The Long Way
Big Horn County
A person looks at a rocky canyon with dual waterfalls flowing into a pool.
Plate I. Porcupine Falls, Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway. From fs.usda.gov
A tall waterfall drops into a deep rocky canyon surrounded by dense pine forests.
Plate II. Waterfall in canyon, Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway. From fs.usda.gov
A dirt road winds along a mountain ridge covered in fog.
Plate III. Winding road, Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway. From fs.usda.gov
A foggy landscape featuring evergreen trees and rocky terrain.
Plate IV. Misty mountain landscape, Medicine Wheel Passage. From fs.usda.gov
A high-angle view of a large stone circle structure on a mountain ridge.
Plate V. Medicine Wheel, Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway. U.S. Forest Service Photo, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway

Lovell, Big Horn County, Wyoming. Scenic Byway.

Details

Map. Lovell, Big Horn County, Wyoming. Larger map
Where
Lovell, Big Horn County, WY. No street address stated. Directions
Season
WYDOT typically opens U.S. 14A by Memorial Day weekend, or as weather allows.
Getting there
Medicine Wheel Passage begins at Burgess Junction -- the junction of Hwy 14 and Hwy 14A -- and goes west along Hwy 14A for 27 miles until Hwy 14A reaches the western border of Bighorn National Forest.
Access
During the seasonal closure, motorists can use U.S. 14 via Granite Pass and Greybull to travel to and from Sheridan or Lovell; check road conditions by calling 5-1-1, the WYO511 app, or www.wyoroad.info.
Phone
307-674-2600
Website
fs.usda.gov
Managed by
Wyoming Department of Transportation.

Travelers along U.S. Highway 14A, the Medicine Wheel Passage Scenic Byway, encounter high elevation plains and deep canyon country up close; fishing, waterfalls, and cultural sites.

Notable Events

  1. 1967Construction on the east end began in 1967. hmdb.org
  2. 1970The byway's namesake Medicine Wheel was designated a National Historic Landmark due to its unique scientific research values and the support of prominent Wyoming politicians. wyohistory.org
  3. 1983The entire road was completed in 1983, with 11 prime contractors and 18 contracts involved. hmdb.org
  4. 1996A compromise historic preservation plan was executed in September 1996, reflecting the diverse and contending interests of the consulting parties. wyohistory.org
  5. 2011The Landmark boundaries were substantially enlarged from 110 to 4,080 acres in response to accumulating ethnographic information about Native American traditional cultural use. wyohistory.org
  6. Reconstruction of 52 miles of US 14A between Big Horn Lake and Burgess Junction began with a bridge and causeway at the lake; the mountain project was described as "one of the most difficult" in the Department's history. hmdb.org

People

  • John Eddy, astronomer and solar scientist who suggested the Bighorn Medicine Wheel was probably used as an ancient astronomical observatory and calendar (early 1970s).
  • S. C. Simms, noted ethnologist who first studied the Bighorn Medicine Wheel on behalf of the Chicago Field Museum (1902).

Sources

  1. travelwyoming.com/places-to-go/destinations/scenic-byways
  2. fs.usda.gov/r02/bighorn/recreation/medicine-wheel-passage-recreation-region
  3. recreation.gov/gateways/13750
  4. dot.state.wy.us/news/us-14a-opens-thursday-between-burgess-junction-and-lovell
  5. dot.state.wy.us/news/wydot-to-close-us-14a-for-the-season
  6. scenicbyways.info/byway/2164.html
  7. hmdb.org/m.asp?m=91285
  8. wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/medicine-wheel
  9. fs.usda.gov/r02/bighorn/natural-resources/arch-cultural/medicine-wheel-medicine-mountain-national-historic