Skip Colorado crowds for Wyoming wildflowers
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American bistort, mountain larkspur and groundsel flowers in Bighorn National Forest. Photo: Mitchell Byars/Axios Boulder
If you're chasing peak wildflower season but could do without bumper-to-bumper traffic, point your car north.
The big picture: Wyoming's Bighorn National Forest delivers spectacular displays about a day's drive from the Front Range — without the hoards of people, sky-high lodging prices and packed trailheads at destinations like Crested Butte.
Driving the news: June through mid-July is prime wildflower season across the Rockies.
Meanwhile, Bighorn National Forest is about a six-hour drive from Boulder, versus roughly four to five hours to Crested Butte.
- Its remote location and 1 million acres mean you feel like you can have the place to yourself.
- Camping is plentiful, and nearby towns like Sheridan offer reasonable lodging.
If you go: The forest has plenty of worthwhile hikes — I recommend Porcupine Falls and the James T. Saban fire tower — but you don't need to venture far to find the best blooms.
- Cruise the Bighorn Scenic Byway (U.S. 14) in the northern part of the forest or the Cloud Peak Skyway (U.S. 16), pull over, and soak it all in.
What to expect:
