Features 4
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CARRYING TRADITION
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UNIQUE ORIGINS
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FAB WOMEN’S CONFERENCE 2019
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WOMEN IN THE EQUALITY STATE
Agriculture industry adopts technological advancements
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AFFORDABLE HOUSING
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ADDICTION TO LIVE
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FUTURE OF DOWNTOWN
The history behind interesting place names in Sheridan County
Eat, Pray, Love
How can Sheridan build for its future?
Adventurers weigh risk versus reward of outdoor excursions
Community leaders plan for hub’s future
A look at where we’ve been, where we’re going
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A SPECIAL EDITION OF
VOLUME 7 | NUMBER 4 PUBLISHED OCTOBER 2018 Destination Sheridan is a lifestyle and tourism magazine dedicated to serving the greater Sheridan area. Its circulation reaches into visitor centers, places of hospitality, local businesses and other establishments in greater northern Wyoming, South Dakota, Montana and Colorado, in addition to home delivery customers of The Sheridan Press. It is also available online at thesheridanpress.com and destinationsheridan.com. All photos in Destination Sheridan are by Justin Sheely or are file photos from The Sheridan Press archives unless otherwise noted. Copyright Sheridan Newspapers, Inc. All uncredited stories are from The Sheridan Press staff reports.
CONTRIBUTORS Kristen Czaban Publisher
Troy Burger Graphic designer
Chad Riegler Operations manager
Deb McLain Graphic designer
Becky Martini Office manager Caitlin Addlesperger Director of special projects
Matt Gaston Photojournalist Ashleigh Fox Journalist
Janea LaMeres Lead marketing specialist
Michael Illiano Journalist
Mandi Hicks Marketing specialist
Bud Denega Journalist
Josh Lovingood Marketing specialist
Ryan Patterson Journalist
Jon Cates Art director
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SURVIVING AND THRIVING IN A CHANGING WORLD
Longtime campground owners tell their story
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LIVING AND WORKING A MOUNTAIN PASS
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EVOLVING INTERNET CONNECTIVITY
ON THE COVER Stores in downtown Sheridan entice customers on a crisp October day in 2018. Photo by Matt Gaston.
Families talk about life at 8,000 feet
What the future may hold for local high-speed technology
A PRODUCT OF
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Publisher’s Note
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elcome to this year’s fall/ winter edition of Destination Sheridan. The Press has been publishing Destination Sheridan for several years, and each edition has typically had a theme. Our spring/ summer edition, for example, focused on local foods — where to find them, how to grow them and what to cook with them, among other topics. For this edition, though, the staff at The Press opted to mix it up a little. For the fall/winter edition of The Press, we sat down to brainstorm article ideas a few months ago. The ideas presented were so diverse, that we decided rather than try to shoe horn them into a theme, we would simply apply the theme “Sheridan.” This issue is the result of that hard work. While there are still articles that focus on outdoor recreation and attractions, along with a calendar of events and a look at the local communities, the feature articles that appear also include more “newsy” pieces. For example, our reporter Michael Illiano took a deeper dive into the issue of affordable housing in the area. While The Press has written about the issue before, writing a magazine-length article provided Illiano with the opportunity to examine the issue more extensively. The same can be said for the stories included in this edition about how technology has affected agriculture, the difficulty of securing internet access in rural Wyoming and the state’s legacy of women’s suffrage. We’ve also utilized this issue to look ahead. The Press will host the FAB (For. About. By.) Women’s Conference in April, when best-selling author Elizabeth Gilbert will provide a keynote address on curiosity and creativity. Of interest to many, as the edits were being made on this magazine for publication, Gilbert announced that she has finished a new novel. It will be released in June 2019, making her appearance here in April even more exciting. While bigger publications produce magazines once per month, our quarterly editions keep us on our toes. We partner with the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce for its relocation guide that comes out each February, work on our spring/summer edition, partner with the Sheridan WYO Rodeo board for the July edition, then get to work on the fall/winter publication. The staff here at The Press spends months writing articles, taking photographs, consulting with advertisers, designing the pages and, finally, sending it off to print. We hope you like the new concept for this edition; your feedback will help us determine future themes and article ideas. Feel free to reach out anytime with your thoughts and suggestions. The Sheridan County Courthouse is seen from the public path at the Sheridan Junior High School.
Kristen Czaban kristen.czaban@thesheridanpress.com
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Talented
CONTRIBUTORS ASHLEIGH FOX Ashleigh Fox started with The Sheridan Press in October 2016 and has covered nearly every beat in the newsroom. Fox completed her bachelor’s degree in journalism in May 2015 and worked as a sports reporter for a year in Sidney, Montana, before moving to Sheridan. When not chasing the latest news tip, Fox can be found gallivanting throughout the Bighorn Mountains in any season.
MICHAEL ILLIANO Michael Illiano joined The Sheridan Press in February 2018 as a reporter covering government and politics. He is a native of New Jersey and holds a master’s degree in journalism from Boston University.
MATTHEW GASTON Matthew Gaston joined The Sheridan Press as the staff photojournalist on Sept. 18, 2018. He graduated from Metropolitan State University of Denver with a bachelor’s in social documentary photography in May of 2016. He is a dedicated cyclist who also enjoys craft spirits, dad jokes and tacos. He’s new to Sheridan and looks forward to sampling all of Sheridan’s local eateries.
RYAN PATTERSON Ryan Patterson joined The Sheridan Press staff as a reporter covering education, business and sports in August 2017. He’s a native of Wisconsin and graduated from Marquette University with a bachelor’s in journalism in May 2017. When not working, he enjoys hiking, reading and exercising at the YMCA.
BUD DENEGA Bud Denega is the primary sports reporter at The Sheridan Press. He is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from the University of Wyoming. Prior to working in Sheridan, Bud spent time as a sports reporter for the Minot Daily News in Minot, North Dakota, before being a sports reporter for the Laredo Morning Times in Laredo, Texas. His favorite thing to do in Sheridan is to enjoy the abundance of outdoor opportunities the area has to offer.
DEB MCLAIN Deb McLain joined the Creative Services Department at the Sheridan Press in May 2018. She has been in the newspaper industry for many years, finding her niche in graphic design. Originally from Kansas, McLain enjoys the many opportunities Sheridan has to offer.
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CARRYING
tradition BY ASHLEIGH FOX
AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY ADOPTS TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS
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athryn Kerns experienced it for the first time as a guest of the Double Rafter Cattle Drive excursion — the flawless integration of old and new in the agriculture industry. Now married to a sixth generation representative of the business, Kerns plays a part in bringing the industry into the future while honoring the past. Technological advancements have greatly impacted all industries in the world today,
but the agriculture sectors of farming and ranching have seen significant improvements in cost- and time-saving mechanisms that continue to feed and clothe an ever-growing population. These advancements lead to more efficient practices that keep up with market demands, keep costs low for both producers and consumers and allow millennials to carry on the legacies of past generations in family businesses with a tech twist.
Right: Dana Kerns works cattle on the ranch Friday, Aug. 10, 2018. Courtesy photo | Cathryn Kerns
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Above:
Dana and Taylor Kerns work cattle on their ranch. The Kerns family integrates technology into its work daily. Courtesy photo | Cathryn Kerns
TECH SAVES TIME
Before the internet became a tool kept in a back pocket, Dana Kerns would hand-write and individually stamp 3,000 postcards to potential buyers of his beef each year. The postcards eventually moved into print advertisements in local papers. Now, Dana Kerns receives inquiries primarily by email each day. Even sending out informational brochures to potential clients is a thing of the past. Beyond paperwork, the use of drones saves Kerns and his sons trips down to check on cattle throughout the day. Instead of riding miles to each grazing area, Kerns zips a drone with a camera out to each location and checks to see if a visit is necessary, turning a two-hour trip into a 15-minute check-up. “You can go spend your efforts doing other things,” Kerns said. “The drone has got a very, very active place in agriculture.” “And it’s becoming more and more popular,” added Taylor Kerns, one of Dana Kerns’ sons and owner of Truly/Beef cattle company with his wife, Cathryn.
KEEPING IT RELEVANT
For the newest generation of ag industry leaders, the desire to keep family businesses relevant and profitable have pushed ag business suppliers to up their game, too. Global Positioning System software in ear tags for livestock and tractors for harvesting transformed tasks from
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needing three to four warm bodies to one, and even those farmers and ranchers are being replaced with the potential for self-driving vehicles on the horizon. The way your grandpa used to do it is not sustainable today, Sheridan College agriculture professor Chuck Holloway said. But, with generations working together, the industry remains a relevant line of work for future generations. “There’s been a real awakening in regards to overall environmental stewardship,” Holloway said. By utilizing advances in technology and information regarding crop and land sustainability, producers not only save money but ensure job security for the next generation. “The only control you have as a producer are input costs,” Holloway said. “And if you can reduce your input costs, have a crop of equal or greater value, you’re paying the bank and you’re also trending toward sustainability.”
SAFETY FIRST
Before the introduction of automatic bale feeders, ranchers would feed livestock either by putting pickup trucks into “granny mode” and jumping into the bed to throw square bales to the cattle or allowing their tiny tots to take the wheel and steer while they flung the squares for hours. Now, with the press of a button, ranchers remain in the hub of their pickups along with the children and feed cattle more quickly and safely. FA L L / W I NTE R 2018- 2019
Other advancements in safety and wellbeing have also been established. For example, it is inevitable for livestock to occasionally suffer injury or illness throughout their lifetime. Instead of pumping antibiotics into the cattle, the Kerns family utilizes advanced technology by first researching symptoms of the livestock online and finding alternative ways to nurse the animal back to health. The use of minerals has become increasingly popular in the ranching industry, and the Kerns family has seen animals restored to health without a drop of antibiotics administered. When Dana Kerns finds a sick animal, instead of always carting the animal immediately to a veterinarian’s office, he instead snaps a picture of the affected area on the animal and sends it to his veterinarian to see if a trip is necessary. Side-by-side vehicles have replaced lines of mules taking supplies in and out of cow camps during cattle drives in the Bighorn Mountains with Double Rafter. Those trips, too, are planned between Cathryn Kerns and her mother-in-law, Alice, through the use of Google Docs, spreadsheets and telephone calls — all inven-
tions foreign to the first-generation cattle drivers.
TEACHING AG TODAY
Dana Kerns still fights with technology on occasion, sitting frustrated in front of a computer screen with nobody around to answer his questions. For the most part, Kerns leaves the spreadsheets to his sons and continues on with the skills he mastered long ago. “It’s a really cool learning process for both generations,” Sheridan College agriculture faculty Brett Burke said. “With the technology we have, the younger generations might lose the vision of what their preceding generations had to go through to get information and to make decisions.” Burke said the accessibility of information helps students and those already working in the industry learn the most recent data, commodity prices and trends with a simple turn of the radio dial. Video technology not only improves classroom education but it also helps those selling cattle to keep livestock safe from sickness contracted from close-contact traveling by semi-truck or train to sale barns throughout the country.
Below: Cathryn Kerns uses Google Docs to plan a cattle drive.
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Courtesy photo
While unrestricted access to information helps in some ways, it hinders farmers and ranchers in other ways. Internet fads and sensationalized stories report mistreatment of animals and unethical growing practices. Farmers and ranchers work to combat misrepresentations by engaging the consumer through social media. Cathryn Kerns utilizes several forms of social media to keep consumers engaged while also marketing the family’s products. Videos, photos and explanations are accessible by clicking through the company website. Getting face-to-face with next week’s dinner is as easy as visiting the Truly/ Beef Instagram feed. Social media has also transformed the way Shiloh Valley Family Farm conducts business. Theresa Shaw, the matriarch of the Shaw family, curates content and facilitates consumer interactions through the farm’s Facebook page. By introducing social media into the small family business, Shaw said connections with consumers become more substantial, and fallacies about the mistreatment of animals are dispelled. “With social media, people want to know where the food comes from,” Shaw said. “When I’m posting on Instagram...it helps people to know what we’re really about.”
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Shaw said even with just a snapshot of a family member or animal, the consumer is able to better understand and appreciate the source of their food. “Being able to share that information directly from the source (helps spread the truth about our business),” Cathryn Kerns said. “Instagram, for example, has been amazing. People don’t know, but they want to know.”
AG FOREVER
What may seem like an archaic form of livelihood to some is actually an industry packed with potential for growth through technological advancement. Families like the Kerns and Shaws appreciate carrying traditions of simplicity through a classic cattle drive on horseback or hand-feeding farm animals. These families also see the benefit of bringing technology into their businesses to expedite certain functions, thus keeping costs down for consumers. Using technology also keeps consumers engaged with the producer and allows for consumers to interact and learn about the product they are purchasing. Though generations may never fully understand or appreciate each other’s ways of management, they can work together to continue producing for generations to come.
