Van Horn Mountains and King Saddles and Rope

Today's drive from Cody to Greybull was thru some pretty barren Wyoming scrub land, but then we entered the Big Horn Mountains and our last 100 miles into Sheridan, Wyoming was grand.  We took our time, stopped at some pullouts to take in the scenery and stopped and had lunch at one of the mountain lodges at 9000+ ft.  The wildflowers in the Big Horns were as nice as any we've seen.

Whole field of blooming blue lupine.

Once settled into Sheridan we went out to see what we could find of interest.  Stumbled upon Don King Saddlery.  Thought it was a saddle shop--and it is.  They hand make fine saddles here and saw lots of them with very high price tags, as well as people actually working on making saddles.  As fun as the saddle shop was, the rope shop was even more interesting.  This is a world class maker of ropes for cattlemen and competition in rodeos.  Had no idea what was involved in making those lariets used in the calf roping at the rodeo! 

These guys are finishing the lengths of rope and were so willing to explain the process of twisting and finishing the ropes. We went downstairs of the shop where they actually twisted  70 ft lengths of rope material into a 40 ft length of finished rope.  They string the cords from one end of the room to the other and attach one end to a defined set of weights while the other end is grabed and twisted by machine until it is the proper strength and hardness.  A worker demonstrated the process for us and told us all about it. We were facinated.  These King ropes are sent all over the world.

They were  hand building saddles in another part of the workshop.

Worth another day in Cody

We found Cody, Wyoming to be a really fun place to be.  There was so much here of interest that we decided we needed another day.  We stopped at this Miniature Museum in the back of a souvenier store just because it was free-- not expecting much.  It was quite amazing.  The owner had spent his life building a diarama of the history of Wyoming using miniatures.  When we got tired of viewing the miniatures, he had cases upon cases of historical objects that he had gathered over his lifetime.  It was a fun hidden treasure.

Next stop was the Buffalo Bill Historical Center which is so big and expansive that your ticket is good for two days because you can't get through it in one.   We started yesterday and came back again today to finish.  A  large portion of the museum is dedicated to the life of William F. Cody-aka Buffalo Bill.  Obviously the town was named after him and he actually was involved in promoting and enriching this part of Wyoming.  For one thing, it was him that pushed the federal government to build the dam we visited yesterday.  His "Wild West Shows" went all over the world.  However, the museum also showcases the Plains Indians and thier story, there is a whole section on Yellowstone as the first national park and the natural history of Wyoming, and my favorite which was the Whitney Gallery of Western Art. Will's favorite part was the Cody Firearms Museum which went on forever.

Gallery of Western Art

Buffalo Bill owned and operated a hotel here which he named, The Irma after his daughter.  This is the lobby.  It has been restored and now a popular place to stay and also a place to catch a nice meal in Cody.  The town puts on a gunfight in front of the Irma Hotel every night at 6pm for the town visitors.  It was pretty hoky

And then we went to the Nite Rodeo.  There is a rodeo every night in Cody throughout the summer.  It is where the professionals hone thier craft and try to get good enough to qualify for the big time.  This is where they get thier start.  It was good rodeo and lots of fun.  But then we like rodeo.

On the way to Cody

This ol' bison bull is heading up the hiway--doesn't care about the traffic, he's just on his way!  This is a section of the road on the way to Cody, Wyoming that is following a canyon and there is no way off the road for a lot of miles.  Wonder where he thinks he is going!?

We stopped to visit the Buffalo Bill Dam before we reached Cody.  Was an interesting stop.  This dam (you are looking down the face of the dam in this picture) was built in 1905 and at the time was the tallest dam in the world. It took 5 years to complete, several contractors went broke as labor problems, bad weather and flooding hindered work.  But they persisted and finally got it together and brought precious irrigation water to northwest Wyoming otherwise arid farmland.

Below the dam

It was the first concrete arch dam and became a prototype for the future Hoover Dam.

Yellowstone meanderings

Yellowstone is such a large park that it takes more days than we are willing to give on this trip to cover it all.  We stayed two nights and tried to hit a few highlights.  Did a lot of driving, stopping at pull-outs to look at thermals, or waterfalls, or all the glorious scenery.  Lots of traffic jams--wildlife-jams, actually.  Someone spots a bear or an elk or bison and everyone wants to get a picture or a lingering look.  Me too!!  A favorite thing for us to do is to check out all the park Lodges and Yellowstone has several that are historic and fun to see--even have lunch at.  Roosevelt Lodge and Lake Lodge are especially nice. 
Its darn right cold up here, however.  Was 34 degrees when we got up this morning and I wore my fleece jacket most all day.  I bet I am going to be wishing I had some of that cool air once we leave here!

