Visit Cheyenne, Wyoming and Terry Bison Ranch

If the word, "Cheyenne," makes you think - "frontier, wild west, Indians, ten-gallon hats and cowboy boots, rodeos and herds of buffalo" - you’d be right on target. The wonderful flavor of the west surrounds you in this warm and friendly town.

Although Cheyenne is the largest city and the state capitol of Wyoming, the population is only around 55,000. This means you get the best of both worlds - small town perks, like ample, free parking, and light traffic, along with bigger city amenities, like lots to see and do.

Be sure and notice numerous eight-foot cowboy boots on display around town. Each is a colorful, unique work of individual artists, and in some way captures the flavor of Cheyenne, right down to the metal spurs at the heel.

HISTORY
Cheyenne’s slogan is "Live the Legend." The legend of the town began in 1867 when the Union Pacific Railroad came through on its way west. After construction of the railway began, people poured into the area. Because the town appeared to spring up like magic, it was known as "The Magic City of the Plains."

In 1885, Cheyenne was a major national source for beef, and considered the richest city in the world per capita at the time. Today, the cattle and sheep industry are still strong, and the state produces 24% of the nation’s coal products. Consequently, the railroad is still a thriving business, with as many as 70 trains passing through Cheyenne per day.

In 1886, Union Pacific built what was considered the most beautiful railroad depot in the west. The red-stone building has been restored, and is open to the public with a visitor center and museum.

Historically noteworthy are the many "female firsts" in a state known as the "Equality State." In 1869, the governor signed into law the first bill in the world that granted women the right to vote. The next year, Wyoming appointed the first woman justice of the peace, Esther Morris, whose statue stands in front of the State Capitol. In 1924, Cheyenne was home to the first elected woman governor to take office in the United States.

LODGING OPPORTUNITIES
The Terry Bison Ranch and RV Park, sits beside I-25, take exit 2, seven miles south of Cheyenne, (307-634-4171 or www.terrybisonranch.com). It is interesting to note that this working ranch is part of a vast acreage once owned by cattle baron, Francis E. Warren, who was Governor and then a Senator of Wyoming. President Roosevelt stayed at the ranch in 1903 and 1910, and you can stay there too.

The ranch covers 27,500 acres, and offers visitors horseback and pony riding, a motorized Bison Tour, fishing in their private stocked lake, train rides, a restaurant on site (May 1-Sept. 30), and even Cowboy church on Sunday, and room service food delivery from the restaurant to your lodging.

There are 86 full hookup pull-through sites, with 50, 30, and 20 amp service, as well as tent availability. Sites are grass and gravel. RV site cost is $31.95 per night for full hook-up - year round ($33.95 during Frontier Days). You can even board your horse and they’ll provide the hay!

There are seven one-bedroom cabins ($79.95 per night) and a 13-room historic bunkhouse with shared facilities ($58.95 per night) available. This is a working ranch so be aware that there are no cable TV or phone lines in the rooms.

The ranch and RV park are not fancy, nor does it offer a pool, but amenities do include a 24-hour laundry room, clean shower and toilet facilities with a Western décor, a playground, gift shop, camp store, and free WiFi. What the accommodations lack in slick amenities, they more than make up for in authentic and unique Western experience.

Eloise Duff and her husband, from Alabama, stayed two nights at the campground in their 40-ft. rig. She said, "There is a lot to do here. We like the wide-open spaces at the campground, and the beautiful scenery. The restaurant is excellent -- we loved the bison steak. The Trading Post is wonderful, and the people are great."

A special treat at this ranch are the many animals you can see on the ranch. A one-hour bus tour ($11 adult/$6 ages 4-12/under 4-free) features exotic birds, ostriches, llamas, camels, and herds of bison. There are over 2500 bison on the ranch. When the bus driver throws feed out the bus door, dozens of the wooly animals amble over. You are close enough to get a whiff of their gamey odor from the open bus windows, and hear them chomping on their feed.

The picture with this article is one I took of my husband just after we took the bus tour and saw a herd of wooly bison. We loved it!

The Senator’s Restaurant (open May 1-Sept. 30) offers delicious meals, including bison burgers (very tasty!) and bison steaks. The staff in the restaurant, the trading post and the tour are friendly and helpful. The motto at Terry Bison Ranch is, "The West the way you want it."

Things to Do & See in Cheyenne
Historical sites top the list of year-round attractions in nearby Cheyenne, most of them are free admission. There is ample free on-street parking around the State Capitol (Capitol Ave. & 24th St), which even accommodates a large RV. The Capitol (ca 1887), with its shiny gold dome, is elegant inside and outside. Explore its marble halls and enjoy stained glass windows, carved woodwork, bronze statues, and even a real stuffed buffalo (open M-F 8-5). Just a block away on Central Avenue, the Wyoming State Museum is filled with interesting displays of western life, paintings, historic items, and dinosaur bones (Tues-Sat 9-4:30).

A few blocks away on E. 21st Street, sits the handsome Historic Governors’ Mansion (ca 1904). During its 71 years of occupancy (until 1976), the mansion was home to 19 Wyoming Governors and their families. A unique spot is the Bomb Shelter in the basement, restored to the 1959 Cold War era. This is a reminder of a specific time in recent U.S. history that many may have forgotten (Tues-Sat 9-5).

The Cheyenne Botanic Gardens in Lions Park, at Carey & 8th Avenue, provides visitors with shady paths that wind through lush displays of colorful flowers. There is a wonderful solar conservatory, ponds and statuary. Lions Park also has canoes and paddle boats for rent, and mini-golf.

Engine 1242, built in 1890 and the oldest steam engine in Wyoming, has its own special spot in the Botanical gardens. Known as Ol’ Sadie, the engine is surrounded by an artistic train folk art fence hand-constructed by Floyd Young, Sr., the last engineer to drive the engine (M-F 8-4:30; Sat-Sun 11-3:30).

Attractions that charge admission are the Cheyenne Depot Museum in the restored Depot, that specializes in the railroad history of the town ($5, under 12 free); and the Frontier Days Old West Museum, next to the Botanic Garden on Carey Avenue, with a collection of over 150 historic horse-drawn carriages and wagons, and history of the world’s largest outdoor rodeo ($6, under 12 free), with free parking.

During the summer months, there are Rodeos, horse-drawn carriage rides, trolley tours, Gunslinger enactments in the Old Town Square, and Old Fashioned Melodrama productions in the historic Atlas Theatre (ca 1887) on 16th Street (307-638-6543).

Cheyenne, Wyoming offers visitors a wonderful glimpse of a West that was, and a West that is still going strong today.

VISITOR’S CENTER
Located in the Cheyenne Depot at 121 W. 15th St. (M-F 9-5; Sat 10-5; Sun 12-5), 307-778-3133, or 1-800-.426-5009, www.cheyenne.org.

SPECIAL EVENT: Frontier Days, held the last ten days in July, has been dubbed the world’s largest outdoor rodeo. The city’s population nearly doubles in size during the event but, as one local said, "There’s so much going on that the crowds fan out and there’s no problem." With lots of free events, such as parades, pancake breakfasts, steer wrestling, Indian village, transportation, and more, the West is truly celebrated. Reservations should be made seven to eight months in advance for RV sites during Frontier Days.