Wild Horses & Wild Land Surround Pilot Butte
Written: Sep 20 '07 (Updated Oct 07 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Lots of wild horse herds, beautiful rugged land
Cons: wildfires, dusty
The Bottom Line: If you have an interest in horses or nature you will like Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour in Wyoming.
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| cmaw63's Full Review: Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour, Wyoming |
I have a "things to do before I die" list. Fortunately, I was able to mark off two of the items on my recent trip to Wyoming. One of those items was to test myself in an outdoors adventure. Check...done. The second was to photograph wild horses. No fences, corrals, or wannabe cowboys added.
Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour
Just north of Rock Springs and Green River, Wyoming you will find the Wild Horse Loop. A 50-mile long, hard packed gravel road winds its way through sagebrush and sand. Beautiful rock formations jut towards the sky, while others fall into seemingly bottomless cliffs. The most notable of these formations is Pilot Butte. Pilot Butte can be seen from miles away, a beacon that led me to my wild horses.
We started the Wild Horse Scenic Loop at Green River. Normally starting the loop from there would have taken us about an hour and a half. More on why it took us 4 hours later. Anyway, we had only gone approximately 5 miles before we spotted our first herd off in the distance. With binoculars we were able to tell there were nine horses, including two young foals. They were too far away to get any pictures so we went on. After about a half hour of traveling the gravel road we had seen two more herds. They were beyond our cameras reach also. After spotting the fourth herd in the distance we made a decision that we shouldn't have.
We decided to leave the road and take what is commonly called a two track. Not a wise decision in this 500 plus square mile area. While it is legal to travel a two track, it is illegal to follow a single track as that is an animal trail. Two tracks are two tire trails that cut through the vegetation. It is not a formal road of any kind and 4 wheel drive is a must if you want to get further than 20 feet from the gravel road. They are bumpy and rough with large rocks and small washouts. If you do have a 4-wheel drive vehicle and take a two track do not leave that track. When finished with the reason you took that trail turn around and take the same one out. What appears to be flat land is full of small hills and dips. You will not be far from the main road when you lose sight of it. We made the mistake of turning on to a second two track to get closer to yet another herd. There are several two tracks that criss-cross each other, it is easier than one thinks to lose sight of the original trail that will take you back to the main road. A little over two hours later we were able to find the gravel road and continue the loop.
Remember, this is desert country. Take plenty of drinks, especially water, when you do any activity that will take you outside of town. If you plan on getting out of the vehicle, as we did to take pictures, make sure you are aware of your surroundings. There are rattle snakes, coyotes, and other wild animals. While we didn't see any other wildlife we did have to take turns keeping an eye on a stallion and an alpha mare that were behind us while we snapped off photos of two young foals nearby.
Getting off the main road isn't necessary as we found out later. As we continued we found three more herds not just near the road, but on it. When approached they went about 50 yards into the sagebrush and continued eating as if we weren't there. So, don't get discouraged if the first few groups of horses you see are in the distance. Keep going and odds are you will be stopping the vehicle soon and ooh'ing and ahhh'ing over a nearby herd of these beautiful animals.
Along the Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour there are pull off points where you can find information on the history of the horses there. You will find out why you see so many piles of "road apples". It seems that the stallions choose to leave their calling card in the middle of the road making it easier for other horses to see. Sometimes the feces pile gets a few feet high from a stallion that has claimed that territory.
When we visited the area it was experiencing a drought. There were wildfires to the north and west of us. While smoke created a distant haze it did not seem to bother the horses. The smoke, sagebrush pollen, and dust may bother people who have allergies though.
If you have an interest in horses or nature the Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour in Wyoming is a beautiful sight to see. The rugged land with the wild horses running across it brought thoughts of the old wild west. The only thing that was missing was a cowboy riding off into the sunset singing "Happy Trails to You".
2 photos can be seen at http://epi-cmaw63.pbwiki.com/Wyoming
*There are approximately 6000 wild horses in Wyoming. 2500+/- are in the Rock Springs area. The land and horses are controlled by The Bureau of Land Management (BLM). BLM employees track the horses in an effort to keep the numbers to an amount that the available land can handle. Horses that are rounded up and brought to BLM corrals can be adopted from their site for a reasonable fee. Right now a mare and foal can be purchased for $125. There are strict requirements for adoption. http://www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov/adoption.htm*
Recommended:
Yes
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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cmaw63
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 in Pets, Home and Garden, Books |
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Member: Julie
Location: Illinois, USA
Reviews written: 307
Trusted by: 71 members
About Me:
Looking forward to my first grandbaby. She's due November 24!
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