Category Archives: Wyoming

Having a “Close Encounter” with Devil’s Tower

  By Anne Patrone | October 12, 2011 - 9:23 am | , , , , , , , , , ,
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While I’ll admit that Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind isn’t my favorite movie, I couldn’t pass up a chance to visit Devils Tower National Monument (where a chosen few humans “encounter” some friendly aliens) on our way to South Dakota. Making Devils Tower more tempting was its inclusion on Frommer’s 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up.

Although it’s about a 60-mile detour from Interstate 90, Devils Tower is well worth a visit just to experience the “wow” factor of driving through relatively boring countryside only to make a turn onto US 24 and see this in the distance . . .

Devils Tower in Wyoming

As we got closer to the monolith, we could see the strange lines carved downward in the rock face (which Richard Dreyfuss used a fork in mashed potatoes to create . . . ). Scientists believe the lines were caused by magma breaking the surface of the earth, hardening into an intrusion, and then eroding.

I prefer the Kiowa legend which tells of 8 children playing (7 sisters and 1 boy). The boy was turned into a bear and chased his sisters up a large tree. The bear clawed at the trunk, but couldn’t reach his sisters who were then transported into the sky and became the stars of the Big Dipper.

The “claw marks” on Devils Tower

There’s a nice walking trail around Devils Towerwhich we were interested in taking, but the darkening sky (and the thunderstorms we had been trying to out run all day) chased us back to the safety of our car.

We were, however, able to make a quick stop for my animal-loving sons at Roberts Prairie Dog Town just inside Devils Tower Monument. Of all the prairie dog towns we visited on this trip (and we visited plenty . . .), this was by far the best . . .

For what looks like an empty field . . .

An empty field??

. . . is really filled with holes or burrows . . .

A praire dog burrow

. . . with these little guys popping out all over the place . . .

A prairie dog barking out his warning

. . . “barking” at all their visitors to get lost . . .

Isn’t he cute?

Sixty-eight places visited, 432 to go!

How to Survive a Road Trip With Kids

  By Anne Patrone | October 11, 2011 - 8:30 am | , , , , ,
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After surviving another road trip with my boys this past weekend to beautiful Lake Placid, New York, I thought I would offer a few tips on taking long car trips with kids.

Actually, I only have one major tip . . . and it seems quite fitting considering the recent passing of Steve Jobs, a true technological andcreative genius . . .
BUY AN IPAD OR OTHER TABLET DEVICE.
iPad Tablet

There. Let the hate mail and nasty comments telling me what ahorrible mother I am for robbing my children of the pleasures they wouldexperience during these important family bonding times begin.

Bleh.

As anyone who’s traveled a significant distance with kidsknows, the one thing you want to avoid in the backseat is an all out warfighting over music, climate controls, food, or even heaven forbid . . . theall-powerful imaginary line down the middle seat dividing the car/SUV/van YOUare driving into “his” space and “my” space.

Mine . . . no, mine!!!

With an iPad or other tablet device (or even a laptop computer. . . which is what we used . . .), the kids can watch a movie or TV showgiving you a few hours of peace as you navigate your way through traffic,construction zones, and miles of nothingness that would put an insomniac tosleep.

Nebraska Road of nothingness

And as for that family bonding everyone is so worried about?

It happens . . . because even the best batteries can’t survive a 10-hour road trip!

Animal Crossing Ahead!

  By Anne Patrone | October 7, 2011 - 7:30 am | , , , , , ,
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Look out ahead

One of the funnest activities my guys and I had while we were driving around the Western US was watching out for animal crossing signs. 

They ranged from the obvious . . .
Large bison and deer were everywhere

. . . to the cute . . . 

Prairie dogs were the cutest

. . . to the scary . . .

Yes, we saw one of these guys

Check out more fabulous photos at Photo Friday, sponsored by DeliciousBaby.com

Cody Rodeo – Family Entertainment on a Summer Night

  By Anne Patrone | October 6, 2011 - 9:20 am | , , , , , ,
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Bucking bronco at the Cody Nite Rodeo
One of the best things about staying at the Bill Cody Ranch was its proximity to Cody, Wyoming – the “Rodeo Capitol of the World” and home to the Cody Nite Rodeo.