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UNIQUE origins BY RYAN PATTERSON
THE HISTORY BEHIND INTERESTING PLACE NAMES IN SHERIDAN COUNTY
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yoming has some of the oddest names for town and geographical features in any state. Sheridan County is no exception. Here’s a look at the origins of some strange titles of natural formations and businesses in the area.
CRAZY WOMAN SALOON AND CRAZY WOMAN TRADING COMPANY
There is no shortage of ecological locations and businesses with the phrase “Crazy Woman” in the title. Crazy Woman Creek and Crazy Woman Canyon in Buffalo are probably the most well-known, but a Crazy Woman Creek also exists in Ni-
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obrara County. Moreover, there is Crazy Woman Square Park across from the creek in Buffalo and Crazy Woman Liquors in the same town. The phrase carries historical significance as well. The Battle of Crazy Woman occurred in present-day Johnson County in 1866 as part of Red Cloud’s War. Despite the phrase’s popularity, its exact origin is difficult to pinpoint. There are two main legends that try to explain the “Crazy Woman” beginnings. The first is that a wife of a trader or settler was forced to watch her husband and children be killed by Native Americans after the husband ran out of whiskey to provide. The woman lost her mind and wandered around the creek and canyon area, screaming in pain and anguish. FA L L / W I NTE R 2018- 2019
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People are absolutely interested in the uniqueness of the name, if there’s a story behind it.
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Shawn Parker
The second possibility is similar: A Native American woman survived an attack on her area but lost her mind in the process. According to the book “Wyoming Place Names” by Mae Urbanek, the woman could be seen wandering around and jumping across the creek on moonlit nights. Crazy Woman Trading Company co-owner Linda Fauth subscribes to the origin story of a wife seeing her husband and children killed and losing her mind. “They say you can still hear her screams in the canyon today,” Fauth said. “I say, ‘No, she’s back. She’s on Main Street and she’s doing really well.’ I try to put a spin on it to lighten it up a little bit.” Fauth has owned the clothing business on North Main Street in Sheridan with her husband since 1996. She said current Sheridan County Commissioner Steve Maier suggested the name. Fauth laughed but accepted the idea. Interestingly, the couple had carved their initials inside a heart on a tree in Crazy Woman Canyon many years before opening the store. “Little did I know that ‘Crazy Woman’ would have an impact in my life,” Fauth said. Fauth claims to be the first business in the state to use the phrase “Crazy Woman.” That is difficult to verify, but the store does have the phrase trademarked, meaning she was likely one of the earliest adopters of the name for commercial use. The name has been excellent for business. Tourists and potential customers notice the red awning outside the store with the name in large, white letters and wander into the store asking about its history almost every day. “They see that and they say, ‘We stayed overnight, just so I could come in this store,’” Fauth said. “We hear that a lot, and it makes me so tickled.” Crazy Woman Saloon co-owner Debbie Dooley said the name has similarly increased interest in her business, a bar in Dayton. Dooley has owned the establishment since June 2001 with her sister Jody Herman. It received its name a few years prior, when a group of four women owned the bar.
“Everybody said once we bought it, the name fit,” Dooley said with a laugh. When Dooley and Herman became owners, Dooley considered changing the name to “Too Far Gone,” but Herman wanted to keep the “Crazy Woman” title. Similar to Fauth, Dooley said people often ask about the name, especially out-of-towners driving through on their way to the Bighorn Mountains. During summer, Dooley said tourists always stop to take photos in front of the “Crazy Woman Saloon” sign in the parking lot and most stop in for a beverage. Sheridan Travel and Tourism Director Shawn Parker said people stopping to hear more about “Crazy Woman” — or any other notable name — is fairly common. “People are absolutely interested in the uniqueness of the name, if there’s a story behind it,” Parker said. “If they can impart a little bit of the information to folks, that’s absolutely value added to the traveler experience.” He said it helps to own a business with a name related to the identity of Sheridan County. “So many of the names, for not just tourism-facing businesses, but energy businesses and fitness centers — they’re all linked to the local identity or landscape,” Parker said. “They’re part of the allure of the West … It all adds to the experience for people when they come through.”
FALLEN CITY
Also in the Bighorns, a geological oddity sits high up in the mountains just off U.S. Highway 14 about 10 miles west of Dayton. It is composed of several large Madison Formation limestone blocks and the name is fairly self-explanatory. Per Urbanek’s book, Fallen City is “a jumble of huge oblong boulders, deposited on a hillside by a prehistoric glacier, suggesting a city tumbled by an earthquake.” The area is difficult to miss but can be overlooked due to the prevalence of pine trees surrounding the large rocks, especially by passengers in vehicles traveling 65 miles per hour.
Left: The Crazy Woman Trading Company in Sheridan has two interesting origin stories for its name.
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During the summer, Crazy Woman Saloon co-owner Debbie Dooley said tourists always stop to take photos in front of the saloon sign in the parking lot in Dayton.
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HANGING WOMAN CREEK
Part of this natural formation sits north of Leiter, just south of the Montana border, which the creek also winds its way through. The location in northern Wyoming, however, was where Hanging Woman School used to operate for students in kindergarten through eighth grade until its closure in the 1990s. Ariel Downing, mercantile manager at the Sheridan County Historical Society and Museum, taught music at the Hanging Woman School — which was a one-room
schoolhouse for local ranching children — every few weeks. Like the “Crazy Woman” origins, this name cannot be traced to a specific date or person. “Local legend has it — and it’s folklore — that an Indian woman may have been found in that condition, or a settler’s wife,” Downing said. The phrase was immortalized by a 1994 Louis L’Amour novel titled “Hanging Woman Creek” that takes place near the Wyoming-Montana border.
UNIQUE TOWN NAMES IN WYOMING TEN SLEEP
MEDICINE BOW
JAY EM
SPOTTED HORSE
Located about 100 miles southeast of Sheridan, the small ranching community is home to a rodeo, Nowoodstock Ten Sleep Music Festival and Tensleep Canyon. According to the Worland Ten Sleep Chamber of Commerce, the town got its name by being 10 nights by horse between the Great Sioux Camps and the Platte River to the south, and the northern camp located near Bridger, Montana.
Situated near the Nebraska border about 120 miles north of Cheyenne, the unincorporated community is named after James Moore, who owned one of the largest cattle ranches in the Wyoming Territory during the 1870s. The center of town is on the National Register of Historic Places.
About 90 miles south of Casper and 55 miles northwest of Laramie, the town of a few hundred people is named after the Medicine Bow River. The river received its name from local Native Americans, who used wood found on the banks of the river to construct their hunting bows. Medicine Bow is home to The Virginian Hotel, named after the 1902 book by Owen Wister that is considered the first western novel written.
Spotted Horse is a tiny town about 70 miles east of Sheridan that contains the Spotted Horse Bar and not much else. The town is named after a Native American, though the individual is hard to pinpoint. A stuffed horse named “Old Spot” stands outside the bar and often attracts tourists, who stop for a photo.
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Fallen City is comprised of several large Madison Formation limestone blocks. The geological oddity sits high up in the Bighorns just off U.S. Highway 14, about 10 miles west of Dayton.
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EVENT Fall/Winter 2018
OCTOBER THROUGH MAY The WYO Performing Arts and Education Center opened its 2018-2019 season in September and has a high-caliber list of performances planned. From screenings of National Theatre Live and The Met Live in HD to shows such as the Utah Repertory Dance Theatre, the WYO provides entertainment options for nearly every artistic taste. See wyotheater.com for a full list of events planned.
OCTOBER THROUGH MAY The Whitney Center for the Arts at Sheridan College opened just a couple years ago but has quickly grown into one of the top performing art centers in the region, complementing the downtown WYO. The center’s 2018-2019 season includes the Venice Baroque Orchestra, along with the Ballet Jorgen and actors from the London Stage. For a full lineup, see whitneyarts.org.
NOV. 23 CHRISTMAS STROLL Sheridan’s annual Christmas Stroll — the regionally recognized kickoff to the holiday shopping season — will take place from 4-8 p.m. Stroll night activities will include photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, make-your-own-ornaments, wagon rides, in-store specials, Christmas carolers, winning Stroll buttons and more. Plus, don’t forget to pick up your Stroll button and get caught shopping.
DEC. 7-9 HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE
Above: Local dancers perform with company dancers during a dress rehearsal of the San Diego Ballet’s Nutcracker at the Whitney Center for the Arts Concert Hall.
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An annual tradition for more than 30 years, the Holiday Open House features live entertainment and holiday decorations throughout the spectacular 1913 Kendrick Mansion. Open house hours are 4-7 p.m. on the first Friday, Saturday and Sunday of December. Admission is $2 for adults. Children are admitted at no charge but must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
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highlights JAN. 1 POLAR BEAR PLUNGE Each year, brave souls embark onto the ice at Lake De Smet just north of Buffalo to start the new year off with an icy cold plunge. The jump is usually at 1 p.m., but keep checking the calendar online at thesheridanpress.com for more information.
MARCH 1 Downtown Sheridan Association’s annual Wine Fest typically features more than 100 wines and beers to taste along with heavy hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction. For more information, see downtownsheridan.org.
MARCH TBA BIG HORN HOMEBUILDERS HOME SHOW Each year the organization puts together an event that includes vendors for all aspects of your home — construction, financing, equipment, design and more. The event is held at the Sheridan Holiday Inn. For more information, see bhhba.org.
APRIL 12 FAB WOMEN’S CONFERENCE For the last seven years, The Sheridan Press has hosted the annual FAB Women’s Conference. Each year, the conference has drawn more women, filling the day with networking, education and fun. This year, New York Times best-selling author and former Ucross Foundation artist-in-residence Elizabeth Gilbert will give the keynote address. Check www.thesheridanpress.com/fab for additional information.
Right: Rylan Dudley twirls as an angel in the window at Once Upon a Story during the annual Christmas Stroll in downtown Sheridan.
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Eat, Pray, Love GILBERT TO KEYNOTE FAB WOMEN’S CONFERENCE 2019
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he Sheridan Press will present FAB Women’s Conference April 12, 2019, at Sheridan College for the seventh year. Recognizing and empowering women, this event features nationally acclaimed speakers and offers educational seminars led by regional experts. FAB speaks to all ages and walks of life, covering personal and professional topics. In other words: it’s a day for women, about women, by women. This year’s keynote speaker will be Elizabeth Gilbert, the renowned author who has inspired millions around the world through works such as “Big Magic,” “Eat, Pray, Love” and “The Signature of All Things.” At FAB, Gilbert will share her wisdom and perspective about creativity with the Sheridan community, discussing how we can tackle what we most love and face what we most fear through a shift in attitudes, approaches and habits in our daily lives.
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Elizabeth Gilbert Courtesy photo | Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
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We left the event feeling proud of Wyoming’s women, energized and motivated to make positive changes in our personal life and our businesses and eager to attend next year’s conference.
Elizabeth Craft
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Right: Bethany Yellowtail addresses attendees at the 2018 FAB Women’s Conference. Courtesy photo | Jenae Neeson
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Above: Attendees of the 2018 FAB Women’s Conference participate in an activity during a breakout session. Courtesy photo | Jenae Neeson
While a resident at Ucross Foundation in 2004, Gilbert wrote a draft of her bestselling memoir “Eat, Pray, Love.” Years before, she worked on a ranch in the Wind River Range. In April, Gilbert will return to Wyoming to speak about leading a creative life, which she defines as one governed by curiosity rather than fear. Sheridan County is growing, and its residents are confronting a variety of challenges — civil discourse, acceptance, diversity, etc. As the community grows, Sheridan Press publisher Kristen Czaban said the FAB Women’s Conference aims to encourage neighbors to think more broadly. In the past year, Sheridan has experienced multiple incidences of racism, including posters hung around the city, advocating, “No more tolerance. No more diversity.” “If our community members can approach their differences with curiosity rather than fear, as Gilbert advocates, they can help reduce prejudice and bias while raising the level of public discourse,” Czaban said. “By being encouraged to seek understanding of other human experiences, we can all be and do better.” During her visit, Gilbert will also speak directly to a group at Sheridan College, giving the students a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. To help make Gilbert’s presentations possible, The Sheridan Press applied for and received a major grant from the Wyoming Humanities Council. In addition, the news organization continues seeking sponsors to help cover the cost of the event and allow for future conferences. Throughout FAB, Wyoming women will lead seminars that cover topics ranging from the tech industry to leadership skills
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to entrepreneurship. The day will also include the FAB Woman of the Year luncheon, which celebrates individuals for their contributions to Sheridan County. The honorees are nominated by the community and the winner selected by the FAB committee. Sheridan College is a partner for FAB Women’s Conference; the events will be held in the Edward A. Whitney Academic Center and the Whitney Center for the Arts. “The FAB conference and related events have at their core an educational component very much in line with the mission of Sheridan College,” said Wendy Smith, a FAB planning committee member and assistant vice president of strategic communications and public relations at the college. “Lifelong learning is as much a belief as it is a practice, and we are proud to host this event each year.” Area businesses have sent staff to the conference each year to encourage ongoing training and personal development. “I attended the FAB Women’s Conference for the first time (in 2018),” said Elizabeth Craft of Ebia Hearing Instruments. “My client care coordinator and I went together, representing Ebia Hearing, and thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with other women in our community in such an empowering atmosphere. “We left the event feeling proud of Wyoming’s women, energized and motivated to make positive changes in our personal life and our businesses and eager to attend next year’s conference,” Craft added. For more information on the event or to find out more about tickets and sponsorships, see thesheridanpress.com/fab.
