Wyoming
Family Says Its Ranch Near Wyoming State Line A… | Cowboy State Daily
It was 2019 when the Gittleson family members saw the first wolf on the ranch property they lease in northern Colorado roughly 12 miles from the Wyoming state line.
It was a lone female that wandered in from Wyoming. A gray male wolf joined her in 2020. Nobody’s quite sure where he came from, but it was also likely from Wyoming.
At first, it seemed like no big deal, Kim Gittleson told Cowboy State Daily.
“They would bump (startle) the cattle occasionally,” but never took it any further than that, she said.
Then the two wolves had six pups, forming what became known as the North Park pack, Colorado’s first verified established wolf pack in decades.
The adult wolves needed to teach their offspring to hunt, and the Gittleson’s cattle become part of the lesson plan. Since 2021 they’ve lost 11 cattle: three full-grown cows, two yearlings and six calves, Kim Gittleson said.
‘Grocery Store’ For Wolves
The North Park pack eventually broke up, and some of the wolves crossed back over into Wyoming and were shot by hunters. It’s legal to kill wolves year-round in that part of the Cowboy State.
The big, gray male and a younger black-coated male hung around the ranch together for a time, but the younger male split. He’s thought to be off somewhere to the south now.
That left only the older male hanging out on or near the Gittleson ranch.
However, no sooner had the North Park pack effectively disappeared when new trouble apparently started coming up from the south.
In December 2023, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department (CPW) released 10 wolves that had been captured in Oregon and transported to the Centennial State. The wolf reintroduction was authorized by Colorado’s Proposition 114. It barely squeaked by voters Nov. 3, 2020, by a margin of 50.91% to 49.09%.
One of the family’s calves was severely mauled by wolves in February, and they are “fairly certain that was done by some of the Oregon wolves,” Kim Gittleson said.
The Gittleson place seems to be in the middle of where wolves are traversing back and forth from both Colorado and Wyoming directions. And they’re also the only outfit in the area that runs cattle during the winter when the predators are at their hungriest.
“They (wolves) come in during the winter, and we’re the only grocery store that’s available,” Kim Gittleson said.
Regaining Trust
On Saturday, the Gittlesons hosted a gathering at the ranch with numerous Colorado politicians, other ranchers and CPW officials, including Director Jeff Davis.
Davis told the crowd that he realizes the CPW has lost a lot of trust with ranchers since the wolves were transplanted from Oregon. And he hopes that trust can be regained.
Repairing the relationship between CPW and ranchers is becoming more pressing. Current plans are to bring in another 15 wolves, this time from Washington state, perhaps before the end of this year.
A lawsuit has been filed in federal court to have that next round of wolf releases at least delayed, if not canceled, said Howard Cooper, a Meeker, Colorado, rancher. The lawsuit was by the Colorado Conservation Alliance, of which he is a member.
During the discussion, other ranchers told Davis that they also would like to see the next round of reintroductions delayed at least until Colorado’s policy on wolf management and control can be revisited.
Since the reintroduction, there have been 24 confirmed livestock losses to wolves, and it’s still not certain how many have involved survivors of the North Park pack verses the newer wolves from Oregon.
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Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department Director Jeff Davis talks Saturday to ranchers who are worried about their cattle being attacked by wolves. (Mark Heinz, Cowboy State Daily) -
Northern Colorado rancher Don Gittleson speaks to people gathered Saturday at the ranch his family leases near the Wyoming state line. (Mark Heinz, Cowboy State Daily)
Oregon Wolves Bolder?
Some of the transplanted wolves were from packs with a history of attacking cattle in Oregon.
The Oregon wolves also seem bolder than the ones with Wyoming roots, said the Gittlesons and Grand County, Colorado, Commissioner Merrit Linke.
Non-lethal wolf deterrents don’t seem to be as effective on the newcomer wolves, they said.
During the group’s tour of some of the ranch, patriarch Don Gittleson demonstrated “cracker shells.” Those are a small explosive charge fired from a shotgun that, ideally, burst in mid-air and scare wolves away.