My guys had never seen a rodeo and the Cody Nite Rodeo, a low-key rodeo held every night from June 1st through August 31st, was the perfect entertainment on a beautiful summer night.

This two hour rodeo had everything the larger ones had . . .

. . . an angry bull named “Diablo” ready to take on the cowboy brave enough to ride him . . .

Diablo ready to take on anyone

. . . bucking broncos and silly rodeo clowns (who told PG jokes) . . . 

Rodeo clown entertaining the crowd at the Cody Nite Rodeo

. . . barrel racing and calf roping . . . 

He got ‘em!

. . . and even a mad calf scramble that my kids participated in . . . 

Look for the bright orange shirt – that’s one of mine

And for those of you wondering what a “calf scramble” is . . . picture over 50 kids (age 12 and under) madly running around the rodeo arena chasing three calves with bandannas tied to their tails. It’s like “capture the flag” with a moving target! Kids from Connecticut, Michigan, and North Carolina won.

Last, but not least, the Cody Nite Rodeo had the perfect souvenir of our western trip . . . 
A “real” cowboy hat

. . . a “real” cowboy hat previously worn by rodeo participants. And while some people may have an “eww” factor at the thought of a “used” hat – the dents and dings in those cowboy hats meant more to my guys than a pristine hat from a shop ever would – especially after they saw the intense action that kids as young as six saw on bucking broncos and bulls.

Buffalo Bill Historical Center: Guns & More

  By Anne Patrone | October 5, 2011 - 9:11 am | , , , , , , , ,
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Statue of Buffalo Bill

I’ll admit I was skeptical when my mother told me the highlight of her Western trip through Wyoming was the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming. But like a good daughter, I took my boys there for a short visit since we had already had a trail ride at the Bill Cody Ranch earlier in the afternoon.

We showed up at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center two hours before closing to go through a museum and interactive historical center that we could have easily spent an entire day at. With five permanent exhibits devoted to various subjects such as Western art and the Plains Indians, an enormous firearms collection, and an entire wing devoted to Cody’s namesake, William “Buffalo Bill” Cody, we had to pick and choose to maximize our time at the museum.

Since we were in Cody, Wyoming, it made sense to start off our visit in the area devoted to the man known as “Buffalo Bill.”

Bill Cody earned his nickname from killing over 4000 bison to feed the men on the Kansas Railroad. Apparently Bill Comstock had the same nickname so the two engaged in a “bison duel” to settle who could officially call himself “Buffalo Bill.” 
Buffalo coat and the gun Buffalo Bill used
Bill Cody won by killing 69 bison to Comstock’s 49.
Also in this area were the silver saddles, costumes, and posters that Buffalo Bill used in his Wild West shows, which toured throughout the United States and Europe.
Posters from Buffalo Bill’s show
We then ventured into what many consider the highlight of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center – the Cody Firearms Museum. As fans (and I’ll admit players) of Modern Warfare and Call of Duty, this was heaven for my boys. 
Guns and more guns
Hailed as having one of the largest firearm collections in the world, the Cody Firearms Museum boasts over 3500 firearms on over two floors. With guns and rifles from every American-fought war and/or skirmish, the boys examined guns from the American Revolution up to more recent machine guns.
A timeline of rifles
 Entire walls were devoted to gun manufacturers such as Smith & Wesson and Colt.
The gun that “won the West” – the Colt
And, of course, my boys had to try out their shooting skills . . . 
Trying out the rifles in an arcade game
With time running out, we chose to spend out last few minutes at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center learning about Yellowstone National Park. I truly wish we had seen this exhibit BEFORE we had ventured into Yellowstone because we learned more about our first national park in a half-hour than we did in a half a day of driving around the park.
Uniquely designed in a spiral pattern, the Draper Museum of Natural History condenses Yellowstone into manageable and kid-size chunks with interactive displays and hands-on exhibits. I truly wish we had seen this exhibit BEFORE we had ventured into Yellowstone. 
Want to know what a beaver lodge looks like on the inside? Or how your hand compares to a wolf’s paw? On the Alpine to Plains Trail inside the museum, my guys learned about the animals and plants that make up each unique environment within Yellowstone. 
Inside a mock-up of a beaver dam
Do I wish we had been able to spend more time at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center? Of course . . . because my mother’s always right!