Wyoming's Hole in the Wall
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| The view from Hole in the Wall |
I love winter, but I must say this winter has been rough on us. We consider ourselves active and love being outside, but after moving to Wyoming we just haven't been ourselves. Moving away from our close friends has been hard, and trying to find new people during the middle of winter has been even harder. Thankfully April has arrived and the weather has been warming up, although as I write this Casper is buried under 12+ inches of snow. We had a severe case of 'Cabin Fever' and needed to get out, and we were not the only ones. We met up with a local couple, Tyler and Michelle, and our friend Teaaron drove down from Sheridan to meet up with us.
Tyler suggested we take the back way into Hole in the Wall, so we met up in Casper Saturday morning and headed west on Highway 20/26. We then took County Road (CR) 125 (which turns into CR 110), heading north to CR 105, and then followed CR 105 to the trail head. The drive out was great, with plenty of pronghorn to watch and great vistas to admire. The only snag we ran into was on CR 105 when we were about to cross the second gate. While the sign at the first gate, and the BLM website, said we would be crossing several gates on our way to the trail head, there was a large orange 'No Trespassing on Deeded Land' sign posted at the second gate. Fearing we had taken a wrong turn, we consulted the atlas and the map DeLorme Earthmate app on our phone. We determined we were in fact on the correct road and the sign was probably just asking people to not venture off of the road.
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| Our route to Hole in the Wall |
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| Teaaron, Tyler, and Michelle enjoying the hike in |
I must admit, I should have read the BLM website more thoroughly before we went. I would have known the Hole in the Wall, was not actually a 'hole' in the wall but "is a gap in the Red Wall that, legend has it, was used secretly by outlaws to move horses and cattle from the area."* Teaaron and I hiked to the top looking for a hole in the wall. Even though we didn't quite know what we were looking for, we were still rewarded with some outstanding views of the sandstone cliff and Buffalo Creek below.
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| Entering into the Hole in the Wall area |
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| Teaaron ahead of me on the hike to the top |
I must also admit that I was not prepared for the 2.5 mile hike in. My knees were shot after climbing to the top of Hole in the Wall, and it made for slow hike out. I am, however, already making plans to go back. The views from the top are just too good not to enjoy again and again. The location would be perfect for a sunset time-lapse...
A huge 'Thank You' goes to Tyler and Michelle for organizing the trip and leading us on the weekend's adventure! I don't know if it is the isolation or the long winters, but you can tell Wyomingites have recognized the importance of community and friendship. We are always taken back by the friendly people here who welcome newcomers in with open arms. This weekend was no different, and was another reason we are happy to call Wyoming home!
*Source: http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/field_offices/Buffalo/recreation/holeinwall.html