Cody to Deadwood

Cody



Breakfast was included at this nice motel and we had waffles, which was a treat after having kefir and granola most mornings. The owner couple was very helpful in guiding us eastward. We drove through this flat, dry landscape with a small hill here and there with high mountains in the far distance covered in occasional snow. Jalil noticed the snow and I did not believe it until we got closer. The road was so straight. We crossed the Big Horn mountains after shopping for food in Worland. Here brick buildings are quite common.



The highway followed Ten Sleep Canyon. On the other side of the canyon we could see a narrow road which was was used by the original Pony Express. There were many pull outs with information re the canyon. At one I met some nice people from Sacramento. Jalil stayed in the car.



The town of Ten Sleep was called so as the Indians measured distance with how many nights it took to get there.



We were now starving and wanted to eat our grilled chicken breasts we had bought in Worland but we had to wait quite a while before we found a picnic place in the forest. Near the top of the mountain we found it. The forest reminded me of Sweden. The trees are skinny and lots of them, not big like in California.



At the Powder River Pass (9,666ft) we saw snow fences placed at certain angles to prevent snow from blowing on to the highway. There was a sprinkling of snow in the shaded areas. On the other side of the Big Horn mountains was the town of Buffalo. We walked downtown to stretch our legs and stopped for coffee in an old building. The elderly woman was helpful. She was selling Indian designs and Jalil was tempted but I am not crazy for the colors. When we returned to the car, I realized that I did not have my camera. I RAN back to the store, hoping the store had not closed, as some had done already. Luckily, it was still open and my camera was still sitting on the table.



From Buffalo to Sundance, Wyoming, the land was again very flat. It must be very cold when the wind blows the snow around. There is an occasional oil pump like the ones you see in southern California. You hardly see a billboard except near a town advertising a motel or restaurant.



We spent the night in Sundance at Best Western. There we enjoyed the jacuzzi and I swam in the pool. Jalil thought it was too cold but any water is cold after a jacuzzi. Then I worked on my blog but the computer gave me so much trouble that I did not accomplish much.



9-23-09



We had the included breakfast and talked to two women older than us who were from New Jersey. We asked about how to go to New York from New Jersey. They warned us about thieves stealing from your purse. They recommended us to use a money belt.

Our next goal was Devils Tower, WY - technically part of the Black Hills in South Dakota. The road was beautifully hilly with meadows and Belle Fourche river meandering through. You could see the tower from far away. It was declared the first National Monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. (The first National Park is also in Wyoming in 1872.) It looks like a tower made up of columns of rocks 867 feet high with a diameter at its base of 1000 feet. The top area is 1.5 acres. The columns remind me of Devil's Postpile in the Mammoth area in CA.

Jalil and I walked around the tower. Jalil felt it was the highlight to watch the rock climbers with his binoculars. He was worried about how they would be rescued, if needed. The ranger told him that they could easily be heard calling for help from the ground. We also listened to a ranger talk about ecology.

On that walk we met a couple who were also traveling around. They told us about the buffalo roundup in Custer State Park in the Black Hills on Monday September 28. It only happens once a year. We decided right away that we had to see that.

At the Visitor Center we learned that Wyoming was a good place for women. They got the right to vote much earlier than in other states but don't ask me when that was. I read so many interesting facts but they don't stay.

On our way to the Black Hills we stopped at a place called Alladin, pop. 15 - one big store with a few antiques, clothes, food, jewelry and a lot of cigarettes. People smoke a lot here! A small TV was on showing Ghadafi's speech at the opening session at the United Nations!!!

The next night we spent in Deadwood, South Dakota, in the Black Hills. They allowed gambling since 1989 to raise money to restore the old gold rush town. And they have done very well. They unofficially allowed prostitution until 1987 when the federal and state police shut them down. They offered the local police to join them 5 minutes before raiding the bordello!



As we were hungry, we walked up and down the main street which is flanked by high mountains on both sides. There were slot machines and loud music in every establishment. The restaurants were hidden in the back or non-existent. We finally found a salad bar with a hamburger. Not too exiting.



Afterwards we walked up the valley and found an antique store. Jalil loves teapots and found one he needed to get. There was a Shelley cup for $45 which is very cheap so he had to buy that one too. We had a nice chat with the owners. They had children in the Bay Area. A lot of the people we talk to who live here have children in California.