BUSY DAY

OK...The Rodeo was great! The barrel riders and the bull riding are always our favorites. Last night, there were only two riders that stayed on the bulls for a score; those bulls were meeeeeeeen last night. The barrel riders were great. They had three classes of gals. First was the regular class, they were fast. Then the Junior class and they were pretty good as well. Then, the last class was the pee wee class. There was only one little gal and she was so cute. she was riding a mini horse and didn't knock any of the barrels over. She was slow but really cute.

Today we woke up and decided to go shooting. We got in the POS car and drove to the "outside" range. Let me explain the "outside" range. We drive out to a place about a mile from the house where there is lots of sage brush and an old makeshift shooting bench. (I use the term "shooting bench" very loosely.) Anyway, we shot our share of tin cans and got some more practice with the rifles and pistols. After a couple of hours, the sun was getting to us and our usual Cody breeze was non-existent. So we packed up and went home for a nice shower...whew, what a difference some cool water makes on the hot skin....hummm, maybe TMI, oh well, a natural occurrence.

As typical in Cody, the weather has changed and now the wind is blowing pretty good. The sun is behind the clouds and if I didn't know any better, I would think that we may be in for some thunderstorms. We like thunderstorms, as long as the lightening stays away from the park. We don't need any big fires this year. Especially since we will be going thru the park again next week. Oh, I didn't tell you. While we were in Idaho for the wedding, there just happened to be a Yamaha dealer on the road. We couldn't pass up going in to "look". the ol' coyote sold his Can Am and wanted to get a Grizzley 660 like mine. (now you realize, I have had mine (one ATV) since 2004) he has ridden mine so much that he has finally decided...duh...that it's a pretty good machine. So, if we were to buy another ATV (this would be his third) if we had the same make and model, it would be good because of using the same parts. Anyway...we stopped and went in. There it was, starring us in the face. A beautiful blue grizzley 660, the only one in the showroom. the ol' coyote said that 2007 was the last year they were made, so we expected it to be that. well......low and behold, it was a 2008, naturally, more money. that's what we thought....but, it was $1500 less than the Cody dealer wanted for the 2007...pretty good, eh? OK...we couldn't resist the great offer. Especially for two reasons. (1) the old ATV sold and (2) we need two in the family....good reasoning, right? we thought so. Well, that's why we will be going to Idaho next week, to pick it up. We didn't have the trailer with us last trip, who knew....

OK, sorry for digressing, let's see, I was talking about today. Actually, I was going to tell you that we are going out to eat tonight. we are going with our friends (affectionately called Fred and Ethel) to eat at the Irma Hotel. It's a tourist place, because it was built by Buffalo Bill and named after his first daughter. It has a beautiful huge cherry wood Bar which was a gift and came from France, back around 1910 or so. the food is good and we like the waitresses. So, all in all, we will have a great busy and fun day. Hope yours is as good....

SEVEN YEARS AGO

Yes, seven years ago to the date, Skipper retired and we began our move to this beautiful part of the world. Leaving the smog and the congestion was not a difficult thing to do. After seven years, I will have to admit, there are some things in California, I do miss. Let's see....the ocean, Disneyland, San Simeon, some friends, Angeles Crest...hummm, not much else that comes to mind. Over all, I think we made the correct move. I know for sure that if we hadn't moved out of California, Skipper wouldn't be the mild mannered man that he has become. (most of the time).

We had sold the house and left on the 27th of July arriving in Cody on the 30th. We are here to stay. Remember, we have room for our friends, should the occasion arise....hint, hint.

You all know we have bears in the park and in the surrounding area. Well, I spoke with Rochelle today and she was telling me about a case her husband is on. He being a doctor working in our hospital (West Park Hospital). About 3am up between Cooke City and Silver Gate, at the Crazy Woman camp ground, there was a retired Eugene Oregon Police Officer that was on his motorcycle. well, he wasn't on it at 3am, he was in his little pup tent in the campground. When.....all of a sudden, a bear ripped thru his tent and grabbed his arm. The man woke up and started beating on the bear's nose to let go when the bear started scratching back, injuring his other arm. Somehow, the bear finally let go and I don't know how he got a hold of someone who took him down to cody to the hospital. Dr. Jimmy Biles, our orthopod, got the case and fixed the fractures in the arm and hand, but Kim (dr. slight, rochelle's husband) got the case from him. He is monitoring his case because bears have one of the dirtiest mouthes around. So, they are really concerned about infection setting in.

Oops, gotta run...the Ol' coyote is on his way home from the range. we get to go to the rodeo tonight, so I have to get dressed for the occasion, where did i put those jeans and my cowboy boots, i will talk with you all later, hope you get to have a fun night, I'm going to....waaaahoooooo Hi O rodeo!!!!!

TRIP TO IDAHO

What a weekend! a family that we knew (in a galaxy far far away) was having a wedding. their boy, bret, was getting married and we didn't want to miss it. so, we left cody on friday and drove thru the park exiting thru the west entrance and then down to idaho falls. it took about 5 or 7 hours, can't really remember. anyway, we had a great time. we stayed with carl and paulie who are the parents of the parents. we enjoyed staying with them because we had our own "apartment" (their basement). we were away from all the noise and congestion of people. thaT'S THE WAY THE OL' COYOTE LIKES THINGS...NICE AND QUIET WITH A COOL PLACE TO STAY. ALSO, COYOTE SAID THAT we could keep up with CARL AND PAULIE. (THEY ARE IN THEIR 80S AND SHUFFLE ALONG RATHER SLOWLY) THAT'S THE OL' coyote's pace...

Friday night we went with carl and paulie to a church function. it was a bbq to celebrate the fourth birthday of their ward. it was fun and the people were all really friendly and nice. after the bbq we went to rick's and anita's place to add to the confusion. we met bret's intended (she's really cute/pretty, sorry, no pictures, yet). then we got to see mel, mathew and chris. it was a lot of fun to renew old friendships. plus...to see their kids, omg, it's just amazing to me how fast kids grow up...i think it's a sign of old age creeping in...hummmm, not good.

after we had been causing trouble for a while, we decided... well, carl and paulie were getting tired, so we packed up and went back to their place. coyote was happy, he could relax in the basement, while carl and paulie....are you ready for this...remember, they are in their 80s....ok, while carl and paulie stayed upstairs to watch....lawrence welk...their favorite...

Saturday was the wedding, everyone was beautiful. the guys were all in black and the bride was stunning. her attendents were in pink and black, the mothers were in black and the fathers were in grey. it was cooler than it had been, but way too hot for us, we had to sit in the sun....whew, hot!!! The wedding was great, the food was wonderful and the cake was really different. i guess the trend of wedding cakes has taken another turn. this was really cute and different. the layers were all different sizes and frosted like individual packages in a stack. i hadn't been to a wedding with the cake done that way. i have seen it done on tv, but not in person. the cake was delicious. each "package" was different. one was chocolate with cream filling, one was white with rasberry filling and i don't know what the others were. they had fresh fruit and marshmellows with the chocolate fountain...the kids loved that...what a mess the kids became. all in all, everyone had a great time. i think, maybe except for anita. she really stresses out and had done an enormous amount of work. i'm sure sunday was a very relaxing day!!!

sunday was our departure. we left around 8:30 am and drove towards the park. but we decided to take a "short cut" one of our friends here in cody told us to try. about a mile south of Ashton, Idaho, there is a cutoff to Squirl meadow ranch. we took the cutoff and started down the road. we were told the road became dirt. well, it did. it not only became dirt, it became rutted and major pot holes in the dirt. we went about 40 miles in the dirt and then found pavement again. we came out at flag ranch, and then entered the park via the south entrance. from there we went up thru west thumb and out the usual east entrance. whew, we made it. i actually believe that it was shorter. at least, the traffic was a lot less. i would take the road again, i'm not sure the ol' coyote feels the same way.

so, that was our weekend, how was yours?

