Features Reporter

Andrew Rossi

Andrew Rossi is a features reporter for Cowboy State Daily based in northwest Wyoming. He covers everything from horrible weather and giant pumpkins to dinosaurs, astronomy, and the eccentricities of Yellowstone National Park.

Previously, Rossi was the News Director for Big Horn Basin Media in Cody. He earned several awards from the Wyoming Association of Broadcasters, including multiple awards for Best News Reporter and Best News Talk Show.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Rossi previously worked at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center in Thermopolis. He has collaborated with Disney/Pixar, the BBC, The Washington Post, the Wyoming Office of Tourism, and several other national and international media outlets. He is also a cofounder of The Cody Theatre Company in Cody.

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Latest from Andrew Rossi

The Jessen Reindeer Ranch rents rendeer for events in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. Raising and caring for reindeer is expensive, but can easily bring in more than $100,000 in the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Colorado Ranch Earns More Than $100,000 During Holidays Renting Reindeer

The Jessen Reindeer Ranch rents reindeer for events in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. Raising and caring for reindeer is expensive, but can easily bring in more than $100,000 in the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Andrew RossiDecember 14, 2025

When a 1,000-pound bison dies too close to tourist hotspots in Yellowstone National Park, rangers have to move it. That’s a big job that takes tractors, winches, and front-end loaders.

How Yellowstone Rangers Use Heavy Equipment To Drag 2,000-Pound Carcasses Away

When a 2,000-pound bison dies too close to tourist hotspots in Yellowstone National Park, rangers have to move it. That’s a big job that takes tractors, winches, and front-end loaders.

Andrew RossiDecember 14, 2025

A Wyoming pilot flying to a visit with a doctor ran out of fuel and made a safe emergency landing on U.S. Highway 14 near Greybull. He made his appiontment, then after refueling, authorities blocked traffic so he could take off and return home.

Pilot Headed To Doctor Makes Emergency Landing On Wyoming Highway

A Wyoming pilot flying to a visit with a doctor ran out of fuel and made a safe emergency landing on U.S. Highway 14 near Greybull on Monday. He made his appointment, then after refueling, authorities blocked traffic so he could take off and return home.

Andrew RossiDecember 11, 2025

The Wyoming Highway Patrol had confirmed at least 21 blowovers on Wyoming's highways during Tuesday's winter windstorm.

At Least 21 Blowovers Reported in Wyoming During Tuesday's Hurricane-Force Winds

The Wyoming Highway Patrol has confirmed at least 21 blowovers on Wyoming's highways during Tuesday's winter windstorm. Wind speeds as high as 105 mph were recorded.

Andrew RossiDecember 10, 2025

Massive Tree Damages Broadway Theater in Downtown Rock Springs

In what theatre critics would call an overblown performance, Tuesday's windstorm knocked over a massive tree behind the Broadway Theater in downtown Rock Springs. The tree went "through the roof," but the Christmas shows will go on, they say.

Andrew RossiDecember 10, 2025

Toadstool Hoodoos in Kanab, Utah, along with file photo of human skull

Archaeologists Seek Thief Who Stole Human Skull From Utah Burial Site

Archaeologists are searching for a person who stole a human skull from an 1,700-year-old burial site near Kanab, Utah. Officials call the act "disgusting." "The fact that grave robbing is still happening is shocking to me," said the lead archaeologist.

Andrew RossiDecember 09, 2025

WYDOT web camera on I 80 Vedauwoo - West

105 MPH Winds Recorded in Wyoming on Tuesday — And There's Windier Weather Ahead

Winds as high as 105 mph were recorded on Tuesday, and most of I-80 and I-25 were closed to high-profile vehicles because of gusting winds. Meteorologists say it's a result of cold air trading places with warm air, and there’s more ahead.

Andrew RossiDecember 09, 2025

Photographer Beth Moos captured the dramatic rescue of four bull elk, which involved some aerial dynamics provided by a helicopter from Central Copters Inc.

Photographer Captures Dramatic Helicopter Rescue Of Elk Stuck In Icy Lake

When photographer Beth Moos heard of some elk stuck in an icy lake, she grabbed her camera. What she captured was an incredible helicopter rescue that saved all of the animals. Even better, the rescuers did it out of the kindness of their hearts.

Andrew RossiDecember 09, 2025

Holy Cow! Wyoming's Snowy Range Gets 75 Inches of Snow From Weekend Snowstorm

Areas in the Snowy Range in Albany County received over 75 inches of snow in 40 hours over the weekend. The wet, heavy snow boosted the snowpack in Wyoming's southern mountains by more than 30% during that period. The town of Centennial received 12 inches.

Andrew RossiDecember 08, 2025

Nobody knows when or how "Infrastructure Spring" appeared in Yellowstone's West Thumb Geyser Basin, but it's one of the most unique thermal features in the park. The water that created the mudpot flows through old pipes.

Old Yellowstone Pipes Taken Over By Mysterious Spring To Feed A Bubbling Mudpot

Every thermal feature in Yellowstone has a natural system of subterranean "plumbing" that feeds water and steam to the surface. "Infrastructure Spring" is unique in that it has claimed human plumbing into its own system.

Andrew RossiDecember 08, 2025

Steamboat Geyser, The World’s Tallest, May Not Blast Off Again For Decades

There have been only two major eruptions of Yellowstone’s Steamboat Geyser in 2025, and it's been more than 200 days since its last eruption. Scientists have no idea when it will erupt again as it has stopped exhibiting one of its only predictable behaviors.

