Stewart Creek HMA sits along the southern border of Green Mountain HMA so it seems natural for us to explore there next...

I have many treasured memories in Stewart Creek, it is 168,000+ acres of wildness with sloping hills of tall grasses, sandy hills with beautiful summer flowers, small ponds, shallow lakes, and natural springs are scattered across the land, and high rocky ridges climb slowly where you may discover historical Native American tipi rings.

And incredibly beautiful wild horses.... the always fiery sorrels and lovely bays, gorgeous pintos and dappled greys, fancy varnished roans and gorgeous appaloosas!

The fact page from BLM for this HMA states that annual moisture ranges less than seven inches in the lower elevations to more than 10 inches in higher elevations - as someone that has visited this area since 2011 and seen it both in drought years and moisture rich years, this does not reflect accurately the full range of winter weather that occurs in this area, anyone that has spent a dedicated number of years observing this area knows that 7 inches of snow is on the low side for what can (and usually does) accumulate over a winter in the lower elevation alone.

One single storm can see 7 inches or more of snow, with harsher winters documented to have had more than 10 feet of snow in a six month period, in just the lower elevations!

If only 7 -10 inches of snow accumulated in winter most of this HMA would be accessible year round, and sometimes it is that dry, but more often access is pretty limited from early or mid-January until late February or sometimes early March.

In a harsh winter the 2-tracks can be inaccessible from mid-December until late April.

Stewart Creek HMA is fairly easily accessed via four main roads, the very eastern edge runs along a stretch of Hwy 287 north of Rawlins, the southern area has the old paved mining road Mineral X running through it, the western end has the well-used dirt Sooner Rd, and the northern area has the well-used dirt Bairoil Rd to travel along.

The heart of the HMA is a little bit trickier.... there is the CDT [Continental Divide Trail] 2-track that is an amazing drive with vistas for days - but - it does require a good rig with rugged tires and some 4x4 experience is recommended.

Because all of the major roads are accessed for mining year round you can drive them sometimes even in winter... except on the extreme snowy windy days!

We are going to start our adventure along the southern part and work our way around this beautiful and wild land.... so away we go!

We start by leaving Rawlins and traveling north on Hwy 287, it will be about 15 miles /15 minutes to reach the bottom of what is called Willow Hill, on your left is an old paved road called Mineral X or Oil Rd, depending on which map you look at or who you talk to - locals have their own names for all the places out here!

Take a left onto this road and just take your time following it.... and I do mean take your time! It is paved but it is damaged from harsh winters and mining traffic and there are some dips and chuck-holes that will damage your rig if not careful!

The first few miles of this road travels through a mix of private and public lands, no wild horses yet! Please do not trespass on the private lands.... no matter how tempting it may be with some curious things to see - also along the first few miles you may see horses that seem wild, but they are privately owned horses, not BLM mustangs!

After you have driven 15 miles and cross yet one more (of the several) cattleguards you have made it into wild horse territory!

Stewart Creek HMA is on both the north and south side of the paved road Min X, there are a few odd pockets of private land here and there, but this is almost all BLM public lands and you can travel the many 2-tracks that take off from Min X road without too much concern of trespassing onto private lands.

To the north of Min X road is Bull Springs Rim and Lost Soldier Ridge, it is a visual and literal divide between this part of the HMA and the far eastern edge that is along the highway, there is a fence that runs along near the top of the rim separating the two areas of the HMA for cattle grazing allotments, although I suspect the horses know a few places to cross in and out if they like, especially in deep winter snows!

It will appear as if you can take one of the many 2-tracks from the paved road and easily climb to the top of the rim - you can - except not all that easily.... there are a few deep valleys between you and the rim, the last few miles to the top are incredibly rocky and even my built for rough Toyota FJ with aggressive tires has to take that climb at a slow crawl.... but the vistas when you get there - incomparable!

It is a maze of 2-tracks once you leave the main road, I was lucky to have a few local friends show me around this area and learned how to navigate these 2-tracks, I have a terrible sense of direction and was pretty intimidated the first couple of years out here, but once you start exploring and learn how to find your way it is amazing the things you will discover!

Wild horses have a few favorite spots in early spring when water is plentiful and the grass is newly green after the winter snows.... and on a day when they are feeling the wild winds especially, it is quite spectacular to watch this herd gallop from one hill to the next, in a wave of pure wild joy.

In summer when it is hot and dry there are a couple of favorite wells that they can often be found within a few miles of, and yes there are cows too - while I have learned the horses will find water in places I have yet to know, the rancher run wells make life a lot easier for the horses in hot dry summers.... especially when in a drought, which happens more often than not in Wyoming, we are only ever one season away from drought here, especially in the high desert!

To the south of Min X road are miles of smaller hills to be travelled by 2-tracks, not quite as spectacular as the hills and the high ridges of Bull Spring Rim, but there are horses to be found there... despite its seemingly flat landscape there are many small dips and washes that hide horses from the highway.

