We left Casper heading north-west en route to Thermopolis.  On the way, we stopped for lunch, quite by accident, at a pull off at Hell’s Half Acre!  It looks over a small, isolated, and deeply eroded valley full of painted desert colors and fanciful shapes. It used to have a restaurant, but now there are only slabs at the overlook. Hell’s Half Acre has been used in various movies, most famously “Starship Troopers” where it became Klendathau, the bug planet! 

As lunch spots go, it was quite spectacular! And we were not bothered by bugs, big or small. Movie fans take note. Like the Alabama Hills, Hell’s Half Acre is an interesting study in how a tiny space can appear huge when you carefully control the camera angles. Hell’s Half Acre was used for the scenes of the capture of the Brain Bug. Other scenes were shot in South Dakota and California.

Beautiful sky.

Rough terrain.

Thermopolis sounds rather Greek but is actually a pleasant Wyoming town which is the site of multiple hot springs.  (http://thermopolis.com) We stopped at the Hot Springs State Park but decided not to soak there with hundreds of our nearest and dearest acquaintances. It was a Saturday afternoon and the places were all heaving.  So we headed for the Fountain of Youth campground which had its own pools for soaking. It turned out to be a rather ordinary commercial campground, but has three large hot spring pools.  (https://camphotsprings.com) Denise soaked a while in the coolest of the three, which was plenty warm enough for her!  Fred did get into the middle pool for a short while and he said it was hot!  The third pool was too hot to enter, but flowed into the second, which flowed into the first, which flowed out via a channel.  All quite ingenious.  We both enjoyed it all more than we expected to!  We should note that no photos of the soaking experience were taken!

Heading north again, we stopped in Cody, home of Buffalo Bill Cody.  To say that it is his town would not be an exaggeration!  We camped in a lovely campsite beside the Buffalo Bill Reservoir, in the Buffalo Bill State Park. 

And while in Cody we spent a day at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, which was a most interesting collection of museums, connected to the Smithsonian in DC.  (https://centerofthewest.org)  Sounds a bit like a tourist trap, but it is actually a very serious set of museums. All were excellently done, especially the Draper Museum of Natural History, which gave insights into local flora and fauna.  We also enjoyed the Museum of William Cody (Buffalo Bill) and the Plains Indian Gallery.  Denise enjoyed the Gallery of Western Art with paintings both historic and modern.  The Firearms Museum was under renovation.  They also have a selection of raptors and we enjoyed meeting a very well behaved screech owl! These are all birds that have been injured and cannot survive on their own in the wild.

Our next adventure was a visit to the town of Kirwin, a ghost mining town in the mountains about 60 miles away.  (https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/kirwin-wyoming)  We were initially worried by all of the “we’re-all-going-to-die” posts on the Internet, especially as the 917 is a bit bigger than a Jeep, but after a lifetime in Africa and especially in the Andes, we decided to give it a try. The first part was paved to Meeteetse and a bit beyond.  Then the road was a well graded gravel one. 

Finally, as we started to climb into the mountains through the Shoshone National Forest, the road was rockier and rougher.  It also included four river crossings, one of these involved driving down the river for 100 yards or so!  This reminded us of the times we hiked to view the forest elephants in Bangui which also involved much time walking through a river!  We were concerned about the water levels in the river as there had been so much rain this spring, but the the crossings were made without a problem. 

While it is clear that the road could get interesting in the rain or snow, it turned out to be very easy when dry.

The trail was almost always at least one lane wide.

The ghost town was at 9,000 feet and a bit bleak on a cloudy day, with 12,000 foot peaks all around. 

The mines were long abandoned but some of the buildings remained.

View of Kirwin showing the peaks which were the source of avalanches.

Tar paper weathering off of the old boards

Log buildings.

Mine head gear.

Another mine, back in the woods

Boiler.

Head gear over the vertical shaft.

Privy.

While we only met one vehicle on the way in, there was a constant stream of trucks and 4×4 off road buggies coming and going.  The flowers however, were beautiful in the slightly lower altitudes; miniature lupins, purple milk vetch, harebells and possibly Rocky Mountain iris. 

Descending the trail.

Don’t look down!

Wreck at the bottom.

9,000 feet is high, so we descended a bit and camped at the Brown Mountain Campground run by the Forestry Service. It proved a delightful spot.  We were the only people there and enjoyed seeing a number of pronghorn and mule deer, passing by to feed and drink.  And, the next morning, we finally saw a moose! A young one, but a real, live, moose at last! 

Back in Cody, we treated ourselves to a lunch of wood fired pizza at the Trailhead restaurant (http://www.trailheadcodywy.com) and returned to the campground at Buffalo Bill State Park.

We wanted to see the Medicine Wheel, a sacred American Indian site in the Big Horn Mountains, but on our way, we stopped for lunch at the Visitor Center for the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.  (https://www.nps.gov/bica/index.htm) A gentleman we met in the parking lot recommended that we visit the Canyon, chatting as he admired the camper!  So into the Visitor Center we went and saw the movie and then asked for information.  The Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area stretches into Montana and in fact we ended up camping at the Barry’s Landing campground in Montana.  There are wild horses, bighorn sheep and various other deer wandering in certain areas, though in our particular case the bighorn sheep had gone to higher altitudes as it was hot.  We stopped at the Devil Canyon Overlook for spectacular views of the Bighorn Canyon and Lake before camping. 

While we admired the view, the deer admired us.

We also visited a ghost ranch  owned by the “cattle queens”, Caroline Lockhart, also an author and journalist.  The site was green and lovely but one could only imagine how cold it is in the winter!

Trail towards the Ranch

Spring House. The house was built over the spring and the water flows out the front door. Used as a form of refrigerator.

Log cabin with sod roof.

Rocks on the top of a nearby mountain.

Descending the road we stopped to admire the tipi circles and mustangs.

The valley has hundreds of these stone circles. The stones were used to anchor the bases of tipis.

Mustang

Mustangs

Cactus Flower

Back on route to the Medicine Wheel, we tackled one of the most spectacular roads we have ever driven, Wyoming 14 Alt.  The road closes in the winter and we can certainly see why.  (http://www.whp.dot.state.wy.us/home/ports/mountain_road_information.html) It climbs about 4,000 feet in about 5 miles at a 10 percent grade and would be just as bad going down as going up. 

We did rather crawl at times, but we made it and enjoyed the spectacular views some of which are over 200 miles. Much has been written about the Moki Dugway, but we think that 14A matches it.

The Medicine Wheel was well worth the visit.  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicine_Wheel/Medicine_Mountain_National_Historic_Landmark) The Forest Service had only just opened it for the season and there were still some snow banks covering the trail but the views were spectacular.  The Medicine Wheel is sacred to several American Indian tribes and we saw various offerings and prayer bundles at different spots.  Interestingly, since no one really knows who built the circle or when, it is considered a universal site and thus, unlike Devil’s Tower, there are no restrictions on photography of offerings, etc. The roundtrip path is only about three miles but at 10,000 feet of altitude and clambering through the snowbanks, we felt it. 

The trail rises up to the wheel.

How long have these rocks been arranged like this? Why? And by whom?

The view is incredible.

Recent offering.

The road in is narrow and unpaved, but the parking lot was full.

Marmot admiring tourists.

We then headed for a Forest Service campground back on Rte 14A where we found a lovely site and settled in for the night.

The next morning we headed out heading for Montana and to Denise’s delight there was a moose on duty, browsing at the entrance to the campground.  Denise was happy!

A moose at last!

We set off to Devils Tower through a rainstorm or two and arrived at the National Park Service campsite just before the next downpour! 

Devils Tower from the road in. And yes, the mountains on the left are new towers in the making.

From the campsite, we were able to walk up to visit with the prairie dogs in a huge prairie dog town. They are so cute, popping in and out of their holes and chittering warnings to the rest of the pack.  Cutest were the little ones who liked to play as well as eat!

Back at our campsite we took in the Ranger presentation and simply marveled at that the Tower was RIGHT THERE, completely dominating our view. Never have we seen a campsite with an equal view.

That night the heavens opened. No flying saucers, but lots of rain.

The next morning it was obvious that we were going to have to stay a second night in order to fully enjoy the park, so after getting change from a nearby camper, we paid our fee!  

We then set off to hike up to the Visitor Center and walk the Tower Trail around the base of the Tower.  The 1.3 miles to the Visitor Center felt a lot further as most of it was seriously uphill but we made it and joined a Ranger tour of the Tower Trail.  He was a source of great information including where the ladder up the tower was located and various dates connected to its history.  Sadly, we learned that the flying saucers actually landed in a building in Mobile, Alabama. (Curse you, Steven Spielberg!) After a quick visit to the Visitor Center, we hiked back to the campground and to our lunch! (And vowed to bring granola bars or trail mix the next time!)

Looking back at the river.

Balancing rock.

Climbing the Tower.

The old wooden ladder.

The trail is not wide.