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Below: The state capitol building sits in Cheyenne. Courtesy Photo | Stephanie Joyce, Wyoming Public Media
Equality
STATE BY KRISTEN CZABAN
STATE GRAPPLES WITH HISTORY, REPUTATION
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yoming boasts a legendary history of women’s rights. Dubbed the “Equality State,” Wyoming is home to many firsts. The first female to cast a vote did so in Laramie a full 50 years before women could vote in the rest of the United States. The first female governor was elected
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in Wyoming, and the nation’s first woman to be appointed to public office lived in South Pass City. When invited to join the union only if women’s suffrage was revoked, Wyoming’s legislators said, “We will remain out of the Union one hundred years rather than come in without the women.” With that history, though, comes the burden of comparison.
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In March 2018, personal finance website WalletHub identified the best and worst states for women in terms of wages, education, health and political representation. The study looked at 23 indicators of living standards in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Wyoming ranked 33rd. So how did a state with a storied history of supporting its women become the state ranked 51st of all the states and Washington, D.C., in equality of men’s and women’s wages, according to the National Partnership for Women and Children, which analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data released in 2016, based on incomes from 2015. How did Wyoming become the state with the lowest percentage of women in state legislature? And, more importantly, what steps are being taken to restore Wyoming’s reputation as the “Equality State”? “I think some people are frustrated that we haven’t come further,” said Rebekah Smith, director of the Wyoming Women’s Foundation. “Just because we were first doesn’t mean we have equal representation.” The WYWF invests in the economic self-sufficiency of women and the future of girls in the state. Smith noted a number of factors — for example, geography, wages and access to health care — women face when seeking to support themselves or serve in the Wyoming Legislature or other elected offices. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Wyoming’s percentage of women in the Wyoming Legislature is the lowest in the country, coming in at 11.1 percent. Other states with less than 15 percent of female representation are Oklahoma (14.1), Louisiana (14.6), Mississippi (14.9) and West Virginia (14.9). The states with the most representation are Arizona and Vermont, both coming in at about 40 percent of their legislatures comprised of women. When state Sen. Affie Ellis, R-Cheyenne, ran for the Wyoming Legislature, she said just one other woman was serving in that capaci-
ty. In 2016, Ellis said, she took her daughter to a Senate debate, and her daughter asked if women were allowed to be in the Senate. “My daughter’s comments stuck with me and prompted me to run,” Ellis said, adding that now there are three women in the Wyoming Senate. Geography and the state’s setup as a citizen legislature can deter women from seeking office, both Ellis and Smith said. “Some of the things we’ve heard is that there are challenges in terms of geography and being able to commit to getting down there while still fulfilling family commitments,” Smith said. “That may keep us from getting parity in the Legislature.” Ellis echoed those concerns. She noted that another theory as to why women have a harder time getting elected is that Wyoming now has single-member districts whereas legislators used to be elected countywide. In addition, she said, the nature of the citizen legislature tends to favor retirees who can go to Cheyenne for one or two months of the year. “That’s difficult for a young person and for a young working mom in particular,” Ellis said. But, if Wyoming were to become a full-time legislature, representatives and senators would either need to leave their families or move to Cheyenne. “Those things aren’t ideal,” Ellis said, indicating that the citizen legislature is what works best in the state right now. “But it’s worth thinking about the barriers that prevent young people and women from seeking public office.” Ellis also pointed to other measurements of women being involved. For example, women have represented the state in the U.S. House since the mid-1990s. In addition, two of the five statewide elected officials are women. And more and more women, Ellis said, are serving on statewide and local boards and in local elected offices. When the WYWF and legislators begin talking about economic self-sufficiency for women in the state, the debate about the gender wage gap often arises.
Top: Wyoming Sen. Affie Ellis of Cheyenne Bottom: Rebekah Smith, director of the Wyoming Women’s Foundation
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. . . It’s worth thinking about the barriers that prevent young people and women from seeking public office.
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Sen. Affie Ellis
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A LOOK BACK AT WOMEN’S RIGHTS According to “The Wage Gap Between Wyoming’s Men and Women: 2016,” authored by Dr. Cathy Connolly of the University of Wyoming Gender and Women’s Studies Department, Wyoming ranks 49th in the nation for the wage gap. That means nearly all other states have better earning equality than Wyoming. “I think when we talk about the wage gap in Wyoming, the conversation definitely starts shifting toward what kind of occupations men have — meaning higher paying and in the energy sector — and the opportunities available for women,” Ellis said. Ellis added that as Wyoming seeks to diversify its economy with other kinds of jobs, it needs to consider jobs that both genders will gravitate toward. For example, as shopping shifts online and more distribution centers are needed for employers such as Amazon, a shift occurs. According to an article from 2017 in the Dallas Morning News, women hold about 60 percent of jobs at general merchandise stores but only about one-third of those at warehouses. As the state seeks to recruit different kinds of businesses — such as the manufacturing companies moving into or expanding in Sheridan — Ellis hopes leaders will consider pursuing industries that may employ more women. “Wyoming isn’t alone in those conversations,” Ellis said. “So we have to look at how we shift in the future. Some of those issues are difficult, but conversations can help raise awareness.” 28
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Ellis pointed to recent efforts by the Wyoming Legislature to require computer science courses in public schools as an example of a positive step, as those kinds of jobs can be equalizers in terms of pay. Smith noted some other steps Wyoming could take to live up to its moniker of the Equality State. She recommended establishing an equal pay office to help process claims regarding the issue. Smith said by establishing such an office the state could provide people access to resources to ensure they aren’t discriminated against and that they are doing everything they can to be a self-advocate. In addition, Smith hopes to raise awareness around self-sufficiency. “The women’s foundation headed up a renewal in the self-sufficiency standard,” Smith said, explaining that the standard calculates how much income families of various sizes and compositions need to make ends meet at a minimally adequate level without public or private assistance. “And that revealed the greatest risk to living below the self-sufficiency standard is to be a single woman, with children in particular.” Legislative leaders have taken positive steps to address some of the issues women in Wyoming face. In 2017, legislators requested a study be completed on the gender wage gap in the state. That study was released by the Department of Workforce Services in October 2018 and will likely be at the center of statewide discussions moving forward.
1839 In 1839, the first state (Mississippi) grants women the right to hold property in their own name, with their husbands’ permission. 1848 In 1848, in Seneca Falls, New York, more than 300 women and men signed the Declaration of Sentiments, a plea for the end of discrimination against women in all spheres of society. 1869 In 1869, the first Wyoming Territorial Assembly passed the Women’s Suffrage Act granting women the right to vote and hold public office in the territory. When Wyoming became a state in 1890, this right was written into Article 6 of the new constitution ensuring universal suffrage.
1870 The first women to serve on a jury in the U.S. were in Laramie for a grand jury sworn in on March 7, 1870. Women were also sworn in on a Petit Jury in Laramie in April 1870.
1894 Estelle Reel was elected Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1894, the first woman elected to a statewide office in Wyoming. She was the second woman in the nation to hold a statewide office, following Laura J. Eisenhuth of North Dakota in 1892. 1911 In 1911, Susan Wissler of Dayton was elected as the first female mayor in Wyoming. 1932 In 1932, the National Recovery Act forbade more than one family member from holding a government job, resulting in many women losing their jobs.
1920 In 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteed all American women the right to vote.
1963 In 1963, the Equal Pay Act is passed by Congress, promising equitable wages for the same work, regardless of the worker’s race, color, religion, national origin or sex. 1974 Until 1974, when the Equal Credit Opportunity Act was passed, women were not able to apply for credit. 1972 It wasn’t until 1972 that women could be recognized in the Boston Marathon.
1977 In 1977, a court recognized sexual harassment in the workplace. It wasn’t until 1980 that sexual harassment was officially defined by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
1978 Before the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, women could be fired if they were pregnant.
1994 In 1994, the Violence Against Women Act began funding services for victims of rape and domestic violence, allowing women to seek civil rights remedies for gender-related crimes, providing training to increase police and court officials’ sensitivity and a national 24-hour hotline for victims. The bill was reauthorized in 2005. 1981 In 1981, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that excluding women from the draft is unconstitutional. 2013 In 2013, the ban against women in military combat positions is removed. FA L L / W I NTE R 2018- 2019
Below: A row of townhomes is seen in the town of Ranchester.
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Affordable
HOUSING BY MICHAEL ILLIANO
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With EMIT, Vacutech, Weatherby, the VA, Kennon, the college — there is a huge need coming.
eople at every level of the community seem to recognize that Sheridan needs to create more affordable, or workforce, housing. The pending opening of Weatherby’s new manufacturing facility, combined with the expansion of local companies like EMIT, Vacutech and Kennon Products, means Sheridan will see an influx of employees from those companies in coming years. But Sheridan’s housing stock has not grown as fast as its industries, and if the community does not address that disparity, it will struggle to accommodate not just the growth that has already taken place but future growth as well. Robert Briggs, an administrator for the Sheridan Economic and Educational Development Authority, has said SEEDA, which has facilitated much of the industrial growth in the community, will be involved with finding a solution for the affordable housing demand as addressing it will be crucial to further economic growth. Briggs said the first step to solving the problem will be conducting a needs assessment that will precisely define the housing needs so that the community can develop strategies suited to meeting them. “We want to make sure we under-
Paul DelRossi stand and really get our arms around what that need looks like and not just rely on anecdotal descriptions or a partial picture,” Briggs said. The city’s community development director Brian Craig also said the needs assessment will be important for defining the scope of the problem but added that the city has heard from realtors that there is currently a shortage of houses that cost between $200,000 and $300,000. The city has faced a similar challenge before, but perhaps not on this scale. Marie Lowe, who is currently a real estate agent at Century 21 BHJ Realty, Inc., founded the Sheridan Housing Action Committee in 2004 in response to rising housing prices, caused largely by the regional coalbed methane boom, that were shutting out low-income residents. The nonprofit worked to facilitate the creation of affordable homes and help people purchase them until it disbanded in 2014. Briggs, who served as Sheridan’s community planning director from 2004 until 2017, said economic shifts lessened the demand for workforce housing around 2008. “In 2008, we started to see the effects of the recession in Sheridan,” Briggs said. “…There were some adjustments in the local housing mar-
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ket that occurred as part of that, and people maybe thought the (affordable housing) need was not as dire at that time and other issues moved to the forefront.” Lowe said the city’s current situation is nearing a crisis. Considering community groups are still working to define the affordable housing need, Briggs said it’s too soon to say for certain whether the current need is larger than the need from years ago, but considering the community’s growth, and the industries driving that growth, it wouldn’t surprise him if the scale of the need has increased. Lowe noted that she is confident the situation is solvable, but the solution is going to require a community-wide effort. “We all need to be part of the solution,” Lowe said. “We accomplished incredible things through SHAC as a team.”
CHALLENGES
While Sheridan’s growth is fueling the need for more workforce housing, it also poses a fundamental challenge to meeting that need. It’s a matter of supply and demand: More people are moving to Sheridan and looking to build homes in Sheridan, which drives up the value of land.
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Above: A row of houses is seen in the Woodland Park subdivision.
