more proof...
Sorry this post has been so slow in arriving. I've worked on it several different times over the past few weeks but just hadn't had time to feel that it was finished. Anyway, here it is:
It's not that I'm really searching for "proof" that Wyoming is better than anywhere else. I suppose that's like arguing about Chevys and Fords. But, dammit, I can't help it that I feel more alive, more meaningful, more full of appreciation and faith and grace and goodness, when I'm out there on some Wyoming backroad, reading a billion years of geological time in the rocks around me or an eternity in the sky above me.
Here are the quick highlights of Dad's and my four-day tour, June 27-30:
Day 1 (Newcastle to Five Spring Falls)
First view of the Bighorns, out by Spotted Horse on old US 14/16. I love the name "Cloud Peak," and it's a name that definitely fits.
Five Springs Campground. Dad and I were looking for a place that wasn't too far up in the high country, so we passed on Prune Creek and Dead Swede and Bald Mountain and opted to drop into the Bighorn Basin and then wind up an old paved road to Five Springs Campground. Signs on the entry said that a bear had been frequenting the campground, so we made sure to put our toothpaste into the bear box. We thought we'd have the tents-only lower campground to ourselves, but around 9 a girl and a guy showed up. Still, a pretty quiet night, camped out ten feet from the creek:
Day 2 (Five Springs Falls to Soda Butte CG near Cooke City)
Catching up with my friend David. I'd gotten an email from David just over a week ago, telling me he was headed out to Old Wyom for some geological scouting work. Turned out that he was flying into Billing Intl. Airport and that with fairly minor planning we could cross paths in Bridger, MT--a relatively unlikely place for crossing of paths, but we had a quick lunch and then he headed off for Dubois and we headed over the big hill towards Yellowstone. It was good to catch up with him.
The Beartooth Pass. Dad has said that the Beartooth Highway is one of his favorite drives, and he's seen a pretty good bit of country. Now I know why he likes it. The problem with a drive like that I just can't capture the scale of it with my little point-and-shoot. Here's one pretty unsuccessful effort to get just a slice of it:
Sharing a campsite with some CT cyclists. As we neared Yogi Bear territory, we started checking out the campgrounds. The first wasn't too full, but was a bit far from Cooke City, so we went on to the Soda Butte CG, just 1/4-mile from the big town. By the time we drove through and came back around to the fee station, a few other campers were lurking around, and I was worried that we'd get screwed out of a spot. No need to worry: we ended up in Site #9. To celebrate our good fortune of getting the last (or next-to-last) spot in the campground, we offered to share it with another biker who was cruising through looking for accommodation. Turns out his girlfriend was still in Cooke City, waiting to see if he'd arrive back successful, so he went back to fetch her, and they pitched their tent just a few yards from ours. They were from CT, on a 16-day ride out to Denver to visit friends and then to see some country on their way back home. Nice people, and interesting. The guy (Adam) was riding a Moto Guzzi, so I ended up with the Cake song stuck in my head most of the next day.
Day 3 (Cooke City to Greybull)
Avetts for breakfast. Before starting into the park, we had breakfast at the Log Cabin Cafe in Silver Gate. I can recommend it, even more so because the song that was playing when we came in was an Avetts tune: a clear sign that the stars are aligned in my favor. It's hard to have a bad day when you start out with good food, good music, good company, and amazing scenery.
Revisiting the Yellowstone falls. I haven't been back to the Upper and Lower Falls since I was a kid, when my sister and I saw much of Yellowstone from the cab-over bed of my grandma and grandpa's RV. I'm pretty sure there's a picture of me out there somewhere, about 12 years old, looking dorky, standing at Artist's Point. Here's it's updated match:
Yep, I'm pretty good at looking dorky.
Cascade Lake trail. After stopping off to look at the Upper and Lower Falls, we headed down the road to the Cascade Lake Picnic Area, where we ate some dried apricots and then hiked about 2 1/2 miles across pretty easy terrain to Cascade Lake, where we spotted a blue heron. I took a picture, but you can't really see the bird, so you've got to use your imagination.
Dinner at Trail Shop Cafe near Wapiti. Dad and I had some pork ribs as an appetizer, and they were spectacular. One of the seasonings in the rub was unexpected, so we asked the waitress about the recipe. She said she'd check into it, and after our meal the chef, PJ, came out to talk to us. Turns out the secret ingredient was thyme, and PJ wrote down the recipe for us. I'd share it, but I really think that you ought to go to the Trail Shop Cafe yourselves. It was a good dinner.
Crossing the Basin. We didn't intentionally plan to cross the Basin in the evening, but I'm glad it turned out that way. In the middle of the day, it woulda been a hot and relatively boring ride from Cody to Greybull, but the late evening clouds made it one of my favorite stretches of the whole trip. No pics, though.
Day 4 (Greybull to Newcastle)
Shell Canyon. After breakfast at Dirty Annie's in Shell (where I ran into my friend Kory from Laramie, oddly enough), we rode back over to Sheridan via Shell Canyon. Here's a picture of Dad at the falls:
Ice cream in Buffalo. We intended to stop at the Story General Store for a snack break, but it's for sale, and all closed up in the meantime. Instead we rode on to Buffalo, where Wilcox's Montana-made ice cream awaited us at Lickety Split. Damn! Good ice cream!
