Friday, May 31, 2013

May 30, 2013

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Yeah we know, yesterdays blog was a little boring.    So don't worry, today's story might make up for it!!!

We left Cody about 9:00 with no problems.   Heading east towards the Mount Rushmore area.



  Well, little did we know that while crossing the Big Horn Mountains on Hwy 16 that we would drive right into a snow storm.   Elevation - close to 10,000.   Dennis had both hands firmly on the wheel while I was busy taking pictures.   It took my mind off the possibility of slipping right off the side of the mountain!!!!  

 
 

 The oncoming tractor trailers were barreling down the road as we headed up.   I hope they made it safely.
  Visibility was limited and snow was starting to accumulate.  It was extremely windy which made things seem even worse!!!   There were lots of snow fences to keep drifting snow off the road, but it was blowing everywhere!! It look like a winter wonderland.  Luckily traffic was very light.


 
Wait until you see the video of the snow coming down and the wind blowing the snow across the road. It's awesome but scary!





  Passed a snow plow earlier who we guess had dropped chemicals on the road which helped.


 We were never so glad to start descending down the mountain.   The further we went down the mountain the less snow we saw.    Fortunately, we made it into the little town of Buffalo.   Gassed up and wanted to find a place to eat lunch.  






So if that wasn't exciting enough!!  We hop on I-90 out of Buffalo, and thought we were going to be blown right off the road.  There were winds gusting 40 to 50 miles an hour!!!  Everybody was all over the road.   Pulled over and had a sandwich while listening to the wind howling outside.   We just looked at each other and shook our heads.   Back on the road and Dennis hears a noise - he says "what is that".   He looks in the mirror and the awning over the drivers side slide out is "flapping" with the high winds.   We were afraid it was just going to blow right off the side.   So we pull off on the shoulder to figure out what to do.   First, he says he's got to go up on the roof to try to tie down the awning.   I say, have you lost your mind, in this wind it would blow you right off!!   Fortunately, with the bicycles in the way he can't get up the ladder!!   So, only Dennis would come up with this idea!!   He gets a rope - opens all the windows in the middle of the coach - ties one end of the rope inside - takes the rope outside one of the windows and throws it over the top of the coach to the other side and bring the rope inside and then out another window and continues this process until the awning is tied up and secure to the side of the motor-home.


We had to slow down to about 50 mph and kept going to the town of Gillette, WY. where we found a campground. We got settled at the Crazy Woman Campground (which I was by the time we got there).  It continued to rain and the wind to blow, but Dennis was determined to get the chemicals off the car and motor-home. He put on his rain gear and went outside in the rain and 35 to 40 mph wind and washed both the car and Buttercup.
 Not sure what we will do tomorrow, I guess it will be up to the rain and wind Gods (please be nice to us). We also have to find someone to look at the awning if Dennis can't fix it in the morning.
Its an adventure for sure!!!!!!  
Night
Robin and Dennis.

  

Thursday, May 30, 2013

May 29, 2013

Wednesday May 29, 2013

Well we woke to the pitter patter of rain drops on the roof top of Buttercup. Dennis said relax, because he didn't want to drive in the rain all day. So what do we do all day in the camper??   I cleaned and did laundry. I didn't realize how big the motor-home is until you start cleaning it.
Dennis sat and watched TV, old movies and sports all day. After cleaning I made some home made bean soup for lunch and then I had to get out so I went to town and did some window shopping. Dennis stayed behind and watched more TV. I bet he took a nap too:))).
 When I returned he was on the phone with Chad getting our mail and bill update. The rain had almost stopped so I got him up and out and we took a walk around the campground. Had  some left overs for supper and then watched two informative shows. The first one was on the Boston bombing and the forensic side of it, and then a weather special on Tornadoes. We are headed right toward "the alley", and I am scared to death.  We are constantly looking at the Weather Channel, and might have to re-route our trip as we get closer to home. Only time will tell.
No pictures today of the rain but hitting the road in the morning for the next adventure.
Night
Robin and Dennis.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013


May 28, 2013

Tuesday May 28, 2013
After a few emails and checking the weather we walked over to a restaurant for our first breakfast out. We were so excited we forgot the camera. Dennis got eggs benedict and I got two scrambled eggs and bacon. Couldn't finish, so Dennis said take the bacon home for a BLT for lunch. He is always one meal ahead :).

