacific Railroad financiers who were implicated in a major funding scandal. Whether the curious structure was erected as a railroad PR tactic or a true tribute to the brothers is up for debate. 6 NATIONAL ELK REFUGE JACKSON From Dubois: about 90 min. Every winter, thousands of elk occupy the National Elk Refuge. While the beloved mammals migrate to mountain meadows and forests during the spring and summer months, other varieties of wildlife can be spotted, including songbirds, swans, bald eagles and wolves.
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