Two High Points on a Short Road Trip

Very teensy town and very large statue along Interstate 80

This past weekend four of us did a short road trip -- Boulder-Cheyenne-Laramie-Snowy Range-Boulder. Of Interstate 80's 2,909 miles between the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and New York-New Jersey's George Washington Bridge, the 47 modest miles from Cheyenne to Laramie contain two places that are worth stopping at. They are lliteral and figurative high points along a stretch of freeway that passes through a lot of wide-open country.

Buford, Wyoming - Pop. 1

How could we not stop in Buford, Wyoming -- population 1 and its own zip code. It is purportedly the smallest town in America and also the highest town between along I-80's entire route.  Just south of the Exit 335 off the Interstate. road, we found  a gateway to a ranch and Buford-- the signs below, one house, the Buford Trading Post and a bunch of gas pumps.

The sole resident wasn't manning the store, but his photograph graced the counter. Regretfully I neglected to ask his name, but I took a picture of his picture.

Buford was not always so tiny. Its population was purportedly about 2,000 as the transcontinental railroad was being built westward across Wyoming.

Lincoln Monument

The Lincoln Memorial is, of course, in Washington, DC, but the Lincoln Monnument is just of Exit 239. It is visible from the Interstate that closely follows the historic Lincoln Highway (US 30), the first auto road to cross the country.To honor this achievement as well as the president who most fervently believe in a union of all the states, Robert Russin, a University of Wyoming art professor and a Lincoln admirer, sculpted a monumental, 13 1/2-foot Lincoln head resting on a 35-foot stone base.

It originally stood at Sherman Summit, at 8,878 feet above sea level and the highest point on old Lincoln Highway, but when when I-80 was opened in 1969, the head was moved about 1 mile to this highpoint on the Interstate. It too is visible from the highway, but its worth a stop.

Pull into the Summit Rest Area and go into the visitor center, not just to use the restroom and have adrink of water, but also to watch a short interpretive film and look into the small museum room with exhibits about Wyoming and its natural and human history.

If you too are road-tripping through Wyoming in I-80, eachof these attractions is worth a stop.

Medicine Bow Peak: Strike Three

Weather deterred us once again from climbing iconic mountain in southern Wyoming

Wyoming's highest mountain is 13.804-foot Gannett Peak in the Wind River Range, and the 13,775-foot Grand Teton, the centerpiece of spectacular Grand Teton National Park is runnerup. At 12,013 feet, Medicine Bow Peak is not even in the same elevation league. Still, with a location in the scenic Snowy Range of south-central Wyoming, it has lured my husband, Ral, and me three times in th past few years. The first time, we left Boulder in the pitch-dark, began climbing early from the Lake Marie Trailhead but were only about half-way across the flat broad mountaintop before being spooked by lightning visible in every direction and retreated. The second time, we spent the night in Fort Collins and thought we had a head start, but again, the weather closed in when we were crossing the top, and again we turned around.

This past weekend, accompanied by our Boulder friends Andrea and Dana, we wanted to try for a third time. To be closer to the trailhead, we spent the night at the Old Corral Hotel in Centennial, Our plan was to ascend via the shortest, steepest route from Lewis Lake to reach the highest point -- roughly 1,200 feet of elevation gain in considerably less than 2 miles. Heavy clouds filled the sky, even in the morning, so it wasn't looking good. Our immediate destination was the junction with the trail to the summit -- just in case the clouds lifted and the sun emerged. They didn't.

Lakes Trail from Lewis Lake

From the trailhead at Lewis Lake (below), we passed lakes and tarns, lingering snowfields and spectacular wildflowers that filled meadows and seasonal marshes, poked up through willows and coniferous shrubs, and magically grew on tiny ledges on rock cliffs. I'm afraid my little camera can't do justice to the splendid displays.

The three-from-one conifer below is just a few hundred feet from the Lewis Lake trailhead.

The last of winter's deep snow still lingers on August 1, but its steady melting is what makes the flowers so dazzling.

Below, death camas, which also goes by wand lily and several other names.

Pale yellow Indian paintbrush, aster, elephantilla (that's the stalk) and one of the senisios or some other yellow composite.

Queen's crown is light pink in the Snowy Range but in the Colorado Rockies is usually dark red.