So, yeah, that was the trip. It was great. Good to spend time with my dad, too.
It's not that I'm really searching for "proof" that Wyoming is better than anywhere else. I suppose that's like arguing about Chevys and Fords. But, dammit, I can't help it that I feel more alive, more meaningful, more full of appreciation and faith and grace and goodness, when I'm out there on some Wyoming backroad, reading a billion years of geological time in the rocks around me or an eternity in the sky above me.
Here are the quick highlights of Dad's and my four-day tour, June 27-30:
Day 1 (Newcastle to Five Spring Falls)
First view of the Bighorns, out by Spotted Horse on old US 14/16. I love the name "Cloud Peak," and it's a name that definitely fits.
Five Springs Campground. Dad and I were looking for a place that wasn't too far up in the high country, so we passed on Prune Creek and Dead Swede and Bald Mountain and opted to drop into the Bighorn Basin and then wind up an old paved road to Five Springs Campground. Signs on the entry said that a bear had been frequenting the campground, so we made sure to put our toothpaste into the bear box. We thought we'd have the tents-only lower campground to ourselves, but around 9 a girl and a guy showed up. Still, a pretty quiet night, camped out ten feet from the creek:
Day 2 (Five Springs Falls to Soda Butte CG near Cooke City)
Catching up with my friend David. I'd gotten an email from David just over a week ago, telling me he was headed out to Old Wyom for some geological scouting work. Turned out that he was flying into Billing Intl. Airport and that with fairly minor planning we could cross paths in Bridger, MT--a relatively unlikely place for crossing of paths, but we had a quick lunch and then he headed off for Dubois and we headed over the big hill towards Yellowstone. It was good to catch up with him.
The Beartooth Pass. Dad has said that the Beartooth Highway is one of his favorite drives, and he's seen a pretty good bit of country. Now I know why he likes it. The problem with a drive like that I just can't capture the scale of it with my little point-and-shoot. Here's one pretty unsuccessful effort to get just a slice of it:
Sharing a campsite with some CT cyclists. As we neared Yogi Bear territory, we started checking out the campgrounds. The first wasn't too full, but was a bit far from Cooke City, so we went on to the Soda Butte CG, just 1/4-mile from the big town. By the time we drove through and came back around to the fee station, a few other campers were lurking around, and I was worried that we'd get screwed out of a spot. No need to worry: we ended up in Site #9. To celebrate our good fortune of getting the last (or next-to-last) spot in the campground, we offered to share it with another biker who was cruising through looking for accommodation. Turns out his girlfriend was still in Cooke City, waiting to see if he'd arrive back successful, so he went back to fetch her, and they pitched their tent just a few yards from ours. They were from CT, on a 16-day ride out to Denver to visit friends and then to see some country on their way back home. Nice people, and interesting. The guy (Adam) was riding a Moto Guzzi, so I ended up with the Cake song stuck in my head most of the next day.
Day 3 (Cooke City to Greybull)
Avetts for breakfast. Before starting into the park, we had breakfast at the Log Cabin Cafe in Silver Gate. I can recommend it, even more so because the song that was playing when we came in was an Avetts tune: a clear sign that the stars are aligned in my favor. It's hard to have a bad day when you start out with good food, good music, good company, and amazing scenery.
Revisiting the Yellowstone falls. I haven't been back to the Upper and Lower Falls since I was a kid, when my sister and I saw much of Yellowstone from the cab-over bed of my grandma and grandpa's RV. I'm pretty sure there's a picture of me out there somewhere, about 12 years old, looking dorky, standing at Artist's Point. Here's it's updated match:
Cascade Lake trail. After stopping off to look at the Upper and Lower Falls, we headed down the road to the Cascade Lake Picnic Area, where we ate some dried apricots and then hiked about 2 1/2 miles across pretty easy terrain to Cascade Lake, where we spotted a blue heron. I took a picture, but you can't really see the bird, so you've got to use your imagination.
Dinner at Trail Shop Cafe near Wapiti. Dad and I had some pork ribs as an appetizer, and they were spectacular. One of the seasonings in the rub was unexpected, so we asked the waitress about the recipe. She said she'd check into it, and after our meal the chef, PJ, came out to talk to us. Turns out the secret ingredient was thyme, and PJ wrote down the recipe for us. I'd share it, but I really think that you ought to go to the Trail Shop Cafe yourselves. It was a good dinner.
Crossing the Basin. We didn't intentionally plan to cross the Basin in the evening, but I'm glad it turned out that way. In the middle of the day, it woulda been a hot and relatively boring ride from Cody to Greybull, but the late evening clouds made it one of my favorite stretches of the whole trip. No pics, though.
Day 4 (Greybull to Newcastle)
Shell Canyon. After breakfast at Dirty Annie's in Shell (where I ran into my friend Kory from Laramie, oddly enough), we rode back over to Sheridan via Shell Canyon. Here's a picture of Dad at the falls:
Ice cream in Buffalo. We intended to stop at the Story General Store for a snack break, but it's for sale, and all closed up in the meantime. Instead we rode on to Buffalo, where Wilcox's Montana-made ice cream awaited us at Lickety Split. Damn! Good ice cream!
So, yeah, that was the trip. It was great. Good to spend time with my dad, too.
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