Hi there!
So you want to go see the best of Wyoming!
Wyoming is an amazing place with amazing sights to see! Most importantly, there are national parks and national forests that you must consider when you visit Wyoming!
Best places to visit in Wyoming
I was in Wyoming in September and October 2021. Your experience may vary!
1. Yellowstone National Park
Wyoming is home to a supervolcano: the Yellowstone supervolcano.
As a result there are a ton of thermal features to explore in Yellowstone National Park, the majority of which is located in Wyoming. (There is a small part in Montana and Idaho.)
Thermal features are things like the geysers, hot springs, bubbling mudpots, and steam vents (aka fumaroles).
Yellowstone National Park is the most popular national park in Wyoming.
👆 Wyoming is special because of all the thermal features you can see in Yellowstone National Park, including colorful hot springs!
👆 Wyoming is special because of all the thermal features you can see in Yellowstone National Park, including pink bubbling mud pots!
I saw some small geysers erupting, including the Clepsydra Geyser and Jewel Geyser.
And as it goes in Yellowstone, your timing will be off and you will likely pass by a bunch of geysers and maybe even wait around hoping that they will erupt when you’re there… and they don’t erupt. 😜
The most famous geyser eruption in Wyoming is the Old Faithful geyser of Yellowstone.
👆 Wyoming is special because of all the thermal features you can see in Yellowstone National Park, including watching geysers erupt!
You have a very good chance of seeing the Old Faithful geyser erupt because its eruptions are predictable and the National Park Service will even tell you when the next geyser eruption is predicted. It usually erupts every 1.5 hours or so.
You might even have a chance to see buffalo in Wyoming when you go to Yellowstone. (Or the “official” name for buffalo is bison.)
I still did see buffalo several times in different areas of the park, including right in front of an erupting geyser!
See more for planning your Wyoming visit:
- Must-see things to do in Yellowstone National Park
- How to spend one day in Yellowstone National Park
My drive to Wyoming started in September from the east (Michigan) through Chicago and onwards to South Dakota and then to Wyoming. After Wyoming, it was to Idaho before looping back through Wyoming and back east.
Depending on where you’re coming from, here’s more for your Wyoming road trip and beyond:
- Chicago to Wyoming
- Badlands National Park to Wyoming
- Mount Rushmore to Wyoming
- Wyoming to Craters of the Moon National Monument
- Things to do in Craters of the Moon National Monument
2. Grand Teton National Park
Wyoming is home to tons of mountain ranges.
As a result there are a ton of mountains to explore in Wyoming.
The most famous mountain range in Wyoming that’s in a national park is the Teton Range.
Grand Teton National Park is the other national park in Wyoming.
If you’re short on time, even a drive through the park can be worth it to drive through Grand Teton National Park.
The best road to drive if you are truly short on time is Teton Park Road.
👆 Wyoming is special because of the amazing Wyoming scenic drives, including the Grand Teton Scenic Loop Drive in Grand Teton National Park!
Along the way you will also pass by the turn-off for Jenny Lake Scenic Drive.
👆 Wyoming is special because of the amazing Wyoming mountain views, including the Jenny Lake Overlook Grand Teton National Park!
If you have more time, then you will want to do the whole 42-mile Grand Teton Scenic Loop Drive. (Teton Park Road is a part of it.)
Grand Teton National Park is where you will find some of the best hikes in Wyoming.
So if you have even more time… or instead of the rest of the scenic loop… you can do a short hike with mountain views! (For example, hike to Taggart Lake from the Taggart Lake trailhead.)
👆 Wyoming is special because of the hikes you can do with amazing Wyoming mountain views, including the Taggart Lake hike in Grand Teton National Park!
Or, you can do a longer mountain hike with amazing views.
From the Lupine Meadows trailhead, you can hike to Delta Lake, Surprise Lake, and Amphitheater Lake for a solid day hike of something like a 12 mile round trip hike.
👆 Wyoming is special because of the hikes you can do with amazing mountain views, including the Delta Lake Trail in Grand Teton National Park!
👆 Wyoming is special because of the hikes you can do with amazing mountain views, including the hike to Surprise Lake in Grand Teton National Park!
👆 Wyoming is special because of the hikes you can do with amazing mountain views, including the hike to Amphitheater Lake in Grand Teton National Park!
See more about planning your Wyoming visit:
- Best things to do in Grand Teton National Park
- Driving through Grand Teton National Park
- How to spend one day in Grand Teton National Park
- Driving from Grand Teton to Yellowstone
- Best hikes in Wyoming
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Amazing Yellowstone experiences you need to consider:
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3. Devils Tower National Monument
Devils Tower is known for its iconic rock formation.
If you only want to dedicate 1-2 hours to Devils Tower, that’s completely reasonable.
There are some quick things to do at Devils Tower.
There is also the Devils Tower campground if you want to spend an overnight here.
And if you are here at night, you might see some rock climbers lighting up Devils Tower!
See more about planning your Wyoming visit:
4. Bighorn National Forest
Driving directions: Buffalo WY to Tensleep WY
To experience more of Wyoming mountains, you can visit one of Wyoming’s many national forests.
If you’re driving from Devils Tower to Yellowstone, the Cloud Peak Skyway is said to be the scenic route, and it’s also said to be the route with the least grade.
The Cloud Peak Skyway is a drive from Buffalo WY to Tensleep WY, and it will take you through Bighorn National Forest.
The highest point you will get by driving the Cloud Peak Skyway is 9,666 feet as you are driving the Powder River Pass.
