Travel Tips for Eastern Wyoming?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Towards the end of our family vacation next month, we’re taking two days to drive the 500 or so miles from Cody, Wyoming, down to the airport at Denver, Colorado.

I have been charged with finding amusements along the way – entertaining for a couple of middle-aged city slickers as well as for Pianola and little Banjo (12 and 6, respectively) – plus a pleasant burg in which to spend the night.

Anyone familiar with this neck of the woods? Is Laramie the place to stop? (I remember that Jordan Motor Car ad from the '20s…“Somewhere west of Laramie…” ) Or Cheyenne? Sasquatch Corners? Upper Bumblefuck?

[sub]…Stuff between the Hudson River and the East Bay, it kind of blurs together for me…[/sub]

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Be sure not to miss the birthplace of Isabel Jewell, in lovely Shoshone, Wyoming—sure to give the wife and kiddies a thrill!

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Laramie is probably about 70% of the way from Cody to Denver so its not in a great location for a halfway stop.

There’s a fairly cool place called Vedawoo halfway between Cheyenne and Laramie on I-80 thats a good stop for lunch(but is a little bit off the direct path). It’s a rock formation that has some fun easy little climbs that kids of that age love to mess around on(especially if their not used to mountain areas.)

My best guess for halfway would be Caspar or Douglas neither of which I know much about(and have never piqued my interest much).

As I recall Thermopolis is an interesting town(but I havn’t been there in 18 years so I might be wrong). But it’s fairly close to Cody.

4

Fort Laramie isn’t too bad, the one thing I can remember was the fake bartender there saying the drinking age back then was “old enough to reach your drink.” The state capitol isn’t spectacular, but it’s not chopped liver either. Devil’s Tower isn’t too far out of the way, and it is spectacular. Definitely beats any mashed potato model you could come up with.

5

OK. I realize that the Isabel Jewell Birth Site may not be enough to hold the attention of as cosmopolitan a family as yours. So I direct you to Roadside America’s site, where you will be delighted to find that Wyoming houses the Giant Head of Abe Lincoln, The World’s Largest Elk Horn Arch, and the only U.S. Prostitute Monument!

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Stop and see me, Ike! My town’s right off I-25, north of Denver! 'course, that’s not exactly halfway…

I’ll talk to Mr. Athena, who’s much more familiar with Wyoming than I. From what I know, the drive from Cody down to I-80 is fairly unimpressive, unless you consider windy, rolling plains impressive. If you can do it, I’d suggest driving from Cody to Rawlins or so in one day. Rawlins isn’t all that great of a town, but it’s interesting enough for you city types. Hmmmm… come to think of it, if you can make it all the way to Saratoga in one day, I’d suggest that. I haven’t been there, but Mr. Athena often waxes poetic about the Saratoga Inn in Saratoga, WY. That’ll give you a real “Out West Gentleman” type of experience. Might be a long drive from Cody to Saratoga in one day, though. 'course, it’s no farther than Laramie, and much nicer.

After that, try to spend some time either along highway 130 in Wyoming, or take Wyoming 230/Colorado 125 down through Walden. Take 14 west along Poudre Canyon to Fort Collins. That highway, without a doubt, is one of the most beautiful drives around. Make sure to stop at the bar in Gould for lunch.

Stay away from Upper Bumblefuck. They’re not too friendly up there. Also, at the risk of pissing of Wyomians, I’ve never been very impressed with Laramie or Cheyenne. They’re pretty bland towns.

7

One other thing,(since i noticed you mentioned Banjos) There is a Bluegrass festival in Lyons a little outside of Boulder on July 26-28. If your trip happens to be then I’d say zip through Wyoming and head straight to Colorado.

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Well first off, to the best of Washte’s knowledge (her carpal tunnel is playing up so I’m posting for her), the speed limit on I-80 in Wyoming is 75mph so you’ll cover the distance pretty quick. Watch out when you hit Colorado though, because it goes down to 65 and the police there are very watchful.

Thermopolis is very nice, but only a couple of hours from Cody. Rawlings is where the prison is and the only things you’ll see there (apart from the prison) are a McDonald’s, a gas station and lots of tumbleweeds. Washte agrees with Wolfman, Vedawoo is pretty damn cool. You should also swing by Devil’s Tower, one of the most impressive lumps of rock you’ll ever see.

Keep an eye out for little brown signs that have useful nuggets of information on them - what battle was fought there, which wagon train passed through, Lewis and Clarke stuff.

When it come to accommodation, Cheyenne has a bigger choice of places to stay than Laramie and the cost is normally lower.

Colorado wise - If you go down I-125 towards Windsor, on the way to Denver, look out for a pretty little lake and scenic drive. That’s the only information I can get out of my wife - the pain killers have kicked in.

One final tip. Do not drive at night. Too many critters.

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Stay the devil away from Rawlins. I was only there for a couple hours, but I very quickly learned to hate the place.