After traveling along Min X for several miles you will find yourself at yet another cattleguard, when you cross this one you will have left Stewart Creek HMA and entered into Lost Creek HMA - these two HMAs border each other for several miles, and the horses of the two HMAs occasionally cross back and forth, I first met the now famous wild leopard appaloosa called Looking Glass as a young bachelor wandering about the hills of Stewart Creek HMA - before he wandered over into Lost Creek HMA.

After you have driven along Min X road for a bit you will reach the intersection of Sooner [BLM 3215] and Min X (see above map), you are still in Lost Creek HMA and will be in Lost Creek for a few miles more.... to continue your adventure in Stewart Creek you are going to turn right and head north - you will know you have entered back into Stewart Creek HMA when you cross the next cattle guard a few miles up this dirt road.

Don't worry, we will come back to this intersection when we explore Lost Creek HMA!

The western part of Stewart Creek is a lot like the southern area, open hills easy for horses to wander along, plenty of good forage for them and other wild inhabitants of this place, and a maze of 2-tracks to explore - you can actually stay on 2-tracks from the southern area of Stewart Creek across to the western and northern areas of the HMA, skipping the drive along Min X to Sooner if you like - it takes a little longer, especially if you are new to the area and have a terrible sense of direction like me, but it is fun to explore and learn the land a little bit better, especially when you find some of the secrets that cannot be found from the main roads!

Along Sooner Rd the HMA is again on both sides of the road and most of the 2-tracks are in pretty good shape with only a few being rutted or sketchy.

You will notice along the way a well-used dirt road to the west that has warning signs about driving it - this is one of the active uranium mines in the desert, and while strictly speaking this road is on publicly owned BLM lands, it is helpful to not antagonize the mine workers, they have often stopped to check on me in winters out here but usually they keep driving on their way... the mine itself is outside of the HMA and is fenced off.

There are many 2-tracks to be used that can take you across the sagebrush landscape to look for wild horses near the mine... there are not too many wild horse photographers that explore this side of the main dirt road, and on the few occasions I have gone far from the dirt road the horses have made it clear to me they prefer that humans not visit them!

Along the main dirt road you will see on your right (to the east) Sooner Reservoir, when the winter snows melt off they run into this little man-made reservoir leaving a wonderful little pond for horses, cows, and other wildlife for a while, and when it dries up (on those extra hot and dry summers) there is also a spring with a pump that keeps water running here - so you may sometimes see horses with the cows and pronghorn.

After you have driven the length of Sooner Rd you will reach the Bairoil Rd intersection (below map) - at this moment you are surrounded by Stewart Creek HMA, but you can easily skip into Arapaho Creek HA or even Green Mountain HMA from here if you want, or you can keep playing in Stewart Creek... all of it is wild horse territory!

To be precise.... you can turn left (west) onto Bairoil Rd and drive along until you reach a cattle guard a few miles down the road, once you cross that cattle guard you have entered into Arapaho Creek - the place that holds my very soul!

I can tell you, from myself and others observation, that somewhere along the fence-line out here the horses cross in and out of Stewart Creek, especially in winter, and it was some of the wild horses knowledge to do this that saved their lives in the harsh winter of 2022/23 - something that most BLM staff does not discuss or acknowledge, instead claiming that Stewart Creek is a fully fenced in and contained HMA - completely ignoring that wild horses do migrate in and out of areas, especially when it is necessary for their survival.

If you are tempted by that 2-track on the north side of the road, go for it!

But maybe make sure you have plenty of fuel in your tank and time to get a little lost and then unlost, or at least a better sense of direction than me!!

I have played a little bit on those 2-tracks and had a lot of fun and seen some really gorgeous wild horses out there - because not too many people go back there those horses are usually just a little extra wild!

You will find that the Continental Divide Trail runs through this area and will take you across miles of country and a little extra adventure in some places.

Back at the intersection of Bairoil and Sooner roads - if you take a right (east) you will quickly notice that there is a reservoir that is fenced off on the north side of the road, many CDT hikers stop and camp here as it is one of their water sources, I would not assume though that the water is really all that drinkable for humans.....

On the south side of the road you are going to see a sign for the Continental Divide Trail - this is drivable by vehicle and it is one of my favorite treks!

But... you really want to make sure you have time to take it slowly, not only are there amazing vistas that you will want to stop and drink in, but the trail is fairly rocky, sometimes a little bit washed out, and sometimes a little bit tilty - it is not a road to take without care and attention as the weather and time does damage and it is not maintained as a regular road.

Also, if rock hunting is something you enjoy this drive is one you will love!

Now, if you decide to just keep to the main dirt Bairoil Rd it will take you along the northern portion of Stewart Creek with the HMA being on both the north and south sides of the road, it is a pretty drive with Green Mountain to your north and Bull Springs Rim to the south, the Ferris Mountains on your horizon, and a little creek that has a couple of beaver dams running along-side the road all the way down until you see the small town of Bairoil.