AN EVENING DRIVE

gOOD EVENING...HOW'S EVERYTHING GOING IN YOUR LIFE. WE ARE DOING WELL, HERE IN CODY, WYOMING. SATURDAY, THE 5TH, WE TOOK A GREAT DRIVE INTO YELLOWSTONE PARK. THE PARK SERVICE HAD DONE SOME RENOVATIONS TO MY FAVORITE PLACE IN THE PARK. THE PICTURE IS OF ARTISTS POINT. ISN'T IT GORGEOUS! THE FALLS THIS YEAR ARE SO FULL OF WATER. THE WHOLE PARK IS BEAUTIFUL THIS YEAR BECAUSE OF ALL THE WATER FROM THE MELTED SNOW. THE RIVERS ARE FULL AND LAKE YELLOWSTONE IS FULL. THE DRIVE WAS WONDERFUL, SO COOL AND NOT REALLY CROWDED BECAUSE WE WENT SO LATE. WE SAW TWO DIFFERENT HERDS OF ELK, SOME DEER IN THE ROAD AS WELL AS THE NORMAL BUFFALO...IN THE ROAD. (OH, THE DEER AND THE BUFFALO WERE ALIVE AND WALKING...JUST THOUGHT I WOULD THRO THAT IN SO YOU WOULDN'T THINK THEY HAD BEEN KILLED. THEY WERE STILL ALIVE AND WELL WHEN WE LEFT.) EVEN THE CARS WERE STOPPED....IN THE ROAD. IT IS SO BAFFLING WHY THEY MAKE PULL-OUTS AND THE TOURISTS REFUSE TO USE THEM. THEY SEE AN ANIMAL AND IMMEDIATELY, THEY STOP...RIGHT SMACK IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD....THEN THEY PILE OUT TO TAKE PICTURES....SOMETIMES THEY ARE MORE OF A PICTURE THAN THE ANIMALS...LOL
WELL, I TRIED TO PUT THE PICTURE OF THE SUNSET RIGHT HERE, BUT i STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN THE HANG OF ATTACHING PICTURES IN THE TEXT...BE PATIENT WITH ME I AM, AFTER ALL, A WORK IN PROGRESS...
ANYWAY, THE SUNSET IS COMING HOME, OVER LAKE YELLOWSTONE.
WHEN WE GOT HOME IT WAS DARK, AROUND 10:30 BUT THE DRIVE WAS REALLY INTERESTING. IT WAS GREAT TO SEE ALL OF THE RIVERS AND THE BUFFALO BILL DAM SO HIGH. LAST YEAR WE WERE ALMOST AT DROUGHT LEVEL AND NOW THEY ARE LAPPING AT THE BANKS. EVEN SOME OF THE TREES ARE ALMOST COVERED...LOOKS SUPER. WELL, IT'S GETTING LATE AND I NEED TO LISTEN TO THE OL' COYOTE, HE KEEPS TALKING ABOUT CAR PARTS..IT'S DIFFICULT FOR ME TO COMPOSE ON MY OWN, LET ALONE WHEN SOMEONE IS TALKING...THANKS FOR LISTENING; CATCHA LATER...CIAO