I can't identify the two small flowers below from this photo, and I didn't have my tundra book with me to look them up at the time. Still, I loved seeing the tough, low-growing blue and pink blossoms side by side, literally between a rock and a hard place.

After about 1 1/4 miles, we reached a three-way trail junction and had another decision to make. We had already discarded thoughts of the the steep ascent to the summit. A second option was to continue down to Mirror Lake and return the way we came, but if the skies opened, we'd be miles from the car. The third was to retrace our steps to Lewis Lake and drive to the Mirror Lake Trailhead and start up from there.

As we were discussing these options, up from the Mirror Lake side came a man carrying -- not skis, not a snowboard, but golf clubs. Surely, a mirage. The "mirage," named Ed Woods, travels a huge Rocky Mountain territory for Caterpillar. If you're on Facbook, you might be able to see Ed's golf images by clicking here.

Of course, we started chatting. And after we exchanged the usual pleasantries and questions of fellow hikers, Ed told us about what Caterpillar has been doing. As card-carrying, environ-conscious Boulderites, we were gratified to hear the company's heavy equipment is burning cleaner and more efficiently. While this doesn't make the enormous open-pit mines in Wyoming and elsewhere any easier on the eyes, at least the equipment is less polluting and using less fuel than in the past. Ed, his golf clubs and his companion headed up to the summit, while we turned back and drove around to the Mirror Lake Trailhead to check out the Lakes Trail.

Lakes Trail from Mirror Lake

The trail begins through the trees but soon Lookout Lake comes into view. Set against Medicine Bow Peak's steep eastern and rocky face where snow packed onto gullies even on the first day of August, it is a immensely scenic route.

The flowers were, if anything more abundant than on the first trail, but again, my modest camera in no way captures it. Below, avalanche lilies (aka, glacier lilies). This is a small cluster. We also saw large expanses carpeted in these lovely yellow blooms that come up in the wake of melting snow.

We saw very few blue columbines but many white ones, some with a yellowish cast, others a tad pink.

Parry's primrose, a gorgeous wildflower that loves moist areas, appeared in rivulets from recently melted snow and on moist slopes above the lake.

Across the valley, we saw a single snowboard track down the center of this lingering snowpatch. It's not clear on the image below, but it was visible to the naked eye.

A jumble of enormous quartzite boulders are landmarks along the most dramatic section of the 2.7-mile-long Lakes Trail.

The rugged scenery and the fabulous flowers chased away our initial disappointment. As my husband commented, if we had succeeded in climbing Medicine Bow Peak, we probably would never return and do these lake hikes. Now, maybe, just maybe, we will come back one more time. 

Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest, 2468 Jackson Street, Laramie, WY 82070; 307-745-2300.

Travel Thumbnail: Terry Bison Ranch

Tourist attraction attached to serious working ranch

This is the ninth of a series of periodic reports on specific places I've visited -- and which you might want see to as well.

The Place: Terry Bison Ranch, south of Cheyenne, Wyoming
 

The Backstory: Often when we have visitors from overseas or the East Coast, I or we take them to Cheyenne for a better glimpse of a real Western town to show how it resembles and how it differs from the Wild West they've read about and seen on large and small screens. Just after crossing the Colorado-Wyoming border, I generally pull off the Interstate at the Terry Bison Ranch exit. We drive into the visitor part of the ranch and almost always spot some bison, This is actually pretty easy to do, since the "tickler herd" is kept nearby for visitors to look at and photograph. Still, it is always a thrill to see the shaggy beasts, and then we move on. A few days ago, during a Frontier Days visit to Cheyenne, I  did some of the touristy things the Terry Bison Ranch offers and learned more about this impressive operation. Sure, the ranch is touristy, but it does provide a predictable bison-viewing opportunity that doesn't exist in too many places -- and considering how many accents I heard and T-shirts from other parts of the country I spotted on the train, predictability is a good thing. A squadron of pink T-shirted day campers was also on the train, and although are little locals, they were excited to be on the train and thrilled to be able to toss food to the bison.
 
The Story: Chris Terry established the ranch 1881 and built the original ranch house was built four years later. Eventually, Terry sold it to Senator F.E. Morgan, whose elegant city home in the heart of Cheyenne is now a bed-and-breakfast called the Nagle Warren Mansion, where I stayed. Click here for the report on my stay. This huge ranch rambles across the high plains under the big blue dome. 
 

 
The Place: The tourist part (properly called Terry Bison Ranch Resort) is an adjunct to the enormous 27,000-acre Iron Mountain Bison Ranch where thousands of bison graze to become such meat products as ribs, chuck roast, steaks, brats, buffalo chili and nuggets marketed under the Great Range Bison label. I think of this set-up like the front and back of the house in a restaurant or theater -- the resort is the front of the house that the public sees and the back is the working part. Two brothers, Ron and Dan Thiel, respectively own the public and working-ranch operations. Taken as a whole, the ranch is so intertwined with the history and important people of southern Wyoming that its sign (above left) bears more than passing resemblance to the Wyoming state flag.
 
The Experience: Summer is high season at the Terry Bison Ranch Resort, which is family-friendly and also accommodates groups. You'll find a general store stocked with souvenirs and basic groceries, trail rides, a small rodeo arena, a tiny fishing pond, old-time photo studio and assorted accommodations for people (cabins, 13-room bunkhouse, RV sites, tent camping sites) and horses (boarding stalls indoor and outdoor stalls, with or without hay). You'll also find Kid Corral, a rustic children's playground with old-style, non-plastic apparatus, pony rides, small Ferris wheel and a little barrel train (tickets required).
 
The main attraction for casual visitors is the Terry Town Rail Express (adults $12, children , which rambles along a two-mile loop track to the small show herd, passing corrals housing such exotic animals as ostriches, llamas and camels. Guests ride in open cars in summer and in a smaller, heated enclosed one in winter. Bags of feed pellets cost $1, and children of all ages from tots to grannies enjoy tossing them out to the animals in the bison pasture. The herd lumbers over during the lengthy stop, because they like the pellets. Even in this controlled situation, you can see alpha bulls chasing others away from a good pellet drop zone.
 

 
Most people like to look at the animals, and others like to shoot them. Looking at this tender Terry Mountain Ranch scene of a mother bison and her calf, it is hard for those of us who don't hunt to envision raising a rifle and shooting one like here at the neighboring Iron Mountain Ranch. But for those who thrill at going for big game, Iron Mountain offers guided hunts for $500-$5,000.
 
The train respectfully passes the grave of Tinker the Bull, the ranch's majestic stud bison who died earlier this year of old age at 35. In 1986, Ron Thin bought Tinker, a champion bull of the North Dakota Bison Association, to be the breeding bull for Terry Bison Ranch. Visitors marveled at this 2,300-pound bison bull who, in his 31 years of breeding, is estimated to have sired about 1,200 calves.
 

 
Dining: The Senator's Steakhouse and Wild Buffalo Saloon near the Terry Bison Ranch entrance has a barn-like atmosphere, with high ceilings, lots of wood, red-checked tablecloths and lots of Western antiques and artifacts. "Taste Ticklers" and lunch items are served from 11:00 a.m. to closing, and dinner items are also available beginning at 5:00 p.m. Bison is available in numerous forms, and even people who could never shoot one enjoy eating the meat. Bison burgers, bison bratwurst, bison rib eye, bison short ribs and buffalo meatloaf. The restaurant also offers beef, chicken (called "Yardbird"), seafood and even vegetarian options. Appetizers and side dishes are heavy on fried items. Also available are a soup and salad bar, good TBR beans, a kids' menu, desserts and a full bar. 
 

 
Location and contact information: 51 I-25 Service Rd East (Wyoming Exit 2), Cheyenne, Wyoming 82007; 307- 634-4171

Cheyenne Frontier Days Evokes the Old West

"The Daddy of 'Em All" provides a lot of rodeo action and bang for the buck

I've been to the National Western Stock Show any number of times. I've also seen rodeo action at the Greeley Stampede, in Steamboat Springs, Snowmass and elsewhere in Colorado and Wyoming. And in late in winter, I've visited the Old West Museum in Cheyenne's Frontier Park with its wonderful carriage collection and celebration of the rodeo lifestyle. But until yesterday, I'd never been in Cheyenne for Frontier Days, the world's largest outdoor rodeo -- which is kind of embarrassing to myself since I live just 90 miles away and have intended to go for years.

