Casper, Wyoming

Life in Casper, Wyoming, explained by people who’ve lived in Casper:

*Response format = Answer (Your name, How long you’ve lived in Casper)

Casper Favorites

What’s your favorite thing about living in Casper?

Everyone is nice. (Savannah, 6 months)
It’s open and people are very nice. (Samuel, 6 months)
Summer. (Courtney, 8 months)
Nothing. (Anonymous, 1.5 years)
It is away from people. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
The perfect balance between city and country.(Matt, 3 years)
Small town feel. (April, 3.5 years)
Shopping opportunities and it is also a family oriented city. (Katie, 4 years)
Quiet. (Heather, 5 years)
Always something to do. (Leanna, 6 years)
Having such a low population so I don’t feel crowded everywhere I go. (Matt, 6 years)
All of the museum’s for kids. (Erika, 7 years)
Everything. (Lynn, 7 years)
Center of the state. (Richard, 10 years)
It’s a big little city. (Victoria, 12 years)
The variety of people and places to go. (Anonymous, 15 years)
Access to nature mountain, river walk, lakes, family activities. (Lindsey, 19 years)
Open sky. (Angie, 23 years)
Casper Mountain and Washington park and Alcova lake. (LeAnn, 23 years)
Sense of home. (Amanda, 25 years)
Churches. (Tammy, 25 years)
Summer. (Tina, 31 years)
Hometown feeling. (Brittney, 33 years)
Close to outdoor activities. (Scott, 35 years)
Plenty to do. (Jacque, 37 years)
Public lands access/recreation opportunities within twenty minutes of town. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Least Favorites

What’s your least favorite thing about living in Casper?

All the one way streets! (Savannah, 6 months)
It’s always windy. (Samuel, 6 months)
Most things. THE WIND. Lack of things/ groups for stay-at-home or homeschooling moms. (Courtney, 8 months)
Open enrollment, lack of ELCA churches, lack of diversity in the population/eateries/entertainment. (Anonymous, 1.5 years)
Sexist, no jobs for women, even with a master’s degree you will only make 1/2 what a man does with him not having an education. Oh and too much meth.(Jessica, 1.5 years)
Far away from family and not much variety. (April, 3.5 years)
Being two hours away from another city and the wind. (Katie, 4 years)
Crime and messy.(Heather, 5 years)
I wish there was more stuff to do here. (Matt, 6 years)
Ummm…missing some of the stores/conveniences from bigger cities. (Lynn, 7 years)
Good old boys club. (Richard, 10 years)
Crime has really increased since we moved here. No real place for kids and young adults to go have fun without breaking the bank. We need better options for them to focus on the good and keep busy therefore not getting into trouble. (Victoria, 12 years)
Snow. (Angie, 23 years)
The wind. (LeAnn, 23 years)
Crime rates are high. (Amanda, 25 years)
Wind.(Tina, 31 years)
The wind and the snow. (Brittney, 33 years)
Traffic is getting terrible. (Scott, 35 years)
Wind. (Jacque, 37 years)
Traffic. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Things To Do

What are fun things to do in Casper?

Bowling, ice skating, going on Casper mountain. (Savannah, 6 months)
Anything outdoors. (Samuel, 6 months)
Trails and mountain in summer. Events downtown (in summer). (Courtney, 8 months)
Movies, hiking. (Anonymous, 1.5 years)
Try not to get blown over by the wind. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
Hike, eat out, shop, go down town etc. Have a bon fire, visit a museum. (Matt, 3 years)
Outdoor activities, bike trails, parks, lakes. (April, 3.5 years)
Roller rink, movies with nice seats, swimming, hiking, camping. (Katie, 4 years)
Shop and see nature. (Heather, 5 years)
Mall and things for kids to do. (Leanna, 6 years)
Well there’s the mountain and the mall. I also have fun going to 5150 rock gym to go rock climbing. (Matt, 6 years)
Trails museum, Tate museum, Fox theater, Werner Wildlife, Fort Casper, and the city parks. (Erika, 7 years)
Trails, lake, fish. (Lynn, 7 years)
Museums. (Victoria, 12 years)
Explore nature. (Anonymous, 15 years)
River walk, live music, hiking, museums, fishing. (Lindsey, 19 years)
Hiking, alcova lake, and sunrise bowling. (Angie, 23 years)
The Nic, the central WY fair and rodeo. (LeAnn, 23 years)
Parks, museums, etc. (Amanda, 25 years)
David St. (Tammy, 25 years)
Drink beer, travel to cool places and hanging out with friends. (Tina, 31 years)
Camping, fishing, movies. Honestly we need more family things to do. (Brittney, 33 years)
Food markets.(Jacque, 37 years)
Dining, theater, museums, and sporting events. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper’s Reputation

