In-depth guide · CampingSpirit
From Cheyenne past the rocks of Vedauwoo and Laramie to 3,306 metres over Snowy Range Pass, on to the hot springs of Saratoga, over Battle Pass to Rawlins and back through the land of “The Virginian”: around 780 kilometres of high prairie, granite and mountain lakes.
The spirit of the route
South-east Wyoming is a land of transitions: on one side the shortgrass prairie rolls away, on the other rise the Laramie Mountains with their rounded granite towers and, behind them, the Medicine Bow Mountains, whose quartzite wall on Medicine Bow Peak holds snow gullies into July. In between lie windswept high plains where pronghorn stand beside the road and Union Pacific freight trains glide through the grass. From the sliding door you watch the sun rise over the rocks of Vedauwoo in the morning; in the evening the mountain wall is mirrored in Lake Marie, and at night the sky above 3,000 metres is so dark that the Milky Way seems to cast shadows. In Saratoga you sit in hot water on the bank of the North Platte, in Rawlins behind cell bars from 1901, and in Medicine Bow at the bar of a hotel that gave a Western novel its setting.
Stage-by-stage plan
1Stage 1: Cheyenne to Curt Gowdy State Park (approx. 45 km)
- The drive
- Cheyenne sits at around 1,850 metres on the edge of the prairie; half a day is enough for the city. Then head west on WY-210 (Happy Jack Road): two lanes, well built, climbing gently through open rangeland until, after about 40 minutes, the first granite knobs and pines of the Laramie Mountains appear. The road is exposed, and in a westerly wind you feel every gust through the steering. Cheyenne is your last major stop for fuel and groceries.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum in Frontier Park: a collection of carriages and wagons, rodeo history and exhibits on the world’s largest outdoor rodeo, which fills the city every July. Parking for RVs on the spacious park grounds.
- Wyoming State Capitol: the Capitol with its gilded dome underwent an extensive restoration completed in 2019; tours and an exhibition on the history of Wyoming, the first territory to give women the vote, in 1869. With a large vehicle, park downtown away from the narrow streets.
- Union Pacific “Big Boy” No. 4004 in Holliday Park: one of the largest steam locomotives ever built, freely accessible in the city park; plus the Cheyenne Depot Museum in the historic railway station.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Curt Gowdy State Park: the state park around the Granite, Crystal and North Crystal reservoirs has numerous small camping areas such as Sherman Hills, Tumbleweed, Aspen Grove, South and North Causeway or Silver Crown, some on the shore, some in the pine forest. Some sites have electricity (extra charge); there are toilets and a visitor centre with year-round drinking water and showers; at the reservoirs the water is turned off in autumn. There is no dump station in the park – the nearest are at the Welcome Center in Cheyenne and at the Territorial Prison in Laramie. Day-use fee and camping fee, higher for visitors not resident in Wyoming; sites are booked through the Wyoming State Parks reservation system (reserve.wyoming.gov).
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Cheyenne, sleeping in your vehicle on streets and in car parks is not permitted; in the surrounding area the land is almost entirely privately owned. Free camping only begins in the National Forest west of the state park (see next stage).
- Insider tip for campers
- The Hidden Falls Trail in the state park leads in around 1.5 hours through a granite gorge to a small waterfall; the mountain bike trails are among the best in Wyoming. Refill your water at the state park visitor centre – in Vedauwoo supply is seasonal and limited. During Frontier Days in July, Cheyenne and the campgrounds in the surrounding area are booked up long in advance.
2Stage 2: Curt Gowdy State Park to Vedauwoo (approx. 40 km)
- The drive
- Continue west on WY-210 through pine forest and across open mountain meadows to I-80 at the Summit, exit 323, the highest point of Interstate 80 at around 2,630 metres (8,640 ft). From there it is a few kilometres east on I-80 to the Vedauwoo exit (exit 329) and along the short access road to the recreation area. Driving time barely an hour. On I-80 the rule already applies here: crosswinds and closures for light, high-profile vehicles, so check the status before joining.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Vedauwoo Recreation Area: towers, bulges and cracks of 1.4-billion-year-old Sherman granite, weathered into woolsack shapes. The Turtle Rock Trail circles the largest rock mass in around 5 kilometres, past beaver ponds and aspens. Climbers know Vedauwoo for its brutal cracks and offwidths – a rope and experience are essential.
- Lincoln Monument at the I-80 Summit Rest Area: a monumental bronze bust of Abraham Lincoln at the highest point of the Interstate, with information panels on the Lincoln Highway, which once ran here.