Tower by the morning light.

Along the way we met a lady who shared this truism: You climb on your heart and descend on your knees. Ain’t it the truth! Total distance was about four miles, which gave us a great appetite!

The next day we set off for Deadwood, a historical site and former mining town in South Dakota that has kept a lot of its old buildings and charm.  We wandered the Main Street, admired some of the architecture and even managed to find a latte in former gasoline station. And, if that were not odd enough, they also did glass blowing. 

Wonderful old gasoline pumps.

Who’s that upstairs? (click through to see the full size image)

Espresso and glass blowing.

It turns out that we were seen by some friends with a Tiger who live nearby. They were not in their Tiger, so we did not recognize them and, by the time we got their phone messages, it was too late to visit. But this gives us all the more incentive to return.

Courtesy of the Reader’s Digest book, “Off the Beaten Path,” we knew that there is the Chapel in the Hills, a copy of a Norwegian “Stavekirk” or wooden stave church, in Rapid City. This we had to see! It turned out the be a simply lovely site, on the side of a mountain, right in a residential area. The church resembles the wooden construction of a Viking Long Ship and is simply beautiful. And yes, it is in daily use. (http://www.chapel-in-the-hills.org)

The Church.

Entrance pavilion with sod roof.

Front Door.

Stunning woodwork.

The lepers’ window. This allowed lepers to see and hear the service without entering the church.

An eight string violin!

We wanted to drive the Wildlife Viewing Loop at Custer State Park because they have about 1500 bison and Denise wanted to see the bison (and other animals).  Camping space is at a premium, so we had booked one of the last three sites available. By sheer dumb luck, it turned out to be just lovely. Animal viewing is often best at the end of the day, and so, with our fingers crossed, we set out on the wildlife viewing loop. It was a disappointing tour.  We saw both mule and pronghorn deer, wild donkeys, and some wild turkeys. Finally, we saw one lone bison, trying to shelter from the pouring rain.  So back to the campsite for supper we went, vowing to try again in the morning.

And after breakfast, we set off again.  This time our loop was much more successful.  We had a bison traffic jam and found bison all around us, behind us, next to us and in front of us.  Most had calves with them and they were so darling.  A bit playful and a bit scared at the same time. 

Bison behind us!

Denise snags a shot.

Bison Jam!

Jam in the Distance.

When we finally ran out of bison, we left the park to head back to Casper and drove through the Wind Cave Park, where we saw even more bison and some more prairie dogs.  So feeling well and truly fortunate, we headed for our campsite in Casper.  

We did make one stop at the Ayres Natural Bridge, an absolutely gorgeous and green oasis in the middle of the generally dry desert. The Bridge was noted by some heading west in the wagon trains.  We even saw domestic bison in a field as we drove to it! (https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/ayres-natural-bridge)

Under the Arch

The Bridge.

But then it was time to sort out fridges and coolers at our campsite, do laundry and other chores before heading out north the next day.

Our next stop was in Nevada to visit friends. They are long time travelers who recently moved to Nevada following a disastrous house fire. (http://robinsonfuso.com) Now established in Nevada, Jon has let his tool and equipment fancy take flight and has, I think, one each of everything from 3D printer to tractor.

The perfect place to pull out the cassette toilet and replace it with a composting toilet. We loved our Nature’s Head on the Tiger, but this time went with a C-Head as it is a better fit for the tiny bath on the 917. Jon was in fine form, machining a foot for the front of the toilet, reworking the teak shower floor, 3D printing a shower plug, and even repurposing the fan and vent from the SOG so that the C-Head has a power vent. Did I mention Jon’s superb craftsmanship?

Finished, with the teak flooring adjusted.

Thetford cassette, on its way out.

Test fit of the C-Head base.

Costco cutting board, repurposed into toilet support.

SOG fan now used to ventilate C-Head.

C-Head installed.

And if you were wondering, the C-Head is wonderful. Sadly, they are now out of business.

Time to head east for our appointment at Terry Lee Enterprises in La Junta so we set off east along Route 50.  What more could we ask?  The pavement is good, the traffic light, and the scenery spectacular. Plus we know where the camping places are.  We ran in and out of rainstorms as we drove, which helped to explain how green everything was this year (much greener than the last time we drove Route 50 two years ago).