These Harlequin Ducks didn't mind the icy, churning water.  There is a third one in the water!

Yellowstone National Park

One last long, enduring look at the Tetons.  Its a beautiful spot from every angle, in any light, in any season--but reflected in a clear, quiet lake is about as good as it gets.
  This morning we packed up and headed north.  One quick stop at the Park's medical quick-clinic for me.  I seem to have caught a cold that turned into a nasty sinus infection.  Kept thinking it surely would get better tomorrow but instead got worse.  Very nice doctor at the clinic fixed me up with some drugs and a lecture about caring for myself and sent me on my way.
  Pulled into Grants Villiage in Yellowstone NP about noon and got one of the last first-come-first-serve campsites.  In fact it is a handicapped one--works for me.  I feel sort of handicapped at the moment.  First thing was to make a dash for the park's favorite Old Faithful!

Was windy and although the sun was warm, that wind was bitter.  We hauled out our jackets to go hiking around the thermal areas.  We'll be getting the blankets out tonight as it is predicted to get down into the 30's.  What a change from last week in Utah. 

We've been to Yellowstone several times but there is always something new to see here.  It is prime season here, lots and lots of people travel to Yellowstone in the summer!

Grand Tetons NP

This is our third day at the Grand Tetons.  This small mountain range that is the centerpiece of the park is just spectacular.  They just hit you in the face.  We spent two nights at the southern end at Gros Ventre (pronounced Grow-VONT.  Who would have guessed that!) campground.  Its in a grove of cottonwoods along the Gros Ventre river.  We haven't had any trouble getting spaces in the park but then we are dry camping--hook-up sites are at a premium.

We hiked an early morning 6 mile loop up to Bradley Lake and then back around to this lake. Wind hadn't picked up yet and the snow capped mountains reflected in the water.

Classic overlook of the Tetons across the Snake River

Such a tranquil sight

We drove all over and stopped at all the places that the literature told us we'd find moose--but we finally found him at the river just below our campground!  He was not at all interested in us, we watched him graze on the underbrush for a long time.

    We moved to the north end of park into Signal Mountain campground and parked under some wonderful huge pines overlooking Lake Jackson.  This is the busier end of the park.

Bear Lake National Wildlife Refuge

First thing this morning we took our binoculars and spotting scope and went to bear Lake Wildlife Refuge which is at the north end of this lake.  Saw lots of good stuff.  Had to refresh our memories to identify the various duck species.  Got a look at this Trumpeter Swan that has been successfully reintroduced here and breeding successfully. 

Tons of White Faced Ibys.  Apparently major breeding sanctuary for them.

You have to look close, but this is a momma Western Grebe with two babies on its back!!  Loons are the only other bird that I know of that does this.  They are safe and secure as Mom takes them out into deep water.  Its a little fuzzy because I took it through the lense of my scope but it was too cute to miss.

When we finished at the refuge we drove a little farthr down the road to the town of Montpilier, Idaho to go to the National Oregon/Califiornia Trail Center.  Interesting museum about the pioneers coming across through here on thier way to Oregon and California.  Also in the museum was this wanted poster.  Butch Cassidy robbed a bank here in the town of Montpilier and there is a plaque on main street that tells about it also. 

Bear Lake, Utah

We're at Bear Lake in northeast Utah, way up in the corner where Utah, Idaho and Wyoming come together.  We'll spend a couple of nights here before we slip over into Wyoming.  Last night we were around Provo, Utah where we could "stock up" again after being out in the hinterlands for so long.  Nice big Super Walmart where I could get groceries, get my nails done and important stuff like that. 

We drove the 40 mile Bear Canyon  from Logan, Utah to Bear Lake.  Scenery has certainly changed from southern Utah, now we're in forested mountains and lush green valleys.  When you reach the top of the canyon road you can look down and the blue/tourquois of this lake absolutely takes your breath away.  Very pretty spot.  The little touristy town of Garden City is on the west shore and apparently the thing to do here is enjoy a raspberry shake.  Every shop and drive-in advertises thier's as the best.  We had to try one and of course, we were not disappointed.  They have a raspberry festival here in early August.