Laramie seems like a pleasant little city, though I was only there a day. It’s the home of the U of Wyo. with several free museums and Wyoming Territorial Park. The Snowy Range National Forest Scenic Byway and Medicine Bow National Forest are nearby. http://www.laramie-tourism.org/attractions/index.html

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Glad you’re comin’ out our way, pilgrim! Hope you have a good time while you’re here. I live about 75 miles east of Cody, and about 35 miles north of Thermopolis - allow me to present dono’s Wyoming travelogue:

You’ll have two choices leaving Cody - US 14 going east, or WYO 120 going southeast. These are both two-lane roads, and the speed limit is only 65 - you won’t get to a 75 MPH freeway until you hit I-25.

If you take US 14, you’ll go through some colorful badlands and have a good opportunity to see some of the McCullough Peaks wild horse herd from the highway. Then you’ll have two choices to go over the Bighorn Mountains, and meet I-25 in either Sheridan or Buffalo. Either route is very scenic - the northern route probably more so. You’ll climb some of the most pucker-inducing switchbacks that I’ve driven, and go right past the Medicine Wheel. The Wheel requires a short sidetrip and a bit of a hike, but it’s worth it. If you go the southern route to Buffalo, it’s still a pretty drive over the Bighorns, and you’ll go right through my town (I’d be honored to buy ya’ a beer or two.)

If you take WYO 120 you’ll go through Thermopolis, home of “The World’s Largest Mineral Hot Springs” (which, since the flow is down, I don’t think is true any longer.) There are two commercial pools with water slides, and a free bathhouse run by the State - when Chief Washakie gave the springs to the white man, he stipulated that part of the springs would always be for the free use of the people. There’s a State park with a free-roaming buffalo herd. Thermopolis also has a dinosaur quarry and museum. Since it’s a private quarry, you can even arrange to participate in digs. Thermop sits in red-rock country and is a nice little town. It’s really worth a night’s stay, but since it’s only 80 miles out of Cody, you might not want to do that. But OTOH, you can still make Thermop to Denver in a day, easy. When you leave Thermop, you’ll go through the Wind River Canyon in the Owl Creek Mountains (pretty) and wind up in Shoshoni. In Shoshoni, be sure to stop at Yellowstone Drug for a World-Famous Milkshake (trust me on this one.)

Whichever way you go, once you get to Sheridan, Buffalo, or Shoshoni, the country turns pretty much as described by previous posters - flat, dry, and windswept. There are some famous Indian Wars battlefields to see around Sheridan, but that’s about it. It’s ground you’ll want to cover as quickly as possible. (We call the stretch between Shoshoni and Casper “The Void”.)

Both routes go to Casper, where you’ll have two choices: You can stay on I-25 and go to Denver via Cheyenne, or you can take the back roads and go WYO 220 - 497 - US 287 and go to Denver via Laramie. There’s not much difference in time, and not much to see either way. Laramie is a college town and presumably there’s some fum stuff to do there (so my daughter tells me, anyway :rolleyes: ) but I’ve never spent much time there. The drive from Laramie to Ft. Collins is pretty, though.

Hope this helps! If I can provide any more information on the smaller attractions along the way, let me know! (By coincidence, my Field Office just dedicated a new visitor’s center at a dinosaur tracksite today - it’s right off the road to Sheridan.)

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It’s a little out of your way, but I would recommend seeing Independence Rock State Historical Site, on WY-220 about 50 miles SW of Casper. This is a large lump of rock that was a significant landmark along the Oregon Trail. IIRC, it got its name from the idea that if you made it that far by July 4 you were “on track” to make it to the West Coast in time to avoid unpleasant travel inconveniences (i.e., freezing to death in the mountains.) Settlers would stop here for a little break, and many of them would carve their names and the date (often July 4) on the surface of the rock, which is several acres in size. The interesting thing is that visitors are allowed to walk all over the rock and look at the names carved upon it. When I visited in 1997 I met a guy on top of the rock whose ancestors had carved their names there when they went west with Brigham Young-- and in 1997 they were celebrating the 150th anniversary of this passage with a reenactment. What’s even more surprising is that this fellow told me that until pretty recently (1980’s I think) it was still legal to carve your OWN name into the rock, and this guy had added his name below those of his ancestors. Nowadays, however, that is not allowed.
When I asked this guy what else I should see in Eastern Wyoming (esp. stuff related to the pioneers), he suggested that I go to Guernsey, where you can see very clearly the ruts left by the wagon wheels in the rock and earth of the trail. So I drove there the next day. That site is probably more convenient for you if you are going down I-25-- it’s ten miles or so down US 26 and it’s called Guernsey State Park. IIRC there’s no admission fee. This park is very close to Ft. Laramie National Park, which is worth a visit as well. (NOTE that Fort Laramie is really nowhere near the TOWN of Laramie, which is on I-80 west of Cheyenne!) If you drive the most direct route from Indepedence Rock to Fort Laramie, you are basically following the path of the Oregon Trail, and there are several places where you can pull over and see it.

