Locals refer to Ten Sleep, Wyoming, as “a little western town with a big heart.”
You could take that to refer to the people who make their home here, or the climbing. Oh, the climbing. About six miles east of the town lies Ten Sleep Canyon, a limestone heaven tucked into the Western slope of Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains. While the area primarily thrives as a ranching community, it has transformed into an outdoor recreation hot spot in recent years. Thanks to the hard work of the local route developers, Ten Sleep Canyon has grown into a first-rate climbing destination. The 18 miles of dolomitic limestone and over 800 bolted sport climbing routes have attracted hundreds of climbers to the area over the past decade, with more arriving each year. If pocket-pulling marathons aren’t your thing don’t worry—climbing isn’t the only way to take in Ten Sleep.
With plenty of opportunities for fly fishing, skiing, hiking, kayaking and mountain biking, there are activities for nature lovers from all walks of life to enjoy year-round.
Climb It
The climbing here has its own style—get ready for steep, footwork-intensive technical limestone. “It’ll ruin your shoes faster than anywhere else,” says Alli Rainey, Ten Sleep local, professional climber and Bighorn Climbers’ Coalition board member. But don’t let that hold you back—no matter where you go in the Canyon, you’ll be climbing something that is well protected with closely spaced bolts at every grade. Each crag has something to offer climbers of all experience levels, including five-star routes on every wall.
Lies and Propaganda from Ten Sleep is by far the most unique, eccentric guidebook you’ll ever read. Written by none other than Aaron Huey, a renowned National Geographic photographer who began developing the area in 1996, the book is filled with hilarious anecdotes, random diagrams and 26 different symbols, ranging from kittens to strippers, that replace traditional star route ratings. Huey is currently working on a new guidebook to be released next year. “All I can tell you is that it will look like a Bible and have a lot of content that has nothing to do with climbing,” he says.
Happiness in Slavery (5.12b) was the first route bolted (not the first sent) in the upper canyon. “That line stood out from a mile away. When I first walked up to that wall in the rain in 1996, I knew it was special: I came back the next year and started bolting that face,” says Huey.
Other climbs worth checking out? Mike Snyder, one of the founding fathers of Ten Sleep, points to Time Machine Yogi (5.11c) and B-1 Bomber Dude (5.11a), four-star routes on Chaos Buttress. Other classic 11’s include Bikini Girls with Machine Guns (5.11a/b), Circus in the Wind (5.11a) and the Godfather Boulder routes (5.10a, 5.10c, 5.11a). Intermediate climbers should seek out Water into Wine (5.9-), Ice Station Zebra (5.9/10c), Eldorado Coral Club (5.10+) and I Love the Big Top (5.9). And of course, your trip would not be complete without sending Beer Bong (5.10b), a climb Rainey refers to as “a rite of passage for all who climb in Ten Sleep Canyon.” Late June through August is the most popular time of the year for climbers, but it’s possible to climb year-round.
Fish It
Ten Sleep Troutfitters is a local guiding service owned and operated by professional snowboarder Mark Carter and his brother, R.C. Carter. Located on a vast expanse of private ranch water within the Big Horn Mountain watershed, the cool spring creeks run rampant with brown and rainbow trout. You can also check out the Ten Sleep Fish Hatchery. Built in 1939, the hatchery produces over two million fish each year, including splake, cutthroat trout, brook trout and rainbow trout. tensleeptroutfitters.com
Ski It
Drive twenty miles east of Ten Sleep on U.S. Highway 16 and you’ll find over 300 acres of ski area overlooking the tranquil Meadowlark Lake. Meadowlark Ski Lodge offers day passes at $48 for adults, $30 for children ages 6-12 and free for children under 5. lodgesofthebighorns.com
–Sidni Giordano
