{"id":1138,"date":"2015-07-12T08:26:45","date_gmt":"2015-07-12T14:26:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=1138"},"modified":"2019-12-02T15:23:43","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T22:23:43","slug":"high-park-lookout-sheep-mountain-bighorn-mountains-wyoming-8-5-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=1138","title":{"rendered":"High Park Lookout & Sheep Mountain, Bighorn Mountains, Wyoming (8-5-14)"},"content":{"rendered":"

SPHP woke up in the G6 about 7:30 AM on the morning of 8-4-14.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP were parked\u00a0near their favorite camping spot on the Clark’s Fork of the Yellowstone River in the Beartooth Mountains.\u00a0 The previous day Lupe and SPHP had\u00a0spent a wonderful\u00a0long day climbing Lonesome Mountain, the highest mountain Lupe has\u00a0ever climbed so far.\u00a0 The sky was overcast, but not too dark.\u00a0 SPHP had hopes of pitching the tent next to the Clark’s Fork of the Yellowstone, and spending a lazy recovery day there with Lupe while plotting new adventures in the Beartooths.<\/p>\n

It was not to be.\u00a0 Although by\u00a011:30 AM\u00a0SPHP was able to claim\u00a0Lupe’s favorite camping site, it started to rain.\u00a0 The rain lasted for several hours and then quit.\u00a0 The skies remained heavily overcast.\u00a0 The tent didn’t get set up.\u00a0 The mosquitoes were bad.\u00a0 The skies never cleared.\u00a0 Everything outside was sopping wet.\u00a0 No ray of sun appeared.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP spent most of the day in the G6 resting up and waiting for the weather to break.\u00a0 It looked like it could start raining again at any moment.\u00a0 Another night was spent in the G6.<\/p>\n

On 8-5-14, SPHP woke up at 6:45 AM.\u00a0 52\u00b0F\u00a0and still heavily\u00a0overcast,\u00a0almost foggy.\u00a0 Lupe was well rested again by now.\u00a0 There wasn’t going to be any keeping the lively dingo satisfied with another day in the G6.\u00a0 SPHP’s plans for more Lupe adventures in the Beartooths had to be scrapped.\u00a0 It was time to move on.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP headed for Cody, WY via the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway, Hwy 296 and then Hwy 120.\u00a0 Lupe’s 2014 Dingo Vacation to the Canadian Rockies & Beartooth Mountains was rapidly drawing to a close.<\/p>\n

It wasn’t over yet, though.\u00a0 The fog and clouds were hanging over the mountains to the W, but Lupe and SPHP drove out into the sunshine even before reaching the pass on Hwy 296.\u00a0 SPHP still had a few adventures in mind for Lupe.\u00a0 After\u00a0 fueling up\u00a0in Cody, just to see something new Lupe and SPHP continued SE on Hwy 120 through Meeteetse all the way to Thermopolis.\u00a0 Lupe was happy just to be moving again with the opportunity to bark at cows and horses along the way.\u00a0 Neither SPHP nor Lupe had ever taken this route before, so it was all new and interesting.<\/p>\n

Most of the way\u00a0from Cody to Thermopolis\u00a0was like much of Wyoming – sagebrush, dry high plains with ridges and buttes all around and higher mountains in the distance.\u00a0 Very Old West looking and largely unspoiled.\u00a0 Meeteetse is in the Greybull River valley where there were some green trees, green irrigated fields, and a little more going on.\u00a0 Meeteetse itself is less than 400 population.\u00a0 Thermopolis was considerably larger, around 3,000 population.\u00a0 It is named after natural hot springs in the area.\u00a0 After days spent outdoors, SPHP was pretty grimy.\u00a0 SPHP was looking forward to the hot springs as a great relaxing way to get cleaned up.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe roaming the grounds at the Thermopolis hot springs with a Stegosaurus.\u00a0 American Dingoes are natural born leaders.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fortunately the day hadn’t heated up much yet, with temperatures still around a comfortable 70\u00b0F.\u00a0 SPHP left Lupe in the G6 parked in the shade with the windows partially down.\u00a0 She set about entertaining herself by watching squirrels in the trees.\u00a0 SPHP spent a pleasant hour and a half in the pools or on the waterslide at the State Bath House, and returned much revived to the by-now bored dingo in the G6.\u00a0 Nothing promotes an appreciation of cleanliness like\u00a0long days\u00a0spent outdoors.<\/p>\n