BIGHORNS PART DEUX

WELL, HOW RUDE, THE BLOG JUST PUBLISHED PRIOR TO ME BEING THROUGH. HUMMMM, IS SOMEONE TRYING TO TELL ME SOMETHING? OH WELL, TO CONTINUE. AFTER WE DROVE THRU THE MARINA, WE WENT TO THE CANYON PART OF THE RESERVOIR. TALK ABOUT BREATHTAKING. YOU LOOK DOWN INTO THE CANYON WHERE THE RIVER IS RUNNING THRU AND THE WALLS ARE SO TALL, IT'S AWESOME. THE "OLD TIMERS" WE WERE WITH TOLD US THAT THE RIVER USED TO BE JUST A SMALL STREAM WHICH ONE COULD JUST WALK ACROSS BUT SINCE THEY CREATED THE DAM, THERE IS SO MUCH WATER THAT THE RIVER IS REALLY BIG. FROM THE CANYON AREA, WE DROVE UP THE ROAD TO A RANCH ONCE OWNED BY (ACTUALLY BUILT FOR) cAROLYN LOCKHART. SHE WAS A FAMOUS WRITER HERE IS THE WEST IN THE 1800'S. sHE WAS A VERY GOOD FRIEND OF bUFFALO BILL. sHE USED TO WRITE ABOUT HIS SHOW AND OTHER PARTS OF THE OLD WEST. wE ALSO HAVE A BED AND BREAKFAST HERE IN CODY, CALLED THE CAROLYN LOCKHART BED AND BREAKFAST. oK, THE RANCH WAS REALLY LARGE AND NICELY DONE FOR HER DAY. THERE WERE SEVERAL OUT BUILDINGS AND A REALLY NICE SPRING HOUSE. DO YOU KNOW WHAT A SPRING HOUSE IS? TESTING YOUR OLD WEST LORE....OK, IT WAS A SMALL USAUALLY ONE ROOM CABIN BUILT OVER A SPRING. iT IS USED TO KEEP THINGS COOL, SINCE THERE WAS NOT REFRIGERATION AVAILABLE. PRETTY NEAT, HUH? ANYWAY, SHE ONCE OWNED 7,000 ACRES IN THE BIGHORNS....INCONCEIVABLE IN TODAYS MONEY....SHALL WE SAY...RICH? mOST OF THE ACRES ARE NOW OWNED BY THE STATE AS BLM LAND. THE BIGHORNS ARE IN wYOMING AND MONTANA, BOTH. WE ALSO GOT TO SEE THE PRYOR MOUNTAINS; THEY ARE IN MONTANA. THEY ARE MORE BARE ROCK RATHER THAN COVERED WITH TREES. bUT, THEY ARE STILL BEAUTIFUL, TALL, AND MAJESTIC. OK, NOW I THINK I AM DONE IN THE BIGHORNS. WE HAD A FUN DAY, INTO NIGHT, WE DIDN'T GET HOME UNTIL ALMOST 11 PM. IT'S REALLY FUN LEARNING ABOUT OUR NEW HOME LAND...NEXT ON THE AGENDA, A DAY IN THE PARK, UNTIL THEN....CIAO

BIG HORNS

Boy, i have so much to talk about. i have not kept up with the goings on around here. We'll start with last week. We went shooting again, killing our usual number of tin cans. Then, we took a little trip with a couple of friends, up to the big horn mountains. we went to Barry's landing which is "the marina". It's at the bighorn reservoir, which used to be called (by all the locals) yellow tail lake. Since they redid the Bighorn national recreational center, and built the reservoir, they renamed it. anyway, coming from southern california and being familiar with the balboa marina, the newport marina, the marina at the port of long beach, etc. let me tell you. these people have no clue what a "real" marina is like. there were maybe 6 slips to keep the boats and not for permanent keeps, just to hold them while you went to get a snack. and believe me, that's all you could get would have been a snack. their "marina" shack was just stand up at the shack and order your hamburger, hot dog, or already made sandwiches....chips and soda. talk about being out in the boonies....oh how i long for the beach, with real seafood and a warf, or a pier....let me tell you something. if you enjoy something, enjoy it! don't take for granted the things you have that you enjoy....you may not always have them around. OK, sorry for the digressing, anyway, needless to say it was a shock to the system. After we left the "marina" (we were there long enough to drive thru it and turn around and gone).