Elk Mountain in Carbon County, Wyoming — The American West (Mountains)
Wyoming Winds
Photographed By Beverly Pfingsten, June 11, 2011
1. Wyoming Winds Marker
Inscription.
Wyoming Winds. . This site lies at the northern-most extent of the Snowy Range Mountains, a spot where the high mountain peaks end and the winds begin. Winds here may exceed 70 miles per hour at times, blowing winter snows, leaving ridges and slopes bare, and exposing grasses and shrubs to provide food for elk, mule deer and pronghorn antelope.
Elk and mule deer migrate from the high mountain summer ranges to these foothills and basins to winter. The Wyoming game and Fish Department has acquired 12,870 acres of the wind blown slopes and basins along Wagonhound Creek to protect and maintain this crucial winter range.
The exposed vegetation provides important winter forage for elk, mule deer, and antelope. These animals require both food and cover to survive the harsh winter conditions. Winter range in Wyoming is in critically short supply. If significant numbers of animals are to survive, winter range must be protected.
These winter ranges are managed to provide a balance of vegetation, including grasses and shrubs to provide forage, and conifers to provide cover from wind, sun and heat loss during cold periods.
Wind and man interact on the land to free and protect your wildlife resource. As you travel, keep in mind the Wyoming wind as a friend!
This site lies at the northern-most extent of the Snowy Range Mountains, a spot where the high mountain peaks end and the winds begin. Winds here may exceed 70 miles per hour at times, blowing winter snows, leaving ridges and slopes bare, and exposing grasses and shrubs to provide food for elk, mule deer and pronghorn antelope.
Elk and mule deer migrate from the high mountain summer ranges to these foothills and basins to winter. The Wyoming game and Fish Department has acquired 12,870 acres of the wind blown slopes and basins along Wagonhound Creek to protect and maintain this crucial winter range.
The exposed vegetation provides important winter forage for elk, mule deer, and antelope. These animals require both food and cover to survive the harsh winter conditions. Winter range in Wyoming is in critically short supply. If significant numbers of animals are to survive, winter range must be protected.
These winter ranges are managed to provide a balance of vegetation, including grasses and shrubs to provide forage, and conifers to provide cover from wind, sun and heat loss during cold periods.
Wind and man interact on the land to free and protect your wildlife resource. As you travel, keep in mind the Wyoming wind as a friend!
Erected by Wyoming's Wildlife - Worth the Watching.
Location. 41° 37.861′ N, 106° 17.146′ W. Marker is in Elk Mountain, Wyoming, in Carbon County. Marker is at the intersection of Interstate 80 and Elk Mountain Arlington Road on Interstate 80. Marker is in rest area off I80. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Elk Mountain WY 82324, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on September 14, 2011, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland. This page has been viewed 713 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on September 14, 2011, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland.