I’ve been to Wyoming many times to backpack, visit national parks, whitewater raft and just explore. It’s a great state if you like the outdoors. Most people have heard of Yellowstone and the Big Horn Mountains, or the towns of Cody and Cheyenne. And many know that the Tetons and Jackson Hole bring a lot of people to the state for their spectacular views and outdoor sports opportunities.
Many families have spent one long summer vacation driving through Yellowstone, visiting its fantastic geysers, pools, mud pots, buffalo herds and other natural attractions. The few times I have been there lead me to believe that half of America makes Yellowstone their annual destination, and there are a lot of reasons to visit this gem of the national park system.
I prefer a less crowded adventure into the wilderness and often pick places that require a tent and my own food supply. Southeast of Yellowstone is the Wind River Range - a mountain range unlike any other in the 50 states and perhaps anywhere in the world. This range is more isolated than Yellowstone but it too can be crowded during the summer months. For many Wyoming visitors these mountains simply announce that you are now in the mountains and have a few hours before you will see the Tetons, Yellowstone and more than a few travel trailers.
The Winds, as they are known locally, are a range of mountains popular with trout fishermen and backpackers because of the beautiful and unique camping and hiking sites and the many high mountain lakes that are home for Golden Trout.
These trout have an interesting history in that, despite being native to California and Nevada, the species are plentiful throughout the high mountain lakes and streams of Wyoming. But how is it that these non-native fish are found throughout the mountains of west central Wyoming you might ask.
Well, they were transplanted from California and deposited in the Wind River and other mountain ranges back in the 1940’s. The small fingerlings were packed by man and mule in “fish cans”, and sometimes milk cans, to any and all mountain lakes that might be frozen eight or nine months out of the year. The transplants did well and, despite the long winters, the Golden Trout have thrived. The last two record Golden Trout have been caught in the Wind River Range.
The Winds are so popular with backpackers and fly fishermen that it can be difficult to find a remote, empty camp during summer months. The tourists in the Winds are all on foot and that provides a major upgrade from Yellowstone in my opinion.
The Winds have also been popular for decades as a training ground for National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) week- and month-long backpacking courses. Fishing guides and adventurers alike spend much of the summer crossing the mountain range with its granite peaks, hundreds of high mountain lakes and streams and beautiful vistas. Summiting Square Top Mt. is a bucket list item for me as it is for most Winds packers.
Sandwiched between Yellowstone and the Winds is a relatively unheralded, yet expansive mountain range called the Absaroka Mountains. The Absaroka Mountains (pronounced Ab-zor-kuhs, although there are several variations) attract few backpackers but should be a destination for any serious outdoor enthusiast looking for scenic solitude, abundant wildlife and great fly fishing.
Campsites in the Absarokas look like the backdrops for any John Ford western. You get all the scenic beauty, fishing and adventure without the crowds. There are risks associated with this adventure spot, but I will get to that later.
I spent three weeks in the Absarokas this past June and if you are looking for campsites with spectacular views of the Tetons and opportunities to see grizzly and black bear, elk herds, moose and even wolves, this is your spot. Wild rivers and canyons as well as accessible peaks and high mountain lakes are available to anyone willing to put in a little effort. My group camped in several sites that offered sunsets views of the Tetons.
This mountain range is so wild that on any given day we saw bear and wolf track and scat. The tracks were often very fresh and so plentiful you would have thought we had arrived late to a wildlife party. Off trail we found herds of deer and elk and some indian artifacts. Many times we were on ridges and peaks able to view herds from above, watching them graze and play.
River crossings are manageable in June even when the South Fork of the Buffalo is running at a high volume. We were occasionally forced to find passable crossings upstream or downstream when the trail crossing locations were too deep. Off-trail hiking was pretty easy along the rivers due to abundant animal trails. We discovered several spike camps and were able to relocate the trail easily. Downed trees were obstacles regardless of being off-trail or on-trail, but we were very lucky with the weather. It rained maybe three of the days we were on our course, not typical of June in Wyoming.
