A good place to take some time off and relax in a primitive setting decorated by picturesque vegetation and surrounded by beautiful landscapes is Miller Springs Wilderness Study Area (WSA). This WSA is administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and features 10 square miles of public lands. The most striking feature of the park is the rough and broken domes and outcrops that defines its topography. As this park is located about 31 miles east of Jeffrey City in Wyoming, the majority of the roads that lead there are unpaved and rough, so choose your travel equipment wisely.
One reason this wilderness area is good for vacations is that recreational opportunities are not limited to its boundaries. Nearby areas also offer good outdoor activities. Within the BLM park, hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, wildlife viewing, and nature photography are popular. At the nearby Split Rock WSA and Lankin Dome WSA, additional primitive and unconfined recreation are available too. A trip to Pathfinder Wildlife National Wildlife promises to leave you thoroughly satisfied too, with the fishing and viewing opportunities on offer.
As there are no services and facilities provided in this BLM property in Wyoming, visitors get to enjoy only dry camping experiences. More developed camping opportunities are provided nearby.
Miller Spring Wilderness Study Area lies about 31 miles east of Jeffrey City, in Natrona County, Wyoming. Access to this 10 square mile Bureau of Land Management property from Jeffrey City is off US Highway 287. Any of California Migrant Road or a series of unnamed/unsigned roads just before Split Rock Pullout is the turn-off point from the highway.
All the roads to this wilderness are unpaved and rough roads that require guests to have high clearance, four-wheel-drive vehicles that can negotiate the routes with ease. It may be necessary to have good navigational skills and equipment too. Maps and GPS units are definitely handy for the trip to the wilderness. Good knowledge of the road conditions also helps.
Access to this WSA requires that guests get landowner permission because private lands are located on the way to the park.
There are some spots where you’ll be able to park your vehicles before you arrive at the wilderness boundary, seeing as no vehicles are allowed in the WSA.
The closest public campground to Miller Springs WSA is Cottonwood Campground, a developed camping area that lies in the Green Mountains. If you’re looking to enjoy both tent and RV camping opportunities during or after your stay in Miller Springs, this would be your preferred destination. One of the interesting features of this campground is its location in a forest and sage grassland setting that brings campers close to nature.
The perfect camping experience in which you get to watch wildlife, ride bicycles along trails and roads, fish for brook trout on Cottonwood Creek, hunt deer and elk, and share meals with family and friends is what awaits you here.
There are 18 campsites in this BLM campground, and amenities such as garbage collection, fire rings, picnic tables, potable water, and vault toilets are provided. Feel free to come with your pets.
You won’t be able to reserve any campsites here as all the sites are available on a first-come, first-served basis only.
Note that the campground is closed between early December and early June.
Good opportunities to engage in outdoor activities are available at the nearby Split Rock WSA, including sightseeing, hiking, backpacking, and hunting. If you pay a visit to this BLM wilderness area located just east of Miller Springs WSA, you’ll find that outstanding primitive and unconfined recreational opportunities abound.
Popular among visitors in this park is rock climbing, an activity that’s attractive to climbers. Those that don’t fancy making their way up the mountain settle for pronghorn, elk, deer, and antelope hunting on the flats.
Lankin Dome is made up of two landforms, namely the uplifted mountains of reddish granite rocks, exfoliated domes and slabs, and the Nolen Pocket flats that lie north and west of the granite rocks.
On the uplifted mountains, visitors get to enjoy sports like hiking, backpacking, and rock climbing. On the other hand, hunting is the popular activity on the flats, thanks to the abundance of big game species in that part of the park.
You should not end your vacation at Miller Springs WSA without taking a trip up Ferris Peak. This beautiful mountain lies in Ferris Mountains WSA and offers an amazing hiking, backpacking and mountain climbing experience. Because there are no designated trails to the top of Ferris Peak, you have the chance to pick your own route as you make your way up.
Ferris Peak lies in a remote area, so you'll do well to have good hiking boots, reliable maps, and sufficient water for the round trip. The best times to visit are late spring, early summer, and early fall.
No direct public transportation services are offered to Miller Springs WSA. However, RVs/trailers, and travel equipment rentals are provided in Natrona County.
Hunting opportunities are available to campers and visitors at Miller Springs WSA who love to go after game. Pathfinder National Wildlife Refuge is another popular destination for these hunting enthusiasts.
As long as you have the appropriate permits, there’s nothing in the way of you enjoying your recreational pursuit.
At Pathfinder NWR, feel free to hunt ducks, coots, geese, sage grouse, and deer. You can also go after mergansers, cottontail rabbits and pronghorn, as long stick to the hunting regulations in effect.
Bird viewing is entirely satisfying at Pathfinder National Wildlife Refuge, thanks to the fact that there are 158 bird species within the Refuge. It’s no wonder the Refuge is designated an Important Bird Area by Wyoming Audubon.
40 species of waterfowl, shorebirds and wading birds migrate through and nest in the Refuge. Examples of these are American avocet, mountain plover, scaup, and redheads. Furthermore, the Refuge has a wide variety of habitats that support the presence of these birds.
Only a few fauna species are available for pleasure viewing at Miller Springs WSA. That’s why guests in the WSA, after sighting the park’s wildlife, take short trips to Pathfinder National Wildlife Refuge to see more mammals, amphibians and other wildlife species. An interpretive overlook is provided in the Refuge for visitors to observe the area’s fauna.
One of the more popular habitants of Pathfinder National Wildlife Refuge is the prairie rattlesnake, a venomous but unaggressive rattlesnake that’s usually active in cool weather. So, listen out for its tail vibrations when you stroll through the park so you don’t enter its territory.