With that higher demand comes a higher opportunity cost for developers who would take on workforce housing projects. Paul DelRossi, a developer with North Fork Partners, said higher-cost projects bring in larger profits and developers will, understandably, look to maximize their profits. “Builders have a chance to build a $500,000 house where they could make 10 or 15 or 20 percent, or they can build a $150,000 house and be lucky to walk away with $10,000,” DelRossi said. And though at some point the market will be saturated with higher-priced units, making them more difficult to sell and eliminating the incentive to build more, Sheridan likely cannot afford to wait that long. “With EMIT, Vacutech, Weatherby, the VA, Kennon, the college — there is a huge need coming,” DelRossi said. “And if I were to say there are 50 units needed, that isn’t spread out over five years, it’s 50 needed right away.” Additionally, assuming there were local developers available to take on workforce housing projects, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to keep the price of the houses within the necessary price range due to high-base costs. Jane Clark, who co-owns ERA Carroll Realty, said construction in Sheridan is simply more expensive than it is elsewhere in the country. Transporting building materials to Sheridan, which is not located along any major routes, tacks on costs. Wyoming weather also makes construction more costly. Houses, and their materials, need to be able 32
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to withstand temperatures ranging from 20 below to higher than 100 degrees, which means they need to include heating, cooling and extra insulation. New developments also have a set of fees attached that remain constant regardless of the size of the development. A new house needs to be connected to the city’s water and sewer systems and the city charges fees to cover the costs of extending that infrastructure. But with lower-cost developments, margins are slimmer and those fees prove to be more significant. “When you’re looking at spending half-a-million dollars on a house, having $7,000 in fees is nothing,” Lowe said. “But if you want to sell a house for $190,000, that $7,000 is a big deal.” Tap fees let the city maintain and upgrade its water and sewer systems, but Lowe said charging a standardized tap fee hurts smaller developments that place less strain on the systems than larger projects. All of those factors combined have led Lowe to conclude that it is unlikely Sheridan will be able to address its workforce housing shortage by building new units. “I don’t think it’s possible to build a new house — even if it’s 1,000 square feet, two bedroom, two bath (or) three bedroom, three bath — for under $225,000, and that would be pushing it,” Lowe said. Clark has come to a similar conclusion. “The traditional building methods probably aren’t going to work,” Clark said.
SOLUTIONS When Lowe was working with SHAC, she said many of the developments the organization worked on were infill projects, which use vacant or underdeveloped land in already developed communities, essentially filling gaps between existing houses. Those properties are already connected to water and sewer infrastructure, so new houses don’t have to pay the city to extend it. Craig said he believes infill projects could be part of the housing solution in Sheridan, and that he and members of city staff are looking through city building codes for ways to better accommodate infill projects, such as reducing set-backs or making allowances for greater lot density in some cases. Infill projects, though, are what Craig called a “small-scale solution” — the number of lots available for infill are limited. Developing large-scale solutions will require input from the entire community. The city, after all, is not going to develop housing; that will come through partnerships with other entities Craig said the city’s role will likely be facilitating, rather than implementing, housing solutions. “Our role is making sure the infrastructure is there and creating the venue for these opportunities to happen,” Craig said. “ [But] the city of Sheridan, and the staff here, also believe we have a role in community building, making sure we get all the right people at the table and that effective and productive communication happens.” FA L L / W I NTE R 2018- 2019
That approach is similar to the one that allowed SHAC to be successful, Lowe said. “SHAC was a committee of realtors, bankers, some retired financial people, contractors,” Lowe said. “We were able to figure out some collaboration and solutions by the fact that we had all these different people from different perspectives coming together to talk about it.” Lowe also believes she has part of the solution to Sheridan’s housing shortage figured out. She explained that there are small houses scattered throughout the city that are being rented or are currently vacant and need significant work, but if renovated, could serve as workforce housing stock. Even if the houses require $15,000 to $30,000 worth of renovation, Lowe believes they could be sold for less than $200,000. “Our solution is right here down every street in town,” Lowe said. Additionally, Lowe said the city could free up even more affordable housing stock by creating more senior housing in the city. She suspects that there are dozens of seniors currently living in homes that have become too difficult for them to maintain, but they stay because they don’t have an alternative. Building new senior housing would not face the same cost barriers as lowcost housing units because most senior housing consists of multi-family rental units, which allow the building owner to recoup costs due to the scale of the operation. Lowe believes if seniors had the option to move into smaller, more manageable housing, they would be willing to sell homes that could in turn be used to address workforce housing needs. Of course, Lowe’s suggestions are theoretical. Putting them into action will require funding and logistical planning, which Lowe said will require widespread collaboration. “It’s a community decision how we solve it,” Lowe said.
RETURN ON INVESTMENT
Whichever solution, or combination of solutions, the community decides on will require an investment to implement. Part of the return on that investment will be indirect — the housing will support business growth which contributes to broader economic development in the city and county. But investing in workforce housing could provide more concrete returns as well. In fact, if the community is going to develop a sustainable solution to its workforce housing needs, it will have to find a way to realize tangible returns.
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Pictured: Since its construction, the Woodland Park subdivision has returned the county’s investment through property taxes and an expanded tax base.
“It has to be on the basis of a real business model, not a welfare model,” DelRossi said. The Woodland Park subdivision, a local affordable housing development that Clark partnered on the development of, offers an example of the kinds of returns affordable housing can provide. “It was a project that returned every dime and more,” Clark said. “And it’s continually returning money to the state, county and city.” Woodland Park received $540,541 from the State Loan and Investment Board in 2008, which was applied as no-interest, no-monthly-payment liens on lots in the subdivision, as well as $211,741 from Sheridan County. The city also extended sewer infrastructure to the nearby Woodland Park Trailer Park, which allowed the subdivision to connect to the city sewer network. Since its completion in 2009, the 50-lot subdivision has generated significant revenue for the city, county and state. Before the project, the Woodland Park subdivision generated approximately $1,800 in property taxes annually. Since its development, Woodland Park homeowners pay $170,452 in property taxes annually and have paid $855,782 in property taxes to date. The development also generated $355,574.58 for the city in building permit fees, $388,700 in water fees and
$350,750 in sewer fees, which amounts to more than $1 million in revenue realized by the city. According to the county assessor, the Woodland Park project has added $25,094,191 to the sales tax base through 2017.
NEXT STEPS
Briggs said he expects workforce housing and the implementation of the housing needs study to be a focus of SEEDA’s October meeting. He expects there will be a commitment of resources to that study this fall and acknowledged that SEEDA, and its partners, will have to move quickly in acting on the study. “I think there is an urgency, and I think that is being communicated both by stakeholders in the community and by the elected officials and representation on the SEEDA board,” Briggs said. As part of a rough timeline, Briggs hopes the community will have a game plan in place by the spring or summer 2019. That timeline will require all parties involved to work quickly. If the community can devise a way to provide more affordable housing, Woodland Park, and the issue’s relationship to economic growth, seem to indicate the investment would pay for itself. But making that initial investment is going to require the entire community to buy in. FA L L / W I NTE R 2018- 2019
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Left: Sheridan’s Hanns Mercer pauses for a photo before the skijoring race in Sundance. Courtesy photo | Jessica Deering
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ADDICTION
to live BY ASHLEIGH FOX
ADVENTURERS WEIGH RISKS, REWARDS OF OUTDOOR EXCURSIONS
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It almost becomes an addiction to live. The reward: It’s a fulfillment of life mixed with a cocktail of adrenaline.
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Hanns Mercer
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ccess to the mountains, plains, rivers and caves entice adventurers into the elements to accomplish one goal — to live life fully. Each outdoor activity comes with its share of rewards and risks. Some prefer taking trips with minimal danger. Others opt for activities with maximum risk, leading them to push the limits each time.
BE PREPARED
Hanns Mercer, Lorraine Lehman and Anthony and Jenny Aiello cover the spectrum of outdoor experiences. Mercer earns the title of riskiest of the four adven-
turers, with the Aiellos coming in at a normal-to-accelerated level of outdoorsy for the Sheridan area. Lehman fits in the middle as one who thinks about her “yes” to a risky descent on a caving trip when she is already an hour deep into a hole. All three levels have one thing in common before they go out — preparation. Mercer started out as a downhill skier as a young child and progressed as an adult into paragliding, snow kiting, skijoring, caving and nailing carp with a bow and arrow while atop a jet ski. His main sport of paragliding requires hours of poring over variables affecting the glide before floating among the clouds.
Above: Liz Schneider and her horse Sugar pull Sheridan’s Hanns Mercer during the skijoring event in Sundance. Courtesy photo | Jessica Deering
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Weather, functional equipment, changes in air pressure and wind patterns are all important variables Mercer must research, consider and plan for before choosing to jump off the ledge. “We try to minimize our risk by using the safety approach,” Mercer said. “Every little variable you can get rid of to fly. If some of those don’t work out, you have to stand up and say, ‘No, I’m not going to take the risk today,’ and sometimes that’s not easy to do.” Mercer started slow until he reached levels of high risk in paragliding. “You start out with baby steps; nice, gentle flights off of a 50-foot hill,” Mercer said. “It seems like you can manage that risk really well and it’s a good reward. Then you grow and grow and grow and as your comfort zone comes into there, you exceed your comfort zone again.” Lehman experienced a similar push to go beyond her comfort zone, but instead of in the sky, she chose to drop deep into the darkness.
Above: Lorraine Lehman and Savannah Sawyer stand at the entrance of Tongue River Cave on Lehman’s first trip into the cave in 2015. Courtesy photo | Lorraine Lehman
TIPS TO BE PREPARED
DRESS ACCORDINGLY: • • • •
Wool socks Rain gear Sun shade Layers
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FUEL THE ADVENTURE • Water • Maps • Dehydrated meals
• • • •
• High-energy snacks • Nuts, granola, dried fruits, trail mix
PREP THE PACK:
Fire starters First-aid kit Solid waste bags SPOT satellite messenger device
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Before fully descending into the caving world, Lehman — now an avid caver and leader of the Hole in the Wall Grotto based in Wyoming — chose to take wilderness first aid, complete National Cave Rescue Commission trainings, exercise to maintain endurance for caving trips and join a local grotto, or caving, group. “It’s a lot more rewarding when your body’s prepared,” Lehman said. By adequately preparing for caving, Lehman has wiggled her way out of some sticky situations. “One thing caving teaches you is that your body can do amazing things,” Lehman said. “I’ve gotten myself out of stuff where I didn’t know if I could get out of there.” Instituting the rule of three — three people per group and three light sources per person — helped Lehman remain calm and help herself and others through challenging cave experiences. The Aiellos do not need much time before heading off on a backpacking adventure with their dogs, but thinking ahead and being prepared are the first two things they keep on their list each time they plan a trip. “We know our limits,” Jenny Aiello said. “We’ll push them a little bit, but we’re not going to go and pretend we know how to…” “We’re not going to get in over our head on purpose,” Anthony Aiello finished for his wife. Assessing the skill level of each member of the group — pets included — helps keep everyone involved safe and cognizant if ever they need to turn around.
WHEN RISK PREVAILS
Mercer often toys with the level of risk he is willing to take, whether in a sport he has close to mastered or a new event like skijoring. Tour buses will pass by Sand Turn, where Mercer and his friends start their paragliding adventures, often calling them “crazy” and watching them jump off the cliff in awe. Mercer’s high-performance wing prevented catastrophe during a close call in the sky, but his friend and fellow extreme sport athlete, Leon Schatz, came even closer to tragedy. A common goal for the duo is to chill the beer in their backpacks
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by skimming the base of the clouds. The danger of that is the potential of the wind sucking the pilot into the clouds. The risk becomes especially dangerous in a thunderstorm, which Schatz found himself nearing during a trip with Mercer. Fortunately, his experience paid off and he avoided a tumultuous trip through the barreling cumulonimbus clouds overhead. Despite the close calls, Mercer continues to test the limits of his ability.
MOVING BEYOND THE NORM
One reason people head outdoors is to experience the “now” or buy into the idea that “you only live once.” “You reach a point in your life when you do the same thing over and over. You make the same decisions, you order the same meal at the same restaurant every time…and I felt like I wasn’t living,” Mercer said. “That’s pushed me into doing something.” Mercer quoted Neale Donald Walsch who said, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Most adventurers have experienced life outside of their comfort zones. What pushed them beyond were the times where the reward during or after the experience outweighed the risk it took to get there. For the Aiellos, the destination and getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city makes it worth the risks taken along the way. “The destination is what makes it worth it,” Anthony Aiello said. “I did a day trip up to Fortress Lakes to catch golden trout — it was a 17mile round trip day hike — and I went up there to fish for an hour... and it was totally worth it.” For Lehman while caving, the beauty of the landscape hidden deep within tight crevasses and tiny holes makes it worth the risk. “I’m constantly being amazed by the formations,” Lehman said. “Getting to them is sometimes a challenge, so it’s so rewarding to find that cave and see what’s inside of it.” For Mercer, the chance to really feel alive keeps him pressing toward the next extreme sport. “It almost becomes an addiction to live,” Mercer said. “The reward: It’s a fulfillment of life mixed with a cocktail of adrenaline.”