We couldn't pass up the local playhouse.  We got tickets for tonights performance of "Forever Plaid."  I know it is a musical set in the 50's or 60's so we will no doubt beable to sing along.  It was almost sold out.

Capitol Reef

We’ve found this part of Utah so interesting, not only the startling landscape but the history here is fascinating. Pioneers who settled this remote area during the late 1800’s were all Mormans, of course, and they were sent here. These are all missional settlements and can’t imagine the determination they had to make a go of living here. Some of the settlements obviously thrived and are strong and thriving today, others left only a story of faith and hardship. The isolation of these communities give rise to wonderful stories of self sufficiency and coping on this frontier. The 40 mile section of the hiway we have been traveling over the mountains from Bolder, Utah to Torry was only paved as recently as 1985.

We spent a couple of days exploring Capitol Reef National Park. The geology is this park’s claim to fame. It encompasses a narrow hundred-mile warp in the earth’s crust created as the Rocky Mountains were formed so the landscape is another one of those Southwest wonders. We hiked around and took some drives but a lot of the park is remote and not very accessible. It does have one of the nicest campgrounds of any of the National Parks we have ever been in, even though we had no power or internet or cell coverage. Its pretty remote.

Fruit orchards planted by pioneers over a hundred years ago.

We filled our pockets full of apricots and then sat down and ate 'em!

Besides the landscape, Capitol Reef records the history of a group of Morman settlers who came here and tried to farm along the Fremont River with varying success. They did grow orchards and the park service is maintaining those old orchards and renewing them and when the fruit is ripe the park visitors are invited to share in the bounty. You can consume as much as you want while in the orchards but you do have to pay if you want to take any with you. The Apricots were just beginning and we had fun picking a few. Cherries just finished and peaches, apples and pears will be next.

We also spotted a Yellow-Billed Cuckoo--a life bird for both of us. 

Monday on Utah 12

We were on the road at sunrise because we wanted to hike the Lower Calf Creek Trail and we need to do that before it gets too warm.  Drove about 10 miles and left the RV at the trailhead and hiked the 6 mile loop to this delightful waterfalls up Calf Creek. Was a beautiful stream side trail that ended in this box canyon with a plunging waterfall.

Then we continued along hiway 12

Stopped at 9300ft summit for lunch break and a panoramic view of Capital Reef and Henry Mountains to the south and east. Motored into Torry, Utah where we found an all service campground for the night.  We'll be going into Capital Reef NP tomorrow and plan to stay at the campground there so I am sure there will be no cell or internet.  You can be sure I'll take lots of pictures and save them up for when I get connected again.

Petrified forest utah

We’re moving again, traveling Utah Hiway 12.  Its 120+ miles from Bryce Canyon through Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument past three Utah State Parks toward Capital Reef through the most dramatic, desolate landscape imaginable.  Lots of ooh-aahh moments.  We stopped for the night at Petrified Forest State Park and got the last electric hook up site.  Its on the shore of a little reservoir and having air conditioning in the coach felt really good.  We got here before noon and had to wait for our site to vacate so we hiked the trail that the park is famous for and saw lots and lots of petrified wood.  This is so different from Arizona’s petrified forest as that one is in a wide open desert.  This one, we had to climb up a cliff to find the petrified forest within a living forest of juniper and rabbit bush. 

It's Father's Day and Steph called while we were hiking the petrified forest trail.  Doug caught us when we were finished and relaxing in camp.  He had a nice Father's Day.

We have no phone service or WiFi at this location but interestingly enough we can get excellent television reception on our antenna.  So this won't get published on the blog at least until tomorrow--I don't know when we'll run into coverage.

Bryce and surrounding scenic areas

 

Met up with John, DeAnn, Holly, Katie and Sammy again for late lunch at Rainbow point after they had just hiked a 3 mile trail down into the canyon.  We knew the trail as we did it yesterday.  Guide book says its the "most beautiful hike in the world."

Will and I found this little waterfall out the main entrance of the park and down the road to a short hiking trail back into the park.

We also found Red Canyon outside of the park on National Forest land and hiked around looking at some more red rocks interesting flora and fauna of Utah.