Encampment River Canyon WSA

The Encampment river is the perfect size mountain river, to my eyes. You would think twice before wading across it, since you probably would need to swim a few strokes. But you can cast a line from one bank to the other without much effort.

The river’s mother is the Sierra Madre mountains. The Encampment joins the North Platte River near Riverside, Wyoming.

Riverside and Encampment are right next to one another, so one wonders why the towns don’t join like the rivers they neigbor. Turns out they were platted separately and then somebody found a big chunk of copper near Encampment. Soon therafter Encampment was known as the Pittsburg of the West. Several million dollars of copper came down out of the Madre on the longest aerial tramway in the world (16 miles). Riverside stayed separate, during this boom (not sure exactly why, but since they were platted separately, folks would have had to agree to conjoin them). The bust came after eleven years. Neither town has since grown enough to subsume the other.

Back in the mountain man days, trappers would camp in Encampment, calling it ‘Camp le grand’…which to me suggests it was not too windy and beavers were nearby. Indeed, the valley near there seems to have better weather than some other parts of southeast Wyoming. Unsurprisingly, Jim Bridger came through here.

Some of the campsites you will see along the Encampment River are just so damn nice you have to imagine the generations of native peoples and then the mountain men using them. When you are laying there looking at the stars, think about who else might have done the same.

Encampment has a good new restaurant called ‘The Divide’ and a museum about the considerable history in the area.

News

This is one of WSAs that Barrasso’s bill (S.681) would turn into a Wilderness area. This was agreed upon during the Carbon County Wyoming Public Lands Initiative meetings. You can read about this here on Western Confluence.

Access

Go to Odd Fellows Campground (or Encampment River Campground, depending on your map) just south of Encampment. From there you can get on the lovely Encampment River Trail, which takes you through the heart of the WSA. You can also get to the WSA from BLM road 405 and County Road 353. You can get a low-clearance vehicle here no problem.

If you hike all the way through the WSA you get to the actual Wilderness area. Check that page out too (once I make it).

Safety

Ticks are abundant in the springtime.

The river can be a serious float at high water if you put in up the canyon. Don’t float it without checking it out.

Infrastructure

The Encampment River Trail goes all the way up to the Hog Park area. It is a great hike.

Inspiration