This region was a favored camping area for the Comanche, Pawnee, Crow and Shoshone during their search for bison. Other tribes including the Iowa, Cheyenne, Arapaho and Sioux are thought to have roamed the area also. The arrival of the Union Pacific construction crews in the 1860s caused Native Americans to be pressured onto the ever-shrinking hunting lands and their presence diminished into oblivion on the lands now known as Curt Gowdy State Park.

The Terrain
The seven sections of richly varied landscape that comprise the park include flora and fauna on the foothills of the Laramie Mountains halfway between Cheyenne and Laramie. In fairly close proximity to the Colorado border, 12 miles directly south, and the Nebraska border, 61 miles east, the beautiful attractions within Curt Gowdy State Park are also near the crossroads of two major interstates, I-80 and I-25. Several historic sites of note lie nearby, including Ames Monument.

In addition to two reservoirs, the park includes Hynds Lodge which is listed on the National Register and an amphitheater available for concerts, theater and other cultural activities. Both are available by reservation.

The area is one of low-lying meadows, gently rolling hills and massive steep granite formations. Wildlife abounds and both reservoirs are stocked by the Wyoming Game & Fish Department.

The elevation varies from a low of 6,450 feet to a high of over 7,500 feet.

Hynds Lodge
The lodge is named for noted Cheyenne philanthropist and capitalist, Harry P. Hynds, who built and donated the structure in 1922-23 to Cheyenne’s Boy Scout movement.

The building is open to both large and small groups on a reservation-only basis (reservations may be made starting on the first working day of January each—call park headquarters). A covered porch, large kitchen, dining area, recreational and sleeping accommodations, a hiking trail and amphitheater are all part of the lodge complex.

Reprinted from Wyoming State Parks and Historical Sites brochure.