EXTREME SPORTS IN SHERIDAN: • Skateboarding • Mountain biking • Caving • Slacklining • Rock climbing • Free climbing • Mountaineering • Waterskiing • Wakeboarding • Paddle boarding • Kayaking • Jetskiing • Cliff jumping • Snowboarding • Skiing • Ice climbing • Snowmobiling • Snow kiting • Paragliding
Courtesy photo | Jon Snoozy
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The great OUTDOORS IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR SOME OUTDOOR FUN, HERE ARE A FEW LOCAL TIPS.
ICE FISHING
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or some, the idea of sitting outside in thee cold and wind, waiting for a fish to bite,, sounds miserable. But for others, that ac-tivity is living the dream. For those hop-ing the fish will bite when the ice freezes, plentyy of opportunities exist in the area to cast a line. Popular spots include Lake De Smet off Inter-d state 90 just north of Buffalo at exits 44, 47 and m 51; Kleenburn Pond just north of Sheridan; Sam Mavrakis Pond in the city limits; and lakes in thee Bighorn Mountains and just across the state linee in Montana. Make sure you check weather forecasts and icee thickness before you wander into the cold.
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Monty Walter scoops floaters out of his ice hole while ice fishing at Lake De Smet.
SLEDDING
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hen the white stuff flies, so do sleds down local hills. Laughter, sore rear ends and sprays of snow are sure to be the results of a fun day. One of the most popular spots in the city to sled is Linden Hill near downtown Sheridan. It’s near the Child Development Center on the corner of Whitney and Jefferson streets. Another popular spot is the hill on the west side of the creek in Thorne-Rider Park. For those willing to trek up the Bighorns, the “Arrowhead Bowl” is also a hot spot for sledding fun. Just head up U.S. Highway 14 outside of Dayton; you’ll see the sledding spot shortly after you pass Arrowhead Lodge. So, suit up and head outside.
Left: Jacob Alicke gets some air under his sled at Linden Hill.
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SNOWSHOEING AND CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING
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any avid hikers switch to cross-country skiis or snowshoes when the snow covers the trails. The Bighorns offer a number of nonmotorized trails for those seeking quiet. There are three off U.S. Highway 14 west of Dayton and three off U.S. Highway 16 west of Buffalo. Trails are typically open December through May. Grooming is done by volunteers, so consider donating to the Black Mountain Nordic Club if you head up the hill often. Closer to town, the pathways in South Park also offer adventurers opportunities to strap up and head outside.
Left: Melisa Phillips, left, and mother, Francy Hoyer, trek up the Sibley Lake trail in the Bighorn Mountains west of Dayton.
SNOWMOBILING
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or those seeking a little more power behind their outdoor adventure, snowmobiling offers the chance to cover plenty of ground in the winter months. For many eastern enthusiasts, the Bighorn Mountains are the closest mountains to explore, offering trails and powder. The northern Bighorns offer approximately 220 miles of trails and have been rated in SnoWest magazine’s Top 15. Lodges in the Bighorns offer a home base for those seeking to warm their toes, and plenty of businesses in town offer all the gear you need to power up.
Right: Tori Houston, left, and Dereck Martini, of Gillette, drive across the snow near Bear Lodge Resort.
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ICE CLIMBING
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hile Wyoming’s Tensleep Canyon boasts climbers of all skill levels, a canyon closer to Sheridan boasts some willing to put their sport on ice. Climbers in the Bighorn Mountains will tackle Shell Canyon in the winter, when ice covers the canyon walls. Other towns in Wyoming may be more popular ice climbing spots — like Cody or Bozeman, Montana — but Shell Canyon offers a quick taste of the challenge.
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Outdoor education student Josh Fass belays as a student ascends an ice formation during the ice climbing class at Post Creek Campground in Shell Canyon of the Bighorn Mountains.
DOWNHILL SKIING
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n of the most popular local ski hills — Meadowlark ne S Ski Lodge — can be found in the southern Bighorn M Mountains west of Buffalo. The facility offers two li lifts and 14 runs for a variety of abilities. For those will llin ing g to make ma their way up the hills without the help of a lift, willing nume merous back-country ba numerous skiing options exist. Soo So on, organizers org Soon, say, Antelope Butte Mountain Recreation Arrea m ay of Area may offer lift service for skiers, too. Otherwise, locals ofteen head he to Jackson or north to Red Lodge, Montana, or Big ten R sort northwest Re n Skyy Resort of Yellowstone National Park for their down wnh hill skiing skii treks. downhill
LLeft: eft: A ski lift l sits empty at Antelope Butte Mountain Recreation Area. Courtesy photo.
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Planning for a future DOWNTOWN BY MICHAEL ILLIANO
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heridan’s downtown has become a thriving commercial hub that showcases the city’s history while featuring dozens of stores, restaurants, artwork and cafes for shoppers to explore. As both a tourist attraction and an amenity for residents, downtown is one of the city’s major assets. Despite the district’s richness, though, Sheridan’s downtown is going to have to change, and soon. An impending combination of market trends, demographic shifts and physical renovations will transform the city’s downtown in the near future. How the community responds to that reality will decide whether that transformation is for better or worse.
FORCES OF CHANGE
Above: A commercial space for lease is located on South Sheridan Avenue.
left: Main Street businesses are reflected in a storefront window.
The Wyoming Department of Transportation will tear up Main Street, from Burkitt to Dow streets, as part of a pavement resurfacing project in 2023. The city of Sheridan has launched an initiative, the Downtown Sheridan Streetscape Project, to explore ways the city can make improvements to downtown in conjunction with that resurfacing. When consultants from Charlier Associates, a transportation planning firm, and Community Builders, a nonprofit community consulting firm, visited Sheridan in April to assist with the streetscape project, they concluded that though Sheridan’s downtown was thriving, it would have to adapt to remain that way. The consultants said the challenges posed to Sheridan’s downtown will likely result from two approaching trends. The first is the increasing prevalence of online shopping, which
takes more customers from brickand-mortar businesses each year. P.J. Treide, who owns Bighorn Design Studio, has also expressed concern about the impact online shopping can have on downtown retail businesses. He warned that 150,000 small-town retail jobs have disappeared in the last three years and Sheridan will feel that impact as well if it doesn’t adapt. The second trend the consultants said downtown will have to contend with is an older group of business owners, many of whom will likely retire in coming years and force the downtown to adjust to the loss of established businesses as well as the potential for more vacant storefronts. Solutions to those challenges have to be intertwined. Luring shoppers away from online outlets will require an active and vibrant downtown that includes a dynamic group of businesses. That will require the city to establish itself as an attractive destination for businesses and avoid vacant store fronts, which limit downtown activity and represent unrealized city resources. Making downtown attractive to businesses returns to maintaining an effective business community.
PLACE MAKING
The recommendations the streetscape consultants made to secure downtown’s future largely centered around placemaking, which would attempt to create downtown attractions that could pull shoppers away from their computers and encourage them to spend more time downtown. Much of the discussion about the streetscape project has centered on placemaking strategies as a result.
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Left: Hats are embroidered under a Tajima machine at Bighorn Design.
Right: Traffic moves across the intersection of Main and Loucks streets.
Sandy Baird, a local architect and planner who sits on several community development organizations, said the solution is creating more downtown amenities, such as more sidewalk seating, outdoor retail displays or more outdoor event space. The key, Baird said, will be making downtown more attractive to pedestrians. “When I say more attractive, I don’t just mean beautiful, I mean a more desirable place,” Baird said. “We have to make Main Street a destination to be, not just a place to shop. That takes space.” The city could look to side streets to create that space, or use portable sidewalk extensions, which are known as “parklets” and are placed in parking stalls to temporarily create more sidewalk space. However, Baird said he believes the most effective way to create more space would be expanding sidewalks on Main Street. “I’m not aware of any other single thing that we could do to make Main Street more pedestrian friendly, other than expand our sidewalks, which are now too narrow to accommodate their optimum function,” Baird said. “The space next to a (storefront) is no man’s land for walking, but valuable space for small tables, for clothes racks, and so on and so forth.” The streetscape draft plan, which the consultants submitted to the city, made similar suggestions, but the methods laid out in the report have proven divisive within the community. Significantly expanding sidewalks would require the city to reduce the number of traffic lanes on Main Street. In the streetscape plan, the consultants offer several different options for the city to consider, but the configuration that
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would result in the most significant lane reduction, and so the largest sidewalk expansion, would reduce Main Street to two traffic lanes, with a third turn-lane at intersections. That suggestion, however, inspired a flood of public backlash, mostly through social media, shortly after the draft plan was created, and the city publicly declared that option was off the table.
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We have to make Main Street a destination to be, not just a place to shop. That takes space.
Sandy Baird
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Baird, though, believes that decision was premature. “Increasing the pedestrian friendliness of downtown Sheridan is the greatest thing that we can do for this city,” Baird said. Reducing the lanes would require the city to first conduct a traffic study and prove that the move would not create traffic clogs. Baird said it would be foolish to dismiss lane reductions without formally exploring the effects of the change. He fears the streetscape project may prove to be the city’s last best chance to change course. “If we don’t take the opportunity during this project to do whatever we can do to make the Main Street more pedestrian friendly…then we won’t revisit
this scale of a project for at least the next two generations,” Baird said. The city is also considering the possibility of restructuring Grinnell Plaza to create more downtown pedestrian space. The extent of that restructuring, however, is still up for discussion. Baird and Treide, whose business borders the plaza, have supported an option that would close Grinnell Plaza to vehicle traffic completely, opening it for more seating and event space. Other businesses have expressed concern, though, that eliminating parking in front of the stores surrounding Grinnell Plaza would hurt those businesses. Theresa Rice, owner of Java Moon, on the other hand, said she thinks improving traffic flow and creating more parking downtown, not reducing lanes, are the most important goals for the streetscape project. “The comment I have heard is people want to come downtown, they want to grab their friends and have coffee, have lunch, and be together…but when they can’t park, or have trouble doing that, that is the difficulty,” Rice said. Though Java Moon is not a retail business, and therefore won’t be directly affected by trends like online shopping, its business will be affected by overall downtown activity. “We are a tight community, so if (other stores) see less people coming downtown, it’s going to affect me,” Rice said. “And if people aren’t drinking coffee, it’s going to affect them. It kind of goes hand-in-hand.” Discussions are ongoing, but the community has yet to settle on a solution. WYDOT will expect the city to provide a formal plan for the streetscape project within the next year, so the community will have to choose a path forward soon.
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SPECIAL ADVERTISING CONTENT
BUSINESS IMPROVEMENTS Downtown businesses don’t necessarily have to wait for, or rely on, structural changes, however. Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce CEO Dixie Johnson said evolving downtown does not mean overhauling it; the city can look to build on what is already working. “I think we already have a great downtown, so I think we have to be really careful that we don’t think the next greatest thing is going to benefit us,” Johnson said. “We have to understand that maybe what we have can keep benefiting us… but I do think we are really going to have to encourage businesses to expand what they already offer.” Treide, for instance, has had success supplementing his physical business with a robust online presence. That presence involves online marketing and engagement, particularly through social media, as well selling products online. The online business and brick-and-mortar business have proven to be mutually reinforcing — the online and social media presence has led to more customers visiting Bighorn Design Studio, but the store can also function as a living bill-
board and encourage pedestrians to make purchases online later. There is an education component as well. Johnson said her organization tries to communicate the importance of shopping locally whenever possible. If more residents buy in to that message, they could amount to a more consistent customer base for local businesses. Johnson also said the community can look to solve vacant storefronts or business turnovers through education and by utilizing some of the resources already present in the community. Young entrepreneurs could contribute to the future of Sheridan’s downtown, but in order to encourage entrepreneurship, Johnson said the community will have to present retail ownership as a viable, and fruitful, career option through education, in addition to featuring successful retail businesses as models. She added that the community and aspiring entrepreneurs can take advantage of resources like the Small Business Development Center and the Wyoming Technology Business Center. Downtown businesses could also benefit from more residents living along Main Street.
Both Baird and Johnson also said that creating spaces for people to live downtown and along Main Street could provide downtown businesses with a steady stream of customers, particularly during winter months when tourism dips. Baird and Johnson both suggested that businesses and property owners explore opportunities to create housing or apartments above downtown businesses. “If we can get a critical mass of population actually living on Main Street, it will not only increase the vibrancy year-round, but it can also entice shops to perhaps stay open later,” Baird said. Ensuring the future of the city’s downtown will probably entail some combination of the proposed solutions and include solutions that haven’t been proposed publicly yet. All of the community stakeholders will have to decide on a coherent strategy for Sheridan’s downtown; the worst thing the community can do is nothing. The challenges facing Sheridan are significant, but they are also solvable. If Sheridan responds as a community, the daunting trends facing its businesses could become chances for the city to make its downtown stronger.
