Devils Tower

Devils Tower National Monument
Wyoming
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Devils Tower

We heard horror stories about RV’s traveling through the Big Horn Mountains, so we chose the longer southern route, and indeed it was a gentle passage. One guy described it as the difference between a ramp and a ladder. The peak was 9666 ft. elevation – cruising altitude! The steepest slope (7% grade) was under construction. They had torn out the road, right down to a gravel and dirt base, and we were lead through single file by a guide car.

Big Horn Mountains

Switchback

Pull-Out



Under Construction

Past Buffalo, Wyoming we picked up the interstate, and all was smooth sailing again. We turned to Devils Tower, checked into a campground 10 yards from the park entrance, and scootered up to the visitor center.

The afternoon couldn’t have been more splendid; 70 degrees, sunny, with a pine-scented breeze wafting gently. A perfect day to walk the loop at the base of Devils Tower. We ambled through Ponderosa pines, white oaks, and a litter of boulders.

 

There are porcupines in this forest, and we saw evidence of their gnawings on the tree bark. A large prairie dog village was at the entrance, and the little fellows chirped and barked at us delightfully.

Prairie Dog



Porcupine Marks

Wagons Ho!

Ten Sleep, Wyoming

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We saddled up and headed out of Yellowstone via the East Gate. This route took us through –aieeee! – the Sylvan Pass, which is a mountainous – watch out! – winding road, with the slimmest of guard rails – Laura Mercy!  - and hairpin turns and switchbacks – whoa! – and a canyon far, far – don’t look down! – below.

On this wild, black diamond slope of a road, a dag-blamed son-of-a-buck RV towing a trailer passed us on a blind curve. My fingerprints are still in the dash.

We passed into the Shoshone National Forest and foothills, and came out panting at Cody, Wyoming.

Everything in this town is named after Buffalo Bill Cody; the reservoir, the dam, the high school football team. But in Cody the best Buffalo Bill of all is the Historical Museum. A sprawling center, with five separate wings: The Buffalo Bill Museum, Plains Indians, Yellowstone, Firearms, and Western Art. Each wing boasts an extensive collection, unequaled to anything I’ve seen yet.

Bear Claw Necklace

Wild Bill Hickok’s pistols

Past Cody the landscape changes from lush valley to high desert, and then into a region where nothing at all grows.

We are resting for the night in Ten Sleep (population 260) before tackling the Big Horn Mountains tomorrow. We’ve chosen Route 16, because the billboards promised it’s the “Fast, Easy, and Safe” way to cross. We’ll see.

High Desert

Rock Springs, Wyoming
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Elevation 8835

Up and up we climbed, to the highest point on I-80 West, which is commemorated with a statue of Lincoln and a swell visitor center.

Each butte we crested served up another immense view. The valleys we crossed today are nearly incomprehensible in size. Hundreds of miles wide, and simply jaw dropping in scope. The vistas are so vast that Tim said he could almost see the curvature of the Earth. Haha.

The High Desert is quite empty. It’s an enormous void of sagebrush and sand, with an occasional prong horn antelope at play, and the mountains in the far, far distance. Pictures don’t do it justice.

We are still following the line of the old Oregon Trail, and can’t help but imagine the hardships the pioneer families must have endured. Walking, riding in a wagon, or, as in the case of those crazy Mormons, pushing a handcart for months across this unforgiving landscape.

“August 28, 1857 

  

Dear Diary,

Provisions almost gone.

Down to 2 cups of flour and a pound of salt.

Pregnant again. Two children dead from fever.

Kill husband soon.”

Tonight, with our modern version of a Conestoga Wagon, we are safely tucked into a campground in Rock Springs. And our biggest concern is that we might run out of cocktail sauce.

Wyoming Or Bust

Cheyenne, Wyoming
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Up at dawn again today. Traveling west through Nebraska, the corn fields give way to grassy prairie, dotted sparsely with cattle.

We missed the big Cabela’s flagship store in Kearney, so we stopped at the one in Sydney. The temperature was in the high 90’s, and we were concerned about leaving the dog in a hot camper. Fortunately, this Cabela’s has a splendid RV park right at the edge of the parking lot. The office was closed, so I slipped a $5 bill with note under the door and we hooked up to their power for an hour. The dog had air conditioning, and we had a good shopping spree.

Gas is getting cheaper the farther west we go. In Wyoming, it’s about 50 cents less than back home. As a rule, we fill up at half a tank.

This evening we’re camped at Terry Bison Ranch. It’s a working buffalo ranch with all kinds of touristy fun on the property. The ranch is laid out like a old-timey western town. There’s a menagerie of animals in a huge corral-like petting zoo. The bison are in fields surrounding the property, and you can take a miniature train ride to see them up close. The RV park is just gravel sites, kind of close together, but that’s okay for the one night we’ll be here.  We had a fine supper at the restaurant - buffalo short ribs for me, and rib eye for Tim.



Shadow eyes the Buffalo