Bighorn Mountains: Medicine Wheel and Bighorn Canyon

Route description

Buffalo is a ranching town at the foot of the Bighorn Mountains on I-25 and I-90. Drive north on I-90 to exit 44 for Fort Phil Kearny State Historic Site, an 1866 army post on the Bozeman Trail. The Fetterman and Wagon Box fight sites are nearby. Continue north to Sheridan, a town with a historic main street, and take US-14 west through Dayton.

US-14 climbs steeply up the Bighorns in switchbacks to Burgess Junction, where you turn west on US-14A. After about 40 km, take the gravel road to the Medicine Wheel, a sacred site at 2,940 m. US-14A is closed in winter, usually from about December to late May. From the parking lot, it is a 2.4 km walk to the stone circle, which is open in summer only. Respect ceremonies that may be taking place.

US-14A then drops steeply toward Lovell with grades of about 10 percent; large RVs should use low gear or take US-14 instead. From Lovell, drive north on WY-37 into Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, where the road passes through the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range to the Devil Canyon Overlook. Horseshoe Bend Campground is on the lake.

Return to Lovell and drive southeast on US-14A and US-310 to Greybull, then east on US-14 for about 35 km to Shell Falls, where a paved path leads to the viewing platforms. Return to Greybull, a small town with fuel and supplies. From here, US-14/16/20 runs west for 85 km across the Bighorn Basin to Cody, gateway to Yellowstone.