Staff Favorites: Celebrating Summer on Wyoming’s Public Lands

Summer is here — and if you’re like us, the shift in seasons means it’s time for blissful days on the water, solitude in the high country, hikes through wildflower-blanketed meadows, and otherwise enjoying all that Wyoming’s public lands have to offer this time of year.

Fortunately, with public lands encompassing over half of Wyoming, you don’t have to look far to find your new favorite summertime spot. From way-out-there wilderness to easily accessible trails, crags, and waterways, the possibilities are endless. We asked our staff to share some of their favorite summer destinations across the state, to inspire you to get out there and celebrate Wyoming’s legacy of protected wildlands. Whether your adventures take you to old favorites or new ones, to the public lands in your backyard or further afield, happy summertime exploring!

EXPLORING THE WIND RIVER RANGE

Era Aranow, government affairs manager

Rugged cirques, rolling meadows, and stunning alpine lakes: the Winds have it all. (Including notorious mosquitoes … If you plan an early-season trip, come prepared!) For Era, choosing a single “favorite” destination does a disservice to this vast and diverse range — it’s the exploration that’s meaningful.

Fortunately, explorers have plenty of options to choose from. The range falls within two national forests (Bridger-Teton on the west side and Shoshone National Forest on the east) which encompass three wilderness areas. “It’s always a special feeling to pass that wooden sign and cross into the wilderness,” Era says.

In addition to the Bridger, Popo Agie, and Fitzpatrick Wildernesses, a part of the range’s eastern slope is protected by the Wind River Indian Reservation. In fact, the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes designated the Wind River Roadless Area to prohibit development on 188,000 acres of the Wind River Range in the late 1930s — nearly 30 years before the passage of the 1964 Wilderness Act.

Casting a line in the Wiggins Fork

John Burrows, climate and energy policy director

When the temperatures start to climb, it’s time to escape the lowlands and head to the mountains. “I’ll head up to Double Cabin Campground on the Wiggins Fork in Shoshone National Forest to cool off in the July heat,” John says. “It’s a great place to cast a line and a good starting point to explore the Absarokas.”

Just north of Dubois, this section of Shoshone National Forest holds plenty of opportunities, whether you’re looking to fish, boat, day hike, or backpack deep into the Washakie Wilderness.

Did you know? The Shoshone National Forest has roots as the oldest federally protected forest in the country. Its precursor was the nation’s first “forest reserve,” the 1.2 million-acre Yellowstone Park Timberland Reserve, which was designated in 1891 — part of a much-needed effort to prevent the destruction of the West’s remaining forests.

Family adventures in Dubois Badlands WSA, Dunoir SMU, and the Snowy Range

Meghan Riley, wildlife program manager

For Meghan and her family, the central perk of living in Dubois is an abundance of options for adventures close to home. For late spring and early summer hikes and wildflowers, you can’t beat the Dubois Badlands WSA. Highlights, she says, include spotting mule deer and bighorn sheep and visiting cottonwood and juniper oases set against a backdrop of beautiful red cliffs. But what the heck is a WSA, anyway? “They’re areas that Congress decided might warrant wilderness protection, but they weren’t quite sure yet,” Meghan explains. “The idea is to gather more data and information before either designating it as wilderness, or releasing it.” Because WSA’s are managed as wilderness, they often have qualities similar to those of designated wilderness, such as non-motorized recreation and opportunities for solitude.

For another backyard destination in mid or late summer, Meghan takes her kids hiking and backpacking in the Dunoir Special Management Unit of Shoshone National Forest. This 28,000-acre wildland northwest of Dubois features accessible front country terrain, but still has some wilderness qualities. “We can hike just three miles up the trail and find ourselves in the most beautiful wildflower-filled meadows,” Meghans says.

Finally, if she wants to travel further afield, the Snowy Range is a favorite spot. As a graduate student in Laramie, the Snowies, located in Medicine Bow National Forest, provided a welcome respite from the summer’s heat: “With its easy access and abundant wildflowers, it’s a beautiful place to replenish your spirit when everything dries out down low.”

A marmot in the Snowy Range, Medicine Bow National Forest

cool-water reprieves in Fremont Canyon and tongue river canyon

Carl Fisher, executive director

Carl’s first year on the job has seen him traveling to all corners of the state to meet with members and partners — and occasionally, he’s been able to sneak off with his fly rod to wet a line. The North Platte River’s Fremont Canyon, southwest of Casper, has been a frequent rest stop: With its spectacular granite walls, juniper-spotted hills, and, of course, clear, cold, trout-filled waters, the canyon offers excellent fishing with easy access.

Rather spend the day boating? The canyon is also popular with kayakers and canoers — and Alcova Reservoir is just downstream, too. Or, if you’re a rock climber, the canyon’s walls are dotted with hundreds of established climbing routes.

Another favorite of Carl’s is Tongue River Canyon in Bighorn National Forest, where the Tongue cascades through mountainous terrain dotted with pines and limestone spires. It’s a river he’s had the chance to fish with frequent travel partner Tyler Cessor, WOC’s development director — and the two are itching to get back!

Scaling Tensleep Canyon’s walls

Max Owens, communications manager

The pocketed limestone walls of Tensleep Canyon hold a special place in Max’s heart. And it’s not just because of the world-class rock climbing: “The expansive views of the plains at the foot of the Bighorns feel classically Wyoming,” he says. “And hiking down from the cliff through fields of lupine and balsamroot, and knowing that I get to do it all again tomorrow, always feels perfect.”

