By Irene Middleman Thomas
Special to The Denver Post
If you were around in the ‘70s and ‘80s, you can now forget what you heard about Rock Springs and Green River, Wyo. They no longer deserve the notoriety of Wild West oil boom “Sin City” towns with more prostitutes than New York’s Lexington Avenue, and more bars than Las Vegas.
Recently, while visiting both cities in Wyoming’s largest county, Sweetwater, I was pleasantly astonished to find swanky bistros with yes, even vegan offerings. At Sidekicks, a poshy coffee/wine bar bookshop, well-dressed women gathered to sip on pinot noirs while discussing the latest bestsellers.
This enormous region, in the southwest corner of the state, boasts much of the same spectacular red rock ridges and towering formations that draw throngs in neighboring Utah’s national parks, but without the daunting crowds or entrance fees. Frankly, this might just be the most under-discovered and underrated place in Wyoming.
Sweetwater County is home to dormant volcanoes, more than 1,000 horses in the Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop, a huge migrating herd of pronghorn, the white Killpecker Sand Dunes (you can surf the dunes on a sandboard or sled), the spectacular 91-mile “Flaming Gorge,” the centuries-old White Mountain petroglyphs and countless historical spots at which visitors can explore pioneer heritage. A don’t-miss is the Red Desert, the biggest unfenced desert landscape in the Lower 48 states, containing nine Wilderness Study Areas. Oh, and of course, there is an action-packed rodeo events center as well!
A big surprise for me was the amount of culture in the area, including the Community Fine Arts Center in Rock Springs. The center, with no admission fee, has a permanent collection of more than 500 original pieces, and is just possibly worth a trip to Rock Springs in itself! Such renowned artists as Rufino Tamayo, Norman Rockwell, Grandma Moses and Raphael Soyer have works displayed here in a delightful eclectic, rather mishmash way. Perhaps the most fascinating pieces, albeit disturbing, are enormous wall murals depicting the tragic history of the Rock Springs Massacre of 1885, in which 28 Chinese miners were murdered and countless others were attacked.
Both towns host free historical museums, with excellent exhibits and docents who are so knowledgeable about the area that it can be a bit mind-blowing. They will tell you more than you can imagine about the good and bad heritage of the Union Pacific Railroad and coal mining era, as well as the region’s ethnic mix (some 56 nationalities settled here, and celebrate that diversity every July on International Day). Today’s mining is mostly for the mineral trona — I admit, I had never heard of trona either. It is a sodium carbonate compound that is processed into soda ash or bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). Wyoming has the world’s largest deposit of trona, the state’s top export.
The coup de grace in Sweetwater County is, without a doubt, the Flaming Gorge — Green River Basin Scenic Byway. This site is a must-do-and-see — a gorgeous expanse of 91 miles of deep blue reservoir, banked by towering red and orange striated cliffs. The newest national Scenic Byway, it is also one of only 37 “All-American Roads,” a term given by the Federal Highway Administration to roads and highways which are considered destinations unto themselves, a subgroup of the 150 Scenic Byways.
Folks can drive the Byway themselves, or opt, as we did, for the $68-per-person, all-day guided Flaming Gorge Bus Tour (June to September, 307-382-2538, [email protected]). The trip includes a rather upscale lunch, snacks (locally made “dang-good” Cowboy doughnut and more) and eight leisurely stops, along with plenty of narration and Q&A time. Incredible views of the Flaming Gorge Dam are still fascinating me, weeks after my visit. The Scenic Overlook at the Red Canyon Visitor Center was the highlight, with sweeping red, russet, orange, pink and cream-colored cliffs as far as I could see, dotted with bright green vegetation. I wished I was a watercolorist who could capture the breathtaking beauty.
Outdoorsy folks can opt for rafting, kayaking, boating and paddleboarding in Lake Flaming Gorge, while hiking, camping and fishing is also a win here. Indeed, fishing is renowned here for the extraordinary trout, kokanee and smallmouth bass. Wildlife is abundant in the area, with one of the largest herds of pronghorn in the state, deer, bighorn sheep, elk and birds of prey such as falcons, eagles and owls. During my visit, I was stunned by the sight of a hawk flying overhead with a snake hanging from its mouth, wriggling desperately.
The sandstone and shale rock formations carve landscapes seen nowhere else. Check out the 400-foot Boar’s Tusk, the aptly-named Camel Rock or 7,949-foot Pilot Butte, used as a navigational landmark by Native Americans, as well as many others.
Rock Springs is about a five-hour drive from Denver, or about a 40-minute flight on United. The tiny airport boasts one of the cutest selfie stations around — where I sidled up to the faux Western bar to have my photo taken beside life-sized cardboard figures of Robert LeRoy Parker, better known as “Butch Cassidy” and his outlaw buddies. Allegedly, the notorious “Butch” was a true butcher in Rock Springs before he launched his more “lucrative” career.
The former “Sin Cities” were certainly deserving of their notoriety. In 1921, Rock Springs made national headlines as the “wettest spot in the western United States,” after so much bootleg whiskey was seized by authorities that a special baggage car was required to move it. Today, Rock Springs and Green River offer the cultural, gastronomic and historic complement to a wealth of outdoor recreation. Sweetwater County, in my mind, might be better named “Surprise County.”
IF YOU GO
Where to eat:
Bitter Creek Brewing: brewpub with tasty casual fare. 604 Broadway, Rock Springs
Eve’s: fine dining with classy ambience. 1501 Clubhouse Drive, Rock Springs
Boar’s Tusk Steakhouse: enormous steaks and a lavish salad bar. 404 N St., Rock Springs
Where to stay:
Hampton Inn: well-maintained, better-than-average breakfast buffet, well-situated with easy access to the highway. 1901 Dewar Drive, Rock Springs
For more information, visit TravelWyoming.com or call 800-225-5996.
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