Wyoming: Aliens, National Parks and Butch Cassidy

Capital: Cheyenne

Largest City: Cheyenne

Population: 576,000

Admitted: 1848

Our first time visiting Wyoming was in 2019. As we were headed to our hotel in North Dakota, I wanted another state crossed off the list. While there we stopped to see Devil's Tower National Monument and had a stop for a souvenir key chain. Devil's Tower is a well-known landmark as it was used in Steven Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind. We did not get kidnapped by aliens while visiting.

Searching for aliens at Devil's Tower

Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks

In August of 2021, we returned to Wyoming on a trip out west. We stopped at Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.

The two parks are easy to visit as once you enter Yellowstone in the southwestern edge of Montana, you do not have to reenter Grand Teton through a gate.

Yellowstone has a very unique and beautiful landscape with its land shaped out by a super volcano. You can walk along boardwalks and view unique geothermal features. They are extremely hot, and it is highly recommended not to leave the boardwalks.

Viewing of one of the geothermal features at Yellowstone National Park

We watched the geyser, Old Faithful, erupt. Old Faithful, as its name suggests is very faithful with its eruption times. We also saw signs for the continental divide which was an unexpected plus.

In Grand Teton, we visited Jenny Lake. Instead of stopping at the visitor center with traffic parked a mile down the road, we drove down a scenic road next to the lake. We also went down Moose Wilson Road which supposedly has moose but we did not see any. We also visited Mormon Row Historic District which has a picturesque barn with the Teton mountains in the background. While we saw little wildlife at Grand Teton, the stunning views of the Teton mountains made the trip worth it.

World's Largest Jackalope and Butch Cassidy

After the national parks, we considered heading to Jackson, but it was the peak of summer and it would have been a slow drive due to traffic congestion. Instead, we drove south to Dubois, where we stayed the night. Dubois has a unique gas station that claims to have the world's largest jackalope, so of course, we had to stop.

We also dined at a local restaurant where I felt out of place as an East Coast suburbanite. Many of the restaurant's patrons were dressed in cowboy hats and boots, and the walls were decorated with deer heads.

Our last stop of the 2021 trip was at the Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historical Society in Laramie which is notable for Butch Cassidy once being imprisoned there. I really enjoyed the prison visit and learning more about Butch Cassidy's experience there.

My husband is not a big fan of Wyoming. I, however, think it's scenic, pretty and worth seeing.