ACCENTS
of Wyoming Accents of Wyoming has long been a staple in downtown Sheridan. In true Wyoming style, there is a smile for all customers as they walk in the door, as well as a sincere thank-you when they leave. While known for its log furniture, the store is growing beyond its iconic wares. If you haven’t visited for a while, be sure to check it out at 250 N. Main St. Accents of Wyoming will always carry the log furniture, of course. But it also has reclaimed wood furniture, many gifts, home décor and more. Over the two-floor store, browse an array of bedding, lighting, kitchen and bath items, Wyoming-made favorites, souvenirs, pajamas and beyond! If you know what you want — and even if you don’t! — we can help you find just the right thing. For those who haven’t visited the store yet, prepare yourself. Many who see Accents of Wyoming are very pleasantly shocked. You’re gonna love it. Like the sign out front says, “Quite possibly the coolest. store. ever!” Come on in, we dare ya! We’ll wait here for you!
SPONSORED CONTENT PAID FOR BY ACCENTS OF WYOMING
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SURVIVING AND THRIVING
in a changing world BY BUD DENEGA
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hen heading east through Dayton, the first thing a passerby sees crossing the Tongue River is a big redand-white sign equipped with a large yellow arrow. The arrow points toward the Foothills Motel and Campground, which dates back nearly a century when the town housed fewer than half the people it does today. Upon entering the property, travelers are welcomed by an older couple that have waved, smiled and accommodated people for 35 years. Lea and Marshall Hood have weathered harsh winters, highs and lows within the tourism industry and a changing customer base. And they’re not alone in that battle. Peter Schutte, who had owned and operated Peter D’s RV Park for 17 years in Sheridan, has updated his establishment to better fit his changing customer base. The Hoods and Schutte moved into the shadow of the Bighorn Mountains with similar goals. Both Marshall Hood and Schutte worked for larger cooperations outside of the county but wanted a chance to run their own show. “I wanted to be my own boss,” said Marshall Hood, who worked in the energy business. “I was sick and tired telling people what to do, and unless the mine comes up with some more ore, we are not going to make it. You get tired of doing that.
“So I thought, ‘Hey I think I can do a better job on my own.’” The Foothills Motel and Campground was for sale listed at $175,000. The Hoods drove up from New Mexico, stayed in a tent onsite for a few nights and within a week knew this was the right move to make.
INTERESTING FACTS: Oldest campgrounds in Wyoming: 1. Deep Park, Buffalo, 39 years 2. Foothills Motel and Campground, Dayton, 35 years The Foothills Motel and Campground is the longest consecutively owned business in Dayton.
Interstate 90 had just been completed in the Ranchester area, and many of the construction workers lived at Foothills for the working months. With that busi-
ness gone, Marshall and Lea Hood had to swiftly find a way to get the word out about their place. “People weren’t coming because they knew they couldn’t get a spot,” Marshall Hood said. “It took a while to rebuild the business.” It took the Hoods a few years to find their niche within the tourism game, and slowly but surely people found the motel and campground as a nice place to stay. Business began to grow and in 1988, Marshall Hood expected a banner year. Hood anticipated many people hitting the road and traveling, especially to places such as Yellowstone National Park. However, the park endured the worst recorded fire in its history that summer and closed its gates. Tourists elected to travel elsewhere, making for a very slow and in large part unsuccessful summer for the Foothills. “The fire wiped the place pretty hard and the tourist business too,” Marshall Hood said. “We had to go through a rebuild after that.” Foothills has since found its footing with an older crowd, mostly through word of mouth while still making modern advancements to keep up with an ever-changing world. The Hoods recently created a website, which is precisely how John Heinricy and his wife found the place as they traveled across the country from Michigan in an RV.
Left:
Lea and Marshall Hood have owned and operated the Foothills Motel and Campground for 35 years. WWW.DESTINATIONSHERIDAN.COM
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We were just looking for a place along the way, and I kind of like to find small-town campgrounds.
John Heinricy
“We were just looking for a place along the way, and I kind of like to find small-town campgrounds,” Heinricy said. “We found this on the internet and called them up and they had places so we pulled in here. The appealing things you can see on the internet is it’s right by the river, and it has a nice old little downtown, so we enjoyed that. And obviously the view of the Bighorns from here is awesome.” Schutte moved to Sheridan County to attract travelers similar to Heinricy. He understood Sheridan’s advantageous location when it comes to the RV crowd. “It is centrally located. People are either going to Mt. Rushmore or they’re going to Yellowstone (National Park) or they’re going to Glacier (National Park),” Schutte said. “… The freeway system here was right in the right amount of mileage that people like to drive each day.” Schutte’s establishment, much like the Hoods, appeals to an older crowd looking for a clean and quiet environment. Schutte doesn’t have a pool or a game room, just the essentials such as a bathhouse,
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cable, laundry and, of course, Wi-Fi. “That’s the first thing people want to know, ‘What’s your password?’ Schutte said. “We’ve had to improve our Wi-Fi every year almost. Everybody wants Wi-Fi.” Schutte has accomplished the goals he set when he left Greybull nearly two decades ago. He doesn’t try and compete with Walmart or city parks, where travelers can stay for free — he’s done well enough to where he hasn’t had to. The Hoods are very similar in that regard. They appreciate the groups and people that return to the Foothills year in and year out, and that’s the reason they’ve stuck around for 35 years. “One of the main reasons we keep going right now is the people keep coming back,” Marshall Hood said. “You meet jerks everywhere in the world, but far and away the majority of people are nice folks — nice people that are just enjoyable to be around. We get some that come in for one day or a week, and you smile when they come in. It’s like relatives.”
From Top: The Foothills Motel and Campground has many riverside campground sites.
Lea Hood is from Casper and worked at a motel in Glenrock before moving to Dayton with her husband, Marshall. Marshall Hood used to work in the mining business. The Foothills Motel and Campground has eight motel and cabin rooms. 54
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COMMUNITY OF
STORY
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estled into the foothills and forests of the Bighorn Mountains, Story gives its residents a sense of seclusion and peace other areas in the county don’t. A small elementary school, which recently celebrated its 60th anniversary, serves as a hub for the community that also boasts a library, woman’s club and other service-focused organizations. Each year the community hosts Story Days, a weekend celebration of the mountain town, and a community Thanksgiving dinner, which typically has a line that stretches down the block. Take a drive around the shaded streets and say hello.
Right: Cars make their way up the road during the 29th annual Story Days Parade in Story.
COMMUNITY OF
BIG HORN
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hile small, Big Horn boasts a proud and busy community. At its center are half of the Sheridan County School District 1 schools. The downtown area also includes a mercantile that serves up wood-fired pizzas, other restaurants and bars, a woman’s club, event center and more. Outside of the community’s center, two polo clubs draw crowds throughout the summer, and The Brinton Museum offers up first-class art collections and events. Big Horn also serves as a gateway to the Bighorn Mountains. The community sits on the foothills of the range, offering up breathtaking views and endless opportunities up Red Grade Road such as ATV riding, snowmobiling, hiking, cycling and more.
Left: The Brinton Museum is located near Big Horn.
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TOWN OF
CLEARMONT
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ecluded on the eastern edge of Sheridan County, Clearmont was once a bustling terminal for cattle and other western goods. While primarily an agricultural community, the drive to Clearmont alone is worth the effort. Beyond the panoramic views, hunting opportunities and wide open spaces, Clearmont also boasts a small café — The Clear Creek Stop — and a historic jail, built in 1922 for $827. The jail is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. Clearmont is also home to the Ucross Foundation, which serves as a haven and residency program for artists. Stop by for a peek into the gallery and enjoy the views.
Left: The Branding Iron Park is located in Clearmont. TOWN OF
RANCHESTER
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his small town has been growing, adding more houses to its ranks as families look for quiet homes and a tight-knit community. The Ranchester Information Center boasts an intricate diorama of the Connor Battle, also known as the Battle of the Tongue River. In addition, Ranchester is home to a mercantile, community center and several other businesses that serve locals and visitors alike. Plus, the local park offers entertainment for the family.
Right: Mason Eckstein, left, and Kallan Caywood play on the pier at the pond in Ranchester.
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TOWN OF
DAYTON
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erving as a gateway to the Bighorn Mountains, Dayton boasts access to Tongue River Canyon and U.S. Highway 14, which provide access to some of the mountains most popular destinations, including Steamboat Point, mountain lodges and more. Also within miles of town, the Amsden Creek Wildlife Habitat Management Area offers unrouted exploration and the potential to view elk and mule deer, though the area is closed in the winter to provide crucial winter range for a variety of big game animals. Dayton’s downtown provides visitors and locals alike with options for wining and dining, as well as some shopping. Plus, the Hans Kleiber Studio Museum also offers a look at the art and studio space of one of the area’s most renowned artists. Kleiber was a U.S. Forest Service ranger inspired by the majesty of the Bighorns to write poetry and sketch with pencils and ink.
Right: The Dayton sign welcomes visitors to the community.
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LIVING AND WORKING
in a mountain pass BY BUD DENEGA
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rowing up, Dave Johnson had one dream profession — work for the Wyoming Highway Department at Burgess Junction in the middle of the Bighorn National Forest. He realized that dream and has spent the last 37 years helping to make U.S. Highway 14 and 14A passable and as safe as possible for outdoor enthusiasts. “When I hired on, my dad had spent 15 years with the department, and I thought, ‘Man, for someone to work for the same outfit for 15 years, you’ve got to be crazy,’” Johnson recalled. “Who’s crazy now?” Johnson moved atop the mountain in 1984. Before that, living on the mountain stood as one of the more sought-after jobs within the maintenance department, and, as a result, individuals were only hired for five-year stints. When Johnson and his wife moved to the maintenance camp, the area featured modular homes where the crew stayed. Permanent homes have since replaced the mobile homes, housing the crew and families year round.
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Above: Most of Dave Johnson’s job revolves around snow removal. Left: U.S. Highway 14 ascends just west of Dayton and descends near the town of Shell.
Johnson’s kids attended Camp Bethel for elementary school before getting bussed to Ranchester and Dayton for middle and high school. While living in isolation on a mountain can prove difficult, frustrating and unsettling at times, Johnson wholeheartedly believes his two children benefited from the lifestyle in which cellphone service wasn’t a priority. “I don’t think any kid growing up on the mountain was negatively affected,” Johnson said. “… It’s a wonderful place to raise kids, but you’ve also got to know and be aware that they have to have some so-
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cial activity. Both my kids participated in band and a lot of early, before-school activities. They benefited from being in town for school and things like that, but yet they had the culture of being able to live up here and enjoy the mountains.” Johnson has certainly enjoyed his years in the Bighorns. He’s seen and worked firsthand with U.S. Highway 14 improvements on nearly every portion of the mountain. From 1999 to 2012, the highway underwent reconstruction in three separate sections, and Johnson helped in all three.
We have a long snow season and a shorter fix-it season.
Tom Anderson
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In 1999, Burgess Junction received a redesign, the road east to Camp Bethel was widened and many of the turns were sunlight. The section of road around and east of Sibley Lake was rerouted out of the wetland area. Finally, the section of road in the Steamboat Rock area underwent a complete redesign. Johnson had many assignments during the aforementioned improvements. He helped pave, direct traffic and build fences, among other tasks. In the summer months, when the mountain passes don’t need much work, Johnson and his coworkers travel down to Sheridan County towns to aid in typical roadwork. But they don’t stay off the mountain long. “We have a long snow season and a shorter fix-it season,” said Tom Anderson, another crew member at Burgess Junction. Sheridan has summer months from, let’s call it May 1 to November. Our snow can start in August and run until May, so we only have maybe three or four months where we might not have to plow snow.” Much of the maintenance crew’s job revolves around snow removal. In a typical winter schedule, Johnson or another crew member wakes at 4 a.m. to begin a snow-plowing route. The route starts at Burgess Junction, goes east all the way to the city of Dayton, south to Antelope
Butte and west to the Medicine Wheel turnout. One run for a snowplow driver can take anywhere from a couple of hours to half the work day, depending on how much snow needs removing. The crew has four trucks at its disposal and will work 16-18 hour days if necessary, very rarely closing the road. “We will post, ‘no unnecessary travel,’ because A, there’s just too much snow and we can’t move it to make the roadway safe or B, conditions are so bad no one has any business being out there,” Johnson said. “However, posting no unnecessary travel doesn’t make any difference. When you say unnecessary travel, people think, ‘Well let’s go see how bad it really is.’ So now you’ve just compounded your problem.” The Wyoming Department of Transportation employs a crew on U.S. Highway 16 outside of Buffalo that lives in a similar realm as Johnson and his crew. Teton Pass has a crew that attempts to keep the road open year round, as well. But other than that — aside from Interstate 80 connecting Cheyenne to Laramie — mountain passes in rural and rugged Wyoming are left to the elements during the cold winter months. Johnson sometimes wonders why he’s continued to plow snow atop a remote mountain pass. He sometimes asks him-
self why he’s endured long winters of little human contact and very little outdoor time to drive a truck in hazardous conditions. But he’s done it, and three of his current coworkers go through the same trials. “All these guys have hearts of gold,” said Laura Dalles, senior public relations specialist for the Wyoming Department of Transportation. The Bighorn Mountains rise majestically to the west of Sheridan. The outdoor paradise features hiking, hunting, fishing, climbing, kayaking, skiing and many more activities that enthusiasts can enjoy year round. And thanks to U.S. Highway 14 and 14A, most of the mountain is accessible with any type of reliable transportation. The mountain passes that ascend just west of Dayton and descend east of Shell and Lovell have gone through many transformations from their inception to their modern-day look, and keeping it in tip- top shape is a 12-month job. Highway 14 has played a prominent role in Johnson’s life. He’s worked, plowed and maintained the mountain pass for nearly his entire professional career with a few years left to go until it’s time to hang up the keys. And he’s fully ready to embrace the next winter like he has the last 37.
