Enrich Your Trip

If you’re an explorer at heart, history buff or just enjoy learning as you travel, check out round trips from Cheyenne, lodging sites, travel guides, relevant fiction and history books, Cheyenne links, and restaurant reviews. Discover the vast array of activites in Cheyenne and the surrounding area. Spend a few hours or a few weeks in this beautiful country and find out why it is one of America’s best kept secrets. We have compiled a list of beautiful drives and attractions, as well as some books and web sites that will help as you plan your trip. Add one of our picnic baskets for a nominal fee. Restaurants located nearby that guests will enjoy. HISTORICAL ROUND TRIPS FROM CHEYENNE Snowy Range Lake Marie. Snowy Range Mountain Drive: One of the best kept secrets in the west is just 90 minutes from Cheyenne. The Snowy Mountain Range is spectacular with vistas where you can see all the way to Colorado on a clear day. Hike, bike or continue driving to Saratoga, land of hot springs and old west ranching. You can retrace your steps or come back along Interstate 80 but you won’t want to miss Laramie and the Wyoming Territorial Park, the Ivinson Mansion or the University of Wyoming’s famous art and geological museums. The complete circle takes about a minimum of five hours depending on your urge to stop and enjoy!

Fort Laramie National Historic Site

Fort Laramie National Historic Site, The Oregon Trail Ruts and Register Cliffs: A complete history lesson so real, you can imagine yourself on the trail west. Drive north to Guernsey where you can still see the wagon ruts from the pioneers who endured great hardships for a new way of life. The ruts were carved into the stone by the heavily packed wagon. Register Cliff was a stopping point where weary animals rested and pioneers carved their names into the soft stone Fort Laramie Natural Historic Site is a wonderfully preserved historic site where re-enactments happen regularly and lessons about the old ways of life can still be told. The circle drive covers some delightful prairie scenery and driving time is about four hours plus stops. And if you really want to mingle with the locals, stop at the drug store in Chugwater for one of the best malts west of Shoshone! Add one of our picnic baskets for a nominal fee.

Laramie/Fort Collins/Cheyenne

Laramie/Fort Collins/Cheyenne: Just 45 minutes west is the historic town of Laramie where Butch Cassidy was incarcerated in the Wyoming Territorial Prison. Now a museum, the Wyoming Territorial Park is also home to a Frontier Town and a seasonal dinner theater. The University of Wyoming has an excellent Geological Museum and a nice Art Museum. Continue down Highway 287 for a beautiful drive to old town Fort Collins where we recommend a visit to the historic Avery House and the Fort Collins Museum. Then head home via Interstate 25 to Cheyenne.

Cheyenne to Greeley, Colorado

Cheyenne to Greeley, Colorado: “Go West, you man, go West” was the phrase coined by the New York Tribune editor Horace Greeley. Originally the town of Greeley started as the Union Colony in 1869 and both Greeley and Cheyenne have great similarities to the town in James Mitchner’s book, “Centennial.” Follow Greeley Highway south of town and only 45 minutes later visit the Centennial Village Museum, Plumb Farm Museum and Meeker Home Museum. These outstanding historic sites will give you great insight into the Greeley community and the people who founded it. From Greeley back to Cheyenne, you can visit the Terry Bison Ranch, home of a great bison herd and also one of the ranches owned by Senator Warren. Drive time is three and a half hours, plus stops.

Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park: A spectacular day drive where you can see wildlife, riverlife (kayaks, rafts and canoes) and spectacular scenery in addition to great photo opportunities. Follow the Big Thompson River Canyon to Estes Park and then into the park and Trail Ridge Rd. You will witness white water river and jagged mountain walls as you traverse beautiful winding roads to the Park and back. Drive time is about six hours plus stops.

CHEYENNE WEB SITES

CHEYENNE WEB SITES

Lodging along the way:

READING MATERIALS

These books may add some enjoyment to your Wyoming trip.

FICTION

McGregoes Lantern, Corrine Joy Brown My Friend Flicker, Mary O’Hara Lassie, Eric Mowbray Shane, Jack Schafer The Virginian, Owen Wister Centennial, James Mitchner Open Season, C.J. “Chuck” Box Nothing Like It In The World, Steven Ambrose, CD Available

GUIDES

Compass: Wyoming (Fodor’s) Lonely Planet Guide Book Recommended Romantic Inns of America, Doris Kennedy Moon Handbooks: Wyoming Travel Smart: Montana/ Wyoming/Idaho, CJ Box Recommended Country Inns of the Rocky Mt. Region, Doris Kennedy Taste and Tours of Wyoming, Wyoming B&Bs Wyoming Wildlife Viewing Tour Guide, Wyoming Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Ultimate Wyoming Atlas and Travel Encyclopedia, Michael Dougherty Frommers Complete Guide to Wyoming

HISTORY

Nothing Like It In The World, Steven Ambrose, CD Available Cheyenne The Magic City on The Plains 1867-1903, Bill O’Neil Tom Horn, Chip Carlson When Ester Morris Headed West, Connie Nordhielm Governor Lady, Tova J Scheer Discovering Dinosaurs in the Old West History of Wyoming, T. A. A. Larson

EDUCATIONAL

Architecture of the Cowboy State, Eileen Starr Roadside Geology of Wyoming, David R. Lugeson Roadside History of Wyoming, Candy Molton Ft Bridger, Hunt Janin Army Architecture of the Wyoming West, Alison K Hoagland Tracks Across Wyoming guide and narrative for southern Wyoming, I-80, the Union Pacific Railroad, and historical attractions and points of interest: www.tracksacrosswyoming.com Unrelated Links Virtual TimeClock Art Design & Dine in Cheyenne WY a monthly art walk