- Ames Monument near Buford, reached on gravel south of I-80: an 18-metre granite pyramid from 1882 honouring the Ames brothers, who financed the Union Pacific – lonely on the high plain, especially photogenic in the evening.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Vedauwoo Campground (Medicine Bow National Forest): sites among the granite rocks without hookups, vault toilets, seasonal drinking water, fee; plus a separate tents-only area. Bookable via recreation.gov, quickly full at summer weekends. Longer RVs will not fit on every site – check the site length when booking.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In the Pole Mountain area of the Medicine Bow National Forest around Vedauwoo, dispersed camping is allowed only at designated, numbered sites, not anywhere in the forest; the free sites without services lie along the forest roads (such as Vedauwoo Road), cannot be reserved and fill up quickly at weekends. Vehicles and fires must stay close to the site marker; length of stay and fire rules are posted on the information boards and in the current Forest Orders.
- Insider tip for campers
- The rocks store heat, but at 2,500 metres it cools sharply at night even in high summer. In summer, thunderstorms roll over the Laramie Mountains almost every afternoon: climbers and hikers should be off exposed rocks by midday at the latest. Don’t forget the day-use fee for the recreation area.
3Stage 3: Vedauwoo to Snowy Range (Libby Flats) (approx. 105 km)
- The drive
- Down I-80 to Laramie (around 30 kilometres; the descent from the Summit is long and exposed to wind), then west on WY-130 across the Laramie Plains to Centennial at the foot of the Medicine Bow Mountains. From Centennial the road climbs steadily as the Snowy Range Scenic Byway through pine and spruce forest, well built and easily driven in an RV. Driving time around 1.5 hours, half a day with Laramie. There are hardly any services in Centennial – fill up and shop in Laramie.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site in Laramie: an 1872 prison in green surroundings on the Laramie River, where Butch Cassidy served his only prison sentence; cell block, workshops and broom factory. Check seasonal opening hours.
- University of Wyoming in Laramie: the Geological Museum displays a mounted Apatosaurus skeleton and finds from the region’s dinosaur beds; the striking cone-shaped Centennial Complex houses the American Heritage Center, with its archive on the history of the West, and the UW Art Museum.
- Centennial: a tiny mountain village at around 2,470 metres with saloons and the Nici Self Museum in the town’s old railway station; last stop before the climb to the pass.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Along the eastern ascent of WY-130 lie several Forest Service campgrounds without hookups, with vault toilets and seasonal water: Nash Fork and North Fork in the forest, Brooklyn Lake on a mountain lake via a short gravel road, and Sugarloaf at around 3,260 metres (10,700 ft) right below Medicine Bow Peak – one of the highest campgrounds in the region, open only from about July to early October, with narrow loops, small sites and trailers only up to 22 feet (around 6.7 metres). Some sites can be reserved via recreation.gov, the rest are first come, first served. If you need electricity, stay at a private campground in Laramie.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In the Medicine Bow National Forest, dispersed camping is generally allowed for up to 16 days within 30 days, after which you must move at least three miles. It is not allowed in closed areas, within 200 feet (around 60 metres) of roads, trails, picnic areas, water and trailheads, or within a quarter mile of campgrounds. That leaves hardly any room around Lake Marie, Mirror Lake and the other lakes along the pass road – use the campgrounds there and observe the signs. Many forest roads on the eastern ascent (for example towards Brooklyn Lake or Barber Lake) offer legal spots, depending on snow only from July.
- Insider tip for campers
- Altitude is the biggest issue here: from Laramie (around 2,180 metres) to the pass you gain more than 1,100 metres. If you are coming from Europe, spend two nights at moderate altitude before your first night above 3,000 metres, drink plenty and take headaches seriously. Fridges and gas hobs work less well at altitude – keep an eye on an absorption fridge when parked on a slope and in the cold.
4Stage 4: Snowy Range (Libby Flats) to Saratoga (approx. 75 km)
- The drive
- Over Snowy Range Pass at 3,306 metres (10,847 ft) – the highest point of the route – and down the west side in long bends through forest to Ryan Park, then north on WY-130 across the open valley of the North Platte to Saratoga. The section over the pass between the Green Rock Trailhead above Centennial and Ryan Park is closed in winter, usually from November, until WYDOT has cleared the road in spring (often towards the end of May); in early summer and autumn, fresh snow can also close the road at short notice. Status on wyoroad.info. Driving time around 1.5 hours, but better to allow a whole day.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Libby Flats Observation Point: a small natural-stone viewing platform on the summit of the pass with panoramic views across the Medicine Bow Mountains to the mountains of Colorado; alongside, wildflower meadows in July and August.
