10 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.
Wyoming is a long-drive state. Most cross-state trips put 200-400 miles on the truck before lunch, and the entertainment value of those miles depends entirely on what you stop for. The state has an overlooked density of roadside oddities, the kind of unexpected sights that justify a 15-minute pullover and a few photos and a story for the rest of the drive.
This is the working list of Wyoming roadside curiosities that earn the stop. Some are official monuments. Some are private buildings the owners are happy to have you photograph from the highway shoulder. One is a town square with a 12-foot jackalope. All are real, all are accessible, all reward the detour.
1. Devils Tower National Monument, Hulett
Where: Off US-14 about 27 miles north of Sundance, Crook County in the northeast corner of the state.
What you’re looking at: An 867-foot vertical rock tower that rises out of the surrounding pine forest like nothing else in North America. Geologically, it’s the eroded core of an ancient igneous intrusion (technically a phonolite porphyry) that pushed up through sedimentary rock and resisted erosion long after the surrounding rock washed away. The vertical columnar jointing is the visual signature.
The story: Theodore Roosevelt designated Devils Tower the first National Monument in American history on September 24, 1906, using the new Antiquities Act. The Lakota name for the formation is Mato Tipila (Bear Lodge), and the tower remains an active sacred site for the Lakota, Cheyenne, Crow, Kiowa, and other Plains nations. Pop culture knows it from Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), where Steven Spielberg cast it as the alien-contact landing site.
The visit: $25 per vehicle, valid 7 days. Trails range from the 1.3-mile paved Tower Trail (loop around the base, easy) to the 7-mile Red Beds Trail (full circuit, moderate). Climbing the tower is permitted with park-issued permits; about 5,000 climbers attempt it per year. Voluntary climbing closure in June out of respect for Lakota ceremonial use.
2. The Smith Mansion, Wapiti
Where: US-14 about 25 miles west of Cody, on the route to the East Entrance of Yellowstone. Visible from the highway on the south side near the Wapiti post office.
What you’re looking at: A five-story hand-built wooden tower house, with stairs, balconies, and porches at every level, all built from local logs by one man over almost two decades.
The story: Lee Smith, a self-taught carpenter, started construction in 1973 with no plans and no formal building permit, intending it as a family home. He never stopped building. The house grew taller and more elaborate every year, with each level added on top of the last as Smith’s vision evolved. He fell to his death from the structure in 1992; the building was still unfinished. His daughter Sunny Larsen has since restored and stabilized the structure; tours have been offered seasonally in some years.
The visit: Free to view from the highway. The mansion sits on private land; respect the boundary. The exterior is photogenic at any time of day; late afternoon light coming over the valley behind the mansion is the most photographed view.
3. Hell’s Half Acre, west of Casper
Where: US-20/26 about 45 miles west of Casper in Natrona County, on the way to Shoshoni and the Wind River country.
What you’re looking at: A 320-acre area of severely eroded badlands, full of deep gullies, hoodoos, and pinnacles in shades of white, pink, and pale orange. The site is dramatically out of character with the surrounding flat sage prairie, which is part of the appeal: you drive across hours of nothing and then this opens up beside the highway.
The story: The badlands are the result of slow erosion of sedimentary rock layers exposed by the Powder River and tributaries cutting through softer formations. Long-time roadside attraction; a hotel and restaurant operated at the site for decades but closed and was demolished in the 2000s. The 1997 film Starship Troopers used Hell’s Half Acre as the surface of the planet Klendathu in several battle scenes.
The visit: Free. Pullout area on the south side of the highway. Walking down into the badlands is at-your-own-risk; the terrain is steep and exposed.
4. Tree in the Rock, I-80
Where: I-80 between Cheyenne and Laramie, about 35 miles west of Cheyenne, in the Vedauwoo / Sherman Mountain area. Marked rest area on the eastbound side.
What you’re looking at: A limber pine growing out of a crack in a single solid granite boulder, unusually large and old for its substrate. The tree has been there since at least the 1860s, when it was photographed during construction of the original Union Pacific transcontinental railroad.
The story: Local lore (often repeated, less verified) claims that Ulysses S. Grant stopped at the rock during his 1868 visit to inspect the new railroad and ordered that the tree not be cut down during track-laying. What is documented is that the railroad crews routed their grading around the rock, and the tree has been a recognized landmark ever since. The interpretive sign at the rest area provides the (somewhat embellished) version.
The visit: Free. Rest area parking, restrooms, interpretive panels, short walk to the rock.
5. The Lincoln Memorial Head, I-80
Where: Summit Rest Area on I-80, about 10 miles east of Laramie at Sherman Summit (8,640 feet, the highest point on the original transcontinental Lincoln Highway).
What you’re looking at: A 12.5-foot bronze head of Abraham Lincoln on a 30-foot granite pedestal. Sculpted by Robert Russin (a University of Wyoming professor) in 1959, originally placed at the actual highway summit and moved to the I-80 rest area in 1969 when the interstate opened.
