Guernsey State Park, WY
As we drove south from Custer, SD, the landscape changed from forested hills to grasslands with very little of anything else, including other cars. It was just prairies, occasional hills or creek with some trees otherwise nothing. As we got closer to Guernsey, the hills became higher with sage brush and small trees. There were signs of recent wildfires, quite extensive in some areas. Guernsey State Park is located around Guernsey Reservoir, created by damming North Platte River. It’s hilly with campgrounds spread along the jagged shoreline.
We settled into our campsite, not great site, just gravel but with so many weeds in the back and growing through the site. We were up on a hill, close to the camp road and very active railroad. It was a surprising how many trains passed by, during the day and at night as well. Anthony locked out, his site was in a different loop and more sheltered from the noise.
We talked to our neighbors, Trace and Jolie, who told us that these trains bring coal from Gillette WY for transport to the east. Gillette is the heart of Powder River Basin, the largest coal producing region in the country (who knew?!). But coal production is slowing down, not great news for a town that is build around its transport.
We visited Fort Laramie National Historic Site . It is placed where Laramie and North Platte Rivers come together and was a major stop on the Oregon, California, Mormon and Pony Express trails. Some of the buildings are well preserved, but the fort was decommissioned in 1890, the property was auctioned off.
We visited Guernsey Ruts , west of Fort Laramie, the geography of the area forced all wagons to move across the soft limestone hills. It was interesting walking on them, some ruts were over 2 feet deep.
The next site was Register Cliff Historic Site , west of Fort Laramie and important landmark on Oregon/California and Mormon trails. Many travelers inscribed their names on these vertical cliffs, the section with historically verified inscriptions is fenced off.
It was interesting exploring this chapter of history, learning about different trails heading west and the impact it had on the land and native population. I admire the spirit of these early pioneers, looking at the landscape of the prairies, it must have been a difficult journey.
To be blunt, I did not enjoy Guernsey SP, the campground was unkempt and the trains were a noisy distraction. We met some nice folks though and learned about various west-bound trails so not all was lost. And I did spectacular sunsets.
We will be leaving Wyoming tomorrow and going to Colorado, just north of Denver leaving the prairies behind.