He also explained “fox lights,” or solar-powered, multi-colored flashing lights intended to deter wolves at night.
Spread out across the pasture, they didn’t seem to be effective, Don Gittleson told Cowboy State Daily. But bunched up near ranch headquarters, they’ve seem to have stopped wolves from coming clear down around the buildings.
Those things don’t seem to really frighten the wolves from Oregon, said Linke, who also represents the Middle Park Stock Grower’s Association.
Middle Park has also seen numerous livestock losses.
“They’re using fox lights. They’re using cracker shells, and the wolves are basically just flipping them off,” he said.
Don and Kim Gittleson’s son David said the North Park pack wolves rarely like to get closer to humans than about 300 yards.
Linke said that in Middle Park, the wolves transplanted from Oregon have boldly come to within 30 yards of people.
That very well could be because the North Park pack wolves had roots in Wyoming, where wolves are hunted, Linke said. The wolves in Oregon have never been actively hunted.
Where Are Things Headed?
Even in parts of Colorado far from where the wolves have been so far, there’s worry among some about them showing up.
Colorado state Rep. Barbara McLauchlan, D-Durango, told Cowboy State Daily that her district is quite a distance south of anywhere that wolves have been spotted so far.
But many of her constituents think it’s only a matter of time before the wolves start showing up, “and they really don’t want them there,” she said.
However, it’s also adjacent to the sovereign lands of the Southern Ute Tribe, she added. And the Utes don’t want wolves on their land because of the potential threat to their hunting and livestock.
“If those wolves cross onto the Utes’ land, they’ll be killed,” she said.
Kim Gittleson said her family has dealt with other predators, such as bears and mountain lions, for decades. But wolves are turning out to be something different. And so far, non-lethal deterrents such as fox lights and cracker shells have produced mixed results.
“We’ve been ranching for 43 years and lost maybe two or three cattle to bears,” she said. “And in the past few years, we’ve lost 11 to wolves.”
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
Since moving to Wyoming many years ago, and having lived in a few towns around the state, I find that some town and city rivalries must be addressed. Some are based on past conflicts that still cause pain to this day. Some are unexplained.
For example, to this day, all of Johnson County still does not trust Cheyenne after the Johnson County War of 1892. Cattlemen in Cheyenne sent a hit squad hired by the barons to invade Johnson County to eliminate alleged rustlers. A shootout that lasted several days ensued.
Other town rivalries include:
Green River vs. Rock Springs: The two towns are close together and share one of the most intense and oldest community, cultural, and athletic rivalries in the state.
Lander vs. Riverton: Located in Fremont County, this rivalry dates back to 1922 and divides the area over high school football bragging rights. They talk a lot of smack about each other.
Cheyenne vs Casper: The towns just HATE each other. I’ve lived in both, and I can tell you that there is nothing wrong with either town. But I’ve come across people in both towns who talk about their hatred of the other.
There is not a lot of love across Wyoming for Jackson, mostly because of the mega-rich liberals who live there. Many of those mega-rich liberals look down on the rest of Wyoming.
Folks talk smack about Laramie, but in a very different way than people talk smack about Gillette.
Having traveled around Wyoming, I can tell you that most of this hate is just nonsense and a waste of time. In the end, we are all Wyomingites. Just one big bickering family who still have each other’s backs when it comes down to it.
The Charmingly Odd Town Of La Grange Wyoming
It is well worth the long drive to see one of the most interesting and quirky little towns in Wyoming.
Stay for lunch. You won’t regret it.
Gallery Credit: Glenn Woods
Jay Em, Wyoming, Frozen In Time
Jay Em, what an unusual name for a town.The few people who live there are proud of what their spot on earth once was, and they work to preserve it. They keep this little community frozen in time.
Gallery Credit: Glenn Woods
Wyoming
Hoping to draw Colorado interest, construction begins at $80M betting facility in Laramie County
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Foundation work is beginning this week on Wyoming’s next horse betting and gaming house.
