Crook County is a Tourist Destination

Tourism was up in Wyoming in 2021, as visitors flocked to its wide-open spaces and unparalleled outdoor recreation. The major draw in Crook County, Devils Tower National Monument, broke its record with more than 500,000 visitors in 2021. Other Crook County recreation opportunities exist and, according to Steve Lenz, park manager at the Sundance White Ranch Park, 2022 brings an opportunity to fulfill travelers’ desire to get outdoors.

“Devils Tower is the driving factor for economic success in Crook County, but there is so much more we have to offer,” he said. “Sundance is the first full-service community for travelers leaving the Black Hills to the West and we do feel a responsibility to offer them the true Wyoming experience.”

The Wyoming Department of Revenue indicated Crook County, in the northeast corner of Wyoming, experienced similar increases. Total lodging tax collection for the 2020 fiscal year was $165,035.26 and $182,646.77 for the 2021 fiscal year. With four months left in the 2022 fiscal year, total collections are already more than $193,000, solidifying another year of growth.

“Communities with premier outdoor experiences, like Devils Tower Country, earned travelers’ attention as travel began to resume in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Jen Womack, administrator of the Crook County Promotion Board, which oversees many efforts underway to promote Crook County businesses that serve the tourism industry. “We have done more to market the county in recent years, including publishing the new Devils Tower Country travel guide and making sweeping changes to the tourism board’s online presence.”

Wyoming saw tourism increases throughout the state, supported by the key findings noted in the Wyoming Office of Tourism’s preliminary 2021 Economic Impact of Travel Report:

• Travel spending increased 31.2% from $3.1 billion in 2020 to $4.0 billion.
• 2021 tax receipts generated by travel spending were $243 million, up 50.5% compared to 2020. Local and state taxes have increased by 39.9% and 58.2% respectively.
• Direct employment experienced a gain of more than 1,700 jobs across the state in 2021, a 6.0% increase over 2020.
• Overnight visitor volume has increased 16.8% in 2021 to 8.1 million person trips.
• Wyoming’s travel industry 2021 GDP is estimated to be $1.6 billion in 2021, 3.7% of the total state GDP.

Sundance White Ranch Park

Sundance lies at the western edge of the Black Hills, where it is typically overlooked by tourists driving between Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone.

“Our challenge is to give them a reason to stay in Sundance,” said Lenz. “We know that every hour they stay in our area has a drastic multiplication effect on our tourism revenues.”

One answer to that challenge became reality in 2021 as the Sundance White Ranch Park, an easily-accessible 100-acre outdoor park serving as the western gateway into the Sundance community, opened for family adventures like hiking, biking and other relaxing outdoor pursuits. The park came about from the George & Betty White Foundation, designating the remaining acreage of their Sundance cattle ranch in perpetuity as a non-profit, public access park.

“Betty White envisioned the location, with its awesome vistas of Sundance Mountain, where children and visitors could explore the surrounding landscape,” said Lenz.

The park is located just south of the Sundance city limits, bordered by I-90, U.S. Highway 14 and Wyoming Highway 116. Additionally, roughly 125,000 acres of National Forest surrounds Sundance, but that recreation opportunity is less of a target for travelers than what the Sundance White Ranch Park offers. The park includes five designated trails and open space hiking of differing levels of difficulty, perfect for all ages to take in the majesty of Sundance Mountain. The trails are perfect to hike, run, bike or just generally explore, and best of all, pets are welcome too. 

“Families can entertain themselves in the park and then head into town to eat, shop and enjoy our small town hospitality before continuing on their vacation,” said Lenz. “They can stay overnight too, because although the closest big chain motels are 30 miles away in Spearfish, Sundance has a nice selection of lodging options, such as an RV Park, BNB, AirBnB and Mom & Pop hotels. “

Lenz is also on the board of directors for the Crook County Promotions Board. Beyond Devils Tower, popular locations include the Vore Buffalo Jump, Keyhole State Park and the Crook County Museum, where visitors can learn about the area’s fabulous history, including how the Sundance Kid got his name in Sundance.

Future focus

With the expectation of greater tourism opportunities in 2022, Lenz said they hope to add additional trails at the Park this year. The City of Sundance owns 20 acres adjacent to the Park and approved the construction of adjoining trails on it. Forty acres of Bureau of Land Management land border the east edge of the Park property and negotiations are underway to develop trails to expand the visitors' experience, as well. An opportunity is in the works with a Rapid city recreation outfit to install a Disc Golf course as well. 

“We know families passing through the area typically have a very scheduled plan for their vacations,” said Lenz. “We hope to give them a reason to stop and experience the best Sundance has to offer.”