Thermop...

is an affectionate nickname for Thermopolis, WY, a city in the center of the state. Thermopolis, which means city of heat in Greek, is home to the largest mineral hot springs in the world. The presence of these springs creates a microclimate unlike the rest of the state--somewhat warmer and slightly more humid. The city is home to Hot Springs State Park, which includes a recently refurbished free bath house with indoor and outdoor pools and comfortable dressing rooms. The mineral water creates all sorts of interesting colors with the deposits. This tendency of the water has been exploited in a couple of fountains where the water comes over the top and runs down over rock which then changes color as minerals are deposited on it. You can drink the water, and it is probably even good for you, but it sure doesn't taste too yummy!

Some information in here I have mentioned in an earlier post. You might check it out for some elaboration and repetition. A good, cheap place to stay that I just discovered is Roundtop Mountain Motel, just outside the park. They have scrupulously clean cabins with kitchenettes only 4 blocks away for much cheaper.

Thermop is also the home town of our current governor, Dave Freudenthal.

Downtown is quaint, although perhaps struggling a bit. There are some empty storefronts, and those who come here often know that businesses come and go. For instance, for a few years, there was a fabulous artist-owned gallery on Broadway. There's several antique shops/flea markets, as well, but they seem to shift about periodically. One constant on Broadway has been Keeping You in Stitches, the quilt shop. They have a lovely selection of fabric and quilting supplies, and also partner in hosting a quilting retreat each year. I noted today that there's a new yarn and needlecraft shop across the street from it which I am looking forward to checking out tomorrow.

Thermopolis is home to the Dinosaur museum, which I talked about in an earlier post. Another museum worth checking out is Dancing Bear Folk Center, in the Old West Wax Museum complex. Dancing Bear celebrates the many crafts people have done for centuries such as spinning, weaving, food preservation, tatting and much much more. It also, curiously, includes a large collection of teddy bears. The Old West Wax Museum is "a historic wax museum focusing on the American West frontier and folk history and culture" which has figures made in some very specific style I can't recall right now.

Thermop also has a strong drama program in its high school. If you happen to be in town on the rare occasion that they offer a play, I recommend attending. They have one of the nicest auditoriums in the state and take full advantage of it.

Saratoga

Saratoga is one of Wyoming's hidden beauties. A small town in southern Wyoming, it has a gorgeous hot spring. It is close to the Sierra Madre mountains which offer hiking opportunities, beautiful drives and the opportunity to learn about a gold rush which took place in the area. Apparently, it is a highly historic area. Besides this...Saratoga has hot springs. There's a public pool, called the Hobo Pool, which is free and open to the public. You can sit in its scalding hot water, and then climb down to the river and sit in the pool where the spring empties out and mixes with the cold water. Refreshing.

Saratoga also has the Saratoga Inn. If you are looking for a place to stay, this is it. Very comfortable beds. Clean and friendly. Good food. A nice place for a meeting or retreat. The three buildings are built around a courtyard. The fourth building is a spa. In the courtyard there is a pool of hot springs water, and not a small one either, but big enough to actually get up a little swimming speed before you have to turn around. Then there's about 6 hot tub pools, some covered with teepees and others open to the stars. It is all deliciously warm and wonderful in the cold weather, especially when it snows.

The town is cute. You can walk most places. There's art galleries, and Laura M's. Laura M is a clothing designer who makes everything in her store. Lovely stuff, lots of variety. The Hotel Wolf is a historic hotel, nice to stay in with a good restaurant. Across the street is the Lazy River Cantina, mexican food, very popular.

In the summer, the local arts council hosts an artfair and gala around the 4th with all sorts of events. This is also a good time to go over the snowy range mountains which have breathtaking views.

All in all, a good place to come for a relaxing time.

Thermopolis

Thermopolis is a lovely little town in the center of the state with one of the world's largest natural hot springs. Thermopolis is the site of Hot Springs State Park, which has a free bathhouse. The park is a beautiful site where the hot springs run over colored terraces and which is the home to the Hot Springs Bison Herd.

There are two nice hotels in the park itself--the Best Western Plaza Inn and the Holiday Inn. The Best Western is a restored hotel with log furniture and breakfast and a hot springs fed hot pool, plus a swimming pool in the summer. The Holiday Inn also has a hot springs pool and a restaurant. The hotel has a safari theme with pictures of people hunting and many preserved animals all over the place.

Downtown there's a lovely gallery and museum. Sunshine Gallery is owned by a local metal artist and stocks artwork by artists from in state and elsewhere across the country. There's an excellent museum well worth the stop called Dancing Bear Folk Art Center. This center showcases traditional arts, including exhibits and demonstrations of spinning, weaving, food ways, marbles, needle felting and much more. It has the largest collection of artist bears in the country. During the annual marble exhibit, which includes old and new marbles of all sizes, they have a variety of marble games available to play with, including musical marble trees. Above the Folk Arts Center is the Old West Wax Museum.

One other spot to stop is Domhoff Gallery, which is on the Worland road north of town on the west side. Two potters live there, mother and son, and they do unusual dinnerware and a variety of other functional pottery. They were both trained in Germany.