Wyoming’s iconic Squaretop Mountain lines up with the total solar eclipse in the Bridger Wilderness of the Wind River Range. A pair of lovers from Colorado added the pinprick of light in the center by briefly turning on a headlamp during totality. (Angus M. Thuermer Jr./WyoFile)

As an estimated one million persons swarmed over Wyoming to be benighted by the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse, many appeared to have the same idea about the ideal viewing location.

On the Bridger-Teton National Forest road to Green River Lakes in Sublette County, hundreds upon hundreds of campers parked their RVs, set up their tents, off-loaded their ATVs and prepped their barbecue grills for the show. At the Green River Lakes campground, trailhead, parking lot and boat ramp, viewers occupied every available spot. The overflow of cars, trucks and campers lined both sides of about a mile of access roads. Every conceivable vessel, seaworthy and otherwise, plied the lake waters as dozens of families and groups set up for lakeside viewing.

The crowds didn’t thin out much several miles into the Bridger Wilderness where it was virtually impossible to find a campsite out of view of others. Yet civility reigned, and visitors were willing to tolerate others’ close presence that, at other times, would have seemed intrusive.

Did you enjoy this photo? Support WyoFile at Old Bill’s Fun Run

Squaretop Mountain, 11,695 feet, was an altar of awe as the eclipse lined up behind it. In the photograph above, flows from the Gannett Peak headwaters (at 13,809 feet, the highest point on the path of totality) course down the drainage toward the Sea of Cortez. A pair of lovers from Colorado who camped on an island added the pinprick of light in the middle of the picture when they briefly turned on a headlamp during totality.

UPDATE — Aug. 25.  Bridger-Teton National Forest employees estimated there were 4,000 to 5,000 vehicles on the road to Green River Lakes and Union Pass for the eclipse. Pinedale District Ranger Rob Hoelscher said workers counted 1,500 vehicles leaving the area in the 3 hour after the event. The agency closed the road to the lakes to inbound traffic for about 1.5 hours after the eclipse on Monday. Closure allowed the exodus on the dusty byway to proceed safely with one-way traffic only. The road over Union Pass remained open.

Angus M. Thuermer Jr. is the natural resources reporter for WyoFile. He is a veteran Wyoming reporter and editor with more than 35 years experience in Wyoming. Contact him at angus@wyofile.com or (307)...

Join the Conversation

3 Comments

WyoFile's goal is to provide readers with information and ideas that foster constructive conversations about the issues and opportunities our communities face. One small piece of how we do that is by offering a space below each story for readers to share perspectives, experiences and insights. For this to work, we need your help.

What we're looking for: 

  • Your real name — first and last. 
  • Direct responses to the article. Tell us how your experience relates to the story.
  • The truth. Share factual information that adds context to the reporting.
  • Thoughtful answers to questions raised by the reporting or other commenters.
  • Tips that could advance our reporting on the topic.
  • No more than three comments per story, including replies. 

What we block from our comments section, when we see it:

  • Pseudonyms. WyoFile stands behind everything we publish, and we expect commenters to do the same by using their real name.
  • Comments that are not directly relevant to the article. 
  • Demonstrably false claims, what-about-isms, references to debunked lines of rhetoric, professional political talking points or links to sites trafficking in misinformation.
  • Personal attacks, profanity, discriminatory language or threats.
  • Arguments with other commenters.

Other important things to know: 

  • Appearing in WyoFile’s comments section is a privilege, not a right or entitlement. 
  • We’re a small team and our first priority is reporting. Depending on what’s going on, comments may be moderated 24 to 48 hours from when they’re submitted — or even later. If you comment in the evening or on the weekend, please be patient. We’ll get to it when we’re back in the office.
  • We’re not interested in managing squeaky wheels, and even if we wanted to, we don't have time to address every single commenter’s grievance. 
  • Try as we might, we will make mistakes. We’ll fail to catch aliases, mistakenly allow folks to exceed the comment limit and occasionally miss false statements. If that’s going to upset you, it’s probably best to just stick with our journalism and avoid the comments section.
  • We don’t mediate disputes between commenters. If you have concerns about another commenter, please don’t bring them to us.

The bottom line:

If you repeatedly push the boundaries, make unreasonable demands, get caught lying or generally cause trouble, we will stop approving your comments — maybe forever. Such moderation decisions are not negotiable or subject to explanation. If civil and constructive conversation is not your goal, then our comments section is not for you. 

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  1. Man, there were only two rules for this eclipse. 1. Don’t look at the sun. 2. Don’t turn on any lights during totality.

    Oh well. Fantastic shot, and I’m glad you didn’t let the crowds distract you from the wonder.

    Reply
  2. Reply
  3. Reply