Saturday morning we said goodbye to Custer, SD and the Black Hills area (regretfully) setting out for our next must-see, Devils Tower in Wyoming. But first we had to check out Deadwood -- famous for all the outlaws who hung out there -- and Spearfish before trekking off I-90 for miles and miles and miles northward in the middle of nowhere.
Our first glimpse of Devils Tower was from many miles away -- somewhat surreal in the distant landscape. Imagine our surprise when we arrived at the National Park and found dozens of folks already walking around this monument. (Note: For any of you so inclined and who are of the "senior" status, we can buy a Senior Pass for $10 good for a LIFE TIME (!!!) of admittances to National Parks. Cool, huh?)
But I digress...for those of you "young" enough to remember Spielberg's Close Encounter of the Third Kind, you will appreciate this monument -- actually the very first National Monument...thanks to Teddy Roosevelt. Yep, it looks just like the movie. Kept waiting to hear the do-do-do-do-do-do-do refrain. (There were DVDs of this movie for sale in the local stores outside the park.) Visitors to this park can hike around the monument (about a 45-minute walk) or hike many of the well-marked trails. The Native Americans still consider this monument sacred and congregate in June yearly for ceremonies. During June, climbers are asked to not climb the rock in deference to the ceremonies. Near the entrance of the park are more prairie dogs than I have ever seen. Probably thousands in little burrows.
I just imagined the pleasure that the pioneer children might have felt first spotting these little creatures while on their seemingly endless journeys through this area.After back-tracking to I-90, we headed west not sure of our destination that day. The terrain and landscape were constant amazements. We would go from rock formations to desert-like mounds to rolling lush hills to plains to basins. Check out a map. Additionally, we have seen the most beautiful horses everywhere along the trip. Today there were herds of these exquisite creatures on most vistas -- many looked like horses for the Indians.
I have a new appreciation for the long-haulers who travel this route along I-90 having seen winter scenes on television. Miles and miles of miles and miles always on the look-out for wildlife...particularly the ones adjacent to the roadways. Suddenly, we saw snow-covered mountains looming large and thought it a little late in the day to continue on. We got through that first set of mountains (The Big Horns) but decided to call it a day in Sheridan, Wyo. The Best Westerns upon which we have chanced have wonderful breakfasts -- highly recommend them on your travels.
Except for the ubiquitous bikers who are EVERYWHERE in this area, Sheridan was a quiet place. We missed Buffalo Bill Days (they concluded a few hours before we arrived) complete with re-enactments of the pony express riders' abilities and sharp shooting.
This morning we arose with Red Lodge, MT as the potential goal. My next-door neighbors, Jessie and Lang, lived in Lander, WY but traveled these two states extensively -- think they would return tomorrow if they could figure out the details. Lang insisted that the drive between Red Lodge and Cooke City on the Beartooth Scenic Highway should not be missed. Charles Kuralt called this the most beautiful highway in the "Lower 48" -- hey, how could we miss it?
However, to get to this location we first had to cross The Big Horn Mountains. Wow, oh wow. What a route. While we were in low gear for much of the trip, the experience and sights were amazing. Someone has placed markers on the layers of rocks in The Big Horns stating the geological periods and ages. Some of the signs read that the rocks are 2.5 billions years old...some ONLY 20 millions years of age.
Coming out of The Big Horns we passed through so many changes of terrain that went on and on and on -- sometimes with NO signs of life (human or otherwise). Grim but fascinating.
Oh, true story. Not far from Red Lodge, MT is a small town named Belfrey. We passed in front of the school and saw the sign stating "Belfrey High School -- Home of the Bats" -- oh, please!! Can you believe that? Why would "they" do this to kids? Can't you imagine the kinds of taunts they must receive in competitions? Poor babies. "Hi, I'm a Bat from Belfrey." Oh, dear.
Just up the mountain from here is Red Lodge, a ski resort catering to the Billings, MT crowd. Quaint and friendly. A local recommended the Bridgecreek Kitchen and Wine Bar -- great local color and excellent cuisine. After a leisurely lunch, we headed towards the Bluetooth Scenic Highway, a 55-mile stretch across what at times feels like the Swiss Alps, the Grand Canyon, and a moonscape (way above the tree line).
Along the way are several pullouts -- we might call them overlooks -- for viewing and picture-taking. There were many switchbacks, stretches of steep grades, and way too many hairpin turns with no guardrails (on the ascension from Red Lodge -- coming down into Cooke City is a much easier ride). I have to admit two things: it was as beautiful as Lang promised and much more than an "E" ticket ride at Disney World (you have to be of a "certain age" to remember that as well). As soon as these Internet connections permit, I'll put up these pictures as well. For those of you burning up at home, let me say that we saw glaciers and remnants of a recent snow fall while on this scenic highway.
One of the Forest Service employees (a delightful young lady from outside Knoxville, TN who told her father that she has found a new home in these mountains) told me that it snows at least once a month during the summer. During the winter they get 300 feet of snow as a rule. The owner of "Top of the World" -- a little grocery/goods store near the top of this range -- confirmed this fact. We had to get out of the car and make a snowball to prove this point to ourselves. The glaciers gleamed against and between the rocks and trees spilling over many vistas.
Well, when we got to Cooke City (relieved and exhilarated), my traveling companion deemed the little town TOO rustic so we proceeded to Silver Gate. Still too rustic. Hey, folks. We are in the mountains, right? Anyway, the next stop was the northeast entrance of Yellowstone National Park. The Rangers at the gate -- after showing them our "Senior-Good-for-Life" passes and telling us there was no room at the inn or ANY place in the park for the night -- proceeded to quiz us on our governor's current situation. They did give us a suggestion to try Gardiner, just outside the north entrance to the park.
So, we proceeded to meander through the park. This concentration of visible wildlife in the Lamar Valley (aka Valley of Eden) afforded sights including herds of buffalo (but we have already had our up-close-and-personal times with buffalo on the road!), a group of elks, cougars, a grizzly eating a dead buffalo, a baby bear up a tree,
the business end of a HUGE elk with a massive rack, and a brown bear meandering along the road. 
After all, it was supper time and the animals were everywhere particularly in the Lamar Valley. (We actually saw no wildlife driving from the Old Faithful area to the south entrance -- except for the occasional chipmunks scurrying across the road.)After one last attempt to see if there might be a vacancy at the Mammoth Hot Springs Lodge at the north entrance (to no avail), we headed back out of the park down the mountain to Gardiner. Found a very nice room in the second place we asked and collapsed. What a day! What a day....
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