Cheyenne, WY to Lander, WY

Fortunately the problem we had with the inside battery power was not a major one. A cable corroded and broke in half. The RV repairman came to the campground, found the problem, and was able to replace the cable. So we were able to take the trolly tour of Cheyenne on Tuesday afternoon.

Cheyenne, a Shoshone Indian word meaning good horseman and strong warrior, is the largest city and capitol of WY with a population of 59,000. The whole state has only 460,000. It ranks 9th in land area but 50th in population. The Union Pacific Railroad has 75 to 100 trains going through the depot every day. What a huge operation! The train depot includes a museum of many historical items.

We spent about an hour and one half riding around the city with the driver guide explaining the history of the city and pointing out buildings such as the Wyoming State Museum, State Capitol, Botanical Gardens, Governors' Mansion, and homes of important people. We wish we would have had more time to explore some of these attractions. All around the city were 27 boots of different sizes and decorations. They were auctioned off to raise money for the county, and the bids started at $5,000. Here's one we liked.

The next day we drove 266 miles from Cheyenne to Lander,WY. The scenery was quite a contrast to the flatness that of MO and NE. There were some long grades up and down. We hit quite a bit of wind at times, and Dan worked hard keeping the RV steady expecially when trucks passed us. Here are some pictures of the countryside. The cattle looked like they enjoyed grazing by the pond.

We passed several windmill farms.

This was our first view of snow covered mountains in the distance.

Between Cheyenne and Laramie there was a statue of Abraham Lincoln that was created in 1959 for the 150 anniversary of his birth.

Here are a few more scenes of the countryside in WY.

Since we still had plenty of time to spare we decided to spend a day sightseeing in and around Lander. In the morning we went to Sinks Canyon State Park which is south of the city. The visitor center wasn't open yet but we got to see the park. It got its name because a rushing mountain river flows through a canyon and halfway down it abruptly turns into a large limestone cavern. The crashing water "sinks" into cracks in the back of the cave.

The river runs underground for 1/4 mile until it emerges down the canyon in a large calm pool called "The Rise." In the past they ran dye tests to prove that it is the same water from the sink to the rise. The amazing part is that it takes two hours to reappear at the Rise. It was fascinating to see the process in action and the scenery was beautiful.

We drove back up to the city and visited the Freemont County Pioneer Museum. It was very well done with many displays that gave the flavor of how life was in the 1800's in Wyoming. Dan tried to buy a beer, but there was no one there to serve him.

Our next adventure took us about 35 miles southeast of the city to the South Pass City Historic Site. On the way we saw many areas where snow still on the ground. This is one example of the snow fences that dotted the countryside. We were glad that we passed through in May instead of February.

It took us several wrong turns to find the city (population 5). We weren't too sure about turning onto the gravel road, but after a mile and a half we finally found the town. It consisted of 30 historic log, frame and stone buildings from the boom and bust of the gold rush in the mid 1800's. We enjoyed walking through them and seeing how life was back then. It's hard to imagine the challenges that they faced The only other people visiting there were a group of kids on a field trip, and they left shortly after we got there.