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For weeks leading up to our trip to Casper, our soon-to-be five year old was recounting us with stories of dinosaurs. Every morning and every night, she would tell us about a different dinosaur, with her favorite (like many other kids) being a T-Rex. So, you can imagine her surprise and absolute utter delight when we were able to touch a real life dinosaur fossil. Even Bob lost his cool when the moment unfolded. There we were, the three of us and the dinosaur experts, all touching the knee cap of a T-Rex. Unbelievable.

And, that, my friends, was how our 72 hours in Casper, Wyoming began.

Wyoming is the least populated state in all of America, making it the perfect place to visit when you’re looking for wide, open spaces all to yourself. Our itinerary was packed with hikes and walks where we were the only people in sight and the deer and wild turkeys outnumbered us four to one.

Travel Responsibly Tips:

• Double check each states guidelines and restrictions before you book your trip and make sure to practice any local ordinances exactly so you’re respectful and safe.
• Bring extra masks and hand sanitizer so you are keeping yourself and the local residents as safe as possible.
• Stay in a hotel chain you trust (with great cleaning and social distancing practices) or book a private house rental to control how many people you come in contact with.
• Bring your own antibacterial soap to have in your hotel room or house rental.
• Organize an itinerary where social distancing is easy (hint: Casper is perfect for this!)

72-Hour Itinerary:

Day 1:

10am: Tate Geological Museum : Learn about the dinosaurs that inhabited Wyoming. We were lucky to see them working on Lee Rex, the first dinosaur found in Wyoming that will stay in Wyoming.

11am: Explore the Werner Wildlife : What first started as 36 objects from Werner’s private collection grew to over 400 birds, fish and animals.

Lunch: Pick-up sandwiches from The Cottage Cafe before heading out to Fremont Canyon for a picnic lunch with a view.

Fremont Canyon: We could have stayed here all day, as there is so much to do. We brought our picnic lunch and hiked up to the top of the canyon opening. The views were incredible and Augustine loved rock collecting. We were the only people up there so we practiced bouncing our echo off the rock faces. You could also kayak or boat in Alcova Reservoir, so bring your bathing suit and towel in case you get wet!

Dinner: Gunner Brothers Brewing – Order the pizza and a pint and make sure to dine outdoors for the magical sunset views from their patio.

Day 2:

Breakfast: Eggingtons is located downtown and the perfect spot to walk around and mural hunt on a full belly. The cinnamon bread is AMAZING- seriously a must.

A few of our favorite murals: (and you can check out more of their mural program here)

• Better Together: (201 E. 2nd Street)
• Fox Den: (241 S. Center St.)
• Trout Mural (Riverview Park – 1032 E. L Street

To-Go Lunch and a Waterfall: We grabbed sandwiches to go from Grant Street Grocery and headed up to Garden Creek Waterfall. A short hike up to the bottom of the falls and great for families with kids who don’t want to hike for too long.

Afternoon: Nicolaysen Art Museum. Did you know that Wyoming was the first state to allow women to vote? Pretty cool, huh! In honor of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, the museum is featuring women artists. Augustine is obsessed with anything and everything done with girls lately so this was a big hit.

Night: Dinner at Branding Iron and a Rodeo!

This was our first time to a rodeo and won’t be our last. We had such a blast cheering on each rider and watching the clowns run away from the bulls. Casper Event Center did everything right to making sure the event was as safe as possible- mobile ticketing, only selling up to 50% capacity (although there wasn’t nearly that many people who attended) tons of socially distancing inside where you would sit in a pod, lots of hand sanitizing stations throughout, etc.

Day 3:

Breakfast: We mixed and matched for breakfast because we like to try as many coffee shops as possible when we visit a new place. We ordered coffee from Metro Coffee and then grabbed to-go donuts and pastries from Grant Street Grocery. (Be prepared for a long line- but they are worth it!)

Morning activity: Explore Casper Mountain. Another place where you could spend all day (or even camp for longer visits). The leaves were changing and we just had a blast venturing out here and there on trails.

Lunch: HQ BBQ. We really can never turn down a BBQ suggestion and this was was so worth it. Afterwards we explored downtown, visiting and browsing shops.

Late Afternoon / Dinner: Dutch oven dinner on the Historic Oregon Trail

One of our most favorite experiences ever, dinner and the wagon ride on the historic Oregon Trail can not be missed.

For more tips, including where to stay and a larger restaurant list, check out our full Casper Wyoming Travel Guide.

We can’t wait to plan a return trip to Casper. We had so much fun – created memories that are sure to last a lifetime and did it all as safely as possible. This is a great family trip for adventure lovers. Get out there, friends!