CONSTRUCTING U.S. HIGHWAY 14
1923
1935
1953
Began work under federal works administration
Most of Highway 14 to Burgess Junction completed
Highway 14 to Granite Pass completed
1950s 1960s First rebuild of Highway 14 from Dayton to Steamboat Rock
1999 2012 Highway from Burgess Junction to Steamboat Rock rebuilt
2018 Highway 14 from Burgess Junction to Antelope Butte rebuilt
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THE ROAD TO BUILDING A MOUNTAIN PASS 4
Construct the road.
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Locate a substance on the mountain that will be used as road bed/material, transport the substance and crush it into building material.
Remove rock from the planned route by a process of drilling and blasting.
Plan a route that is least invasive to the natural aesthetic.
Above: Highway 14A begins at Burgess Junction and descends to Lovell.
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Evolving internet CONNECTIVITY BY RYAN PATTERSON
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WHAT THE FUTURE MAY HOLD FOR LOCAL HIGH-SPEED TECHNOLOGY
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he internet has affected the world in profound ways. Over the past few decades, nearly anyone in a first-world country has had access to massive amounts of information in a fraction of a second. It changed the way individuals and businesses operate, allowing for more freedom and flexibility because people didn’t have to be in the same physical location to accomplish tasks together. However, the internet’s evolution is far from complete, especially in more remote, sparsely populated areas. Does that description ring a bell? Wyoming — and, to a lesser extent, Sheridan County — is still in the process of figuring out how to most effectively bring the internet’s massive power to more people as cost effectively as possible. Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce CEO Dixie Johnson said better internet could tremendously impact the local economy. “The more we all rely on being connected, the more important it is for us to have opportunity to attract businesses,” Johnson said. “It’s as important as water, sewer and electricity in conducting business and being competitive.” Johnson said faster internet enables businesses to work with a larger, more diverse number of businesses, both nationally and internationally. It could also attract new employees to the area. The new Morrison Ranch neighborhood is the most noticeable recent development for better internet locally. The subdivision off Big Horn Avenue on the south end of
Sheridan aims to provide hyper-connectivity for its eventual residents. Advanced Communications Technology general manager Aaron Sopko said fiber optic cable is installed in the ground throughout the Morrison Ranch and the final step will be bringing it into the finished homes when residents move in. The Morrison Ranch was the company’s first foray into residential work on a wide scale. ACT mainly works with businesses on highly-trafficked streets in Sheridan, like East Brundage Lane, Coffeen Avenue, South Sheridan Avenue, South Main Street and North Main Street. Sopko said high-speed internet allows companies in smaller towns like Sheridan to keep pace with the global economy. “It basically allows us to bring the world to Sheridan,” Sopko said. There is not a direct correlation between population and internet speed. For example, Sopko said Worland — with a population of about 5,500 — has better connectivity than Cheyenne, the state’s largest city. Sopko added that Sheridan is one of the best-connected towns in the state for businesses. That connectivity also comes in handy for tourism. Sheridan Travel and Tourism director Shawn Parker said internet connection is an expectation for travelers, other than in a few remote areas. Wi-Fi connectivity is especially paramount for international visitors from Europe and Asia, who may make travel decisions based on the quality of internet connection.
Left: At the Schwend household near Dayton, Lacie Schwend works from home and often uses her cellphone hotspot due to poor internet connection.
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“It’s not like you’re getting a leg up if you have Wi-Fi because everybody does,” Parker said. “Having Wi-Fi is no different than having sheets on the bed these days. It’s just part of the accommodation experience.” Johnson said Sheridan also has a decent percentage of adults who live in town but work elsewhere or from home, which is made easier through quality internet. “More people choose where they want to live and then determine how they’re going to do the work,” Johnson said. With demand for better internet connectivity almost assuredly increasing in the future, Johnson said one of the challenges for Sheridan County will be figuring out how to best serve those residents who live in more remote areas. Right now, the return on investment to install fiber optic cable for a relatively small number of people isn’t worth it for businesses like ACT. That reality affects citizens like Melissa Butcher. Butcher is a managing partner at Confluence Collaborative in Sheridan and co-owner of Lazy R Campground in Ranchester. Butcher has lived with her
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husband near the Tongue River Canyon about 4 miles outside of Dayton for about the past decade. Butcher works from home for about a half-day total per week. Ideally, she would work from home two days out of the week, but the slow internet can be challenging in her field, which involves web development. “I love the idea of working at home,” Butcher said. “It has not proved to be as practical an application as I had hoped.” Butcher said the internet connection is usually fine, but slow speed is often an issue. If Butcher’s home internet lags, she either goes to the campground office in Ranchester or the Confluence Collaborative office in Sheridan. When Butcher and her husband want to relax and stream a movie or show on Netflix, they expect occasional buffering due to slow internet. Internet access in rural areas is getting better, though. When Butcher and her husband bought the campground in the early 2000s, any sort of internet connection was challenging. Now, campers expect speedy, reliable Wi-Fi.
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Left: Confluence Collaborative managing partner Melissa Butcher works in her Sheridan office. Butcher lives near Dayton and often has slow internet at home, which sometimes affects her job.
Right: Butcher tests internet speeds at her office in Sheridan.
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It basically allows us to bring the world to Sheridan.
Aaron Sopko
Lacie Schwend finds herself in a similar situation. Schwend works in insurance from her home near Dayton. She has lived there for about six months with her husband and two young kids. Schwend’s home Wi-Fi is unreliable, so she often uses a hot spot through her cellphone. The slow speeds and spotty connection surprised her, especially in today’s seemingly interconnected modern society. If the connection is particularly troublesome, Schwend goes to a local library or the Tongue River Valley Community Center. However, she often conducts phone interviews for work, which ideally occur in a quiet setting. That isn’t always the case at a library or the TRVCC. Both Butcher and Schwend reiterated that the cost-benefit analysis of living in a peaceful, gorgeous setting is worth the technology troubles.
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“It’s a challenge,” Butcher said. “Having said that, we choose to live where we live, and there are some limitations to that.” “It’s a trade-off, but it’s OK,” Schwend said. “If I didn’t have a job at home, I probably wouldn’t care as much, but because I have to have an internet connection to do my job, it’s frustrating at times.” For daily life and entertainment around the home, Schwend said the internet connection doesn’t affect her two young children much. They can usually stream movies and do online homework, but it takes longer than normal to download a video game, for example. Schwend’s children are not the only students dealing with inconsistent internet in the Tongue River Valley. Sheridan County School District 1 superintendent Pete Kilbride said SCSD1 has
loaned hot spots to rural middle-schoolers and high-schoolers for about the past six years. The four schools loan out an average of five or six hot spots per day. Kilbride added that sports coaches sometimes check out hot spots before a road trip, either for themselves or students. Kilbride also said the school district tries not to give out much online homework. If a student needs internet, it is likely for a longer research project. “If we’re asking kids to do this, we have to be able to give them the access,” Kilbride said. It will likely take some time, but with more developments like the Morrison Ranch, tourists and residents such as Butcher and Schwend may have dependable, high-speed internet to help with work and leisure in the near future.
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Sheridan County's must-see sites INFORMATION FROM SHERIDAN TRAVEL AND TOURISM
HISTORIC DOWNTOWN SHERIDAN
POWDER POWD DER HORN N GOLF GO OLF CLUB CLU UB 23 CO COUNTRY OUNTRY CLUB LANE NE
Nestled Nestl led in a lush valley at the base o off the Bi ighorn Mountains, the Powder Bighorn Horn o offers three distinct nines at their nationa ally recognized 27-hole champion nationally champion-ship go olf course. golf
Host to myriad events and activities, shows, boutiques, restaurants, coffee shops and bars, historic downtown is Sheridan’s grand centerpiece. Come for a stroll and enjoy the public art displays, historic buildings and more.
MINT BAR
WYO O PE PERFORMING ERF RFOR ORMI M NG ARTS AND AN ND EDUCATION EDUC EED UCAT ATIO ION CENTER C NT CE NTER
High on every visitor’s list of Sheridan experiences is the iconic Mint Bar, Wyoming’s legendary meeting place. Serving frosty brews and countless tall tales since 1907, the Mint has become an iconic piece of Sheridan history. Although the ice is no longer delivered to the bar via horse and carriage, the rustic cowboy character and tall tales live on.
When n the W WYO YO Theater first opened its curtains in 1923 as the Lotus, newspaper headlines proclaimed it “Wyoming’s Wonder Picture Palace.” Throughout the years, the name has changed and updates have been furnished, but the theater has remained an architectural centerpiece for downtown Sheridan and a staple for live performances, film and entertainment.
42 N. MAIN ST.
151 N MAIN ST.
HISTORIC SHERIDAN INN 856 BROADWAY ST.
Rich in history, legend and lore, the Historic Sheridan Inn is the former stomping grounds of Buffalo Bill and his legendary Wild West Show. An iconic treasure of Sheridan since 1893, the Sheridan Inn has recently opened its renovated doors to overnight guests and hungry patrons. Reserve your stay in one of the 22 uniquely remodeled suites.
The morning sun greets downtown Sheridan.
KING’S SADDLERY MUSEUM 184 N. MAIN ST.
Truly a must-see, King’s Saddlery Museum is one of the best western museums in the nation, showcasing a fabulous collection of cowboy memorabilia including hundreds of saddles, wagons, chaps, spurs, antique gems and Native American artifacts as well as a variety of wild game animals.
TONGUE RIVER CANYON Just a short drive from Sheridan, the Tongue River Canyon trailhead begins in Dayton, follows the Tongue River and winds up into the Bighorn National Forest.
TRAIL END HISTORIC SITE 400 CLARENDON AVE.
From its authentically furnished rooms to its finely manicured lawns, the Trail End State Historic Site displays an elegantly different aspect of Wyoming’s colorful ranching history. Built in the Flemish Revival style in 1913 the Trail End was the home of John Kendrick, a cattle rancher who became Governor of Wyoming and U.S. senator.
The iconic neon lights of The Mint Bar illuminates Main Street.
Blooming flowers attract bees and other insects in the garden at the Brinton Museum in Big Horn.
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THE TH HE HISTORIC HIST HI STOR ST ORIC OR IC CB BRINTON RIINT NTON NTON ON RA ANC NCH H HOUSE HOUS HO HOUS USEE AND AND AN D GROUNDS GR ROU OUND NDS ND S RANCH
KENDRICK KE END N RI R CK PARK PAR A K Thee wooded oas T Th oasis asis is o off Kend Kendrick dri rick ck P Park arkk is ar is a fixture in the Sher rid dan ccommunity. ommu uni nity ty.. En EnSheridan joy solitude along the h tree-li line li ined d cr reeek tree-lined creek or stretch out and play on the grassy expanse. Meander around the park to find the chainsaw-carved tree sculptures, and swing by and visit the resident buffalo and elk. During the summer months, the
239 BR 239 BRIN BRINTON INTO TON N ROAD
Thee Br Th Brin Brinton, into ton n, llocated ocated d on the h 62 620-acre 20-acre historic Quarter Circle A Ranch in Big Horn, a short drive from Sheridan, offers an authentic view into the life and lifestyle of a Western gentleman and art collector.
WALKING PATHS AND PARKS
THE BRINTON BRINTO ON MUSEUM
Walk, jog and cycle Sheridan’s pathwhich ways, wh w ich connect many of the city’s k and d points i parks off iinterests. S See a map on page 7.
