Wyoming Travel I-80 Yellowstone Corridor
Easterners traveling the southern route across Wyoming’s I-80 corridor or the more northern I-90 corridor towards Yellowstone navigate through some of the more stunning outdoor scenery found in the western United States. Slow travel’s pace so as to ingest some of the historical significance associated with many of Wyoming’s scenic locations, and you begin to comprehend the phrase, “How The West Was Won.”
Wyoming was originally home to Sioux, Shoshone, Ute, Comanche and other Native American cultures. U.S. Cavalry Generals and officers named Custer, Howard, Miles, Dodge, Secretary Of War Rawlins, and many others led the way in wresting control of this great state’s natural resources from Indian leaders such as Washakie, Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, Sitting Bull, Man-Afraid-Of-His-Horses and many of the latter’s esteemed contemporaries.
As the Indian Wars subsided, General Grenville Dodge led teams of U.S. Army surveyors across Wyoming laying out this nation’s first transcontinental railroad built and operated by Union Pacific. Dodge’s men directed the “iron horse” through sites offering water holes sufficient in quantity and quality to replenish huge locomotives’ cavernous boilers with fresh water. Later, towns and cities grew up around these isolated springs the Dakota Territory Legislature chartered with names like: Cheyenne, Laramie, Rawlins (Spring), Rock Springs, Green River and others.
In addition, Wyoming’s vast reserves of coal attracted settlers to mining settlements such as Rock Springs. The “rock that burns” furnished the fuel to convert Wyoming spring water to steam power in moving Union Pacific’s freight and passenger services across the state’s remote and often forbidding terrain. Dodge’s surveyors encouraged U.S. industry to penetrate one of the most remote areas in the U.S. at that time. In doing so, they eventually spread commerce throughout the length and breadth of the United States. Thankfully, that introduction did little to alter the incredible vistas offered by this state’s unusually unique wilderness scenery, incredibly diverse natural resources and abundant wildlife.
I-80’s corridor through southern Wyoming follows the path of the Overland Trail for much of the way. Historical monuments and markers frequent the route calling attention to the plight and struggles of pioneers once traveling virtually the same path. History is recorded at every turn and side road of this scenic route across this historic state.
A recap follows of past and present data hopefully informative to travelers passing through the venerable towns and cities stretching east and west across Wyoming’s I-80:
Cheyenne, Wyoming
County Seat of Laramie County
Wyoming State Capitol
Elevation: 6062
Population: 53,011
Founded: Aug. 8, 1867
Convention Visitor Bureau: 800-426-5009
Wyoming Tourism: 800-225-5996
24-hr Wyoming Road & Travel: 800-WYO-ROAD
General Grenville Dodge supervised surveying Cheyenne’s site for passage of Union Pacific’s transcontinental railroad westward through the area. The first charter officially organizing the town of about 600 charter citizens was issued August 8, 1867. The following December, the Dakota Territory Legislature issued Cheyenne’s permanent charter.
As Wyoming’s state capitol, approximately 4000 people draw paychecks from the state’s payroll. That is matched by about the same number of military and civilian federal employees at Cheyenne’s F.E. Warren Air Base. Federal and state government payrolls support approximately 15% of Cheyenne’s population. The largest private employer today is still Union Pacific Rail Road.
When very young, my dad was a “pipe-liner” stationed at Rawlins’ Standard Oil facilities. While there, he once took the family cross-state to Cheyenne’s Frontier Days. I vaguely remember wagons careening around the arena, bulls throwing riders in every direction and cowboys riding the wind from one end of the arena to the other attempting to rope something, or diving onto a critter’s back or just trying to avoid getting thrown off before a buzzer sent outriders to save him from getting trampled underfoot. I remember wanting nothing more than to grow up like one of them.
Leaving Wyoming soon after that rodeo excursion was painful to a young fellow. Thinking about it while writing this, almost 60-years later, whistfully recalls some of the pain.
