Wild, Wondrous Wyoming

Buffalo Bill Reservoir, Cody, WY.

Wyoming. Awesome and incredibly beautiful. Who knew?

Words cannot describe Wyoming. The landscape is other-worldly, almost surreal, like nothing I’ve ever seen before.

It is a curious blend of arid desolation, lush wilderness, sand and sagebrush, imposing mountains, and astonishing beauty.

You can drive for hours-and-hours on endless stretches of highway without seeing another soul. Towns are few and far between . . . and so small, you pass through most of them in the blink of an eye.

We saw bighorn sheep, buffalo, elk, moose, and bear on the roads in Shawnee State Park and Yellowstone . . . cattle grazing on rolling land miles from the nearest town . . . cowboys in Cody, not just wannabes in boots and ten-gallon hats; but real, honest-to-goodness Marlboro men who ride
broncs and the open range and live on remote homesteads and dude ranches in the shadow of the mighty Rockies.

On the Road in Wyoming

Day One . . . We cut up through the center of Wyoming, starting at Cheyenne, in the southeast corner, on our way to Cody, near Yellowstone National Park, in the far northwest.
Read more

Chief Joseph Scenic Byway, winding through the far mountainous northwest region, is spectacular beyond description . . . even photos don’t do it justice. It has to be experienced—seen and felt—first-hand to fully appreciate its stunning beauty.

In the Big Horn Mountains, we drove 9,000 feet to the snowy summit. Amidst gently falling flakes, the air was crisp and clean . . . and silent. All you could hear was the babble of water flowing gently in a mountain stream. It was as if we were the only two people in the world.

“Wyoming has lots of elbow room and not much to obstruct the view. Its immensity is matched only by its diversity—rock-strewn mountains, rolling plains, windswept deserts, and pastoral valleys. In every region of the state you can climb to the top of a high peak, spin your gaze like a top, and see nothing but land, rocks, and sagebrush.” —Candy Moulton, author

The landscape of Wyoming is as diverse as anything you can imagine. Rolling, grassy plains. Dry prairies dotted with shrub-steppe, sagebrush, and ephemeral wetland. Rocky, jagged formations rising from the earth. Bluffs, buttes, mesas, and mountain ranges. Thick forests and open range. Colors blend one into the other in every imaginable shade of green—emerald, chartreuse, silver-gray sage, vibrant teal, turquoise, and deep forest green—with a backdrop of dusty sand, red earth, and snow-capped mountains against a wide, never-ending, ever-changing sky.

My lasting impression of Wyoming is that of a vast, open, unspoiled land with few people, abundant wildlife, stunning views, and a definite western flavor.

Scene in Wyoming

There is no one photo that definitively captures the essence of Wyoming. With every turn in the road, the landscape changes.

Heading west on a lonely stretch of highway in Wyoming.

American bison grazing among sagebrush and shrub-streppe.

Washakie Wilderness and North Fork of the Shoshone River in Shoshone National Forest.

Landscape painted in every shade of green—emerald, chartreuse, deep turquoise, and forest.

Rolling foothills of the Absaroka Mountains in northwest Wyoming.

Wind River Scenic Byway (US 20) winding through Wind River Canyon.

American bison resting, NE Entrance Road, Yellowstone National Park.

Fire damage on NE Entrance Road in Yellowstone National Park.

The Wind River winds through tall, rugged Wind River Canyon.

Palette of green is offset by deep red earth and snow-covered mountains on the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway.

Buffalo grazing among sagebrush and shrub-streppe.

Granite rock in the Big Horn Mountains.

Same day, an hour or so later . . . Big Horn Mountains at 9,000 feet.

You might also like: