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The Odometer: Roughly 130 miles, one way from Denver (2 hours)
Look out! We’re leaving our beloved square state for another. But don’t worry—the drive time to Laramie is usually less than it is to many of our favorite I-70 mountain locations. The town of about 33,000 residents is home to the state’s only four-year university, the University of Wyoming, which has approximately 12,000 students who balloon the city’s population during the school year.
Head to the Gem City, elevation 7,200 feet, in the summer for cool(er) temps, the winter for blissfully short lift lines, or anytime for great eats, impressive history, and a slower pace of life.
Jump Ahead:
What To Do in Laramie
Get Outside
When people dream of outdoor fun in Wyoming, they often have the snow-capped grandeur of the Tetons in mind. But Laramie is no slouch in the adventure department either (and it’s far closer and far less crowded than the trails at the eighth-busiest national park and the slopes at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort).
Just 25 minutes from downtown Laramie, Vedauwoo (pronounced VEE-da-voo) offers more than 1,000 climbing routes ranging from 5.0 to 5.14 in difficulty. Its Sherman Granite hoodoos and outcrops deliver what Wyoming Mountain Guides calls “quality crack climbs of all shapes and sizes,” while Climbing Magazine mentions it has “some of the hardest trad lines in the Rockies.” In other words: There’s something for rock jocks, alpinists, and sport climbers of all stripes. And if those terms all sound like a foreign language, lace up your hiking shoes and hit the 2.8-mile Turtle Rock loop (actually open as of mid-March, despite what the website says) instead.
Those who prefer to carve down, rather than climb up, should head to Snowy Range Ski and Recreation Area, located in Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, to ski or ride its 27 trails and 990 feet of vertical for just $64 per weekend lift ticket.
Look Back in Time
Start by digging into history at the University’s Geological Museum. Among their more than 60,000 fossil, rock, and mineral specimens, you’ll find “Big Al,” one of the most complete allosaurus skeletons ever found, and “Nip,” the skull of a Columbian mammoth that has been displayed at Chicago’s Field Museum and other illustrious galleries around the globe.
Then, jump forward in time about 150 million years. Today, we associate Wyoming with the Wild West, the antics of which once kept the cells of the Wyoming Territorial Prison, now a historic site well worth touring, brimming with infamous prisoners like Butch Cassidy.
The Cowboy State also played a pivotal role in women’s long-suffering pursuit of suffrage. It is, after all, the U.S. state where women have longest, and continuously, held the right to vote. Pay tribute at the Wyoming Women’s History House. There, you’ll also find homages to Eliza Stewart, the first woman in the world asked to sit on a jury; Nellie Tayloe Ross, the world’s first female governor; and (badass) Martha Boies, the world’s first female bailiff.
Mosey Around Downtown
Laramie’s downtown features a collection of quietly endearing gift shops, many proudly boasting that they’re owned by University of Wyoming alumni. For your next best read, pop into Night Heron Books & Coffeehouse or Second Story Books, two independent bookstores positioned side by side on East Ivinson Avenue. Don’t be confused by their names. Night Heron has two floors of used soft and hardcovers, whereas Second Story (housed in a former brothel) has more than 70,000 new books in its inventory.
Over on nearby Grand Avenue, Poppy’s Boutique has flower and houseplant arrangements as chic as their floral print mini dresses and gnarled knit sweaters. Range Leather Co. on South Second Street sells gorgeous crossbody bags, market totes, wallets, and journal covers, all made from full-grain leather. Their newest release, the Big Horn Weekender Bag, is available for preorder (unless you’re quarterback Josh Allen, who has serial number 0001). Check out Atmosphere Mountainworks for handmade trail gear.
While you wander, keep an eye out for public art. Since 2011, local Laramie artists have used blank brick walls in the downtown corridor as canvases for large-scale murals like the “Gill Street” fish-inspired scene behind Altitude Chophouse & Brewery. Log into the digital tour, offered by the Laramie Public Art Coalition, to dive deeper.
Where To Eat (and Drink) in Laramie
Forget saving the best for last. In Laramie, visitors simply must eat dessert first with a trip to the Sugar Mouse Cupcake House. The paper flowers strung along the exterior wrought-iron fence and five-tier cupcake towers in the windows offer a taste of the magic inside, but it’s not until you step past the pink-and-white-striped walls to the cases of made-daily desserts that you get the full effect. More than 25 flavors, including staples like lemon raspberry and seasonals like lavender matcha, will make you wish Marie Antoinette had been a little more specific in her directive. Kiddos: Be sure to venture downstairs and explore the dress-up area, dance floor, and Mouse Museum.
Enjoy a caffeine hit after your sugar rush by walking over to Range Coffee Roasters. (Yes, it’s affiliated with the leather goods store to which it’s attached.) You’ll likely stand in line behind a dude in classy denim with a perfectly imperfect beard—the true sign of a good coffee joint. Then, find a table among the college students sipping cold brews and 70-somethings chatting over a gouda twist and maple pecan roll.
And yes, Laramie does have “real” food too. Sweet Melissa, lives into its reputation as “the only restaurant in Wyoming that can guarantee a 100% vegetarian menu” with options like cauliflower wings and lentil loaf with mashed potatoes. Carnivores, on the other hand, should head to Altitude Chophouse & Brewery for a prime rib French dip. A meal at Anong’s Thai Cuisine starts with chicken satay and ends with fried green tea ice cream, but for a Guy Fieri–approved indulgence, order the delish, diner-style breakfast burrito at J’s Prairie Rose.
Where To Stay in Laramie
If a simple resting place with walls and a bed is what you want, check out the Hampton Inn for closer access to Vedauwoo’s trail system or the Hilton Garden Inn, which sits across the street from the university’s welcome center. Just plan on booking out months in advance if you’re visiting on a home football weekend.
Keen to get your John Dutton on? Hang your hat at Vee Bar Guest Ranch or Deerwood Station at Deerwood Ranch Wild Horse Ecosantuary.
If You Do One Thing in Laramie…
Walk over the railroad pedestrian footbridge, a walkway that spans Laramie’s multiple parallel train tracks and honors its origin story as a town founded with the arrival of the Union Pacific railroad. By day, you’ll get a panorama across the Snowy Mountains, plains, and downtown. By night, the bridge is lit with dainty fairy lights. If you’re brave, stand on the walkway while a locomotive rushes along just a yard or two below your feet.
