Elk Mountain
Elk Mountain
Population
136
Elk Mountain is located 3 miles south of Interstate 80, and about 12 miles north of the Snowy Range. Nestled along the Medicine Bow River, at the base of it's 11,156 foot namesake, Elk Mountain was originally founded as a stage stop on the Overland Trail. Here, immigrants and stage travelers could safely cross the river. The Crossing Station, coupled with coal mining, timber and ranching, encouraged settlement of the Medicine Bow Valley. During the 1940's and 1950's, the famous Garden Spot Dance Pavilion attracted famous musicians and large crowds. Today, Elk Mountain is still a crowd pleaser, attracting fishermen, hunters, hikers and tourists to it's uncrowded and peaceful surroundings.
Public Education
H-E-M Junior/Senior High School (7-12) is located 16 miles northwest of Elk Mountain in Hanna. H-E-M is one of three high schools in Carbon County School District #2 and serves the communities of Hanna, Medicine Bow and Elk Mountain. It has a graduation rate of 100%. Carbon County School District #2 has a total enrollment of about 615 students, with schools located in the communities of Elk Mountain, Encampment, Hanna, Medicine Bow and Saratoga.
The cost of living in Elk Mountain is 12.9% lower than the U.S. average.
Income
Households in Elk Mountain earn a median yearly income of $64,832. 16.95% of the households earn more than the national average each year. Household expenditures average $82,354 per year.
Housing
72.88% of the people in Elk Mountain are homeowners. The median home cost in Elk Mountain is $204,300. The average rent for a 2-bedroom dwelling is $890/month.
Sources:
Wyoming Business Council and Best Places.
Healthcare
Memorial Hospital of Carbon County is a 25-bed critical access hospital serving an area of approximately 7,000 square miles in Wyoming. A community trauma center adjacent to the Interstate-80 corridor, physician staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, our Emergency Room treats five-to-six-thousand patients on an annual basis and services two ambulance providers in the county. The main hospital is located in Rawlins, with family practice clinics available in Rawlins and Saratoga.
Things to Do
Elk Mountain Museum
Our collections feature the Famous Garden Spot Pavilion, the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel, Old Carbon, Percy, Fort Halleck, the legendary tie-hacks, Elk Mountain school(s), pioneer ranches, the Kleen Dairy and the characters that have shaped our history.
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Ghost Town of Carbon
Located 9 miles east and southeast of Hanna, the town of Carbon was founded in 1868 as Wyoming's first coal town. In 1890, a fire destroyed most of the town's structures. Today, only traces of the old town and the cemetery remain.
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Historic Elk Mountain Hotel
Built in 1905, the Hotel is situated along the banks of the peaceful Medicine Bow River. Every room at the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel is unique and special. Whether you are staying at the hotel or not, we invite you to be our guest for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
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Snowy Range
Whether you hike, fish, hunt, mountain bike, ski, snowmobile, camp, picnic or prefer to observe wildlife along a scenic drive, there are plenty of opportunities for adventure in the Snowy Range. A large network of high elevation trails, that wind among the unspoiled beauty of glacier formed peaks and alpine lakes, is unique to these mountains.