The Absarokas are a destination for not only adventurous backpackers but also bears, which brings me to the additional risk I mentioned earlier. The range has been used periodically to relocate troublesome bears from the Winds and Yellowstone. This means there is a higher density of bears in the Absarokas and the ratio of bears to people is exponentially higher.
The abundance of bear and wolf in this range is to be expected. Fewer people visit the Absarokas, and wildlife tend to migrate toward isolated wilderness areas. Wildlife living in Yellowstone, on the other hand, doesn’t act very wild. Relatively “tame” behavior has caused its own dangers for visitors who mistakenly believe it is OK to approach them. This is not the case in the Absarokas; you must practice bear safety protocol while backpacking.
The Absarokas are a level 1 wilderness area and like Alaska, traveling here requires that everyone carry bear spray at all times. Getting a little bear awareness and deterrence training is a good idea as well. It is advised that hikers stay in groups of three no matter the activity - getting water from a stream, going to your tent, taking a bathroom break. The larger the group, the more convincing you are as a larger than bear-sized animal. This deters the bears from approaching - hopefully.
As I mentioned, we saw fresh bear (grizzly and black bear) prints and scat every day. Some days we saw so much scat and prints that we were concerned we were in one of their favorite locations. Fresh scat is a cross between giant black slugs that have been camouflaged with green June bug wings. The iridescent metallic green blends with the nearly pure black in a way that is fascinating, gross and a little terrifying.
Despite fresh evidence, our bear deterrence habits must have been effective because our group saw bears on only one occasion. My small group of college-aged course mates took very seriously their bear protocol, especially their bear calls.
A bear call is not really a call FOR a bear. Unlike a turkey call, you don’t want them to come to you but rather to leave the immediate area. The yelling was our way of announcing we were there and you, bear, should leave. This is really pretty funny given that humans are not a physical match for bears. But the bears only know that something loud is approaching and that must be enough for them to leave.
The first lesson in bear calls is that the call should never include the word “bear”. For instance, you don’t want to be 100 yards up the trail yelling, “Hey Bear!!” That just sounds like you have seen a bear and are in distress. That would be alarming to your fellow hikers. So, instead, you yell something else. And that something else doesn’t really matter unless you pick a yell that sounds like a wounded baby rabbit. As you can imagine, not good.
Everyone has their own bear call and frankly that is a fun creative exercise. Everyone has to come up with their own call as soon as they hit the trail. Once people know your bear call, they can identify you from up to a quarter mile away. When I heard my friend Brian or Jack giving their bear call, I could tell where they were and perhaps yell back. We could locate each other for a break from hiking or to find a campsite.
The yells were so often and loud that I was surprised we didn't received complaints from surrounding counties for our noise making. And I wasn’t surprised that we rarely saw wildlife.
Some yells are simple, like “Orso” - it not only means bear but is easy to say in a loud voice. “Hey, Yo!” was another, and there were song verses some people sang. “Hello” and other friendly sounding human noises are also popular. It wasn’t strange to be telling someone a story about your kids or how you met your girlfriend when that person would yell out “Orsoooooo!” and you would take a break from your story and then continue. This could happen 5 times during your story. Not something that happens at a BBQ or while you are walking your dog, but perfectly acceptable and appreciated in the wilderness.
The Absarokas are a fun wilderness adventure and not too dangerous if you take the proper precautions. Some of us took longer than others to get comfortable with the proximity to wildlife, but eventually everyone relaxed, trusted that we could rely on each other and had a great time. I think that in some ways, the knowledge that we were sharing the outdoors with wildlife made the trip that much more meaningful and allowed us to create closer bonds.
If you have been to Yellowstone and are looking for a new adventure with your now older kids or new college friends, I would recommend the Winds or the Absarokas as a wilderness alternative and a way to expand your comfort zone. Take the time to plan and learn about hiking and backpacking in the wilderness. Seek out someone with experience traveling in bear country. Bring your fly rod and plan to have a great time in a truly wild area.
You don’t have to travel to Alaska or Canada to find adventure. It might be as close as a couple of states away.