National Lands: Wyoming

Yellowstone (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Wyoming is home to two national parks. Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park are located next to each other in the northwest corner of the state. The closest interstates to the parks are not in Wyoming. Interstate 90 travels through Montana to the north of the parks. To the west is Interstate 15 that runs through Montana and Idaho. In Wyoming Interstate 25 is located to the east of the parks and Interstate 80 to the south. No interstate will take travelers directly to Yellowstone and Grand Teton.

Yellowstone National Park is famous for its geysers, but it has a variety of attractions. Areas such as Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone Lake, and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone are just a few of the reasons why this area was made the first national park. So many activities are available in Yellowstone that visitors could spend weeks here. Backpacking, boating, hiking, horseback riding, skiing, camping and wildlife viewing are just a few of the many activities travelers can enjoy.

A quick trip south on the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Highway will take travelers to Grand Teton National Park. This impressive set of mountains does not have foothills. The view is breathtaking. Activities here include hiking, boating, skiing, camping and fishing. South of the park is Jackson Hole, which is an interesting town to visit.

English: Grand Tetons Barns The John Moulton Barn at the base of the Tetons. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Four National Trails run through Wyoming. Auto Tour Route driving instructions are available on the National Park Service website. The California National Scenic Trail travels through ten states and is close to Interstate 80. The trail is in the southern half of the state. The Mormon Pioneer trail is also in the southern half of the state and travels through five states. Covering seven states, the famous Oregon Trail travels near the Mormon Pioneer in the southern part of the state. The last trail is also famous. The Pony Express Trail covers eight states and provided the route for a ten-day trip to deliver mail. It is in the same area as the Mormon Pioneer and the Oregon.

Devil's Tower National Monument is known to many as one of the settings for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The park, whose main attraction is the climbing of the tower is located in the northeastern corner of the state near Interstate 90. Fossil Butte National Monument is in the southwestern corner of the state north of Interstate 80 and near the Idaho border. Activities center around the fossils.

Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area has 120,000 acres of activities which include fishing, hiking and boating. This area extends north into Montana and is to the west of Interstate 90. Finally, Fort Laramie National Historic Site is in the southeastern corner of the state. This military post is located east of Interstate 25 and west of the Nebraska line.

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