And we stopped, as always, in our favorite town of Ely.  Ely always provides what we need, when we need it and whatever it may be.  Previously we needed a car wash, a new fuse for electric steps, and espresso.  Ely provided.  On that trip we discovered the Happy Valley Chinese restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed lunch there.  Another time, all we needed  was dinner at the Happy Valley restaurant and a state park for an overnight. Again, Ely provided. This time we needed peat moss in a reasonably sized package for our new composting toilet, a supermarket, and of course lunch.  Ely provided, so we bought a perfectly sized pack of peat moss and our Chinese lunch was wonderful.  (And the portions so large that we got three more dinners out of it!) Unfortunately we have never managed to be there at the weekend to ride the steam train, but we live in hopes that we may manage that one of these days. Any excuse to return.

We continued east towards the Great Basin.

After a nostalgic night’s camping in the Great Basin National Park, we entered Utah near the town of Delta where Route 50 wanders rather and finally becomes 1-70. 

Sevier Dry Lake, Utah, with water.

Denise admires the not so dry lake.

Pronghorn(?) in the Great Basin.

But we were back on 50 as we left Grand Junction, heading through Colorado. Another night of nostalgia as we found the Dry Gulch campground in the Curecanti National Recreation Area for the third time.

Our first tourist stop was Fort Uncompaghre in Delta, Colorado.  (http://fortuncompahgre.org) It took us a while to find it and we enjoyed our driving tour of the town!  The fort, like Bents Old Fort near La Junta, which we had previously visited, was a trading post in the 1800’s. This is a reconstructed site and extremely well done.  We have visited a couple of these forts and we learn something new each time. 

Front Gate

Trading Post

Weighing the pelts.

The whole history of the Santa Fe trail and the “Old Spanish Trail” to Mexico City and Los Angeles (La Ciudad de Nuestra Señora de los Angles) is fascinating and relatively little known. This time we learned how valuable were the furs which the trappers caught and the reason for the preference for beaver hats in Europe – the fur is naturally waterproof. Georgette Heyer and Jane Austin fans take note! Now you know why Mr. Darcy, and others, favored curly beaver hats.

The various trails, Oregon, Santa Fe, “Old Spanish”,  and the rest, are interesting studies in geography as destiny. Some of them went hundreds of miles out of the way to find a lower pass through the mountains, or more assured water and grazing for animals. We you consider that they were all traversed mostly on foot, this could mean weeks of extra travel. On the other hand, it could be the difference between arriving alive and perishing in the desert. In contrast, European trade routes were known and in habited for thousands of years. The only thing similar may be the Silk Road. Even the trans Sahara routes had been used for millennia.

We spent the night at the Winery of the Holy Cross Abbey, in Cañon City, Colorado, courtesy of the Harvest Hosts group.  (Of course we purchased a couple of bottles of wine, which we shall enjoy!)  It was a pleasant spot with nice views of the abbey.

On a whim, we decided to ride the the Royal Gorge Railroad through Colorado’s Royal Gorge.  This proved to be great trip on a beautiful sunny morning.  We booked breakfast on the 9.15 a.m. train and enjoyed our 2 hour ride, through the Gorge, with eyes open for animals, while enjoying our breakfast burritos and coffee.  We saw various deer, both mule and pronghorn, and missed the supposed sightings of the bighorn sheep, though some saw them!  The camouflage is so good it is hard to see the animals unless they move.  

Ready to Depart.

Old Santa Fe Station

Breakfast!

Into the Gorge.

Bridge, some 1,000 feet above the Gorge.

We then headed up the road to La Junta. We checked into the little motel and took the 917 to Terry Lee Enterprises bright and early on Monday morning. We didn’t need much, and indeed, the spare tire carrier probably could have been modified by any welding shop, but it felt good to let Billy modify his own creation. We changed every fluid and replaced several pinion seals. The bottom of the truck is much cleaner now.

The truck done, we headed back to Cañon City to buy more wine. (Well, it was excellent and they let us stay a second night!) The next morning we took a four mile walk along the old railroad path overlooking the Arkansas River. We went through three tunnels which had been cut by hand by prisoners from the penitentiary in Cañon City. Cut by hand as no one was going to give prisoners dynamite! We took photos of the train as it went and returned and then we met a herd of big horn sheep. None of this viewing through the train window – we were up close and personal. To be fair, I think the sheep were much less impressed than we were.

King of the Castle!

First Tunnel

Tunnel

On the trail

Royal Gorge Train

Can you find the sheep?

We then headed off for Leadville with an afternoon coffee stop at the Brown Dog in Buena Vista, another find from a previous trip. (https://browndogcoffee.com) We found a wonderful, huge dispersed camping area just outside of town and settled in for the night.

The great AT&T coverage let us make our first blog post of this trip.