Trip to Cody, WY

Since we couldn't get cabin reservations at Buffalo Bill Village in Cody for Saturday night we chose Sunday instead. They have a special rate for Yellowstone employees that friends told us about. As it turned out Cody was celebrating Stampede Days July 1-4 and had special rodeos during that time. We left Sunday morning after church for the 120 mile trip to Cody. Before we exited the park there were several areas where people were stopped mostly for bison. Dan's expression "big freakin' deal" made me laugh. We have seen so many bison that it's no big deal to us, but we remember how exciting it was to see them for the first time. The scenery along the way was beautiful. We remembered it from our trip two years ago. At that time we camped at Wapiti (Indian word for elk) and drove into the park each day. As we traveled along the road we passed ranches, houses on the hillsides, cabins for rent, and campgrounds. The area is definitely for people who want to get away from it all! Here's a sample of the scenery.

A few miles before Cody is the Buffalo Bill reservoir and dam. We toured it previously and remembered how difficult it was to build. We drove through several tunnels through the mountains in that area.

Cody, population around 10,000, is neat western town, a little touristy, but mostly authentic. The cabin we rented was simple but had all the comforts of a motel room.

The inside was done in Buffalo theme including a stuffed buffalo on the bed.

Our main purpose for the trip was to see the rodeo which we attended that evening. According to the information we read the Stampede Rodeo attracts over 650 top contestants from the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. The announcer stated that the winnings that would be $500,000 making it one of the richest rodeos in the world. Little did we know that we would see the best of the best. Also we felt a little out of place without a cowboy hat! The grounds were not as impressive as I expected, but what do I know? This picture was taken when we arrived early before the stands filled up.

Before the rodeo started a group of about 30 high school girls from Cheyenne, WY performed. We were very impressed with their riding abilities and how they maneuvered through their routine weaving in and out and crossing each other in different patterns. They were every bit as good as the professionals we saw at the Dixie Stampede.

 Before the program began a group of 4H folks carried out a large flat flag and everyone stood to sing the Star Spangled Banner. The song was led by a ten year old girl (in the yellow shirt) who was blind from birth. Her singing gave me goosebumps especially when she hit the high notes.

Then the rodeo began. We were seated across from where the cowboys mounted the bare back bucking broncos so we saw them come flying out of their gates. After each ride the cowboy got a score for the competition. I have no idea how they judged. I would have given each one a 100 for staying on the horse for 8 seconds! Most of them scored in the 70's.

The next competition was bringing down the calf.

Then came roping a calf.

Then there was another event where the cowboys rode saddled bucking broncos.

Throughout the show there was a comedian running around and making jokes with the announcer. He even did some clogging.

When we arrived around 7 pm the temperature was 95 degrees, but the breeze was blowing and it wasn't too bad. After the sun went down it dropped to 75 which was really comfortable. After sitting on the metal bleachers for three hours we were pretty stiff and decided to call it a night. So we don't know what other attractions followed or who won. We're not sure if a normal rodeo would have fewer contestants, but there were so many in each category that it seemed to drag on. But their abilities were outstanding.

On the way back to Yellowstone the scenery was beautiful again. Here is a sample.

Something that amazed us was seeing trees growing out of hillsides of rock. There must be some soil and water inside for this to happen.

Along the way there were many beautiful ranches set in the hillsides. We remembered this house from our previous trip and were surprised that it was still there. I'd love to know the story behind it.

Our jobs continue to go well and we like the people we work with. The weather has been sunny and in the 70's during the day and down in the 40's at night. We worked on July 4th, but it wasn't too busy, and they served delicious steaks for dinner. They gave everyone blue shirts with red and white printing of Yellowstone General Stores, July 4, 2012 which we wore to work. It was kind of a fun day. Yesterday it rained which was the first precipitation we have had since it snowed in early June. Tomorrow we hope to visit the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and hike around the waterfalls.