When Dan and I took our First Day Hike at Lory State Park, we quizzed our guide Mick about his favorite parks in driving range of Fort Collins. Mick is not only involved in trail maintenance in parks across the state, but he is also an avid mountain biker. Without so much as a pause he recommended Curt Gowdy State Park, located between Laramie and Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Gowdy is named for sportscaster and outdoorsman Curt Gowdy.

“It has two beautiful lakes, hiking trails, camping, boating, fishing, and beauty,” said Gowdy. “It has everything I love. What greater honor can a man receive?”

Dan and I visited Gowdy solely as a scouting mission. It was too cold and windy to hike, let alone mountain bike. When the spring comes, we’ll be back.

Before heading home, we followed signage to Ames Monument. Apparently it commemorates Oakes and Oliver Ames’ hard work on the transcontinental railroad. However, there was also scandal around misappropriation of railroad funds — maybe that accounts for some of the bird crap on Oakes’ giant face.