Day 10

Meeting Cody Bill - and the Shoot-out

It was far too muggy to share a small bed and my mozzie bites were itching. An early morning walk outside, revealed the extent of last night's storm, as there were puddles of rainwater all over the place. The sun was out though and Old Faithful was erupting in the background, as it had done every 80 minutes for eons. All was well with the world! We were all packed up and ready to leave by about 9:30, but we did a little last minute shopping in the store. We stopped in several places around the park, especially around by the lake, (where there were elk with antlers) - taking it easy - savouring the specialness of the park. There were more buffalo, but there were still no bears!

We stopped at Silvan Lake and as we stood there, in the quiet, with the sun beating done, the wind suddenly began to howl. And then it stopped. What a very strange place this was! The Silvan Pass was a bit tricky, because there was maintenance being done and we got too close to the edge for comfort, several times.

Outside of Yellowstone, we stopped at Pahaska Tepee, Buffalo Bill's historic lodge, for gas and supplies. There was a wonderful box in the shop, inlaid with different types of woods. I wanted to buy it, but I didn't and regret that. Past the lodge, we continued along the Wapiti Valley, past weird rock formations and ranches. It was beginning to get a little overcast and thundery by the time we reached the Buffalo Bill Dam, just outside of Cody. It was quite a walk from the car park - and the dam was VERY HIGH - eek! After a quick look around the visitor center, we got a lift back to the car on a golf buggy!!

Cody Cowboy Village! What would we find there? Well, what we found were a whole circle of finished cabins and Bill himself! It was good to meet him; he's a very nice, friendly chap. And our cabin! It was splendid! There was the sitting room, with a sleeper sofa and comfy chair, both in a red faux suede - a flat screen TV on the wall (and another in the bedroom), dining table, fridge and microwave. There was a very nice bathroom, wallpapered in cowboy hat and boot design - and the bedroom had two big immensely comfortable queen beds! Everything was, of course, brand new and the smell of the new wood and furnishings was delicious!

We wanted to see the Shoot Out at 6:30 outside the Irma Hotel, but first we had to get something to eat. McDonalds it was! OK, so we might be filling ourselves with junk food, but we weren't here to eat gourmet! Nor did we have the time (or money!) to sit, every night, in a posh restaurant. Actually, it was all pretty healthy if you stuck to salads. We then found somewhere to park, quite easily and quite close to Irma's. We had to sit on the pavement, which was really HARD! There were seats we could've reserved, but they were sold out. A biggish crowd was there waiting for the famous Shoot Out! They wheeled out a bank, a saloon and a jail! Then we all had to stand for the national anthem. Then there was a fair bit of advertisements (for our sponsors) by Buffalo Bill himself! The Shoot out was really COOL! Great fun - lots of tongue-in-cheek stuff. ("Why are you not afraid to die?" "Because I've been married!") Of course, the baddies got it in the end - and we all strolled away to the shops!

Great shops, lots of injun gear etcetera. But it was all a little bit pricey! The heavens opened and we had to make a run for it! We then stopped off at Walmarts for (more) provisions. While inside, we could hear the thunder crackling overhead, so we stayed in there until it has stopped. I bought myself a pair of cut-off jeans and we bought a nice red holdall to carry all our souvenirs back home in! WalMart don't sell alcohol, so we had to go to the liquor store down the street to stock up on some food, beer and wine, before returning to our cozy cabin for a couple drinks, TV and a sound night's sleep in those wonderful beds!

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[ Introduction ] [ Day 1 ] [ Day 2 ] [ Day 3 ] [ Day 4 ] [ Day 5 ] [ Day 6 ] [ Day 7 ] [ Day 8 ] [ Day 9 ]
[ Day 10 ] [ Day 11 ] [ Day 12 ] [ Day 13 ] [ Day 14 ] [ Day 15 ] [ Day 16 ] [ Day 17 ]
[ Day 18 ] [ Day 19 ] [ Day 20 ] [ Day 21 ]

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