Bighorn National Forest is full of nearby hiking and backpacking options, too — including the spectacular trail to the summit of Cloud Peak, the highest point in the Bighorns. Did you know? This year marks the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Wyoming Wilderness Act, which designated the Cloud Peak Wilderness along with several other Wyoming wildernesses.

Scenic view of Tensleep Canyon in Wyoming with lush sagebrush in foreground and steep canyon walls in middle and background — Tensleep Canyon, Bighorn National Forest

Where are you headed to enjoy Wyoming’s public lands this summer? What are some of your favorite Wyoming destinations and activities? Let us know in the comments!

Join Michael and other photographers by submitting your own shot of Wyoming for the Outdoor Council’s 2023 Calendar Contest. You can enter your photos via Instagram or email. To submit your photo(s) via Instagram, you must have a public Instagram account so that we’re able to view your submission. Upload your photo(s) and add the hashtag #OurWyoming.

To submit your photo(s) via email, send your photo(s) to claire@wyomingoutdoorcouncil.org.

For more information about the contest, visit our calendar contest page.

When Michael Lee told me the story behind the cover photo of last year’s calendar, he admitted that it sounded like a story that could have had an awful ending. We’re all glad it didn’t—and that, rather, it ended with a photograph that captured a sweeping vista of the valley below and the Little Bighorn River.

Lee, a professional photographer, and his wife, who live in a suburb north of Chicago, have been visiting Wyoming for years. This particular shot was taken in 2020, although the story started four years earlier in 2016.

That year, Lee and his wife were driving around the Bighorn National Forest in the fall, just before hunting season was to begin. “As a photographer, I’m always looking for things to photograph,” he says. “We had been driving down a dirt road quite a ways. It was late in the afternoon and we were just waiting for the light to change. We had pulled over at a spot in the road where there was a view of an elk herd in the valley below. My wife was making popcorn on our propane stove.”

That’s when a big pickup truck pulled up next to them and a father and son duo stepped out. The four got to chit chatting and the father and son introduced themselves as the Buchanan’s from Casper who were scouting for wildlife because they had drawn a tag to hunt there. That’s when the father turned to them and said, “Well, if you like this view, we’ll have to show you another one you’ll like even better.”

Without a second thought, or consulting his wife, Lee said yes. As Lee climbed into the back of the Buchanan’s cab first, at the insistence of his wife, the father turned around to reassure them that “the guns were in the backseat with them.”

The four drove down the dirt road for another 10 minutes before they pulled over again, adjacent to a dense forest. The father beckoned into the woods and said, “It’s this way.”

Lee laughs, “It sounds like the plot is thickening, doesn’t it? But we walked for about 100 yards, and emerged from the trees to the very view you see on the cover of the calendar.”

The four lingered for awhile at the vista, talking and getting to know one another, before they headed back to the pickup, unscathed.

The picture on the cover was taken two years ago when the Lee’s returned to Wyoming on their annual trip, and decided to try to find the spot again, even though neither of them had marked it on a map. There is a name for the place, Lee says, but he doesn’t know it. He calls it Buchanan’s Bluff.

The experience—”Just a couple of Wyomingites offering to show us something cool”—was more proof for Lee that Wyomingites are pretty trustworthy and friendly. He’s even stayed in touch with the Buchanan’s over the years, swapping emails every once and awhile.

“I’ve got a few Wyomingites in my rolodex,” he says. “You never know when you want to stop in and have a good meal.”

“I’ve got a few Wyomingites in my rolodex,” he says. “You never know when you want to stop in and have a good meal.”
— Michael Lee

The Lee’s return to Wyoming, or at least the West, every year. Lee’s been to Wyoming more than any other place, and has probably been to more places in Wyoming than in his own state, he admits. Although he loves the people that he encounters when he travels in Wyoming, he admits that Wyoming is special for its lack of people—which is a sharp contrast to his day-to-day life in Chicago.

He also loves the diversity of the Wyoming landscape. How in many parts of it appears so empty, yet those places are so rich with life and beauty. From the rugged mountains to the dry windy desert, to the warm welcoming people. Wyoming is a place that has not seen the kind of dense industrial development that he is used to in Chicago and his home state of Wisconsin.

He first fell in love with the West as a kid when his dad took him on a road trip in 1978. But he fell in love all over again, more recently, in 2001, when he took a few months off following a stint in New York City. He visited a friend in Dallas and then continued west with a tent and a camera. “I had no idea what I was doing,” he says, as he traveled through New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming for two and a half months, just driving, taking pictures, being really dirty. “I loved every second of it.”

He hasn’t let go of that feeling. He and his wife even backpacked in Wyoming for their honeymoon. When I asked him why he doesn’t just live here, he said the realities of life keep him in Chicago. It is there that he has the closeness of family and a community and more professional opportunities as a photographer. The jobs he is able to take there are consistent, interesting, and fun. This work and life in Chicago, affords him the ability to make a special visit to Wyoming once a year and completely shut his phone off.

He doesn’t, however, shut his camera off, rather, he likes to use it as a way to give back to the places that he frequently visits and wants to support. “All of these places need all the help they can get,” he says. “And anyone who visits should, and could, do a little extra to take care of the place, like donating. But anyone can do that, and what I can do is a little different—provide photographs that organizations can use to raise awareness or get more people to open their checkbooks. That’s something these organizations don’t usually have a budget for.” He’s happy to be able to contribute to these causes in a special way. “It doesn’t cost me anything, and if my photograph can help raise awareness or convince a politician to vote a certain way or support a certain action, well, that’s just icing on the cake.”

bighorn national forest

Field Notes