Along the way you may see wild horses by the little creek and man-made dams, I have seen them here in summer and winter but since the roundup of 2020 it has been less often, there are also a few 2-tracks you can take to explore the surrounding hills.

Bairoil is mainly an oil and gas town and many of the uranium workers also live here - it does not have any services!! No gas or stores or restaurants of any kind....

I want to warn you that in winter this road is tempting as it is often kept plowed for the mine workers - but - the winds are also their fiercest as they come down from the mountains, the drifted snows are often several feet deep, and if you misjudge the snows and the wind, it only takes an hour or two for a road to become dangerous and impassible here.... in the worst of winters plowing is abandoned and snow coaches are taken for minimum required working operation staff out at the uranium mine.

So be wary, cautious, and over-prepared if you go in winter!

As you find your way past Bairoil and onto the paved road that takes you to Hwy 287 you have now explored much of the HMA - but not all of it, and the eastern edge is one of my favorite places in Stewart Creek!

By the way.... even as you pass Bairoil the land to your south is still Stewart Creek HMA - it is still wild horse territory!

However, please know that there are a few spots of private ranch property when you are closer to the main highway and you will want to avoid trespassing.

And now you are at the intersection of Hwy 287 and turning right (south) onto the highway.... everything on your right (west) for the next 10 miles is Stewart Creek HMA!

As you drive south along the highway you will see a few random 2-tracks that go into the HMA, some have gates, one or two have cattle guards, and you can take off on any of them to explore this part of Stewart Creek HMA.

I am going to strongly warn everyone that when it is wet - DO NOT take those 2-tracks!! Especially if you are alone..... even with a 4x4 rig! This area has what is called soda ash and that mud is, well, just a little bit different kind of extra special, there maaayybee have been a day or two when I thought I was a goner as the mud just sucked my rig right into the ruts - in this area when in any kind of doubt get out and walk it.... better to have mucky shoes than a stuck rig!

At just about 10 miles south after you turn onto Hwy 287, you will see a random stop sign and an old paved road headed into Stewart Creek.... this paved road wanders into the eastern portion of the HMA, the first few miles are still paved but have some pretty serious craters that will destroy your rig if you don't take it slow, and then it turns into a mostly dirt and sand 2-track with patches of pavement appearing in odd places, marking that it was once highway of some sort in another lifetime.

This is a fun area to explore - there is the old and no longer active soda ash mines and old buildings that have been steadily declining, there are old cars in random places, and a water source that pumps water year round - it is warm water so it is one of the few sources that does not freeze in winter.

Soda Lake is rarely full of water except after snowy winters or rainy springs, but there is the spring with an old pump so it usually has a little bit of water in it even in summer, and in spring Killdeer and American Avocets like to nest here - one of my favorite things is to be along this lake early in the morning when the birds are busy singing and walking around the edges of the water.

And the reason you came here... wild horses - the horses here are true survivalists.

The land is very sandy.... with unique flowery shrubs, sage, rabbit brush, greasewood - and sparse grasses!

Many of my images of these wild horses show wonderfully healthy grass - and there is absolutely good foraging here, but it is not acres and acres of grass as is found in the more western part of the HMA, and in my first few years I especially marveled that not only did horses claim this place, but that they were really healthy!

This part of the HMA also seems to feel the most extreme of weather patterns... I have seen it in extremely dry conditions with very little water or forage, and I have seen it in winter with several feet of snow across the landscape.

The harsh winter of 2022/23 was especially cruel to the horses here and at least half of the horses that called this part of the HMA home are now spirits in the desert wind.

In this place I have met some of my favorite wild horses.... that old worn paved road might be rough, but it was still great for a girl driving a Ford Taurus, when it was dry we could get down the 2-tracks even, and it is easy to hike these hills too.

I met the amazing red varnish roan Sir Behr, his stunning beauty caught my eye, but it was his strong presence that brought me back to him time and again - he also was a fierce fighter that often sent much bigger stallions on the run!

And then there was Ohitika... a stunning almost pure white stallion with dark dapples on his nose and butt, he was a jokester that loved to show off for the camera, and he gifted me images that show-off the stunning landscape made even more beautiful by his presence.

You who have known me for a while know that I fall in love with every wild horse that I meet and especially those that allow me time with them.... and that I will tell you how every - singe - one - of them is amazing, unique, and special!

The wild horses of Stewart Creek are all amazing... each area of the HMA has horses with unique personalities and looks!

But this eastern part.... well, I love it a little extra because it has some truly unique features, the surrounding vistas are incredibly beautiful, and the horses that wander this place have found a way to not just survive but truly thrive - against all odds.

And now we are at the end of this adventure in the HMA... I hope that you enjoyed traveling with me, and I hope even more that you get to experience the joy of going out to find your own amazing adventures in this great land with the incomparable wild horses of Stewart Creek!