Significant events:
*July’s Cheyenne Frontier Days established in 1897 – The “World’s Largest Outdoor Rodeo” features four parades, three pancake and sausage breakfasts and events from steer roping to a wild horse race. Bull rider, Dustin Elliot, North Platte, Nebraska took home top prize of $20, 201 for his event in 2006.
Places to see:
• Wyoming State Capitol
• Wyoming State Museum
• Cheyenne Depot Museum
• Historic Governor’s Mansion
• Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra
• 600 acres of parks
• The Greater Cheyenne Greenway
Lodging:
• Best Western Hitching Post Inn – 800-221-0125/ 307-638-3301
• Big Horn Motel - 307-638-3122
• Capitol Inn - 307-632-8901
• Cheyenne Motel - 307-632-6802
Laramie, Wyoming
Albany County
Elevation: 7200
Population: 27,200
Laramie Chamber of Commerce: 866-876-1012
Wyoming Tourism: 800-225-5996
24-hr Wyoming Road & Travel: 800-WYO-ROAD
Jacque Laramee, a French trapper, built a cabin at the junction of the Platte and Laramie Rivers in the early 1800s. This site later became the location of historic Fort Laramie. In 1821, Laramee was killed by the Indians. His name for some unknown reason attached to numerous geographical sites: the Laramie Mountain Range, Ft. Laramie, Laramie County, Laramie Peak, Laramie River, and the City of Laramie (the latter not in Laramie County by the way).
Laramie was chartered by the Dakota Territory Legislature in 1867. When the first passenger train rolled into it May 1868, there were 23 saloons, one hotel and no churches. Lawlessness was rife. December 1868 saw approximately 500 vigilantes descend on the community and take matters into their own hands. Since then, Laramie settled into a generally peaceful existence. In 1873, the territorial prison opened for business on the outskirts of town.
The University of Wyoming was established in Laramie in 1886. Currently, it remains the only four year college in the state. While the original economic force building the town focused on ranching, lumber industries and the rail road, today the University of Wyoming is Laramie’s primary employer.
Significant Events:
• July’s Jubilee Days
Places to see:
• University of Wyoming Geology Museum
• Laramie Plains Museum
• University of Wyoming Anthropology Museum
• University of Wyoming Art Museum
• Nici Self Museum
• University of Wyoming Insect Gallery
• University of Wyoming Planetarium
• Wyoming Children’s Museum & Nature Center
• Wyoming Territorial Prison (est. 1873)
• Snowy Range Ski Area – 800-Go-2-snow
• Lincoln Monument
• Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests
Lodging:
• Super 8 Motel - 307-745-8901
• Howard Johnson Inn – 307-742-8371
• Days Inn - 307-745-5678 / 800-329-7466
• Econo Lodge - 800-303-6851
• Hampton Inn - 800-426-7806
• Comfort Inn - 800-228-5150
• Ramada Center Hotel – 800-272-6232
Rawlins
County Seat of Carbon County
Elevation: 6755
Established: 1868
Incorporated: 1886
Population: 8500
Carbon County Visitor Center: 307-327-5600
Rawlins Chamber of Commerce: 307-324-4111
Wyoming Tourism: 800-662-6886
24-hr Wyoming Road & Travel: 800-WYO-ROAD
Former Secretary of War General John A. Rawlins dropped a broad hint to General Grenville Dodge around 1868 when surveying Union Pacific’s Wyoming route by a spring-fed waterhole at the base of a substantial hill. He hinted within earshot of Gen. Dodge that if any site should be named after him on the project, he would like it to be after a large clean spring. An astute subordinate, General Dodge promptly named the site “Rawlins Spring”– now shortened to just “Rawlins.”
Rawlins later became a division point for Union Pacific.
While still governed by the Dakota Territory Legislature, a territorial prison was approved in 1886. Construction was begun but poor funding held back completion till 1901. Closed in 1981, today the imposing medieval-like architecture houses a museum preserving the lawless nature of certain frontier bandits.