- Lake Marie and Mirror Lake: two mountain lakes right beside the road, above which rises the quartzite wall of Medicine Bow Peak. From Lake Marie a trail leads to the summit (3,662 metres, 12,013 ft), around 5–6 kilometres one way with more than 500 metres of ascent, or as a longer loop via the Lakes Trail. At Lake Marie a memorial plaque recalls the 1955 crash of an airliner into the mountain wall.
- Saratoga: a small town on the North Platte, a well-known fly-fishing river; in town, the free hot springs and a small museum in the old railway station.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Saratoga Lake Campground: a town-run campground on the lake north of town, basic facilities, some sites with electricity, plus drinking water; fee paid on site; check facilities (including waste disposal) and current conditions with the Town of Saratoga. On the way there, on the west side of the pass, are the Forest Service campgrounds Silver Lake, Ryan Park and Lincoln Park, without hookups.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): South of Saratoga, the small BLM sites Bennett Peak and Corral Creek lie on the North Platte, reached on gravel, very basic and quiet. On the west side of the pass, the National Forest allows dispersed camping along the forest roads under the usual rules. In town itself, sleeping in your vehicle is not permitted.
- Insider tip for campers
- Summer thunderstorms often arrive on the pass as early as midday: if you want to climb Medicine Bow Peak, set off at daybreak and be below the treeline before the first thunder. There is no shelter on the summit ridge. In the morning and at dusk, moose and elk often stand by the road on the west side – drive slowly.
5Stage 5: Saratoga to Encampment (approx. 30 km)
- The drive
- A short stage south on WY-130 and WY-230 through the valley of the North Platte, flat and open, with views of the Sierra Madre to the west and the Snowy Range to the east. Around 25 minutes’ driving leaves time for a long soak in the morning and the afternoon in the museum. Riverside and Encampment are sister towns with a filling station and a small shop.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Saratoga Hobo Hot Springs: free, town-owned thermal pools on the bank of the North Platte, open around the clock; the main pool is very hot, the smaller “Lobster Pot” even hotter. Bathers shower first, and glass and alcohol are off limits; at the river you can alternate between the hot pool and cold water.
- Grand Encampment Museum: an open-air museum with log cabins, a fire station, a school and remains of the roughly 26-kilometre aerial tramway that carried copper ore from the Sierra Madre down to the valley around 1900. Open seasonally; check times in advance.
- Encampment River: south of town the river emerges from a canyon in the Sierra Madre; a trail follows it into the Encampment River Wilderness.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Encampment River Campground (BLM): a basic campground on the riverbank just south of Encampment, with vault toilets and seasonal drinking water, starting point for the riverside trail. Alternatively, the small municipal campground in Encampment, or on WY-70 towards Battle Pass the Forest Service campgrounds Bottle Creek and Lost Creek, without hookups. Check facilities and season in advance with BLM Rawlins and the Brush Creek/Hayden Ranger District.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): West of Encampment, the Sierra Madre section of the Medicine Bow National Forest begins on WY-70; dispersed camping is allowed along forest roads for up to 16 days. Many gravel roads are muddy after rain and unsuitable for heavy RVs.
- Insider tip for campers
- Top up the fresh water and empty the waste tanks in Saratoga and Encampment: a long, lonely stretch follows before Rawlins. The hot springs are quietest early in the morning; bring a towel, flip-flops and a water bottle – hot water and altitude drain a lot of fluid from the body.
6Stage 6: Encampment to Rawlins (approx. 210 km)
- The drive
- West on WY-70, the Battle Highway, over the Sierra Madre: steep sections, tight bends and gradients over Battle Pass at just over 3,000 metres on the Continental Divide, then down to Baggs in the desert steppe of the Little Snake River. WY-70 over the pass between Encampment and Savery is closed in winter, like the Snowy Range. From Baggs, head north on WY-789 through empty sagebrush steppe to Rawlins. Driving time around 3 hours, with hardly any services between Encampment and Baggs. If you want to avoid the pass, drive to Rawlins via Saratoga and I-80.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Battle Pass and Battle Lake Overlook: views across the Sierra Madre and Battle Lake; legend has it that Thomas Edison came up with the idea of the carbon filament while fishing here in 1878 – a nice but unproven story told on a panel at the viewpoint.
