September 1, 2008 - Cody, WY to Buffalo, WY

Cell phone woes
I had pulled the battery out of the cell phone and let it remain like that all night. I wasn't sure if it might randomly call people on my call history and I didn't think they'd appreciate a 3am phone call, particularly with nobody on the other line.

In checking with my cell phone provider, I was eligible for a new phone if I paid the cost and extended my contract by one year (if this could wait until next year, I could get $100 off a new phone). The only company-owned store for this provider was three hours away. However, there were a number of retail stores in Cody and surrounding towns.

I really didn't want to take the risk of driving around in the country's least populated state without any working cell phone. If I had a breakdown, it might be a while before anyone came by.

The fire department
Right outside my hotel, the fire department was out with the boot collecting for MDS. When the fire departments are out in the street collecting cash, I find this a bit annoying. It's a safety hazard and it slows traffic down. Basically, the streets should not be intentionally obstructed unless there is construction or some sort of emergency. Anyway, I dropped some change in the boot and got a sticker. When I came back later on, despite clearly showing the sticker, they expected me to give more money. Do they think they're in a tollbooth?

Closures for Labor Day
In driving around to the various cell phone stores, I found they were all closed for Labor Day. Even gas stations were closed for Labor Day. You could still pay at the pump but you could not pay cash to an attendant. I finally gave up the search. But, in checking out the phone, it was at least operable for making calls. It doesn't remember who called in the call log beyond September 1st (and that's the same to this day), but at least I can make phone calls.

Buffalo Bill Village
The rain was intense. I wanted to explore some of the "Buffalo Bill Village" shops but with the intense rain and limited parking, I was not in the mood. I had a three hour drive to get to Buffalo, WY for the next hotel.

Buffalo Bill Museum
I visited the huge Buffalo Bill Cody museum. They had a large parking lot but it was almost full. I spent a couple of hours there. They had a section containing historical firearms. Another section covered Native Americans. Another was focused on Buffalo Bill himself. They had an area containing western art, both cowboy related and Native American related. Finally, they had a natural history museum showing plant and animal life in the area. See the photos.

Visit to a Monastery
A group of monks had sent a fundraising letter to my home a few weeks ago. Their mailing address was in Cody, WY, but their physical address was in a city about twenty miles away. The street would not register on the GPS. I called them a couple of times to see if I could visit the monastery. But, they likely were not answering the phone due to Labor Day.

The drive to Buffalo, WY
I could not get the GPS to give me a route to the hotel in Buffalo. I called the attendant to find an alternative address. He said it could not be found in the GPS or Mapquest. He also strongly suggested going via US 16 rather than US 14. Either way would be the same distance, but US 14 had lots of switchbacks and went into the mountains. He said there could be snow on US 14. I was not exactly ready for snow on Labor Day! Of course, I took the option for US 16.


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Gorgeous Scenery
To get to US 16, I had to go to Greybull and then to Worland. The scenery in these areas was beautiful. I wish it wasn't raining so much or I would have stopped to take pictures. It looked like a lot of this was public land which could be explored. There were dirt roads leading off the main road with tourist signs. The scenery was diverse from badlands-style formations to beautiful mountains and rock formations. Sometimes land was flat. Other times, there were mountains covered in trees. There were evergreens as we are used to seeing and then the northwest scrawny trees. I would say that northern Wyoming gets the grand prize for the most beautiful scenery and the most diverse scenery on my whole trip. I would definitely come back here again.

There were some switchbacks and a number of areas where people could pull off to enjoy the view. It wasn't raining so hard, so I got a few photos. I tried to make a phone call from this area. There was no service. Therefore, whether or not my phone had water damage, it would not matter.

Snow on Labor Day!
US 16 did go into the mountains and went uphill so gradually that I did not even realize it. But then I started to notice the ground on either side of the road was white. What I thought was rain in the area was very clearly becoming snow. As I drove along further, the trees were all getting white. Nothing ever accumulated on the road, but I was getting a little nervous. I don't think I've ever seen snow on Labor Day. But, just as gradually, the road started to go downhill. The white on the ground and trees disappeared. What was falling through the air was clearly rain again.

Finally, I arrived in Buffalo, WY. This was a city of just over 3,000. It's near I-25. It seemed very small. But, it was nice to be at the hotel and done with traveling for the night.