In 1878, highwayman “Big Nose” George Parrot bumbled a train robbery near Rawlins that netted no money. However, two members of a posse were killed trying to apprehend him. He was hanged by vigilantes later. A Dr. John E. Osborne took possession of the body. He dissected and skinned it. “Big Nose’s” skull became a doorstop and the Dr. made a pair of shoes from his tanned hide.
Citizens of Wyoming didn’t hold this against Dr. Osborne. About 10-years later they elected him governor. He also served a term as senator! Parrot’s shoes are on display in the prison’s museum today.
Rawlins reserves special places in my personal memory banks. I started the second grade of elementary school there about 60-years ago. They let school out once when Tom Dewey’s presidential campaign against Harry Truman found his whistle-stop train stopping briefly at Rawlins’ historic U.P Depot. I recall town fathers approaching him on the platform at the rear of the train with a large wrapped bundle - an antelope carcass for nourishment as he continued his historic quest into history.
I “blooded” my first set of skis down a wintry city street on the big hill Rawlins is built up the south side of - literally. Didn’t have to be told not to try that again! Once, an overnight snowfall reached the window sills of our house. Unable to exit the front door to go to school the next morning, dad finally made it to the front porch with a shovel after bailing out an open window. There were horned toads captured on summer childhood forays into the nearby Red Desert. For reasons known only to her, they terrified my mother later when they got loose in the house.
Sinclair
Sinclair was originally named PARCO after the company that built it. In 1943, Sinclair Oil bought the town and refinery. In 1967, they turned all commercial property over to the municipality. It sold all residential homes to renters living in them at the time.
Significant Events:
• August Carbon County Fair & Rodeo
Places to see:
• Old Union Pacific Rail Road Depot
• Original Wyoming State Prison & Museum
• Carbon County Museum
• The Outlaw Trail Loop – Scenic Drive
• Snowy Range Scenic Byway
• The Uplift - Formation exposing fossilized remains
Lodging:
Days Inn – 800-DAYSINN
La Bella Motel – 888-228-3045
Super 8 Motel - 800-800-8000
Best Western Cottontree Inn – 800-662-6886
** Rawlins lodging advisory:
Rawlins’ lodging locations listed above, on past trips, honored advertised rates quoted by phone and when calling numbers listed in on-line travel directories used for advance reservations. (Call them for current rate quotes.)
However, we experienced a different response recently with a large number of other select Rawlins’ motels. When stopping after dark recently on impulse in Rawlins without reservations, we discovered that rates at certain motels there are billed approximately 1/3 higher than rates quoted at the same locations when calling ahead of arrival for reservations.
Rawlins is on a lonely stretch of I-80 after dark. You must drive either to Rock Springs or to Laramie if deciding to seek other accommodations. The inflated rates at the Rawlins’ locations quoted on arrival reached from $99.00 to $109.00 for a single for one night.
Rawlins Super 8 billed $65.00 + tax for two for a single night. Rawlins Days Inn quoted $75.00 + tax. We rate accommodations at these latter two comparable or upscale to the Rawlins’ locations quoting selective hyper-inflated rates after sundown.
We felt what happened was significant information to today’s beleaguered
travelers and that we had a responsibility to report it here. Travelers can make their own conclusions. The surest way to avoid the problem is to have an advance reservation with your reservation number in-hand when you arrive.
Rock Springs
Sweetwater County
Elevation: 6271
Established: 1868
Population: 19,000 (est.)
Rock Springs Chamber of Commerce: 307-362-3771/800-46-DUNES
Wyoming Tourism: 800-662-6886
24-hr Wyoming Road & Travel: 800-WYO-ROAD
In 1862, Overland Stage Company built a stage depot here. Later, General Grenville Dodge surveyed the site for the transcontinental railroad route for the same reason that Overland Stage Co. camped there – the clear spring water emanating from the rock that gave the town its name. Rock Springs was established in 1888. Huge coal reserves in the area provided mining jobs for Union Pacific contracts. Soon other mineral deposits were discovered and the area developed a strong mining economy.