- Continental Divide Trail: the long-distance trail crosses WY-70 at the pass; walking a few kilometres along the ridge gives you a sense of the vastness.
- Wyoming Frontier Prison in Rawlins: the state penitentiary opened in 1901 and operated until 1981; tours of the cell blocks, gas chamber and yard. Opening and tour times are seasonal; check the website in advance.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Rawlins has no public campgrounds in town, but there are private campgrounds with full hookups along I-80, such as Western Hills Campground and a KOA. Public alternatives: Seminoe State Park on the reservoir north of Sinclair (around 60 kilometres from Rawlins, some sites without hookups, seasonal drinking water) or the basic BLM site at Teton Reservoir south of town.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Around Rawlins there is plenty of BLM land on which dispersed camping is allowed for up to 14 days. Be aware: along the railway and I-80 lies the so-called checkerboard, an alternation of public and private square miles dating from the Union Pacific land grants. Use a map app that shows ownership boundaries to make sure you are on public land, and never open stock fences.
- Insider tip for campers
- On WY-70, use low gears on the descent; the brakes take a heavy load on the west side. Between Baggs and Rawlins, pronghorn, mule deer and elk often cross the road without warning, especially at dusk. Mobile coverage on WY-70 and WY-789 is patchy.
7Stage 7: Rawlins to Cheyenne (approx. 270 km)
- The drive
- East on I-80 to Walcott Junction, then on US-30/287 to Medicine Bow and on via Rock River and Bosler to Laramie; from there via I-80 and the Summit back to Cheyenne. US-30/287 is two-lane, straight and windy, with views of the Snowy Range to the south; it serves as the detour when I-80 is closed and then carries a lot of truck traffic. Driving time around 3 hours. Filling stations in Rawlins, Medicine Bow and Laramie.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Medicine Bow: a Union Pacific railway stop where Owen Wister set his novel “The Virginian” (1902). The 1911 Virginian Hotel, with its saloon and old furnishings, still stands; opposite is the Medicine Bow Museum in the old depot.
- Como Bluff: east of Medicine Bow on US-30 lies the long ridge where, in the 1870s, dinosaur skeletons such as Allosaurus and Stegosaurus were dug up during the “Bone Wars” between Othniel Marsh and Edward Cope. The area is largely private; the Fossil Cabin, a hut built of dinosaur bones, can only be seen from the road.
- Laramie Plains: lakes such as Lake Hattie and the wildlife refuges south-west of Laramie are stopover sites for waterbirds in spring and autumn; pronghorn are almost always in sight here.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: For the last night, Curt Gowdy State Park is a good choice again (stage 1), or a private campground in Laramie or Cheyenne with full hookups, so you can empty the tanks and clean the vehicle before returning it or travelling on.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Along US-30/287 the land is mostly private; rest areas are for breaks only. For free camping, return to the National Forest areas around Vedauwoo (designated sites only).
- Insider tip for campers
- Before setting off, check on wyoroad.info whether I-80 between Laramie and Rawlins or over the Summit is closed to light, high-profile vehicles – this happens frequently, especially from autumn to spring, and RVs and vehicles with trailers count among them. If you want to keep going: the Oregon Trail through central Wyoming and the Wind River Range to the west are covered in their own CampingSpirit travel guides, and Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park lies around three hours south in the guide “Above the clouds and among the moose”.
Camping practice & local rules
Wild camping & overnight parking
- Wyoming has a lot of public land, but not everywhere: in the Medicine Bow National Forest dispersed camping is allowed for up to 16 days within 30 days (then at least three miles further on), not within 200 feet of roads, trails, picnic areas, trailheads and water, and not within a quarter mile of campgrounds. In the Pole Mountain area around Vedauwoo only at designated sites; at the lakes along the Snowy Range pass road the distance rules leave hardly any room. The current Forest Orders of the ranger districts are what count.
- BLM land: dispersed camping is usually allowed for up to 14 days. Around Rawlins and along I-80, public and private land alternate in a checkerboard pattern; check ownership boundaries with a map app, and respect private access roads and stock gates.
- State parks: Curt Gowdy and Seminoe charge day-use and camping fees, considerably higher for visitors not resident in Wyoming. Reserve through the Wyoming State Parks reservation system; Forest Service campgrounds partly via recreation.gov.
- Towns such as Cheyenne, Laramie and Rawlins do not permit sleeping in vehicles on the street; supermarket and truck stop car parks only with explicit permission. Rest areas on I-80 are for resting, not camping.
