Perhaps we will come visit Thermopolis again

As part of a planned vacation, I brought my girlfriend to Thermopolis to spend the day, as I had visited the city six years ago. On that visit, I was only in town four hours as I traveled from Yellowstone to Cheyenne on my way back to Topeka, Kansas. I drove through the park, getting out to see things but did not do much else. I wanted to bring my girlfriend to see and try things that I found interesting, including trying the mineral water baths and swimming.

We stayed at a local bed and breakfast, which was fantastic. I was glad to find them as to be honest, most of the hotel/motel offerings seemed to not be all that good. The place was perfect. Comfortable and relaxing away from town with the added pleasure of great company of the owners. So while I’d definitely stay at their place again, I see that Thermopolis needs to concentrate a bit on their lodging offerings.

The state park as it was the last time was a great place to drive through and see the sights. The swinging bridge gave a fantastic view of the mineral build up over time. The bison herd was grazing by the road. The views were great. We tried the state bath house and enjoyed it. I wish I could have tried one of the swimming pools as well.

Flooding was occurring during our visit but honestly, we did not notice it until a local pointed out where the parking lot was and specifically the handicap and no parking signs that were firmly 15 feet out into the water.

The only thing I would note here is that your website (and most others I could find) had no information or very little information on the state run bath house. We were not sure when it opened, closed, or anything until we got to the bed and breakfast. I could not find a state website either.

We ate at a local cafe and that was good.

After lunch, we went to the Dinosaur Discovery Center. There was a whole lot more there than I expected. We spent over three hours trying to take it all in. I hope they are successful in building their new location to expand their offering. We have already passed on the information to some friends who were very interested in taking their sons for a Dig for a Day experience.

With very little time left, we made our way to the county museum. Thinking it was some small time museum, we were both very surprised by the amount of displays and items present. Most of it is very well researched so that every name was known and listed. We did not have the time, having arrived at 3:30 p.m., to give everything the attention it deserved, so we rushed through it because we had to still go across the street for the exhibits there. The museum did nicely offer that if we could not see all we wanted, that we could come back the next day at no charge, but unfortunately, we had to be on the road the next day.

We did not make it back to the state bath house as planned, so we went back to the bed and breakfast, rested up, and then went back into town for dinner. The owners had mentioned a restaurant and that it was very good despite being in the middle of Wyoming, While the decor was not all that great to look at, we received a meal far better than we thought we would get. As we waited for our food, we were wondering if we picked the wrong restaurant to go to. But once the food arrived, we found out that we did pick the correct one. The food was fabulous. A nice gem to have in town.

In the end, we had a great time in Thermopolis. I wish the roads into the park and into East Thermopolis were a bit better. It was a little rough going under the train tracks and getting to the Dinosaur Center. Everywhere else was in great shape.

The city of Thermopolis seems very spread out. Such that a visitor does not see everything that is actually here. Driving in from the south, you pass through it, but once you get to Broadway to go to the park, or eat, or go to the Dinosaur center, or museum, you do not have much reason to go back south. So the city looks far bigger than what its population would suggest. There is just no reason for a visitor to explore that part of the city as there is nothing there to explore.

We walked around the downtown area and adjacent blocks and saw a lot of antique stores, but unfortunately, they were all closed. The downtown area looks wonderful. You did a great job on it. We did not come to shop (I did not bring a big enough vehicle if I agree to go antique shopping with my girlfriend) but we loved the way the area looked.

The people were friendly. The lady at the front desk of the state bath house was wonderful to talk to. And after we left the restaurant where we had dinner and walked around the blocks and made our way back to the monument in the middle of the street depicting the livestock brands used in the area, a gentleman who was exiting another restaurant, celebrating his 68th birthday, stopped to talk to us and back his family’s history and pointed out their brand.

One thing I would change about the area is the information. I know as a city, you cannot promote one business over another, but it was disappointing to find decent information. Using your website, you had listings for businesses, restaurants, etc. Many of them did not have a website so you did not list one. Many of those that did have a website listed, did not work. And of those that did have a website and worked, the website was so scarce, that you could not find any helpful information.

Perhaps as a use for your lodging funds, you can start a matching fund grant to businesses for the development (not hosting) of a website. In this day and age, how one’s website looks and the information it gives is equivalent to how the exterior of your house looks. It determines whether someone wants to honestly come to visit.

If I think of anything else, I’ll pass it on to you. Again, we enjoyed spending the day and half in Thermopolis and perhaps we’ll come again to visit.

Editor’s note: This was originally submitted to Hot Springs County Travel and Tourism, then passed on to the Independent Record as a letter to the editor.