Laramie, Wyoming: University Town, Snowy Range Gateway, and Brewery Town

Laramie sits at about 7,200 feet on the Laramie Plain in southeastern Wyoming, on Interstate 80 between Cheyenne and Rawlins. Population about 31,000 (2020 census), and the town empties noticeably in summer when many University of Wyoming students leave. The university, founded in 1886, four years before Wyoming statehood, is the state’s only public four-year university and the dominant economic and cultural force in the town.

What makes Laramie worth visiting: the historic downtown is genuinely intact and the brewery-and-coffee scene is one of the best in Wyoming, supported by the university and the I-80 traveler economy; the Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site (where Butch Cassidy served about 18 months) is a substantial museum experience; Vedauwoo’s granite formations, about 20 miles east, are a famous crack-climbing area and a strange place to walk; and the Snowy Range, about 30 miles west, is the most accessible alpine country in southeastern Wyoming.

Two days here, run thoughtfully, gives a strong sense of college-town Wyoming and pairs cleanly with Cheyenne (about 50 minutes east) for a full southeastern Wyoming trip.

What to do

Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site

On the west edge of Laramie, the Wyoming Territorial Prison opened as a U.S. penitentiary in 1872, became Wyoming’s first state penitentiary in 1890, and closed in 1903; about 1,200 prisoners passed through it. The most famous was Butch Cassidy, sentenced in July 1894 to two years for horse theft and pardoned by Governor William A. Richards in January 1896, after about 18 months. He reportedly promised to commit no more crimes in Wyoming. He did not keep it: within months he had formed the Wild Bunch.

A visit takes in the prison building, the Prison Industries Building (the old broom factory), and the Warden’s House, plus later buildings from the decades the site served as a University of Wyoming agricultural experiment station. The exhibits cover outlaws, prison reform, and Wyoming’s agricultural history, with a full exhibit on Butch Cassidy and the Hole-in-the-Wall outlaw country.

Open daily May through September and Thursday through Saturday in winter; $9 for adults (2026). Plan 2-3 hours.

Historic downtown and the brewery scene

Downtown Laramie is approximately 10 blocks of intact brick storefronts dating to the 1880s and 1890s, when Union Pacific railroad money and the new university built the town in its current form. Walking-tour brochures available at the visitor center.

The Laramie brewery scene, anchored by Altitude Chophouse and Brewery, Coal Creek Tap, and Bond’s Brewing Company, is one of the strongest in Wyoming. The university supports it through the school year; the I-80 traveler economy supports it in summer.

Notable downtown stops (check current hours):

Coal Creek Tap. Strong beer selection, local crowd, food.
Bond’s Brewing Company. Taproom downtown.
Altitude Chophouse. Brewpub with the most ambitious food of the three.
Crowbar & Grill. Long-running local bar with food.
The Library Restaurant. Brunch and casual dinners, a college-town staple.

Vedauwoo Recreation Area

About 20 miles east of Laramie via I-80 (Exit 329, Vedauwoo Road). The Vedauwoo Recreation Area is on the Medicine Bow National Forest and includes some of the more bizarre granite rock formations in the West: massive rounded boulders, towers, and spires among the pines.

For climbers, Vedauwoo is known for some of the best crack climbing anywhere. The 1.4-billion-year-old Sherman Granite is famously coarse, hard on skin, and the routes are mostly cracks: hand jams, fist jams, off-widths, climbing that rewards technique over power. The standard current guide is The Voo: Rock Climbing in Vedauwoo, Wyoming by Zach Orenczak and Rachael Lynn.

For non-climbers, Vedauwoo is a half-day of hiking among the formations, picnic area access, and excellent photography. Multiple short trails, including the Turtle Rock loop of about three miles. $5 day-use fee.

Snowy Range Scenic Byway

Wyoming Route 130 climbs from Laramie westward over the Medicine Bow Mountains (the “Snowy Range”) to Saratoga, about 80 miles total. The byway tops out at 10,847 feet at Snowy Range Pass and provides access to alpine lakes, hiking trails, and the Mirror Lake and Lake Marie viewpoints.

The high section is open from late May until snow closes it, usually around mid-November. For visitors with a half-day, the drive to Mirror Lake and back from Laramie is approximately 4 hours including stops. For visitors with a full day, the loop continuing to Saratoga (and its free Hobo Hot Pool) and returning via I-80 is one of the better Wyoming day trips available.

University of Wyoming campus

The university campus is walkable from downtown. The American Heritage Center (a substantial archives and rare-books library) is open to public visitors and is one of the better academic Western-history collections in the country.

Old Main building at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, a Romanesque Revival sandstone building with a central clock tower, the original 1886 campus structure. — Old Main, University of Wyoming, built 1886. The building predates Wyoming statehood by four years and remains the architectural center of campus. The American Heritage Center and geological museum are a short walk away. *Photo via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA.*

The University of Wyoming Geological Museum has free admission and an excellent dinosaur and Wyoming-geology collection. The Coe Library is open to the public for browsing during business hours.

For visitors interested in Wyoming history research, the American Heritage Center holds deep Western primary-source collections, including ranch and cattle-company records; ask the archivists about material on the Johnson County War era.

