Wyoming - Planning is required

We left South Dakota going north on US90.  An unexpected sight was snow on the mountains.      The Snow in the distance was a lovely show.  Wyoming gave us a RV challenge we didn’t count on. Pipeline construction workers were filling up a majority of the RV spots along our route.               Flip side –Yippee for the economy!!

Availability made our first stop in the tiny town of Kaycee. Complete with one gas station, tack store, bar, an impressive rodeo park and yes, a great local museum.  Hoof Prints of the Past ( www.hoofprintsofthepast.org ) has a great collection of western life items from ivory handled pistols, wolf skin wagon blankets and a jail cell. The local historian was so charming.  She told stories when her dad was the sheriff and would drag people to the jail to dry out or when cattlemen and oil rich folks would cause trouble at the weekly dances held in this very building. It was an entertaining stop on our drive to Outlaw Cave.

 

*Cabin art at the Hoof Prints Museum

*Buffalo Hide Chaps

*Beaded Roping Gloves

*Colt Ivory Six Shooter

 

*I've had morning like this 

 

 

OutlawCave is where Butch Cassidy, Sundance and the rest of the Hole in the Wall Gang held up and maybe even Cat Ballou, and Lee Marvin.  Believe that this is not a well marked route and warnings to only proceed in high clearance 4WD vehicles were posted. Yep we went off roadin!! Albeit carefully. It was such a great, quiet, remote, experience. Les and I do question the authenticity of the Ancient Indian pictographs we found in a cliff shelter. The size of Kaycee cannot take away from the beauty of the landscape and its ranching lifestyle.

* Hay harvest at the foot of Red Rock Canyon

*Finally found Outlaw Cave

*Ancient Indian pictographs? You be the judge ;-) 

 

* No picture can do justice to this landscape.  It is breathtaking!!

*Testing the suspension

* Red Rock Ranch Style

*Antelope - They are everywhere

 

The Casper County Fair is going on and we were lucky to secure two nights here. No time to dilly dally lets sight see.  Loved watching the 4H kids, I got hugged by the fair mascot and we ate free cake. Thank you Casper County Fair.

 

The National HistoricTrails Interpretive Center is part of the National Parks service, focusing on traveling the Oregon, Mormon and Californian Trails, the Pony Express and the changes to the Native Americans lifestyle. Views from the deck point out where these migratory trails met in Casper.  History is fun, and this center proves it.  Kids, parents, grandparents and fun travelers played with computers, rode in wagons, pulled handcarts and played with hands on activities.  Did you know that to track mileage a rag was tied to a wagon spoke and a kid would count how many times it would go around. Apparently ADD did not exist then. It was very clear what a tough, rugged trip this was and how hardy these pioneers were.The National HistoricTrails Interpretive Center is fun, interesting and really educational – we loved it inside and out.

*3D Movie theater at the National Historic Trail Interpretive Center

*Human Powered Hand Carts were the economical choice of migrant Mormons

*Pony Express Saddle and Mail Bags

 

 

Just south of town (off road a bit) is Ayres Natural Bridge. It is one of the few Natural Bridges over a river. The bridge is made of sandstone, 280 million years old, formed by LaPrele Creek and is 50 feet high and 100 feet long.   1901 there were great plans to make a hydro electric plant here. Building is built and bankruptcy filed, old sturdy empty building still stands. This is a beautiful county park is a perfect escape

*Ayers Natural Bridge

* The power plant that never was

* ANB Park is a poplar family camp location

 

Times up so we have to pact up and leave town. Casper is a great town and there is a lot we missed here.

 

We are on our way to Cheyenne to stay at Warren Air Force Base RV Park. Guernsey is an easy detour to see the Oregon Trail Ruts. No, stick with me here for a bit. Think about how many wagons and foot traffic, the amount of days, rain, snow, mud it would take to dig the trails this deep. I was inspired by the blind faith to move and build a future.  Man was it hot. 

*Oregon Trail Ruts

*Wild Asters

 

 

Not far from here was the Platte River crossing Register Cliff.  Travelers would camp and rest here before this major water crossing.  Register Cliff was a spontaneously developed landmark. Emigrants would carve names and dates in the cliffs to communicate with friends or family that they had at least made it this far. Over the years more names of less suffering travelers have been added. A chain link fence is protecting the oldest and best preserved marks.

*Register Cliff

*Landowners made a cave for refridgeration after the trail was no longer in use.

*Pony Express Marker

 

One more Wyoming Hick Up. Our reservation was messed up at Warren Air Force Base. Not a terrible park but very horribly managed.   The Cheyenne rodeo was scheduled to start in two weeks and all the other parks were full. We spent one night at this cramped, ill managed park and were happy to move along to Colorado. At some point we will plan in advance and make Cheyenne Rodeo a destination. It looks like it would be fantastic!

12 July 2014

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