239 BRINTON ROAD
The Brinton Museum’s new 24,000-square-foot, $15.8-million, eco-conscious building houses one of the most significant and extensive Western and American Indian art collections in the Rocky Mountain West. The Forrest E. Mars, Jr. Building includes three floors featuring four galleries, a museum store and the Brinton Bistro.
SHERIDAN COUNTY MUSEUM 850 SIBLEY CIRCLE
Explore the history of Wyoming and the American West through the eyes of the men and women who settled Sheridan County. From ranching and rodeos to Native American wars and underground coal mining, the Sheridan County Museum is where the history of the West comes alive.
A one-week-old Buffalo Cow Calf moves next to her mother at Kendrick Park. The calf was born in the wildlife area.
POLO AT THE EQUESTRIAN CENTER
BIGHORN MOUNTAINS The Bighorn National Forest and Bighorn Mountains are a recreational paradise, with 106 million acres of forest and 180,000 acres of wilderness and elevations ranging from 4,000 to 13,165 feet.
CLOUD PEAK WILDERNESS
352 BIRD FARM ROAD
Notable polo players from all over the world gather for summers of chukkers at the Big Horn Equestrian Center, at the base of the Bighorn Mountains. Divot stomp and tailgate with the locals every Sunday afternoon in the summer months. Enjoy this fast-paced and elegant sport.
The wildest section of the Bighorn National Forest is the 189,039-acre Cloud Peak Wilderness. Absent of roads, buildings and mechanical and motorized vehicles, this remote area provides the perfect playground for backpacking, hiking and exploring.
A 1929 Ford sits in front of the mansion at the Trail End State Historic Site Century 21’s Tom Gose, front, battles DeeDee Connell for the ball at the Big Horn Equestrian Center. WWW.DESTINATIONSHERIDAN.COM
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More must-see sites Below:
Keira Ives, left, and Bella Miller trek up the hill during the “Fresh Air Friday” hike at Steamboat Point in the Bighorn Mountains off Highway 14 west of Sheridan.
STORY Nestled in the pines between North and South Piney Creeks, the wooded setting of the town of Story is straight out of the pages of a storybook. The town boasts dining options, trailheads and a fish hatchery. Also nearby is Ft. Phil Kearny State Historic Site.
FT. PHIL KEARNY STATE HISTORIC SITE Once the most fought over military post on the Northern Plains, Fort Phil Kearny is now a national historic landmark that offers four interpretive trails, a bookstore, museum, video and picnic grounds.
STEAMBOAT POINT Steamboat Point is a beloved Bighorn Mountains icon, and quite possibly the most frequently photographed natural attraction in the mountains. And, despite
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its imposing 700-foot terminal face, it is an conquerable climb that yields spectacular views over the whole of Sheridan County and the Cloud Peak Wilderness. The trailhead is located steps from the highway, which means that you should make a Steamboat climb part of your next Wyoming road trip. The faint road leads from the highway to the base of Steamboat, transforming into a single-track trail as the elevation increases; keep left when the trail forks to work your way through rock features and up onto the plateau, where spectacular mountain vistas — and, often, notorious Wyoming winds — await. If you’re lucky you’ll catch a glimpse of local fauna, which include deer, moose, elk, black bears and even mountain lions. This is a short (1.7-mile round trip) hike that should take hikers of average physical fitness less than an hour — or more if you plan on catching the sundown from one of the most spectacular perches in Sheridan County.
SOLDIER RIDGE TRAIL Soldier Ridge is a multi-purpose trail that opened to considerable fanfare in the fall of 2012. The trail head is a five-minute drive from downtown via West Fifth Street, and marks the beginning of a four-mile trail that presents sweeping panoramic views of some of Sheridan’s most beautiful farm and ranch land, as well as the high country of the Cloud Peak Wilderness and the Bighorn Mountains. Even with Soldier Ridge’s proximity to the urban core, the trail is never in use by more than a few people at a time, which lends a real feeling of serenity when you’re out on a hilltop all on your own. Adding to the peace and quiet, motorized traffic is prohibited, which means that dog lovers can walk their pooches through the open countryside without having to worry about being spooked (though dogs do need to be leashed when livestock is present).
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More must-see sites Below: Steamboat Point is located 13 miles west of Dayton on U.S. Highway 14.
SAGE COMMUNITY ARTS
This nonprofit art center sits in the heart of downtown Sheridan. The organization aims to build community through the visual arts. To that end, SAGE offers its members gallery space, showcases various artists in another gallery and hosts a variety of classes and special events throughout the year. The art gallery is located at 21 W. Brundage St.
WHITNEY RINK
Looking for a cold-weather activity but don’t want to brave the blustery winters of Wyoming? Stop by the Whitney Rink at the M&M’s Center for an afternoon of ice skating with the family. In addition to free skates, the nonprofit ice rink offers learn-to-skate classes, figure skating lessons and hockey. Find the facility at 475 E. Brundage St.
SHERIDAN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM
While the Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library boasts the most options, the Sheridan County Public Library System also includes branch locations in Clearmont, Story and Ranchester. Stop by to use a computer or pick up a book or movie. You can also borrow e-books and other items. Check the organizations website or Facebook page for other programs and events. The Sheridan County Fulmer Public Library is located at 335 W. Alger St.
Above: Meimei Boedecker, left, and Trinity Johnson skate together during open skate at Whitney Rink at the M&M’s Center.
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SPECIAL ADVERTISING CONTENT
The
MINT
MOUNTAIN LODGES
The Bighorn Mountains offer endless opportunities for outdoor adventure year-round. But if you need a break from the cold temperatures, stop into one of the lodges. Arrowhead, Elk View and Bear Lodge are up U.S. Highway 14 outside of Dayton. They each offer various amenities, so find them online or stop in to see what each offers.
SCENIC DRIVES
While just about any back road in Sheridan County will provide decent views but the Bighorn Scenic Byway is truly a site to behold. It follows U.S. Highway 14 through Ranchester and Dayton and includes views like Fallen City, Steamboat Point and more. At Burgess Junction, the byway continues toward the towns of Shell and Greybull. While en route, watch for various wildlife that call the Bighorns home.
Above: Trees turn color near the Penrose Trail in Story.
KOLTISKA
Distillery
Cowboys, ranchers, locals and visitors alike can be found bellied up at The Mint Bar, which has been serving up frosty brews since 1907 in downtown Sheridan. At that time, ice was delivered in horse-drawn wagons and bartenders wore long white aprons. Now, you’ll likely find barbacks in denim — the choice of cowboys and cowgirls across the West. You’ll drink in the atmosphere along with your cocktail of choice, as the rustic cowboy character includes brands on the walls, historic photographs and more than 70 wall-mounted animals. Whether you’re looking to kick back or kick it up a notch, The Mint Bar has been legendary for more than a century. The watering hole was founded as the Mint Saloon, then became the The Mint Cigar Company and Soda Shop in 1920, with a speakeasy run in the back room during Prohibition when the original wooden bar was removed. Over the years, multiple horses stopped in for a drink and The Mint Bar has served as a backdrop for the legends of generations. Now, its neon bucking bronc is one of the most iconic and favorite images of the West. Visit The Mint online at www.mintbarwyo.com.
In the late 1800s the Koltiska family homesteaded in Sheridan, Wyoming. For more than 100 years, through good times and bad, the Koltiska family has been known for two things: a lust for life and a fine liqueur. Kolts Fine Spirits started in 2001 and became the first legal distillery in Wyoming. Through devotion, perseverance and just plain hard work, Koltiska Original Liqueur was launched. In 2006, Kolts Fine Spirits introduced their second product, KO 90, a higher proof liqueur, and began distributing their products beyond Wyoming. In 2016, Koltiska opened for tours, in addition to adding two new products: Vodka and a third liqueur called Winter-Mint. When you’re looking for a truly fine, smooth spirit liqueur, one that carries the tradition and strength of the American West, choose Koltiska Original, KO 90, vodka, and winter-mint liqueur. Enjoy it as a shooter (a cowboy tradition), on the rocks, in Moscow Mules, or as a fine mixer. Like the cowboys of the West, the entire line is a perfect blend of strong yet smooth. We encourage you to come visit the distillery and take the free tour, sample our products and stay for a cocktail. Koltiska Distillery: take your best shot!
SPONSORED CONTENT PAID FOR BY THE MINT
SPONSORED CONTENT PAID FOR BY KOLTISKA DISTILLERY
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AD Directory Accents of Wyoming
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ERA Carroll Realty
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ACT
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Excalibur Construction
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Alpha Graphics
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Andi’s Coffee
44
Farmer’s Insurance Gary McCoy
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Balanced Living
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First Choice Builders
15
BEST Real Estate
59
Billings Airport
39
Carroll’s Furniture
20
Century 21/BHJ Realty
19
Champion Funeral Home
41
Christensen Enterprises
57
City of Sheridan
46
Concept Z
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CORE Physical Therapy
39
Cowboy State Bank
47
Crazy Woman Saloon
58
Creekside Dental
14
Crossroads Health
43
Custer Battlefield Trading Post
46
D&J Coins
14
First Federal Bank & Trust
3
Fly Sheridan
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Fly Shop of the Bighorns
15
GH Phipps Construction
25
Good Health Market
39
H&R Block
41
Heritage Woodworks
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Northeast Wyoming Pediatric Associates
35
Northern Wyoming Mental Health
Sheridan Orthopaedic
55
Sheridan Stationery
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Sheridan Travel & Tourism
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OK Corral Bar & Lounge
45
Sheridan WYO Rodeo
43
Papa John’s
35
Shipton’s Big R
Pioneer Realty
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State Farm – Ann Gardner 21
Powers Land Brokerage
41
State Farm – Jon Oman
Rocky Mountain Discount Sports
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Rocky Mountain Exteriors
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Rocky Mountain Spray Foam
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Roosters
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SAGE Community Arts
46
Holiday Inn/Fairfield Inn & Suites
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Koltiska Distillery
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Little Goose Liquors
25
Little Willow Traders
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Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce 25
Martinizing Dry Cleaning
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Sheridan Floor to Ceiling
57
Mint Bar
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Nest Home & Holiday
25
Sheridan Memorial Hospital
29
Sheridan Motor
11
Sheridan College
7
2
The Brinton Museum
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The Clothing Company & Baby Too
39
The Design Center
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The Sheridan Press
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Thompson Master Masons 43 Tru Finish Concrete
35
Water Products, Inc.
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Wind River Hotel & Casino
55
WYDOT
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Wyo Theater
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WyomingPBS
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WyoVision
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Thank you to our wonderful sponsors. This magazine is completely funded by their support!
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Sheridan County CENSUS DATA
A
ccording to U.S. Census Bureau data, Sheridan County is home to 30,210 residents. The city of Sheridan has 17,860 residents.
CITY OF SHERIDAN: • 17,860 TOTAL RESIDENTS (2017 ESTIMATE)
• Female: 52.1 percent • Under 18: 21.8 percent • Persons 65 and older: 18 percent
SHERIDAN COUNTY: • 30,210 TOTAL RESIDENTS (2017 ESTIMATE)
• Median household income 2012-2016: $53,914 • Percent of people 25 years and older with a high school diploma: 93.9 percent • Percent of people 25 years or older with a bachelor’s degree or higher: 30.1 percent • Persons below poverty level: 9.2 percent • Mean travel time to work: 16.25 minutes
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Wyoming INFORMATION CENTER
E YOU CAN FIND: • Sheridan Travel and Tourism offices
• Picnic area
• 24-hour public restrooms
• Parking
• One-on-one assistance from travel specialists • Brochures on the area’s points of interest • Information kiosk • Dog-walking area
• RV waste disposal site • Panoramic view of the Bighorn Mountains • Wyoming Game and Fish Department regional offices nearby • U.S. Forest Service office nearby
stablished in 1972, the Information Center offers visitor maps, brochures, information and insight on Sheridan from a local’s perspective. The busiest month for the center is typically July, but the center is open all year with extended hours during the summer months. The type of visitor varies based on the season. For example, summer passersby often include people on road trips, history buffs and adventure travelers. In the winter months, travelers typically include snowmobile enthusiasts venturing into the mountains. No matter the season, though, visitors will find information on how to get to Yellowstone National Park and recommendations for highlights of the Sheridan area. Staff members at the center offer different insights and recommendations to visitors based on their interests: photography, hiking, history and more. With visitors from all over the world stopping at the Information Center, staff members of Sheridan Travel and Tourism — which has offices in the space — have the opportunity to showcase what makes Sheridan so special. Over the years, they’ve received positive feedback from visitors. The goal of the information center is to provide current and valuable information to visitors and encourage folks passing through to stop by and spend some time in Sheridan.
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