It was time to head for the Bighorn Mountains!\u00a0 The drive on Hwy 16\/20 from Thermopolis to Worland was flat and dull\u00a0with little to commend it, but heading E from Worland to Ten Sleep on Hwy 16 was another matter.\u00a0 The scenery was wild, remote and dramatic.\u00a0 At Ten Sleep, SPHP noticed that Dirty Sally’s<\/a><\/span><\/strong> was still open, but didn’t stop.\u00a0 E of Ten Sleep, Hwy 16 started up beautiful Ten Sleep canyon into the Bighorns.<\/p>\n

A little over a mile past the lodge on Meadowlark Lake, SPHP turned S on FS road No. 429.\u00a0 SPHP\u00a0parked the G6\u00a0just off No. 429 close to the highway.\u00a0 Lupe was certainly ready to get out and stretch her legs again.\u00a0 No. 429\u00a0is a gravel road that leads about a mile up through mostly open meadows to a forest near High Park Lookout<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0(9,477 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0 There is a small parking lot at the edge of the forest.\u00a0 A\u00a015 minute hiking trail winds up through the forest to the old lookout tower. \u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/span>The now unmanned lookout tower is closed to the public due to a broken support beam.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe along road No. 429 on her way to High Park Lookout in the Bighorn Mountains. No. 429 is accessed via Hwy 16 a little over a mile SE of Meadowlark Lake.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and\u00a0SPHP followed No. 429\u00a0and then the hiking trail to the High Park Lookout summit.\u00a0\u00a0From some rocks near the lookout tower the\u00a0best views were toward Meadowlark Lake to the NW and the higher mountains to the NNE.\u00a0 On the way back down to the G6,\u00a0Lupe followed the trail to the little parking lot, but did not follow No. 429 again.<\/p>\n

Instead, Lupe and SPHP took a shortcut through the beautiful high country meadows and a small forest.\u00a0 That got Lupe more into the spirit of things than\u00a0just following the\u00a0road.\u00a0 She started sniffing and exploring around more enthusiastically.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe at the High Park Lookout in the Bighorn Mountains. Photo looks N.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"At<\/a>
At look back up at High Park Lookout. Lupe was already on her way back to the G6. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From High Park\u00a0Lookout, Lupe and SPHP\u00a0had seen lots of clouds around.\u00a0 To the N where the Cloud Peak Wilderness is, all the high country was lost in dark clouds and fog.\u00a0 Any thoughts SPHP had of taking Lupe to\u00a0Cloud Peak were dashed.<\/p>\n

There were fewer clouds to the S though, and\u00a0SPHP started thinking about climbing Hazelton Pyramid as a substitute.\u00a0 Consulting the maps, SPHP found it might be possible to hike three 10,000+ foot peaks easily enough in a day – Hesse Mountain<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (10,382 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>, Hazelton Pyramid<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (10,534 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>, and Hazelton Peak<\/strong><\/span><\/a> (10,264 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0SPHP decided\u00a0Lupe would try it the next day.<\/p>\n

Lupe and\u00a0SPHP headed E on Hwy 16 over Powder River Pass.\u00a0 About a mile E of Powder River Pass, SPHP turned S on gravel road No. 29 and\u00a0about\u00a01\/8 mile later onto USFS Road No. 448.\u00a0 Half a mile later Lupe arrived at\u00a0Munkres Pass.\u00a0 Hesse Mountain and Hazelton Pyramid had been visible from No. 29 and looked like easy climbs.\u00a0 SPHP was satisfied that Munkres Pass was a good starting point for\u00a0Hesse Mountain the next day.<\/p>\n

