Big Horn Mountain, WY
Bridge On Big Horn Mountain, WY
Beautiful Rock Mountains, Big Horn, WY
We left Whistler's Gulch Campground in Deadwood, SD around 9 this morning. We crossed into Wyoming and drove miles and miles seeing nothing but flat land with nothing but Wyoming Sage Brush to look at. I cannot imagine how the pioneers handled the solitude. I had a laptop and cell phone and I was lonely (no cell or internet service for most of the time while driving through the flatlands) Teeheehee
If you are asking yourself how a WV girl knew that it was called Wyoming Sage Brush (and I know you are) well................................... I went online and looked it up!!! Nothing slow about me, is there? LOL
After miles and miles of flat land, we began to see large snow capped mountains in the distance. THEN we started up the mountain on our way to Cody, WY. I cannot even begin to tell you how high we were. According to our GPS we were over 9,000 feet high when we reached the top. The views were breathtaking and I do mean breathtaking. I was holding my breath the whole way because it was a sheer drop over the side of the mountain ON MY SIDE!!! :>) We took lots of pictures, but they do not do it justice.
After we reached the top, we started DOWN. And, I do mean DOWN!!! It was a very crooked and steep, but totally beautiful. Carolee was snapping pictures galore standing in the back of the motor home looking out both windows. While she was taking pictures, I was holding on to my seat, holding the camera to the window and snapping without looking because it was so STEEP AND HIGH!!! And, on MY side............................... I wish I could have taken a picture of my face a few times. I know I was looking pretty pitiful and holding on for dear life!! I just know I was glad that Merrell had been a truck driver for 26 years and had driven over Gauley Mountain in WV for 12 of those 26 years. I wouldn't have missed the drive for anything, because it was one of the most beautiful drives I have ever been on. I don't want to go back across it today, but I know I would do it again just for the beauty of the drive.
On the way down, we saw a car burning. I guess it had overheated and caught on fire. Since we were too far away from a fire department, and there was no cell service on the mountain, I'm sure it burned up before anyone could do anything. It was half burned when we passed it. We met the fire department truck at the bottom of the mountain, so someone had called it in already. We were lucky. The motor home has an engine brake, as well as regular brakes and Merrell said they didn't get hot. On the way up the mountain, Merrell pulled over a couple of times to let the transmission cool, but he said the engine didn't heat at all.
Anyway, we had a great trip and we got to the Absaroka Camp Ground in Cody around 6 p.m.. We were all pretty tired, so went to bed early and watched the boob tube for awhile before our eyes wouldn't stay open any longer.
Catch ya later