12

Sorry to anyone that likes the place, but I have to agree with bibliophage. On my much awaited US trip, driving through Wyoming, I got stuck in Rawlins with the SO for two days when the highways were closed from the snow, along with a lot of other tourists and 2,000 semi-traliers :eek:

We had nowhere to stay and the locals weren’t friendly at all, we had to use the bathrooms at mcdonalds for two days and had to sleep in our car on the side of the road, in a snowstorm. coldcoldcoldcoldcoldcoldcold

It might have been nice under better circumstances though :slight_smile:

13

Yes, agreement to both. We (the certain Federal land mangement agency I work for) have an interpretive site at Independence Rock. It’s fascinating. About 50 miles (one way) out of your way if you choose the backroads-to-Laramie route, but well worth the detour.

The Guernsey site would be about 15 miles off the I25-to-Cheyenne route. Not as interesting as Independence Rock, but still worth the detour, if you go that way.

Oh, and seconds to all the opinions about Rawlins. I spent a year there one weekend :stuck_out_tongue: . But there’s no reasonable route from Cody to Denver that would take you through Rawlins.

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errr… there’s plenty of reasonable routes from Cody to Denver that would take you right through Rawlins. The only routes that wouldn’t take you through Rawlins is if you went straight from Cody to the Interstate via 14 or 120 & 20. If you’re anything like me, on vacations I avoid the Interstate as much as possible. In Wyoming, you can go bloody fast on the smaller highways, so IMO there’s no real reason to make a beeline for I-25.

Not that I’m saying Ike should go through Rawlins - I agree with everyone else here, it’s no great shakes.

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OK. You can go Shoshoni - Riverton - Jeffery City - Muddy Gap - Rawlins, which would add a lot of distance for no discernable benefit. (The drive from Sweetwater Station to Rawlins is the most butt-ugly stretch of road you’ll ever see - makes the drive from Shoshoni to Casper look like the Going-To-The-Sun Highway.) Unless you’re talking about going from Rawlins to Denver via Saratoga - Walton - Granby, which is very pretty, but one helluva long drive to make, compared to the other routes. I don’t know how long Uke has for scenic detours. I was talking about more-or-less direct routes.

But neither of those is reasonable - because you have to go through Rawlins! :smiley:

And as far as not travelling the Interstate goes - the route I mentioned through Laramie to Ft. Collins via 285 has only the 50 or so miles of Interstate after Ft. Collins of its 500 or so mile total.

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I dunno, dono, I’ve mainly been to Wyoming on motorcycle trips, and we always avoided the interstates. But you’re right, maybe Ike wants to take the Interstate. He mentioned Laramie, though, and I’m assuming he’s not gonna drive to Cheyenne then back to Laramie to spend the night, so I figgered he’d go through (gasp!) Rawlins to get there.

Agreed, though, that it’s not reasonable because he has to go through Rawlins!

I’m personally all for him going down 287, since it’ll take him right smack through the lovely burg of Longmont where I live. I’ll keep an eye out for the city types, and snag him with a tepid chili dog and slightly warm Coors.

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Oops, right, Athena - 287, not 285. It was late and my mind was getting foggy. And Longmont is a pretty town - nice view of the mountains from there.

I was thinking more last night about the Saratoga - Walden - Granby - Berthoud Pass drive (hope I got that right - I don’t have a Colorado map here at work). I’ve gone that way a couple of times. There’s some truly spectacular scenery along that route, if Uke’s got the time. It’s a long haul, though.

Oh, and a correction: Independence Rock is a State Park, not one of ours. I had it confused with Split Rock, another nearby Oregon Trail landmark.

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I would take Dono’s advice and go the route that takes you through Shoshone. Imagine little Pianola’s eyes lighting up as she says, “oooh, Daddy—is this REALLY where Isabel Jewell was born?”

And don’t forget to bring me back an Isabel Jewell T-shirt and coffee mug!

19

I’m detecting a note of “Let’s keep the goodies to ourselves,” here, much as a Manhattanite stays quiet about that fantasic little side-street trattoria where the boniface makes each tortellini by hand.

So…Rawlins it is! Maybe we’ll cancel the Grand Tetons part of the trip in order to spend more time in this marvelous-sounding hamlet!

Thanks for all the nifty fab suggestions, my western friends. (and Eve.) Keep 'em coming.

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OK, you’re on to me. Should have known better than to try to put one over on a Mod. :wink:

If you go through Rawlins, look up Rose’s Cantina for the best green chili ever. It’s authentic homestyle - you can tell because it has potatoes in it. You might not be able to get a seat because the place only seats about a dozen people at a counter (that’s why we try to keep it a secret), but you can get your order to go.

No joke - Rose’s is famous among the locals, and no trip through Rawlins is complete without a stop for some of the chili.