Driving from Buffalo to Tensleep without stops will take you less than 1.5 hours.
You can also take it even more slowly along the Cloud Peak Skyway by spending the night in Bighorn National Forest if you can manage to book a Wyoming national forest cabin!
If you’re up for a solid day hike in Wyoming, the road to the West Tensleep trailhead is off of the Cloud Peak Skyway.
👆 Wyoming is special because of the hikes you can do with amazing mountain views, including the Lost Twin Lakes Trail in a Wyoming national forest!
5. Medicine Bow National Forest
Once again, it’s the mountains that make Wyoming special, and there are many national forests in Wyoming for you to see the amazing mountains of Wyoming!
Another national forest in Wyoming is Medicine Bow National Forest. (The Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests are located in Wyoming and Colorado.)
If you are driving the southern side of Wyoming, then you can drive the Snowy Range Scenic Byway from Saratoga to Laramie along WY-130.
The Snowy Range Scenic Byway is one of the many scenic byways in Wyoming.
You’ll be driving at high altitude!
The drive peaks at over 10,000 feet.
You can also make a stop along the Snowy Range Scenic Byway for a high altitude hike in Wyoming to over 12,000 feet.
Or if you’d rather not put out so much effort, then there are a number of mountain lakes that you can make easy stops at too.
See more about planning your Wyoming visit:
6. Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway
Another one of the scenic byways in Wyoming is the Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway.
Yes, this is a scenic drive along a river through a canyon!
You can make it a drive along the Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway if you will be driving from Devils Tower to Grand Teton National Park.
7. Shoshone National Forest
More mountains in Wyoming in a national forest!
Once again if you are driving from Devils Tower to Grand Teton National Park, then you can make it drive through Shoshone National Forest.
And if you’d like to make a stop, then you might be interested in driving to Brooks Lake!
Aside from seeing Brooks Lake, which you can drive right up to (there is also a small campground along the lake), you can also hike in Shoshone National Forest to Jade Lake.
The Jade Lakes Trail goes to 2 lakes. Going to both of them is around a 5.5 mile hike. You might want to give yourself around 3 hours for the hike.
8. Bridger-Teton National Forest
And then Bridger-Teton National Forest and Shoshone National Forest connect, so you can drive through yet another Wyoming national forest!
If you are driving from east to west, you can drive with distant views of the Teton mountain range for your first glimpse of the Tetons!
And those are some of the best places to visit in Wyoming!
Sound good?!
If these are your kind of places, then next, see about ideas for planning your Wyoming road trip route!
What makes Wyoming special?
Wyoming is most famous for its national parks.
Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park are things that definitely make Wyoming special!
Wyoming is pretty to drive through, too!
The prettiest places in Wyoming include Grand Teton National Park, Bighorn National Forest, and Medicine Bow National Forest!
Grand Teton National Park is the prettiest drive in Wyoming, and there are many more scenic drives in Wyoming including the Snowy Range Scenic Byway and Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway.
And, there are only a few states in the US where you can see buffalo roaming, and Wyoming is one of them! (Where else in the world can you see buffalo walking in front of steaming thermal activity?!)
👆 One of the best places to visit in the United States to see buffalo is Wyoming!
You can even stay at a national forest cabin in Wyoming!
Yes, you need to visit Wyoming!
For more of the best places to visit in Wyoming, you can also get the official Wyoming travel magazine mailed to you by the state of Wyoming tourism people!
1. Geysers and hot springs (thermal activity in Wyoming!)
👆 Wyoming is special because you can see so many thermal features like geyser eruptions.
👆 Wyoming is special because you can see so many thermal features like colorful hot springs.
2. Mountains
👆 Wyoming is special because there are many roads where you can see amazing mountain views while you’re driving.
👆 You can go hiking in Wyoming to mountain lakes!
3. Buffalo!
👆 Wyoming is special because it’s one of the few states in the US where you can see buffalo roaming.
Download offline maps before you go!
It’s quite possible that you will have minimal data in some places as you are driving through Wyoming.
It will be best to download offline google maps before you go!
If you’ll be doing some day hikes in Wyoming, see the best apps for hiking in Wyoming!
Driving to Wyoming from South Dakota
If you will be starting your drive to Wyoming from further east, then be sure to see the best places to visit in South Dakota and South Dakota campgrounds.
More for driving from South Dakota to Wyoming:
- Mount Rushmore to Wyoming
- Black Hills to Wyoming
- Badlands National Park to Wyoming
- Chicago to Wyoming
Wyoming road trip route
How to put this all together?!
Here is how I did the Wyoming road trip route:
- South Dakota to Wyoming (Best places to visit in South Dakota)
- Devils Tower National Monument
- Devils Tower to Buffalo WY
- Bighorn National Forest (Cloud Peak Skyway: Buffalo to Tensleep WY)
- Tensleep WY to Moran WY (driving through Shoshone National Forest and Bridger-Teton National Forest)
- Grand Teton National Park
- Grand Teton to Yellowstone
- Yellowstone National Park
- Wyoming to Idaho (Yellowstone to Craters of the Moon)
- Craters of the Moon National Monument
- Idaho to Wyoming (Craters of the Moon to Fossil Butte)
- Fossil Butte National Monument
- Medicine Bow National Forest (Snowy Range Scenic Byway: Saratoga to Laramie WY)
- Laramie to Cheyenne WY
- Wyoming to Nebraska (Cheyenne WY to Toadstool Geologic Park in Ogala National Grassland aka Nebraska badlands!)
HAPPY DRIVING AROUND WYOMING!