The story: The Lincoln Highway, dedicated in 1913, was the first transcontinental highway in the United States, running from Times Square to San Francisco. The Sherman Summit was the highest point on the entire route. The original 1913 dedication included plans for a monument that took 46 years to actually be built; Russin’s bronze head, when finally installed, became one of the more recognizable roadside monuments in the West. The interpretation panels at the rest area cover the highway’s history and Wyoming’s role in early auto-tourism.
The visit: Free. Combine with the Ames Monument (entry 6) for a single Sherman Summit oddities loop.
6. The Ames Monument, Buford
Where: Just south of I-80 at Buford, between Cheyenne and Laramie. Take the Vedauwoo exit (about 25 miles east of Laramie) and follow the signs about 2 miles south on Monument Road.
What you’re looking at: A 60-foot granite pyramid in the middle of nothing, designed by H.H. Richardson (one of the most important American architects of the 19th century) and built in 1882 to honor the Ames brothers, financiers of the transcontinental railroad. The pyramid is now a National Historic Landmark.
The story: Oakes and Oliver Ames put up much of the capital that built the Union Pacific Railroad through Wyoming. The pyramid was originally placed at Sherman Summit, then the highest point on the railroad. When the Union Pacific later rerouted to bypass Sherman Hill, the monument was left isolated in empty country, where it remains. Richardson designed it with sculpted reliefs of both Ames brothers (executed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, no less). The site is desolate, photogenic, and almost always empty of other visitors.
The visit: Free. Gravel road access, drivable in any vehicle in good weather. The setting (a 60-foot pyramid alone in high prairie at 8,200 feet, with no other structures visible) is the actual draw.
7. Jackalope Square, Douglas
Where: Town square in Douglas, Wyoming, about 50 miles east of Casper on I-25.
What you’re looking at: An 8-foot fiberglass jackalope statue, plus jackalope-themed signage throughout the town. Douglas declared itself “the home of the jackalope” in 1965 and made it official with a city ordinance.
The story: The jackalope (a horned-rabbit hoax) was invented in Douglas in 1932 when local taxidermist Douglas Herrick mounted antelope antlers on a jackrabbit head as a joke. The mount sold; he made more; the jackalope went viral (in 1930s terms) and is now found on souvenir shop shelves nationwide. Douglas owns the origin story and leans into it. The Douglas Visitor Center sells official “Jackalope Hunting Licenses” valid only in Converse County, with very specific seasonal restrictions (usually printed as something like “valid June 31 between midnight and 2 AM, hunters must have an IQ over 72 but under 73”).
The visit: Free. The statue is at the Douglas Railroad Interpretive Center adjacent to the Visitor Center. License purchase available at the Visitor Center.
8. Como Bluff Bone Cabin, Medicine Bow
Where: US-30/287 about 6 miles east of Medicine Bow, in southern Wyoming on the way between Laramie and Rawlins.
What you’re looking at: A small cabin built entirely from fossilized dinosaur bones quarried from the surrounding Como Bluff fossil beds.
The story: Como Bluff was the original American “dinosaur rush” site, where Othniel Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope’s competing crews extracted thousands of specimens between 1877 and 1889 in what became known as the Bone Wars. The site produced Allosaurus, Stegosaurus, Diplodocus, Brontosaurus, and many other now-famous dinosaurs in volume. By the 1930s, with the major fossils excavated, a local entrepreneur named Thomas Boylan built a tourist cabin from the smaller bones still scattered across the surface, calling it the “world’s oldest building.” The cabin is now closed to interior access but visible from the highway.
The visit: Free roadside view. Pullout area; the cabin is on private land. The Como Bluff Quarry interpretive site about a mile farther east provides geological context.
9. Sinks Canyon, Lander
Where: Sinks Canyon State Park, about 7 miles southwest of Lander on Wyoming Highway 131.
What you’re looking at: A river that disappears into a cave (the Sinks) and reemerges from a spring (the Rise) about a quarter-mile downstream. The Popo Agie River runs full at the Sinks, vanishes underground entirely into the Madison Limestone formation, then reemerges at the Rise as a calm trout pool.
The story: A geological curiosity created by limestone karst dissolution. Dye-tracing studies have confirmed the water that enters the Sinks is the same water that emerges at the Rise, but it takes the river over two hours to make the underground journey, longer than any normal flow rate would suggest. The Rise pool is also notably warmer at the surface than the Sinks water entering, suggesting deep underground residence time. Wyoming State Parks operates an interpretive center on site.
The visit: $7 per vehicle for non-residents (state parks fee). Visitor center, interpretive panels, easy walk between the Sinks viewpoint and the Rise viewpoint. Trout fishing in the Rise pool is regulated and excellent.
10. Vedauwoo, east of Laramie
Where: Off I-80 about 18 miles east of Laramie. Vedauwoo Road exit; small Forest Service fee for vehicle access.
