2019-12-20 05:25:50
Skirting the western edge of the Black Hills, a visit to Weston County reveals old-fashioned ranching communities with relaxed lifestyles and friendly hospitality. Known as the western gateway to the Black Hills, amazing prairies, grasslands, wildlife, canyons, and clean air await. Geocaching, bird and wildlife watching are all fun things to do. You will enjoy looking for, and finding, the many caches and critters throughout the area. In Newcastle, take the Historic Walking Tour and visit local history in the Anna Miller Museum, or cruise the Beaver Creek Loop Tour. A stop in the small town of Upton offers a big amount of history. Learn about the unique story behind the Red Onion Museum and travel the Prairie to the Pines Loop Tour. Camping and various lodging opportunities abound as well as dining and shopping in all towns. The Weston County communities of Newcastle, Upton, and Osage invite you to visit and stay a while. A relaxing and beautiful drive northward along the 78-mile Wyoming Black Hills Scenic Byway begins in Newcastle and sprawls on to Sundance via Hwy 85/585, then on to the Nation’s oldest National Monument – Devils Tower. Just 9 miles past Devils Tower you’ll come across an Old West oasis — Hulett — with eateries, a museum and lodging. While you’re in the area, stop at the 135-year-old Aladdin General Store in the tiny town of Aladdin — population 15. Skijoring is a thrilling and chilling sport that involves a skier being pulled by dogs, motor vehicles or horses as is the case with Sundance’s annual winter festival! Watch ` skijoring, downhill barstool races, horse tubing races and more at this fantastic winter event. Once in the “cowboy” town of Sundance, you’ll learn the story of the Sundance Kid, a member of Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch, as well as years of local history in the Crook County Museum. Explore their new home in Old Stoney, a fully restored and renovated sandstone schoolhouse. Visit during the months of July and August to meet Old West characters from Sundance’s past as you stroll along the streets in a “Sip and Walk“ tour. Hang with the locals while enjoying delicious lunch or dinner at the Longhorn Saloon and Grill and during their exciting events; the Sundance Beer Festival in September and the Winter Festival in February. Crook County is “Devils Tower Country”. Stop for an ice cream and unique shopping at Devils Tower Trading Post. Afterwards, stay the night in a cabin, tent or RV at Devils Tower KOA and watch the nightly showing of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” under a star-lit sky. Venture on to the community of Hulett – for Sturgis Rally goers, the Ham ‘N Jam is a popular event with great music, amazing food and incredible scenic drives along the way. Visit the historic Vore Buffalo Jump off of I-90 near Beulah to see a natural sinkhole that was used as a bison trap by late-prehistoric Plains Indians from approximately 1500 to 1800. History doesn’t have a state line. Visit eastern Wyoming and see Harry Alonzo Longabaugh, better known as the Sundance Kid, in his jail cell in Sundance. As an outlaw and member of Butch Cassidy’s Wild Bunch, the Sundance Kid spent 18 months in jail for stealing a horse.
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