What’s Casper known for?

Oil. (Courtney, 8 months)
We are known for something?! It used to be oil and coal but not any more. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
Being on the Oregon trail/Mormon/California trail. Being the epicenter of Wyoming for high school sports, the big city for Wyoming…oil and gas economy. (Matt, 3 years)
Wind. (Katie, 4 years)
Friendliness.(Heather, 5 years)
There’s actually quite I bit of history with Casper that’s pretty interesting. (Matt, 6 years)
Central location. (Victoria, 12 years)
Oil and wind. (LeAnn, 23 years)
The weather. (Amanda, 25 years)
Friendly. (Tammy, 25 years)
Wind and oil. (Tina, 31 years)
Gas and oil. (Scott, 35 years)
Central location for services and events. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Crime

What’s the crime like in Casper? (hot spot areas, etc.)

More property crimes so not bad. (Savannah, 6 months)
Mainly in North Casper. (Samuel, 6 months)
Normal for a community this size. (Anonymous, 1.5 years)
North Casper is the worst. All drug related for the most part. Meth, meth, and more meth. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
Definitely North Casper and felony flats.( North McKinley street.) (Matt, 3 years)
Hit or miss…in some areas you’d think it wouldn’t be a problem but it actually is. The neighborhood near Kelly Walsh seems nice and quiet. But there constant car break ins, weird people wandering around and even home invasions that you don’t get to read about in the news. (April, 3.5 years)
Pretty controlled. There’s some areas downtown that are pretty sketchy. (Katie, 4 years)
Drugs and abuse. (Heather, 5 years)
High. (Leanna, 6 years)
I’ve only heard rumors of North Casper being a “hot spot,” but I haven’t heard of anything really. (Matt, 6 years)
Not too bad. Watch some of the older neighborhoods maybe. (Lynn, 7 years)
I am ready to move on because of the drugs and vandalism. (Victoria, 12 years)
North casper is bad. (Anonymous, 15 years)
Minimal however seems like lots of drug cases. (Lindsey, 19 years)
Not very bad. (Angie, 23 years)
Drugs, break-ins, assaults, abuse. (Amanda, 25 years)
Not too bad. (Tina, 31 years)
We have a lot of auto burglaries, home break ins, vehicle thefts, snd a very high suicide rate.(Brittney, 33 years)
Getting worse and it seems to be the same anywhere in town. (Scott, 35 years)
Like any other town. (Jacque, 37 years)
Low. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Advice

Any advice for people moving to Casper?

No, not really. It’s all pretty cool.(Samuel, 6 months)
Don’t do It! You will hate it. Unless you have a job and want to pay high prices. Or if you have family here then it is okay. If you are very conservative it will work. I like the people at least. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
Brace your face for air that hurts your face. Have a 4 wheel drive vehicle. You will need it for winter and any mountain recreation you want to do. Buy a house with gas heat or a wood stove where available. Electric heat will eat up your budget. (Matt, 3 years)
Get warm, good quality winter gear!! (April, 3.5 years)
Be prepared for the wind. (Katie, 4 years)
Be ready for the wind. (Heather, 5 years)
Prepare for the wind. If you don’t it will surely blow you away. Haha (Matt, 6 years)
Don’t try to change it to somewhere else…if you want to live in Colorado or California, do it, don’t change Casper. (Lynn, 7 years)
Use social media to find the best options for home locations and schools.(Victoria, 12 years)
Be prepared for ever changing weather. (Anonymous, 15 years)
Great community. (Lindsey, 19 years)
Prepare for wind. (Angie, 23 years)
Make sure to lock up your car and house. (Amanda, 25 years)
Don’t hehehe the wind will blow them back home. (Tina, 31 years)
Bring rocks to put in your pockets so you don’t blow away in the wind. (Brittney, 33 years)
Be prepared for the wind. (Scott, 35 years)
Welcome. (Jacque, 37 years)
Watch out for the wind. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Stories

Share an experience you’ve had in Casper (fun, crazy, dangerous, etc.).

