Rock Creek – Deep Creek Trail, WY
Posted: August 10th, 2009 | Author: Roger Ludwig | Filed under: Wyoming | Tags: Arlington, Crater Lake, Deep Creek, Medicine Bow National Forest, Rock Creek, Southeast Wyoming | 2 Comments »
Highlights: A lovely, long trail following the creeks of a deep, shady canyon. It’s a popular place to stretch out because it’s so easy to get to, so well constructed and the surroundings are so peaceful and expansive. The trail was given National Recreation Trails certification back in 1979 and along with the recognition received funding for lots of neat little bridges. The recent Forest Service plan recommends the area be designated Wilderness. An optional spur leads to Crater Lake, a spring-fed gem embraced by towering granite walls.
Location: The northern reach of the Medicine Bow Mountains, near the town of Arlington, 40 miles west of Laramie.
Elevations: Arlington trailhead, 7,920’; Deep Creek campground trailhead, 10,066’.
Distance: 12 to 13 miles from end to end, one way.
Maps: Medicine Bow National Forest; USGS Arlington, White Rock Canyon, Morgan and Sand Lake quads; Forest Service pamphlet “The Snowy Range Hiker.”
Guide: Marc Smith’s Hiking Wyoming’s Medicine Bow National Forest – Third Edition
Trailhead: To reach Arlington from Cheyenne, WY, take I-80 90 miles west to the Arlington exit (#272). Go south on FS-127 1-1/2 miles to the trailhead and parking. The Deep Creek campground is on FS-101, which can be reached from WY-130 about four miles west of Centennial or from the Arlington exit by going 1-1/2 miles west on the south service road to FS-111, taking it 13 miles to FS-101, where you turn left and go 1-1/2 miles to the campground.
The Hike: The description will begin at the bottom, at the northern trailhead near Arlington. Rock Creek spreads out broadly here, a sheen of shallow, silver water. The canyon stretches for miles ahead, a deep, broad “V” cut 1,000 feet into the rock. The hillsides are open sage, pierced by rock outcrops; the trail floor soon leads into the shade of a mature aspen grove. A moldering cabin and tailings pile mark the site a of miner’s failed dream. But yours has just begun.
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