U.P. had been given coal mining rights to deposits along the path of its western route. However, when white miners struck U.P. in 1869, U.P. gradually brought in Chinese laborers to replace them. Tensions built over the years until laid-off white miners rioted in 1885. Twenty nine Chinese workers were killed with many more wounded. “China Town” was burned to the ground. The U.S. Government established Camp Pilot Butte to restore order. By December 1869, U.P. had 85 white miners and 450 Chinese miners back to work.
The area abounds in natural gas, oil, phosphate and trona deposits. Trona is soda ash used in everything from glass manufacturing to flavoring your breakfast biscuit. Trona deposits in the Rock Springs area are estimated ample enough to supply the entire world for at least the next 1000 years.
Rock Springs’ economy has yo-yoed from boom to bust and back again several times. Its economy is currently adjusting to a more balanced mix which includes tourism - particularly as regards Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area a few miles to the south.
Self directing trails reach out in all directions from Rock Springs. Some include historic remnants of the Overland Trail. Some involve wildlife and scenic vistas. One personally recommended is the Wild Horse Trail Loop. Taking the trail loop just north of Rock Springs eventually led to Green River over the top of White Mountain.
The Wild Horse Trail trip was made in a Toyota Avalon – not exactly in a Land Rover’s class. Even though a dirt and gravel road the entire route, the trip was easily made adhering to the road. Avoiding the side trip up Pilot Butte was regretful, but, as stated earlier, the Avalon is not a Land Rover. Additionally, physical conditions were as good as they can get at the time as there was minimal snow and dry frozen road surfaces. The road gets a bit rough when nearing Green River opposite the Palisades rock formations through a magnificent rugged draw lined with more impressive rock formations. However, I drove so slow looking at awesome scenery hanging overhead that the rough texture of the road was a non-event - even without four wheel drive. However, snow covered or rain-swept roads would have altered that approach dramatically.
Along the way, I photographed several wild horse herds. One stallion took exception to approaching his herd of mares and foals. He charged out of nowhere to do battle for his family’s honor. Time spent sharing space with these unique creatures high above Rock Springs was a special part of the trip. The territory’s vastness that the mustangs live in is not adequately describable with mere words. One must see it, smell it, be enveloped by it, personally taste the wind there - to comprehend the full extent of freedom these wild mustangs share and compete for in their environment.
Significant events:
• Green River Rendesvous, Pinedale, Wy, 2nd week of July
Places to see:
• White Mountain Wild Horse Trail Loop – Self Directed Trail
• Pilot Knob atop White Mountain
• Pilot Knob Petroglyphs
• Wild Horse Herds
• Historic Downtown Walking Trail
• Rock Springs Historical Museum
• Former butcher shop where Robt. Leroy Parker acquired the “Butch” for his alias “Butch Cassiday.”
• Overland Stage Route Station site – 1862
• The Sand Dunes site
• Flaming Gorge National Recreation Center
Lodging:
• Best Western Outlaw Inn – 307-362-6623
• Comfort Inn - 307-382-9490
• Econo Lodge - 307-382-4217
• Hampton Inn - 307-382-9222
• Holiday Inn - 307-382-9200
• La Quinta Inn - 307-362-1770
• Motel 6 - 307-362-1850
Green River
County Seat of Sweetwater County
Established: 1868
Elevation: 6100
Population: 12,000 (est.)
Green River Chamber of Commerce: 307-875-5711/800-FL-GORGE
Wyoming Tourism: 800-662-6886
24-hr Wyoming Road & Travel: 800-WYO-ROAD
Green River was incorporated in 1868 by the Dakota Territory Legislature. Union Pacific designated it as one of its division points in 1872. John Wesley Powell began his explorations of the Green River, Colorado River and the Grand Canyon from the town’s Expedition Island first departing May 26, 1869.
