Featured Winter Events
Sweetwater County has Something for Everyone
Find never-ending fun and family-friendly events that are centered on the great outdoors, fast-paced competitions, and Western spirit. With so much to choose from, there’s an event or two for everyone to love this season in Sweetwater County. To help with the planning, we've highlighted our favorite winter events for you. From ice fishing derbies to craft fairs make sure to visit and take part in all the fun happening in Southwest Wyoming this season. View our full events calendar for even more.
Holiday Events
Free Carriage Rides – November 25th, December 2nd, December 9th, December 16th
Celebrate a fairytale Christmas with your family in Downtown Rock Springs. Every Saturday between November 25th and December 16th, Downtown Rock Springs will be offering free carriage rides in honor of "Small Business Saturday." Visit downtown Rock Springs between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to experience the holiday magic.
Indoor Events
Home & Holidays Show – November 10 - 12, 2023
Join us at the Sweetwater County Event Complex for the Annual Home & Holiday Show and Craft Fair. The Home & Holiday Show is a great place to purchase your home & holiday gifts from local and national vendors—and it's free!
Up in Arms Gun Show – November 24 - 26, 2023
Every year, the Up in Arms Gun and Knife Show brings the best gun and knife vendors from across the northwest to the Sweetwater Events Complex. Find all of your gun and knife needs at this year's Up In Arms Gun and Knife Show.
38th Annual Bud Cup Hockey Tournament – March 22 - 24, 2024
The Rock Springs Men's Hockey Association (RSMHA), a member of the Amateur Hockey Association (AHA), is hosting the 38th Annual Bud Cup Hockey Tournament. The tournament is held at the Rock Springs Recreation Center in Rock Springs, WY and is an AHA sanctioned tournament, the admission to the tournament is free and open to the public!
Sixteen teams set their schedule around this tournament! Coming in from Jackson Hole, Cheyenne, Park City, Salt Lake City, Bountiful, Fort Collins, Seattle, and Nebraska.
The tournament hockey players spend personal time with the local youth hockey players, providing instruction and techniques to work on. This exciting Hockey Tournament is "Hockey At It's Finest" as it provides a weekend of exceptional wholesome family entertainment. See you all on the ice!
Outdoor Adventure
25th Annual Lighted Holiday Parade — December 2, 2023
This cherished, kid-friendly event is held every year in Downtown Rock Springs. Bring the whole family and kick-off your holiday season on a festive note! The Holiday Lighted Parade will travel through Historic Downtown Rock Springs starting on the corner of “C” Street and Broadway, succeeding the Mayor Tree Lighting on Elk St. at 5pm.
Burbot Bash — January 26 - 28, 2024
Burbot, also called ling cod, are just one of the species that make Sweetwater County one of the best places for cold water fishing in the nation. Four types of cutthroat trout teem the waters of the county's reservoirs, lakes, rivers and streams, along with other varieties of catfish, whitefish, salmon and smallmouth bass. The ice-fishing season in the gorge gets rolling around mid-December when burbot, rainbow and smaller lake trout abound under the ice, giving anglers a chance to hone their line-flinging skills before January’s Burbot Bash.
This fishing derby, January 26 - 28, 2024, is an annual Flaming Gorge Fishing Contest! It aims to diminish the population of illegally stocked, invasive burbot in the Flaming Gorge Reservoir. Anglers of all ages, in teams of up to four, can compete for over $30,000 in cash prizes while helping to purge the infestation of burbot in the beautiful Flaming Gorge Reservoir. Prizes are awarded in youth categories, as well as in adult groups for the most fish reeled in and the biggest fish caught. Expert and novice ice fishers can all enjoy a few days on the frozen Flaming Gorge.
For more information and to register for the event, contact the Flaming Gorge Chamber of Commerce at www.flaminggorgecountry.com, keep an eye on the Burbot Bash Facebook page, or call 800-FL-GORGE.
LaBarge Ding-The-Ling Ice-Fishing Derby — February 9 - 11, 2024
LaBarge Activities Committee sponsors the annual Ding-The-Ling Ice-Fishing Derby! Teams of two to four are eligible for prizes up to $10,000! Check out the derby poster full of prize details, contest information, and registration too.
Join in on the fun at Fontenelle Reservoir—Get entered into the Ling-Cha-Ching! And WIN many prizes that are great for the whole family and your friends!