Watched a drug deal on a construction sight and going to really sketchy gas stations. (Savannah, 6 months)
I put a big dent in my shoulder from sledding on Casper mountain. (Samuel, 6 months)
The events downtown in the summer are enjoyable. Nothing spectacular, but it’s something. Food Truck Friday’s! (Courtney, 8 months)
I once got snowed in. Oh and this one time a we were at a light and it didn’t work so, I ran it. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
I love the community gardens personally. I rented a plot for a flat 50 bucks and it covered all the water and space I needed and I was able to raise home grown one summer when I had the time. I LOVED IT! (Matt, 3 years)
I have been able to take my daughter to many family fun community wide events like Easter Egg hunts and downtown trick-or-treating. The community is very family friendly and there’s always lots of activities for kids. (Katie, 4 years)
Eclipse. Everyone was prepared for the larger population and everything seemed to go smoothly. (Heather, 5 years)
My favorite memory was up at beartrap up on Casper Mountain. My friends and I went up there for a picnic and it is such a beautiful field to do so. (Matt, 6 years)
Way too many to count… (Lynn, 7 years)
The eclipse festivities were awesome. David St Station is a huge step in the right direction. (Victoria, 12 years)
The eclipse was amazing! (Lindsey, 19 years)
High school football.(Angie, 23 years)
Total solar eclipse. (Amanda, 25 years)
All my experiences, memories are in Casper. Lived here my whole life. (Brittney, 33 years)
Lake time. (Jacque, 37 years)

Casper’s Future

How do you think Casper will change over the next 10 years?

It will get better economy wise. (Savannah, 6 months)
If Casper doesn’t start mining coal, it’ll almost be a ghost town. (Samuel, 6 months)
I hope it doesn’t turn into Colorado! If it does we will be out of here. Really hope they don’t make pot legal. It all depends if they bring back coal. It could be a booming expensive place or it could be boarded up and abandoned. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
I feel that the technology industry will help Casper expand in every way. The college will be integral to this as it trains people for industry home to Wyoming and those graduates will find work in and around Casper. (Matt, 3 years)
More people and businesses. (Katie, 4 years)
Updates of old buildings, new stores, larger population. (Heather, 5 years)
I would like to see Casper expand a little bit and to have more things to do that focuses more on teens and young adults. (Matt, 6 years)
For the worst if we don’t get a handle on the druggies. (Victoria, 12 years)
Excited to watch the downtown grow and change. (Lindsey, 19 years)
Be bigger and more in sync with the country. (Angie, 23 years)
Population increase. (Amanda, 25 years)
Casper will continue to grow. (Brittney, 33 years)
Get bigger. (Scott, 35 years)
More banks and restaurants. (Jacque, 37 years)
Hope it will get younger, hipper and more cultured. (Laurie, 60 years)

Casper Facts

Any other interesting facts about Casper?

It’s cold all the time. (Courtney, 8 months)
We have the 4th steepest mountain incline in a short distance but they do not put up guardrails for a reason. Some people call Casper the armpit of Wyoming. Oh and people do not think Wyoming is a state and we are Amish people with no cars. (Jessica, 1.5 years)
Perfect pit stop before the mountains. (Matt, 3 years)
Had the first indoor pool in the midwest. (Heather, 5 years)
We love the food truck options. (Victoria, 12 years)
Hidden wonders of Casper. (Amanda, 25 years)
We usually make the news because of our crazy weather. (Brittney, 33 years)
Casper Mountain. (Jacque, 37 years)