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Red Desert

This fantastic combination of basin and desert stretches an endless 108 miles from Rock Springs to Rawlins. Driving through the area, it’s easy to mistake this high-desert terrain as simply flat, hard and desolate. Stop and take a closer look, and you’re bound to be surprised by the activity of the area.

With elevation upward of 6,000 feet above sea level and saturated in slate blue skies, this area was not only home to Wyoming’s last known herd of wild bison, but is presently home to an abundance of flora and fauna. Elk and mule deer wander both the sandy west edge and the northern edge’s more fertile hillsides.

Predators such as bobcats and coyotes scour the rocks and plains searching for the vast variety of rodents and rabbits which also claim the area as home. The desert region just north of Wamsutter, is one of the most important pronghorn antelope ranges in Wyoming. Meanwhile eagles and hawks rule the high skies, while the sage grouse flutter through the air closer to the basin floor.