Finally, that situation was rectified at yesterday's opening of the 114th Cheyenne Frontier Days, whose slogan is "The Daddy of 'Em All." The day began with a terrific parade highlighted by horses, carriages, wagons, vintage autos, marching bands and more. Elected and appoint officials, as well as the Frontier Days committee chairs, paraded on horseback or in antique carriages to validate Wyoming's nickname, "the Cowboy State."

Then off to Frontier Park for a behind-the-chutes tour and a chance to walk on the soft earth of the rodeo grounds, see the chutes up close and hear a good explanation of rodeo events. Yesterday's rodeo, played before an audience that nearly filled the 17,000-seat stadium featured three rounds each of steer wrestling, team roping and bareback bronc riding. Last night, Brooks and Dunn played during their final tour, and later in the week, the bull riders (below) take over for two nights of adrenalin action.

I was impressed with the Indian Village. The dancers were wonderful, and the emcee, Sandy Ironcloud, a Northern Arapaho who teaches at the Wind River Indian College, not only introduced the Little Sun Drum and Dance Group (many of whom are her relatives), but also explained the dances, the symbolism and the costumes. The Indians (and they don't appear to want to be called Native Americans) bring what Sandy Ironcloud calls "our babies" to dance and carry on the traditions and share them with us too. Her words were very inclusive, embracing and inviting. Click on the arrow below to see a short video, one of a series of eight that I found on YouTube.



From a consumerist viewpoint, I was also so taken with how much at Frontier Days is free or inexpensive that, when I came home yesterday evening, I wrote a post for MileHighOnTheCheap.com, a site in partner, citing all the free and bargain activities and attractions. Click here for that post.
Cheyenne Frontier Days continues through Sunday, August 1 this year. I will have lived in Colorado for 22 years on August 15, and you can bet that it won't be another 22 years before I return to Frontier Days.

At Home in the Nagle Warren Mansion

Wyoming's best B and B combines hospitality, grandeur, comfort, history  and location

I've toured the public rooms of the Nagle Warren Mansion on previous visits to Cheyenne, and have made a point of driving by every time I've been in town, just like the Trolley Tours and the horse-drawn carriage tours do, just to gaze at this magnificent mansion set in a lovely garden. There was no one named Nagle Warren or Warren Nagle. The turreted mansion was built in 1888 Erasmus Nagle, a super-rich merchant in 1888 and bought in 1910 by Francis E. Warren, an even richer businessman, governor and US Senator. Now, it enables guests to feel like aristocrats on the Western frontier during the Gilded Age. I'm enjoying every minute.

The mansion, one of the few such palatial homes remaining in Cheyenne, occupies a prominent corner at 17th and House on the fringes of Cheyenne's historic core. The mansion is listed on National Register of Historic Places and belongs to Historic Hotels of the Rockies and probably other affiliations I don't know about.

Jim Osterfoss is the genial host. I'm sure that our paths have crossed sometime in the past. He used to own the Roost Lodge, one of the most affordable accommodations in pricey Vail. Now he owns the very best lodging in Cheyenne, a city where hotel and motel rooms are bargains compared with other state capitals.

I'm sitting in the home's tower right now, my little netbook placed on the wicker table in the image below. Whenever whenever I'm fishing for a word, I gaze out the window past the parking lots that I wish weren't here to the tower of the magnificently restored Union-Pacific Depot that I'm glad is here. .

Open the heavy oak doors and pass into a grand hallway with parlors on each side. Wonderful details and interesting antique furnishings (and a few faithful reproductions of old lighting fixtures) load the in with atmosphere and interesting things to look at: a couple of rare nickel-plated bronze mantelpieces, a transition chandelier designed both for gaslights and electric bulbs, a face on a newel post, an elaborate lav off the library that worth going to see even if you don't need to go. The Nagle Warren Mansion hosts special events too -- private receptions with gentle entertainment (top image, below), afternoon teas, murder mystery dinners and the like.

I can't believe my good fortune is getting a room here on the threshold of Cheyenne Frontier Days, one of the biggest rodeos around. My room is an east-facing charmer under the eaves with a an equally charming bathroom and a lucky view of one of Cheyenne's other remaining mansions -- one that happens to be for sale for anyone who wants to be a neighbor of the Nagle Warren Mansion.

Nagle Warren Mansion, 222 East 17th Street, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001; 800-811=2610 or 307-637-3333.