Hot Springs State Park

Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis offers the world's largest mineral hot spring, which discharges over 3 million gallons of mineral water every day at a constant temperature of 135° F. The water is channeled into cooling pools and then piped into pools at 104° F for public use. One of the uses is the State Bath House, a hot mineral pool for soaking free of charge.

From another stream the water flows over the Rainbow Terrace into the Bighorn River. This colorful cliff of travertine can be seen by crossing a suspension footbridge across the Bighorn River, known as the Swinging Bridge.

Another point of interest is the Teepee Fountain. This structure was created in 1903 by piping the hot mineral water through a vertical pipe built into a rock pyramid. As the water cools travertine is deposited on the existing surface building over time to around 25 ft high and 25 ft in diameter.

The park is large, grassy, and shady. It is much more like a City Park than what one would associate with a State Park. And best of all, the park is free.

Castle Gardens

One of my favorite places in Wyoming, and one of my fondest memories is Castle Gardens. There are actually 2 Castle Gardens in Wyoming. This is the southern location near the center of the state. The landscape is beautiful with cliffs and hills that form a small valley of rock outcrops and boulders in colorful soil dotted with juniper and pine trees. Some impressive petroglyphs are located along the cliffs. The area is remote enough that it doesn't receive much visitation, which makes it a perfect destination. There is no official camping; however, the site is on BLM land, so camping is allowed just about anywhere. When I visited, we camped in the parking area.

Hell's Half Acre

As you drive along the plains west from Casper along US-20/26 you will encounter a sign for Hell’s Half Acre. If you are not paying attention you will drive right by this large 150 ft deep badlands canyon of colorful eroded rock formations. The canyon is quite unexpected and looks like something you would find in Utah rather than Wyoming. This is actually one of several badlands areas in the state, but is probably the most intricate and striking. The canyon can be viewed just off the road or you can walk around the area for a more complete viewing. There is no access to the bottom of the canyon, and access is not permitted.