Journal
Gear reviews, how-to, and reporting from the Wyoming backcountry.
Cheyenne Frontier Days Tickets: What They Cost and How to Buy Them
Rodeo seats, Frontier Nights concerts, carnival armbands, gate admission, parking, and Season Ticket Clubs. What is published, what is not, and where to buy without getting burned.
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Boots & ApparelWhat to Wear to Cheyenne Frontier Days
A July afternoon in an open aluminum grandstand at 6,000 feet, then a 55-degree night. What actually works at Frontier Days, what gets turned away at the gate, and what marks you as a tourist.
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DestinationsCody, Wyoming Attractions: What to Actually Do, With Current Prices
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West, the nightly rodeo, Old Trail Town, the dam in Shoshone Canyon, and the road to Yellowstone's East Gate. Hours, admission, and how many days each one really takes.
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EventsThe Wyoming State Fair in Douglas: A Working Guide
Five days in Douglas every August: ranch rodeo, two PRCA nights, breakaway roping, a fire-department demolition derby, and the junior livestock barns. Dates, grandstand prices, carnival wristbands, and what is free.
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Heritage GearPendleton Blankets: Which to Buy for Ranch, Camp, and Bedroll
The National Park blanket and the Yakima Camp Throw are built differently and cared for differently. Here is which one belongs on your bunk versus in your saddlebag, and what more than a century of the Bishop family's Wyoming trade looks like.
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Backcountry SafetyWyoming Backcountry: The Safety Gear That Actually Matters
Wyoming SAR runs 300+ missions per year. The gear that separates rescues from recoveries is simpler than most people think: a satellite communicator, a bear canister, a water filter, and matches that work in wind.
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Heritage GearThe Wyoming Trail Kitchen: Camp Cooking from the Chuckwagon Forward
Lodge's camp dutch oven hasn't changed since 1896. Neither has the logic of Wyoming backcountry cooking. What to buy, how to use it at altitude, and why the old tools are still the right tools.
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HistoryThe Bozeman Trail and the Fetterman Fight: Wyoming's Forgotten War
In 1866, the U.S. Army built three forts to protect the Bozeman Trail through Lakota hunting grounds. Two years later, the Lakota had won, the forts were burned, and the trail was closed.
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HistoryBuffalo Bill Cody: The Man Who Sold the West to the World
William F. Cody was a Pony Express rider, Army scout, bison hunter, town founder, and the most famous American on earth at his peak. The full biography, with the myths sorted out.
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EventsCheyenne Frontier Days: The Complete Guide to the Daddy of 'Em All
Cheyenne Frontier Days has run every July since 1897. The world's largest outdoor rodeo, ten days of events, what to see and how to plan it.
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HistoryChief Washakie: The Eastern Shoshone Leader Who Shaped Wyoming
Washakie led the Eastern Shoshone for over 60 years, fought alongside the U.S. Army at the Battle of the Rosebud, and negotiated the reservation that bears his people's name. The biography.
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HistoryEsther Hobart Morris and Wyoming's First-in-the-Nation Women's Suffrage
Wyoming Territory granted women the vote in 1869, fifty years before the 19th Amendment. Esther Hobart Morris became the first woman to hold judicial office in the United States. Here's the story.
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HistoryHeart Mountain: The Wyoming Internment Camp Where 14,000 American Citizens Were Held
Between 1942 and 1945, Heart Mountain in northern Wyoming held over 14,000 Japanese Americans imprisoned by their own government. The interpretive center, the cemetery, and what they tell us today.
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HistoryThe Johnson County War: How Wyoming's Cattle Barons Lost the Range
In April 1892, Wyoming's largest cattle barons hired a private army to invade Johnson County and kill suspected rustlers. They lost. The Johnson County War broke the cattle barons' political power.
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HistoryTom Horn: Stock Detective, Range Killer, Hanged in Cheyenne 1903
Tom Horn was an Army scout, Pinkerton man, and stock detective who killed range-war suspects for cattle barons. His 1902 trial for the murder of Willie Nickell remains contested.
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Wyoming Travel10 Classic Wyoming Dive Bars Still Worth the Stop
From the Mint Bar's neon sign in Sheridan to the cherrywood back-bar at the Irma in Cody, the working short list of Wyoming saloons that have outlasted three generations of fads.
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Wyoming Travel8 Wyoming Ghost Towns Worth the Drive
South Pass City, Atlantic City, Miner's Delight, Jeffrey City, and four more genuine Wyoming ghost towns. Where they are, what's left, and what they tell us about boom-and-bust Wyoming.
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HorsemanshipWyoming Horse Breeds: What Actually Works in Working Mountain Country
Quarter horses, Mustangs, mules, and gaited stock. The honest assessment of what Wyoming working riders, outfitters, and ranchers actually keep on the place, and why.
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Wyoming Travel9 Wyoming Hot Springs You Can Actually Soak In
From Thermopolis (the world's largest mineral spring) to roadside soaks on the Salt River, the working list of Wyoming hot springs that welcome the public, with prices and access notes.
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Wyoming Travel10 Wyoming Roadside Oddities Worth Pulling Over For
From the Smith Mansion (a five-story hand-built wooden tower outside Cody) to Tree in the Rock and the Lincoln Memorial Head on I-80, the working list of Wyoming roadside curiosities you can hit on a long drive.
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Wyoming TravelWyoming's 9 Best Scenic Byways, Ranked by What's Actually Worth the Drive
From the Beartooth Highway (Charles Kuralt's pick for America's most beautiful drive) to the Snowy Range and Cloud Peak Skyway, the working short list of Wyoming scenic byways with elevations, season windows, and what to stop for.
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Boots & ApparelBest Western Belts Tested: A Six-Month Review of Eight Brands
We wore eight Western belts daily for six months, ranch work, riding, office, and travel. Here's what survived, what stretched, and which one earned a permanent spot.
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Gear ComparisonsDuluth Pack vs Frost River vs Red Clouds Collective: Heritage Canvas Pack Showdown
Three American canvas pack makers, three different philosophies. Here's how their packs actually compare on durability, comfort, and how they age.
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Heritage GearHand-Tooled Leather: How Real Western Leatherwork Is Made
Real hand-tooling is six to twenty hours of work with a swivel knife, mauls, and three dozen specialized stamps. Here's the process, the makers, and how to spot the real thing.
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Gear ComparisonsA Buyer's Guide to Heritage Camping Bedrolls in 2026
Real bedrolls, canvas tarps wrapped around wool blankets, beat modern sleeping bags for horseback camps and base camps. Here's how to pick one, build one, or buy one.
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Heritage GearHeritage Enamelware: Why It Outlasts Every Modern Alternative
Porcelain enamel on steel was invented in 1761 and the basic recipe has not improved. Here's why a $20 enamel mug outlasts a $60 stainless one, and how to tell good enamelware from bad.
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Boots & ApparelHow to Break In Rough-Out Cowboy Boots Without Ruining Them
Rough-out leather is suede on the outside, and the standard wet-and-walk method that works for smooth leather will mat the nap forever. Here's the right way.
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LeatherThe 5-Minute Leather Care Routine That Adds 20 Years
If you can spare twelve minutes twice a year, your leather goods will last decades longer. The minimum effective routine, with no jargon.
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Gift GuidesThe Ranch Wife's Gift Guide: Western Goods She Actually Wants
Built from interviews with twelve working ranch women across Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Skip the rhinestone trinkets, here's what they asked for.
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Gear ComparisonsWaxed Canvas vs Oiled Leather: Which to Choose for Wet-Weather Camps
Both shrug off rain. They wear differently, weigh differently, and fail differently. Here's how to pick between them for bags, jackets, and bedrolls.
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Heritage GearThe Possibles Bag: Frontier Origins, Modern Uses, and How to Build Your Own
A possibles bag was the trapper's everyday-carry: tinder, flint, lead, patches, jerky, and whatever else the day might possibly require. The form has barely changed in 200 years.
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HistoryWhat Is a Trading Post? A History of Frontier Commerce in the American West
A trading post was the frontier's general store, diplomatic outpost, and credit bureau rolled into one. Here's how they worked, who ran them, and why a few still stand.
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Heritage GearBuilding a Working-Ranch First Aid Kit
Cuts, hoof punctures, eye injuries, hypothermia, and snakebite. The actual gear that belongs in the kit on the back porch and in the truck.