The $80 million Wyoming Downs facility in Laramie County, one of two the company is investing in over the next couple of years, is poised to be one of the largest facilities of its kind in the state. The company is aiming for a spring 2027 opening.
The facility will host upwards of 600 historic horse racing machines, Wyoming’s largest TV wall, multiple dining options and more across 58,000 square feet. More land was bought for future hotel development. Commuters driving between Cheyenne and the Colorado border can see clearly from Interstate 25 the expansive development.
That placement along the travel corridor is purposeful, Wyoming Downs and 307 Horse Racing President Kyle Ridgeway said.
“I think that the targeted consumer for this is from Colorado or from the Front Range,” Ridgeway said. “I anticipate we’re going to have plenty of people from Cheyenne come down here to play and enjoy the amenities, but when you look at 600,000 people within a 30-minute drive, that’s what justifies this investment and brings all that tax revenue in from another state, which is fantastic.
“We don’t get the opportunity to do that in Wyoming very often.”
There is still plenty to offer Cheyenne residents besides the facility’s amenities. Ridgeway said in a speech to attendees at the project’s groundbreaking Tuesday, June 2, that more than 150 permanent jobs will be supported by the facility on top of the dozens supported by the companies’ corporate offices and the 400-plus involved in the project’s construction.
Groathouse Construction, a Wyoming business, is the project’s general contractor. Wyoming Downs said it believes putting the project in local hands also helps keep the project uniquely Wyoming-focused.
Ridgeway added the facilities have already proven themselves to be effective tax revenue generators for the local governments. The Wyoming Gaming Commission’s 2025 report, released in late May, shows bettors wagered $2.49 billion on historic horse racing machines last year, a jump from the $2.11 billion wagered in 2024.
Wyoming Downs facilities generate roughly $25 million in taxes annually across the state, and Ridgeway estimated after the ceremony that the upcoming $80 million facility alone will generate an additional $3 million for Laramie County once the property has been in operation for a few years.
Horse betting sites have been increasingly popping up across Wyoming this decade. The Wyoming Downs location will be Cheyenne’s second large-scale horse betting facility since 2024, when the 30,000-square-foot Horse Palace at Swan Ranch opened. Ridgeway said Wyoming Downs is still offering something fresh for tourists and residents.
“This’ll have amenities that Swan Ranch doesn’t have, including the largest TV wall in Wyoming and a pretty super-cool sports viewing area with a restaurant and just a level of finish and class that I don’t think Wyoming has quite seen yet with these types of properties,” he said.
Ridgeway said he thinks resident fatigue with these facilities isn’t as strong as it appears, especially given the tourism benefits of off-track betting.
“Wyoming’s been built on mineral extraction and tourism, and what this is is a touristic facility. I’m not aware of any particular pushback about this specific facility outside of — you see random social media comments where people say, ‘Oh, another gambling facility.’ But where this is located, I think people in Cheyenne have generally been supportive of,” he said.
The Laramie County facility will be just one part of a larger project Wyoming Downs is working on over the next few years. Construction will begin in early 2027 on a similar facility in Evanston looking to draw in Utah and western Colorado crowds.
Some of the company’s current facilities, notably in Casper, Cheyenne and Rock Springs, will see millions poured into renovations as well. New smaller-scale parlors will also go up in Gillette and Green River this year, according to an information packet provided by the company.
More details will come as the construction process develops, Ridgeway said. Details about amenities, such as what the complex’s dining options will look like, remain undisclosed, though Ridgeway promised that options will be “excellent.”
“We haven’t made final selections on what the options are, but we have a number of different options on the table that we’re considering for what we want to offer for the customers,” Ridgeway said. “You have to have something that’s high quality for where this is located. If somebody’s going to drive 25 or 35, or even 45 minutes to come here, they got to be able to sit down and have a quality meal.”
For more information as it becomes available and to learn more about Wyoming Downs facilities and 307 Horse Racing‘s events and offerings, see the companies’ websites. Renderings for the upcoming Cheyenne facility commissioned by the company are available for viewing below.
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