What you’re looking at: An expanse of rounded granite domes, hoodoos, and bizarre eroded boulders in the Sherman Mountains. The rock formations rise up to 100 feet above the surrounding ground, with weathered cracks and overhangs that have made the area a popular climbing destination since the 1950s.
The story: Vedauwoo (pronounced “VEE-da-voo”) is from the Arapaho word bito’o’wu, meaning “earthborn” or “earth-emerging.” The granite is roughly 1.4 billion years old, exposed by long erosion of overlying sedimentary rock. The strange weathered shapes (fungus-like overhangs, balanced boulders, narrow slot canyons between the formations) are a textbook example of granite weathering in a high, dry climate.
The visit: $5 day-use fee. Multiple parking areas with short trails into the rocks. Family-friendly scrambling on the lower formations; serious technical climbing on the higher faces. The area was a sacred site for the Arapaho people; respect the cultural significance and any closures or signed boundaries.
A Wyoming oddities road trip
The 10 stops above can be combined into a 3-day cross-state oddities run:
Day 1 (I-80 corridor): Cheyenne to Laramie. Hit Tree in the Rock, the Lincoln Memorial Head at Sherman Summit, the Ames Monument at Buford, and Vedauwoo. Overnight in Laramie. About 60 miles of driving with stops; full day with photo time.
Day 2 (cross-state): Laramie north through Casper to Cody. Stop at Como Bluff outside Medicine Bow; Hell’s Half Acre west of Casper; Jackalope Square in Douglas (small detour east first if you’re committed). Overnight in Cody. About 350 miles of driving.
Day 3 (Cody to Devils Tower): Cody to Wapiti for the Smith Mansion (just outside town); then a long drive across the northeast corner to Devils Tower. Sinks Canyon outside Lander as a detour if you’ve added a day. Overnight at Devils Tower KOA or back in a Black Hills town. About 400 miles.
That’s all 10 oddities in three days. A more relaxed run would add a 4th day to include Sinks Canyon properly and slow down the I-80 corridor stops.
Gear for a Wyoming oddities road trip
A self-drive loop like the 3-day route above covers 600+ miles across remote high-plains country. What earns its weight in the truck:
- Klean Kanteen insulated 20 oz — services are 80+ miles apart on some stretches
- Leatherman Wave Plus — for the unexpected roadside problem
- DeLorme Wyoming Atlas & Gazetteer — 60 topographic map pages at 1:300,000, every gravel road, BLM access, and dispersed site that Google Maps won’t know. The essential paper backup when you’re 40 miles off I-80 looking for the Ames Monument.
Related reading on this site
- Cody, Wyoming: Buffalo Bill’s town and the gateway to Yellowstone
- Cheyenne, Wyoming: state capital and Frontier Days host
- Laramie, Wyoming: railroad town and university capital
- Lander, Wyoming: Wind River gateway and outdoor recreation hub
- Pinedale, Wyoming: Wind River gateway and Mountain Man Museum
- 9 Wyoming hot springs you can actually soak in
- 10 classic Wyoming dive bars still worth the stop
- Wyoming’s 9 best scenic byways
- Wyoming ghost towns: South Pass City and the others
Further reading
- Roadside Wyoming: A Guide to the State’s Lesser-Known Attractions, Wyoming Travel and Tourism.
- The Lincoln Highway, official Lincoln Highway Association history.
- National Park Service Devils Tower visitor information and climbing regulations.
- Wyoming State Geological Survey, Como Bluff and Hell’s Half Acre formation guides.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most famous roadside attraction in Wyoming?
Devils Tower, depending on how you count. The 867-foot rock tower in northeastern Wyoming was the first National Monument in U.S. history (designated by Theodore Roosevelt in 1906) and reached pop-culture status as the alien-contact site in Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977). For roadside oddities specifically (the smaller, weirder stops), the Smith Mansion outside Cody and the giant Lincoln Memorial Head on I-80 at Sherman Summit are the two most photographed.
What is the Smith Mansion?
A five-story hand-built wooden tower house in Wapiti, Wyoming, on US-14 between Cody and the East Entrance of Yellowstone. Lee Smith, a self-taught carpenter, started building it in 1973 from local logs and never stopped. He fell to his death from the structure in 1992 with the building still unfinished. His daughter has since restored it; the house is privately owned but visible from the highway and a recognized roadside oddity. Pulling over and photographing it is welcome; trespassing is not.
Where is the Lincoln Memorial Head in Wyoming?
At the Summit Rest Area on I-80, about 10 miles east of Laramie at the highest point on the original transcontinental Lincoln Highway (8,640 feet). The 12.5-foot bronze head of Abraham Lincoln on a 30-foot granite pedestal was sculpted by Robert Russin in 1959 and originally placed at the highway's actual summit; it was moved to the I-80 Summit Rest Area in 1969 when the interstate opened. Free, accessible, photo-worthy, and you can read the historical interpretation at the same stop.