Wind River Canyon
Between Thermopolis & Boysen Dam

A panorama of over one billion years of geology is exposed in the Wind River Canyon between Thermopolis and Boysen Dam. Much of the geology is identified with informative signs along US Hwy. 20. The canyon is about ten miles long. See variegated rock units of the eocene Wind River formation, and severely-faulted Paleozoic rocks which reflect a faulted arch. At Boysen, the narrow canyon begins, with walls rising 2,500 feet above the river. Precambrian crystalline rocks and northward-ipping Cambrian shales highlight the area. A complete section of Paleozoic formations may be observed northward. The road emerges from the canyon at the north end, where extensive areas of Triassic red beds dazzle visitors.

Photo: Richard Coffenberry, RAC Digital Photography in Thermopolis