Lupe and SPHP left Munkres Pass to find water and a place to park for the night.\u00a0 Water was found at Lost Cabin campground, and SPHP was fortunate to find a dispersed camping spot along gravel road No. 28 just after it crossed Merle Creek.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The G6 at the dispersed camping site on Merle Creek.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe was quite happy with Merle Creek, a rushing little stream where she was able to drink and lay down to get cooled off.\u00a0 She soon found squirrels to bark at in the surrounding forest, always a major dingo benefit.\u00a0 SPHP checked the map and saw that only another 1.5 miles from Merle Creek, road No. 28 ended at the Sheep Mountain<\/a> (9,610 ft.)<\/span><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0lookout tower.\u00a0 Leaving the G6 at Merle Creek to claim the spot, Lupe and SPHP set out\u00a0along No. 28 to go see the views from Sheep Mountain.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The lookout tower at the top of Sheep Mountain.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There wasn’t much to see.\u00a0 By the time Lupe and SPHP reached the top of Sheep Mountain, there was fog in every direction.\u00a0 Dark clouds and thunder\u00a0were to the E, but were moving\u00a0farther\u00a0away out onto the prairie beyond the Bighorns.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0No one else was around.\u00a0 Lupe and\u00a0SPHP got\u00a0up on the platform around the top of the lookout tower.\u00a0 SPHP took a few photos.<\/p>\n

The area immediately around the tower was not yet in the fog, but it was close by on all sides.\u00a0 Less than 10 minutes after\u00a0Lupe left, the Sheep Mountain Lookout Tower itself disappeared in the fog.\u00a0 On the way back, instead of following the road, Lupe and SPHP headed down the SW slope of Sheep Mountain going almost directly back to the G6 through a big opening in the forest.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A happy American Dingo arrives at the Sheep Mountain lookout tower to see what there is to see.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Normally<\/a>
Normally the views would be great from Sheep Mountain. When Lupe was there, not so much.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Look, SPHP!\u00a0 The view is almost as good with my eyes closed!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the fog, the trek up Sheep Mountain had still been a pleasant excursion.\u00a0 Once back at the G6, Lupe had some Alpo and entertained herself barking at squirrels.\u00a0 Dusk came on.\u00a0 The squirrels called it a day and disappeared.\u00a0 Without the squirrels around, Lupe realized she was kind of tired too.\u00a0 She wanted to get in the G6.\u00a0 There she curled up for the night on her throne of blankets and pillows.\u00a0 SPHP stayed up sitting on a big stone next to Merle Creek until it was too dark to write.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe in Merle Creek, Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming, 8-5-14<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Next Adventure<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Prior Adventure<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Peak 9300 & High Park Lookout, Bighorn Mountains, Wyoming (6-30-19)<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s 2014 Canadian Rockies & Beartooths Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>,\u00a0Dingo Vacations Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span> or Master Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SPHP woke up in the G6 about 7:30 AM on the morning of 8-4-14.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP were parked\u00a0near their favorite camping spot on the Clark’s Fork of the Yellowstone River in the Beartooth Mountains.\u00a0 The previous day Lupe and SPHP had\u00a0spent a wonderful\u00a0long day climbing Lonesome Mountain, the highest mountain Lupe has\u00a0ever climbed so … Continue reading High Park Lookout & Sheep Mountain, Bighorn Mountains, Wyoming (8-5-14)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1128,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[105,185,106,26,184,104,11,183,275],"class_list":["post-1138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2014-canadian-rockiesbeartooths","tag-american-dingo","tag-bighorn-mountains","tag-carolina-dog","tag-dingo-vacations","tag-high-park-lookout","tag-lupe","tag-peakbagging","tag-sheep-mountain","tag-wyoming"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/P1050433.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1138"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24803,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1138\/revisions\/24803"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1128"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}