Laramie Plains Civic Center and the Ivinson Mansion

The 1892 Ivinson Mansion, downtown, was built by Edward Ivinson, the Laramie merchant and banker who was the first treasurer of the University of Wyoming’s board, and is now the Laramie Plains Museum. Period furniture, local history exhibits, and one of the more atmospheric small museums in the state. Guided tours. One hour.

Where to eat

Laramie’s food scene is genuinely strong for a town this size, supported by the university workforce.

Sweet Melissa’s Cafe. Vegetarian, the longtime local favorite, downtown.

Anong’s Thai Cuisine. Real Thai food in Wyoming.

The Library. Brunch and casual American, the college-town staple.

Altitude Chophouse and Brewery. As above, the destination dining option.

Lovejoy’s Bar and Grill. Downtown bar and grill.

Sweet Melissa’s, Coal Creek Coffee Company, Night Heron Books and Coffeehouse. The trio of strong coffeehouses, all downtown.

Where to stay

Mid-range: chain hotels around the I-80 interchanges.

Guest ranch: the Vee Bar Guest Ranch, about 22 miles west of Laramie toward Centennial, a guest ranch with horseback programs.

Camping: Vedauwoo Recreation Area campground (30 minutes east). Multiple Medicine Bow-Routt campgrounds along the Snowy Range Scenic Byway.

During university events (graduation weekend in May, football game weekends in fall, state high school tournaments): lodging fills and prices jump. Plan accordingly if visiting during these windows.

When to visit

Summer (June-August): all roads open, Snowy Range at peak, university quieter. Best window for outdoor priorities.

Fall (September-November): strongest window. University in full session brings energy to downtown. Wyoming Cowboys football games are major events. Snowy Range fall colors in the aspens early-mid September.

Winter (December-March): Snowy Range Ski Area opens. Town stays active with the university. Laramie winter is genuinely cold, with nights regularly below zero.

Spring (April-May): shoulder season. Snowy Range still snowed in. University commencement in mid-May brings a brief peak.

What’s around Laramie

Cheyenne, Wyoming (about 50 minutes east via I-80): the state capital. The natural pairing for a Laramie trip.
Vedauwoo (about 25 minutes east, as above).
Centennial, Wyoming (about 30 miles west): tiny mountain town at the foot of the Snowy Range.
Saratoga, Wyoming (about 80 miles west over the Snowy Range, summer only): hot pool, North Platte fly fishing.
Fort Collins, Colorado (about 1 hour 20 minutes south via US-287): substantial city for shopping and dining, brewery-tour destination.
Snowy Range Ski Area (about 35 miles west): small, family-friendly ski area, far less crowded than Jackson.
Denver, Colorado (about 2 hours south): the nearest major airport and city, for visitors flying in or continuing on.

Why Laramie matters

Laramie is one of the easiest small Wyoming cities for visitors. It has the substance of a university town (real coffee, real food, real bookstores, real brewery scene), the access of a freeway town (I-80 cuts through), and the wilderness adjacency of the Mountain West (Vedauwoo and the Snowy Range within an hour). It is also Wyoming’s only university town, and the university payroll is what keeps the downtown coffee-and-brewery scene running. Lodging is far cheaper than in Jackson.

For visitors driving I-80 across Wyoming, Laramie is the obvious overnight stop. For visitors planning a southeastern Wyoming circuit, pairing Laramie with Cheyenne covers both the state capital and the state university in a clean 3-4 day trip.

For students considering the University of Wyoming, Laramie is an underestimated college-town environment that punches well above the size of the institution.

Gear for Laramie and the Snowy Range

Klean Kanteen insulated 20 oz, for the Snowy Range hike or the long drive to the next Wyoming town
Pendleton wool blanket, Laramie at over 7,000 ft is legitimately cold; wool is the answer
Black Diamond Mojo Zip Chalk Bag, for Vedauwoo crack climbing; the coarse granite eats through chalk fast

Lake Marie under the pale grey cliffs of the Snowy Range, a lone spruce and a scatter of boulders along the near shore. — Lake Marie in the Snowy Range, on the Highway 130 crossing between Laramie and Saratoga. The rock wall above the water is the range's high eastern face, snow still sitting in its gullies here. The byway over the top is a summer road; the gates close under snow for the rest of the year. *Photo by Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress (LCCN 2017884258). Public domain.*

Rounded piles of weathered granite standing out of a grassy hillside with scattered pines, Vedauwoo, Wyoming. — Turtle Rock at Vedauwoo, in the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest between Laramie and Cheyenne. The stone is Sherman Granite, coarse enough to take skin and chalk in equal measure, which is why the crack climbing here has a reputation well past Wyoming. A trail of about three miles loops the formation for anyone who would rather walk it. *Photo by Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress (LCCN 2015632856). Public domain.*

Black cattle grazing in a fenced meadow on the Laramie Plain, a lone cottonwood at the fence line and bare tan hills beyond. — Cattle on the Laramie Plain near Centennial, west of Laramie. The plain averages around 7,000 feet, so the grass season is short and the outfits working it are large. Centennial sits where this ground meets the bottom of the Snowy Range Road. *Photo by Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress (LCCN 2015633168). Public domain.*

Laramie, Wyoming: University Town, Snowy Range Gateway, and Brewery Town

What to do