Even with the creepy doll heads in the lobby, we got a good night's rest. Up before dawn and all the pre-journey necessities preformed, we were out the door before the sunrise. With Josie's coffee firmly in her hand, we hit the road. Our journey continued north to Caspar, Wyoming where the Big Horn Mountains came into view on the horizon. Finding our way through the tangled mess of, you guessed it, construction we found our road. Now on to Sheridan where we will cross the mountains.
More wide-open spaces, a few mule deer and antelope and a bunch of miles later we headed west and up. The Aspen and Cottonwood trees were just about at their peak colors. Bright yellows and oranges mixed with some green displayed all across our path. Up and west, we went. The switchbacks gave us a view of what was ahead and a reminder of where we had been and how far up, we were. The valleys and towns we had just gone through were displayed behind us like a living map.
So far, the wildlife had been scarce, but I had high hopes for the Big Horns to change our luck.... but they did not. I had seen elk, moose, bear and numerous deer while crossing here but not today. But we did see some wondrous high country and mountain views that cannot be rivaled.
Just as we thought we were through and going down the other side, a cattle drive appeared in front of us. Open range cattle were being moved by one lonely cowboy on one disgruntled horse who had forgot his manners this morning. I'm not sure who was riding who, but I think the horse might have had the upper hand because several times he tried to rid the rider of his seat. At least the cattle were behaving. And.....you got it.... more construction. Making our way through the tangle of closed lanes, pavement ends signs and flagmen, we started down the other side. We only thought we had been on switchbacks but now, some of these were so sharp, we could read our own license plate. Lower gear and slow were our friends until we made it to the valley floor.
Big Horn Canyon was just a few miles away. This is one of my favorite side trips and a must for my horse crazy companion traveler to see because of the possibility of wild horses. The terrain had changed to more of a canyon wild west feel.
We journeyed on into the canyon and I turned into a backwater cove where I had seen wild horses numerous times. Yes, luck smiled on us. There down by the water were some wild horses and they were even the ones I had photographed for the past 2 years. One gray mare and her foal in particular and it was amazing to see them again and to see how much that foal had grown. Josie, to say the least, was over the top with excitement. They were some distance away from us but to see them was fantastic.
We left them with the promise to check back when we returned from the canyon to see if they were any closer. Continuing on down the canyon, we were greeted with beautiful views of the Pryor Mountains and the wide-open valleys and ravines that covered this area.
The canyon did not have the amount of wildlife that I was used to seeing here. I was a little disappointed at the lack of sheep, bear and wild horses. We made our way up to the canyon overlook and was gifted with wonderful views from above the canyon.
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| Big Horn Canyon Overlook |
Just about the time we decided to give up on the wildlife, a family of Big Horn Sheep made their way down to the parking lot. Yes....finally. Even though there were only lambs and ewes, we were ok with that.
After watching the sheep for a while, we started back to check on the horses. They had moved away from the water, but we could actually see them better and get a few photos.
We decided to head to Cody to find our accommodations for the evening and the trip from the canyon to town was uneventful. We found our motel and checked in. Then the trouble started. Next door was a family with problems. Problems in the name of unruly children, loud, yelling parents and paper-thin walls. Oh yeah, the young boy's name was Kevin...great!! It was decided to head out down the river for a little side trip before dark and to get away from the Bundys.
Hoping for a peaceful night, we returned about dark. The turmoil was still churning next door. So, we decided to turn on the fan to drown out the hubbub next door and soon it died down for the night. Lucky us. Travel weary and as a result of too much windshield time, it wasn't long before sleep found us, but not before setting the alarm for early. Yellowstone waited for us tomorrow.
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