- Fire: seasonal fire restrictions are common in summer and also apply to campfires at dispersed sites; check the current status with the Forest Service and BLM in advance. The forests of the Snowy Range contain many trees killed by bark beetles – never park or sleep under dead trunks, as they fall without warning in wind.
- Wildlife: pronghorn, elk, mule deer and moose; black bears in the mountains. Lock food and rubbish inside the vehicle. For national parks on connecting routes, visitors not resident in the US have in some cases faced higher fees and surcharges since 2026 – check current amounts on nps.gov.
- Apps: iOverlander, Campendium, The Dyrt and recreation.gov; for ownership boundaries, a map app with a public-land layer. Park4Night is not widely used here.
Waste disposal & supplies
- Dump stations: at the Southeast Wyoming Welcome Center in Cheyenne, at the Wyoming Territorial Prison in Laramie (seasonal, fee charged), at private campgrounds in Cheyenne, Laramie and Rawlins, and at several truck stops along I-80; ask in advance at Saratoga Lake Campground. Curt Gowdy State Park and the Forest Service campgrounds in Vedauwoo and the Snowy Range have no waste disposal.
- Drinking water: at state park and municipal campgrounds; at Forest Service campgrounds only seasonally and sometimes turned off. Fill up in Laramie before the Snowy Range and in Saratoga or Encampment before the Battle Highway.
- Empty grey water and chemical toilets only at dump stations; dumping in the forest or on BLM land is prohibited.
- Propane: filling stations, hardware stores and truck stops refill US cylinders; European cylinders are generally not refilled. At altitude, gas hobs burn weaker and heaters are harder to start.
- Fuel and shopping: large supermarkets and filling stations in Cheyenne, Laramie and Rawlins; small shops in Centennial, Saratoga, Encampment, Baggs and Medicine Bow. No filling station between Encampment and Baggs.
- Mobile coverage: usually good on I-80 and in towns; in places no signal in Vedauwoo, on Snowy Range Pass and on WY-70.
Vehicle size & traffic rules
- Speed limits: up to 75 mph on I-80, usually 65 mph on two-lane highways such as WY-130 and US-30/287, considerably less on mountain roads and in towns. There are no separate limits for RVs, but drive much slower in crosswinds.
- Wind: on I-80 between Cheyenne, Laramie and Rawlins (especially the Summit, Arlington and Elk Mountain) and on US-30/287, WYDOT regularly closes the road to light, high-profile vehicles in storm-force gusts – RVs, campervans and vehicles with trailers are included. Status on wyoroad.info, via the Wyoming 511 app or by phone on 511. Closures are enforced; detours are often just as windy.
- Winter closures: Snowy Range Pass (WY-130) and Battle Pass (WY-70) are closed in winter, usually from November, until WYDOT has cleared them in spring – depending on snow, into May. Early and late snowfall is possible at any time above 3,000 metres, even in September.
- Thunderstorms: in July and August, storms with lightning, hail and violent gusts build almost daily in the early afternoon. Leave summits and ridges before midday; on the high plains, don’t stand next to metal fences.
- Wildlife crossings: pronghorn, elk, deer and moose cross especially at dusk. Avoid driving on rural roads at night where possible; collisions with elk or moose are serious even for RVs.
- Tolls: there are no toll roads in Wyoming. Texting while driving is prohibited. At Union Pacific level crossings, watch out for freight trains, which are very long.
- Emergency: 911. If you have altitude problems (severe headache, nausea, breathlessness), descend immediately; the nearest clinics are in Laramie, Rawlins and Saratoga.
CampingSpirit packing & preparation checklist
- A weather and road app with alerts (Wyoming 511 and weather radar): wind closures on I-80 and thunderstorms on the pass decide the day’s plan.
- Warm sleeping bags or blankets and a diesel or gas heater with a high-altitude mode: above 3,000 metres it freezes at night even in July.
- High-factor sun protection, sunglasses and lip balm: UV radiation on Snowy Range Pass is intense, and the air extremely dry.
- Flip-flops, a towel and a water bottle for the Hobo Hot Springs in Saratoga.
- Wheel chocks and levelling blocks: the sites in Vedauwoo and the Snowy Range are often sloping and stony.
- A map app with a public-land layer (BLM, National Forest, private): essential in the checkerboard around Rawlins and along US-30/287.
As of 2026-10. Closures, fees and booking rules change: check official sources before you go.