Andrew RossiDecember 07, 2025

Laramie Teacher Surprised With $25,000 Milken Award — The 'Oscar Of Teaching’

Garrid Halsey, a STEM teacher at Laramie Middle School, received the Milken Educator Award in a surprise assembly Friday. Considered the “Oscar of teaching,” the award comes with an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., and a $25,000 check.

Andrew RossiDecember 05, 2025

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When bad weather hits and drivers see road closure gates lowering in Wyoming, some motorists race to get past them before they’re down. In the process, many gates have been hit and destroyed. Not to mention, being on a closed road is a bad idea.

Drivers Are Destroying Road Closure Gates By Racing Past Them Before They Lower

When bad weather hits and drivers see road closure gates lowering in Wyoming, some race to get past them before they’re down. In the process, many gates have been hit and destroyed. Not to mention, being on a closed road is a bad idea.

Andrew RossiDecember 05, 2025

A glitch in the software of this electronic sign at Alpine Animal Hospital in Laramie, Wyoming, shows it's minus 196 degrees. If true, it would by far be the coldest place ever recorded on the planet.

Polar Vortex Is About To Make Things A Lot Colder Across Wyoming

The Arctic polar vortex is expected to move south, which some say will lead to the coldest, harshest winter in years. Wyoming meteorologist Don Day plays down those dire predictions, even though he says the frigid air would make Wyoming colder.

Andrew RossiDecember 05, 2025

In October, the Cheyenne Animal Shelter rescued over 100 animals from an "abhorrent" hoarding situation. Last week, "Carmen San Diego," a female sulcata tortoise, was adopted by a Cheyenne family that already had two similar tortoises in their home.

All 103 Animals Rescued From 'Abhorrent' Cheyenne Hoard Have Been Adopted

After the adoption of Carmen San Diego, a sulcata tortoise, the Cheyenne Animal Shelter has found homes for all 103 animals rescued from a hoarding case in October officials called "abhorrent." They're the lucky ones, as 22 dead animals were also found.

Andrew RossiDecember 04, 2025

Riders in the Tour de Wyoming work their way up Ten Sleep Canyon during the 2023 Tour de Wyoming.

2026 Tour De Wyoming To Cover 400 Miles Through The Bighorn Basin In Six Days

The Tour de Wyoming has announced its route for July 2026, when 250 cyclists will cover 400 miles through the Bighorn Basin, with a brief visit to Montana. It will be the 27th year for what's regarded as one of the best bike tours in the United States.

Andrew RossiDecember 03, 2025

It took three hours, sedatives, a lot of manpower, and a special forklift tractor rig to get a horse out of a ditch in northeast Colorado on Sunday. In the Rocky Mountain West, rural responders are prepared for livestock rescues.

A Lot Of Manpower — And A Forklift — Rescue Horse That Fell Into Colorado Ditch

It took three hours, sedatives, a lot of manpower, and a special tractor-forklift rig to get a horse out of a ditch in northeast Colorado on Sunday. In the Rocky Mountain West, rural responders are prepared for livestock rescues.

Andrew RossiDecember 02, 2025

It may be a little later than normal, but snowy weather caused havoc on Interstate 80 with a string of accidents that shut down the highway for hours over the weekend, sending some motorists to the hospital and stranding others for hours.

Winter Is Back: Series Of Crashes Shut Down Interstate 80 For Hours

Snowy weather caused havoc on I-80 over the weekend as semi-trucks and other vehicles were involved in a series of collisions in western Wyoming. Six people were taken to the Evanston hospital for injuries while hundreds of motorists were stuck on the highway for hours.

Andrew RossiDecember 01, 2025

Jackson artist Ben Roth is collecting 300 pounds of tumbleweed to create a 70-foot-long "tumblewhale" for the new Central Wyoming College camopus being built in Jackson. The finished sculpture will hang over the heads of students and visitors, who will be able to move it "like a giant marionette."

Jackson Artist Commissioned To Create Giant 70-Foot Whale Out Of Tumbleweeds

A Jackson artist is collecting 300 pounds of tumbleweed to create a 70-foot-long tumbleweed whale for the new Central Wyoming College campus being built in Jackson. The finished sculpture's goal is to look like it's swimming in the air.

Andrew RossiNovember 30, 2025

Drea Hineman, a senior from Gillette majoring in plant production and protection in the UW Department of Plant Sciences, inset, recently earned regional recognition at a Spacepoint symposium, dubbed Interplanetary Life, in Boise, Idaho, for her innovative space-farming research supported by NASA. Here, she tends to plants undergoing a salinity trial at the Laramie Research and Extension Center greenhouse.

How A University Of Wyoming Student Is Helping NASA Pioneer Space Farming

The novel agricultural research of a University of Wyoming senior could help NASA pioneer the future of space farming. Growing food in space is a critical component of prolonged exploration of the solar system and beyond.

Andrew RossiNovember 30, 2025

Jackson Scientists Study Dolphin Brains In Quest To Cure Alzheimer’s

Researchers at Brain Chemistry Labs, a state-of-the-art biology laboratory in Jackson, are studying the brains of dolphins in a quest to cure Alzheimer’s disease. They’ve helped find a link between the disease, the dolphins and toxic algae blooms.

Andrew RossiNovember 30, 2025