About Vedauwoo, Wyoming

Vedauwoo #4. Wyoming, 2013

If you ever find yourself traveling between Cheyenne and Laramie on I-80 in that big, wide, wonderful State of Wyoming, take the time to pull over and explore the little collection of Sherman Granite boulder piles in Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest that is Vedauwoo–or as the locals say it “Vee-dah-voo” (Use exit 329).

There is a fee for entering the main picnic area and for camping, but you can also dine and camp for free in the adjacent National Forest along the sytem of dirt roads in the area. Warning: Summer weekends can be crowded with folks from Cheyenne and Laramie.

Here is why you should make a stop there–and I’ll address just two key audiences: serious rock jocks, and kids with a spirit of adventure.

1) Rock climbers – Great crack climbing. Practice your off-width technique before you go, wear sturdy clothes, and tape your hands (the rough Vedauwoo granite is brutal on the skin). You won’t find climbs like these in your local rock gym! For more specific info, try THIS PAGE at Mountain Project.

2) Little kids with a spirit of adventure (or any adults with the same fresh attitude) – Get ready to explore myriad cracks, crannies, holes, caves, drop-offs, and spectacular windy heights. It is a natural playground for the seriously amateur rock scrambler, aged 3 to 90. You’ll be constantly pulled around the next corner by the magical mystery of the place. Be careful, though, as it is always easier to go up than down!

For those not technically equipped, what follows is an interesting hike/scramble I’d highly recommend if you are in reasonably good physical shape and you have, say, 2-4 hours to spare. No ropes are required, but your route-finding imagination will be tested…and a few butt-pushes, tunnel squeezes, and hand-ups may be needed.

The Vedauwoo Scramble (2-4 hours, May-Oct)

Vedauwoo #10. Vedauwoo, Wyoming, 2013

Starting from the main camping/picnicking sites in the center of the area, head northwest-ish over to the Box Canyon Trail. Follow this trail until you cross a sturdy foot bridge over the small drainage. Just across the bridge, you’ll need to leave the trail and start climbing directly up the steep slope of rock and trees to the southwest. (If you have some time, though, keep following the Box Canyon Trail as it winds up the rock slabs for the next 1/2 mile–you’ll see remnants of carved footholds and steel handrails as you climb up a cool trail to a wonderful viewpoint toward the northwest. Then, come back down to the bridge to start The Scramble).

Once at the foot bridge start up the steep slope and slabs to the southwest as best you can–you may see signs that other humans have passed this way–until you reach the flattop summit of what the climbers call the Fall Wall. This summit is worth exploring–all kinds of weird boulders, caves, potholes often full of rain water, and gorgeous views out to 50+ miles in any direction (pictured above).

Summit Blocks above Fall Wall, Vedauwoo, Wyoming, 2013

After a rest and a full exploration of the spacious summit of the Fall Wall, it is time to start the crux of the adventure–the descent. Work your way to the southwest across the flat summit to a sort of “boulder-filled gully” that continues steeply down to the southwest. It is filled with truly giant boulders and may look nearly unpassable–but don’t get your knickers in a bunch, it isn’t. At the start of this descent gully, you’ll be next to a steep wall to the north with some good looking, if short, technical climbs (pictured above).

Start working your way down this “southwest gully” aiming, you guessed it, somewhat southwesterly. You’ll find yourself alternately climbing, crawling, caving, hopping and hoping, and retracing your steps to find a better route. In the end, though, you’ll be able to make it down to level ground and the relative ease of the southwest portion of the Turtle Rock Trail. This will lead you back east to your camp or picnic site, scraped knees and all.

A nice alternative would be to do what I described above in reverse until you descend into Box Canyon. Then pick up the Box Canyon Trail up through the carved footholds and steel rails, past the viewpoint and down to the west until you pick up the Turtle Rock Trail. Follow the Turtle Rock Trail around to the north, then east, then south back to the campground. This option may take a bit longer.

Big Bertha Boulder. Vedauwoo, Wyoming, 2013

Whatever you decide to do in Vedauwoo, you can’t really go wrong. It’s the perfect playground for the kid in all of us.

Oh, and the photography? It’s hard to go wrong with that at Vedauwoo either. Just try not to drop your gear down a cliff.