Cody Wyoming – Part 1

In the past two and a half years, I have plotted our RV routes on mainly interstate highways. They are faster, usually have many convenient places to stop, do not have low underpasses, and the grades are very mild. In Wyoming, most all the north-south routes are two-lane byways. So, by necessity we have ventured off the super slabs onto the back roads!

One Crazy Route

There is no direct route from our last place in Alpine across to Cody Wyoming. One path is 217 miles and goes through both the National Parks, Tetons and Yellowstone. It would be beautiful but have multiple delays as traffic can be very heavy. It would be a very long day.

The next route is 336 miles going southwest across some mountain passes. My mountain road guidebook has this road flagged as one to either avoid or else approach with caution with a large RV. I’d just as soon avoid the thrill ride and save that for Disney World this winter.

The third option was to drive south around the mountain passes, head back east for a bit, then take a combination of roads north to Cody. This route is 600 miles and would require three intermediate stays on the way. This option is way longer, but I feel more comfortable, and we get to see more of Wyoming. So why not, I’m retired! By the way, except for a short section on I-80, all roads are scenic countryside two lane adventures!

Our good RVer friend, Bob Nies, has always said that he prefers to always travel the two-lane black tops and to stay off the interstates. He may be on to something…

Rawlins Wyoming

We stayed one night in Rock Springs and then moved east to Rawlins Wyoming (pop 9,200 at 6,800 elevation), to an RV park with very limited space, but just ok for a couple of nights. The park was the Red Desert Rose Campground, just off of the highway.

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On Sunday, Pat did some church research and found a small baptist church whose website indicated a bible believing conservative church. We attended and found maybe 20 others and a great sermon. The pastor also worked full time for Fedex and works on his sermons in the evenings. Chapel Car Bible Church.

We also found an Elks Lodge in town, so stopped in to say hi and the locals were very friendly in providing some local information. It seems that Rawlins is a boom or bust kind of town. In between times now. The lodge was built in 1908.

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Lander Wyoming

We loved Lander. (pop 7,500 at 5,400 elevation) What a cool small western town. It has a well done historic downtown section with many shops, old hotels and restaurants.

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Our RV park was on a hill outside of town, Sleeping Bear RV Park. The park was small and the interior roads were very tight with trees in the wrong places. With that said, the office lady was friendly and the view overlooking town was great. We stayed there two nights.

I also found an Anytime Fitness to work out at their gym. It’s great having a membership because of their many locations.

The Lander Bar & Grill was a good spot for an afternoon happy hour refreshment and we even both found a place for a pedicure.

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Wind River Canyon

Driving north on WY 120 was a real treat. It is a winding two-laner with many twists and turns, but the sights are pretty awesome. The road follows the bottom of a steep rock canyon that has multi-colored rock layers. Very scenic.

It also runs through the Wind River Indian Reservation. We did not stop anywhere, just passing through.

Cody Wyoming

This small town of Cody at 9,500 people and at 5,000 feet has much going for it. (More on that later) Named after Buffalo Bill Cody it was founded in 1896. The climate is semi-arid, with low humidity and less than ten inches of rain per year.

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Our two-week stay will be almost enough time to see all of the area’s attractions and have enough time for a few days of downtime. Plus, we will be enjoying a visit from our son Bryan who is flying in from Washington DC for three days.

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Our Cody RV park is the Absaroka Bay RV Park just on the south edge of town. It is a medium to large park with some very nice well maintained lawns between all sites. That is quite rare out west.

That’s all for this installment. Next up is Bryan’s visit, the Cody Rodeo, Yellowstone NP, the Chief Joseph Highway to Cooke City Montana, and the Buffalo Bill Museum. A busy couple of weeks. Take care and God Bless.