Wyoming Discovery Days

At 1:30 on the afternoon of Sunday, July 12, 2026, Jalan Crossland took the stage at the band shell in Hot Springs State Park for an hour and a half. The Sundowners had played before him, and Keegan Thacker followed. The National Weather Service record for Thermopolis gives that same date as the hottest the town has ever seen: 109 degrees Fahrenheit. Wyoming Discovery Days costs nothing to attend. Its organizers describe it as a celebration of “the handiwork & creativity of our own folk artists, craftsmen” and fill the grounds with what their website lists as “artists, artisans, creators, builders and entertainers.”

Two days at the band shell

In 2026 the vendor market on the festival grounds opened at 10 a.m. both days, closing at 6 on Saturday and at 5 on Sunday. Saturday’s music ran from Stepheny Butcher at 10:30 through Logan Class, the duo Liam and Layne Jordan, and Kalyn Beasley, who played until 5:30. Sunday began with The Miesse’s at 10:15.

Storytelling ran beside the music. Saturday opened at 10 with a Norman Sandford Tribute, and at 2 o’clock came the Biggest Liar Contest. On Sunday a Storytelling Circle ran from 1 to 5.

Coals, cast iron and a belt buckle

The Larry Johnson Memorial Dutch Oven Cook-off, which the festival’s website calls the fourth annual in 2026, runs across both days. Saturday is for savory dishes and Sunday for sweet. The organizers invite “camp cooks” to “fire up the coals and bring your best chuckwagon creativity.” Every cook works from the same provided ingredients, since the $35 entry includes the groceries. The People’s Choice judging falls at 3 o’clock each afternoon. The prize is a custom Montana Silversmith belt buckle.

At that same hour on Sunday, dachshunds begin to gather on the grass near the Kiwanis Shelter. The rules are short: the dog must be of the correct breed, must have had its rabies vaccination, and should, in the organizers’ words, “RUN LIKE THE WIND!!” Sign-up is free and opens at 3. The Best Dressed Contest follows at 4. The race page explains why costumes are encouraged: “They run faster in a tutu. We all perform better when we look our best -it’s science.” The races start at 4:30 and run in heats, with medals and prizes for the fastest dogs and the best costume. The website gives two counts for the event: the home page bills the 2026 race as the sixth annual, and the race’s own page calls it the fifth.

A raffle helps pay for the weekend. The prize is a 2025 Hyde XL Pro low-profile fishing boat valued at over $16,000, with tickets sold two for $50 or five for $100. The drawing will be announced once enough tickets have sold to turn a profit, and the organizers note that “Every dollar donated helps us keep the festival free for attendees.”

Water at 128 degrees

The festival takes its ground from a park built on hot water. Wyoming State Parks reports that more than 1.8 million gallons flow every 24 hours over colorful mineral terraces along the Big Horn River, at a constant 128 degrees Fahrenheit. The park’s bath house is free, and its water is held at 104 degrees for therapeutic bathing. A suspension footbridge, commonly called “The Swinging Bridge,” crosses the river with a view of the terrace. The park has long been known for its summer flower gardens and keeps the central bison herd of the Wyoming State Parks.

Thermopolis takes its name from the Greek for “hot city.” The town claims “The Big Spring” in the park as the world’s largest mineral hot spring. The springs are open to the public free of charge under an 1896 treaty signed with the Shoshone and Arapaho tribes.

A year in Thermop

The festival’s photo archive begins with August 3 and 4, 2024. It moved to July 11 and 12 in 2025 and kept to the second weekend of July in 2026. Around it, the organization keeps a calendar of its own. In April 2026 it held the Cabin Fever Chili Cook Off at the VFW, with dancing in the afternoon. On the Fourth of July it held an evening at the state park, from 5 to 10, “celebrating 250 years of America,” and told residents to watch the sky at 11:40 for a flyover.

The Friday before the 2026 festival, July 10, brought the Big Music in a Small Town concert with Michael Ray, followed by a drone light show. Concertgoers were directed to the new county road, Ingle Way, off Hospital Hill toward Worland. Smoking was barred at the site because of dry conditions. Afterward the organizers wrote that Ray “showed care and attention to every single person at the concert.”

Autumn brings smaller events. A new Fall Festival is set for Saturday, October 10, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the river walk behind Gottsche, with scarecrows built by local crafters auctioned for the festival fund. A cemetery bus tour runs on a Friday night and again on Halloween, with room for 47 people each night. Its organizers advise against bringing small children because of the spooky stories, thematic elements and alcoholic drinks. They have also called for volunteers to dress in period costume as “Voices of the Past” for a two-night living history program of stories about early residents of Thermopolis. Tickets are sold online and at Audra’s Copper Coo Coffee & Tea. The next festival is set for July 10 and 11, 2027, in Hot Springs State Park.