Powell’s expedition headed down Green River through a canyon comprised of striking red rock. As setting suns cast red glows over the canyon’s walls, Powell’s men named it “Flaming Gorge.” During the same year that Union Pacific designated Green River a division point, the town also was made the county seat of Sweetwater County.
Striking rock formations such as the Palisades, Tallgate and Castle Rock attracted artists like Thomas Moran, the artist whose paintings of Yellowstone so electrified Congress, they set the latter aside as the United States’ first National Park.
Green River, from which the town takes its name, offers fishing for rainbow trout, brook trout, Kokanee salmon and catfish right in the heart of town. Canoeing and kayaking are also popular on the river.
John Wesley Powell’s commanding statue fronts the Sweetwater County Museum on Flaming Gorge Way virtually within sight of his disembarkation point on Expedition Island. Historic Downtown Green River, under the shadow of Castle Rock, offers a walking tour designed to take travelers back through a window in time.
Significant events:
• Green River Rendesvous, Pinedale, Wy, 2nd week of July
Places to see:
• Expedition Island
• Three Water Parks adjacent to Expedition Island (U-Drops)
• Historic Downtown
• White Mountain Wild Horse Loop – Self Directed Trail
• Castlerock, Tallgate and Palisades rock formations
• John Wesley Powell statue
• Sweetwater County Museum
• Flaming Gorge National Recreation Center
Lodging:
• Western Motel – 307-875-2840
• Sweet Dreams Inn – 307-875-7554
• Super 8 Motel - 800-800-8000
• Oak Tree Inn - 888-897-9647
• Mustang Motel - 307-875-2468
• Flaming Gorge Motel – 307-875-4190
• Coachman Inn - 307-875-3681
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area
Elevation: 6045
Construction begun: 1958
Flaming Gorge Reservoir impounded: 1962
F.G.N.R.A. Est. by Congress: 1968
Flaming Gorge dam rises 502 feet above bedrock. It began impounding water in 1962. The reservoir extends 91 miles north from the dam with surface acreage of 42,020 acres at an elevation of 6045 feet.
Congress designated 207,363 acres virtually equally divided between Wyoming and Utah as the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area in 1968. FGNRA offers travelers eighteen U.S. Forest Service campgrounds, nine paved boat ramps and three full service marinas. The reservoir offers outdoor activities such as: Power boating, water skiing, camping, para-sailing, rafting, swimming, and fishing.
Lake trout up to 40-pounds have been caught. It also offers rainbow trout, brook trout, cut throat trout, Kokanee salmon, smallmouth bass, walleye and catfish. Surface temperatures remain cool even during the heat of summer enhancing the trout fishery’s environment and therefore its production. Whether the traveler’s specialty is fly fishing, bass fishing or a bait-dipper, Flaming Gorge’s fishery offers challenges for all.
Petroglyphs and other artifacts give evidence that the Fremont Indians hunted for centuries in and near Flaming Gorge. Later, Shoshoni, Comanche and Ute tribes visited the area. John Wesley Powell named the gorge for the sun glaring off the red walls of the canyon.
The communities closest to FGNRA are Green River and Rock Springs, Wyoming located just to the north
.
Significant events:
• Corn Maze
• Dinotrax Fat Tire Festival
• Outlaw Trail Ride
• Outlaw Trail Theater
• Northern Ute Indian Pow Wow
• PRCA Roundup Rodeo
• Walleye Classic Tournament
• Jarvie Ranch Holiday Open House
Places to see:
• Red Canyon Visitor Center
• Flaming Gorge Dam Visitor Center
• Ute Mountain Lookout Tower
• Swett Ranch (Historic Homestead Site)
• Flaming Gorge-Uintas National Scenic Byway (Scenic & wildlife viewing)
• Sheep Creek Geologic Loop Tour (Scenic & wildlife viewing)
Lodging:
• American Sand & Leisure - 801-226-3564
• Flaming Gorge KOA Camping Resort – 435-784-3184
• Lucerne Valley Marina - 435-784-3483
• U.S. Forest Service - 435-784-3445