The Medicine Bow Mountains, are in southeast Wyoming stretching across the state line into north central Colorado.

The range in it′s northern reaches in Wyoming, at both Pennock Mountain (9,965 feet) and Rock Mountain (9720 feet) extends southward to the Cache la Poudre river in Colorado. Medicine Bow peak in Wyoming near SH 130 rises to 12,013 feet and is the highest peak.

There are only two hard surface highways which traverse the Medicine Bow mountains.

The northern most route is on Wyoming SR 130 which highway crosses Medicine Bow Mountains over Snowy Range Pass at an elevation of 10,847 feet.

The southern route is on Wyoming SR 230, which connects to Colorado SR 127 and crosses Medicine Bow Mountains near the state line.

These mountains, a portion of the Medicine Bow Mountains are called the Snowy Range, which is appropriate since it can snow here any time of the year. Ten foot drifts are not uncommon in winter, while snowfields linger here through the summer.

These mountains rise from about 7500 feet to over 12,000 feet in elevation and are within the Medicine Bow national forest. Seen within the national forest are lodgepole pine forests, foothill shrubs, alpine tundra high mountain park quaking aspen stands, glaciated valleys, subalpine forest, meadows of wildflowers, several viewpoints and more.

Awake, walk over to find Joe already up and making coffee, so I get out my stove to make a cup of hot for myself. Then, I tell Joe good bye, after which I walk to Gordon′s van to tell him good bye and drive out of the Red Feather forest, down to The Forks where I turn north on US 287, drive across the state line into Wyoming and turn west on IH 80 for a short ways until I arrive at the SH 130 exit.

Once on SH 130, I drive up into the Snowy Range mountains, not stopping except for a couple of times to take photos and then down the west side towards Saratoga, Wyoming.

I drive south on SR 130, turn left where Wyoming SR 230 continues straight south and follow Wyoming SR 130 up into the Medicine Bow National Forest towards Snowy Pass.

Upon my reaching the borders of the NF, I see an interesting rocky outcrop and take a couple of photos. When I later crop the photos, methinks that it was the light from the near setting sun that made this foothills look better than they actually are.

As the sun continues to drop to the horizon, I continue upward onto the mountain, and soon come to NF 103 road where I turn north and stop at the first place I find to camp. Because it is fast turning dark, I grab my camera and take photos of the jammer in the fading light, the quickly fading sunglow and then the bright blueglow.

Upon arising, I prepare a cup of hot, my Daystart, and then go inside the jammer to enjoy my meal and pound keys on the computer. Later, I walk to the front sign to see if there was anything that I missed when I came in. Nope, all that applies to me is Camping Limit, 16 Days and upon returning to the jammer take a couple of photos. The temperature remains cool all morning and for a little of the afternoon, but at about one pm the temperature rises above 90 degrees. Then, by five pm, it drops back down to the low eighties making the day here not bad at all, especially with the night time temperatures dropping into the low forties.

I had no idea what this forest road has been used for, but when I see a seemingly endless procession of trucks pulling trailers loaded with off road vehicles, I begin to understand the type of people coming to this high elevation.

The large amounts of trucks and ORVs amazes me, I never knew that one mountain high place could hold as many as those ones I have seen come in here today.

Mostly of what I get from the truck procession is a lot of dust settling on the jammer, so I have to keep the window shades up hoping they will keep out most of it.

Later, I walk to the front sign to see if there was anything that I missed when I came in. Nope, all that applies to me is Camping Limit, 16 Days because most of what is posted pertains to ORVs and upon returning to the jammer, I take a couple of photos of my campsite.

Directly behind the large horizontal log is the fire pit.

Awake to a second day of very cold temperature and this morning, while still wrapped in my blanket, turn on the jammer engine to warm the inside and in just about ten minutes the inside temperature reaches fifty degrees while the outside remains at thirty-five. I then dress in my fall blues and turn on the computer to begin today′s journal entry. When the inside rises to fifty-five, I turn off the heater and soon after the engine.

Direction: Westward from Laramie

Awake shortly before the d-mart opens. I can tell because there are people standing in line at the entrance, which because the pandemic quarantine is still in effect are standing one fathom apart. I go inside to buy some groceries, then back out to the jammer and drive to the w-mart.

In the afternoon, I leave the w-mart, and then drive west out of town on SH 130 towards the Snowy Range pass and head west on a high plateau.

Soon, I begin the climb up into the mountains and the landscape quickly changes to a snow covered alpine forest.

After spending quite some time at the Libby Flats Observation point, I continue west on SR 130 and come to a second view point.

Here, I see a man fishing in a near frozen lake, an ice wall higher than the jammer and a marmot sticking he head out of his hole to see who is here.