Back to the campground and on the road to see some sites in Cody.  We started at the Buffalo Bill Dam. It was the highest dam in the in the world when completed in 1910.  Built with concrete and no reinforcement rods. Amazing!




 This is a siphon tube east of the dam and is for irrigation. It goes through Heart Mountain and irrigates over 30,000 acres.



Then it was off to the miniature village and museum. Only a couple of pictures here because the camera was out of memory. We had loaded a lot of videos when we leaving Yellowstone and Dennis forgot to load them on the portable hard-drive and erase them from the camera. Oh well.








Stopped at Walmart, you bet a Walmart in Cody, then back for a light lunch.

Dennis was concerned about the chemicals on the motorhome from the ride in the snow in Yellowstone so we went to the car wash. It was tall enough but not long enough. You should have seen us washing Buttercup, one half at a time. The bay was real dirty so we had to wait to get in because the attendant had to clean it first. He felt sorry for us so he gave us several freebie tokens. It still took a few dollars. I had to feed the meter with quarters while Dennis scrubbed and I rinsed. Somebody should have video taped this.

Job well done and Buttercup was back in her spot at the campground. Of course it then started to sprinkle. Dennis took a shower and we both got ready for the big date out in Cody. Dinner and a show.
The dinner at the hotel was very good. It was a buffet with prime rib and buffalo ribs.


Who's that cowboy??


Off to the show. Sat back and listened to some old country cowboy tunes and some originals by Dan Miller. His daughter was in the show and only 15 years old, did a wonderful job.

Blogged a little then it was off to bed. We will wait and see what the weather brings tomorrow before we travel. It looks like rain so we might stay put for another day.

Night
Robin and Dennis

May 27, 2013

Monday, May 27, 2013

Happy Memorial Day to everyone!!   Many thanks to all veterans out there!!

Our day was spent traveling from Jackson Hole - through Yellowstone National Park - to Cody, Wyoming.   What an awesome drive!   Not far out of Jackson Hole we spotted a herd of buffalo, and some elk a little further down the road.
                                     Robin looking out at the Bison and elk with binoculars.


  Traffic was light and the scenery was beautiful!!   The road to Cody definitely kept Dennis busy while driving down the mountains.

                                                      Geysers on the way out

                      Yellowstone lake, the largest lake at the high elevation around 8000 feet.


  We knew we may be in trouble when we saw the snow plow pass us on the road we were on.

  But we had just a few flurries and no problems.


  Stopped for lunch by a beautiful racing river on the way down, and made it into Cody by about 1:30.



                                     He just had to see how cold the water was, and it was.
 
 Road conditions.
On the road to Cody
 
Getting closer to Cody, landscape is changing.

 
Buffalo Bill Reservoir
                                                      Cody Rodeo Fairgrounds
 
  Staying at the Ponderosa Campground.


Get a load of this. It is a German based company tour bus.
Instead of staying in hotels they stay at campgrounds and have bunk beds in the back of the bus.
The bus will hold 24 passengers. They feed them breakfast and dinner and they shower at the campground. No bathroom on the bus so they stop every couple of hours. This was a group of Germans going from CA to NY.




  Got set up and headed into "downtown" Cody to check it out.   Made reservations for dinner and a cowboy music revue tomorrow night at the historic Irma Hotel - built by Buffalo Bill Cody in 1902.   What a great old hotel!!
                                           Caught shopping in the gift shop at the Hotel.
                                                         Dinning hall in the hotel.
                                                                       The hallway.
                                                                       The Hotel
  Of course for those who don't know, Dennis's mothers first name is Irma so we had to go here for sure.
                                                         Tired of shopping, never!!!!!!
                                                                Dan Miller's revue.

                                              He finally found a hat that fit.

  By then we were beat - came back home - got our chairs out and sat out back with a wonderful view of the mountains.



                               Not a bird but a solo motorized hang glider over the campground.


  Chef Dennis grilled fish for dinner.   Was a great day!!                          
 
Night
Robin and Dennis