Whyoming

We didn't make much progress eastward today, but that's not entirely a bad thing.  At least on paper, anyways.

Two days ago we left Twin Falls and the great Snake River Canyon, making the trip along interstates 84, 86 and 15 while enjoying a little 85 MPH action.  And best of all, it wasn't windy and rainy and OMG lame.  Yes, that is fast, but it felt relative to 80 or 75 back home on I-94.

Spent last night in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  I've always thought that place was a neat little city in the mountains, though its 100% a tourist town and means that everything is expensive.  Yet, someone claims to have found bargains in the place.  I picked up a pair of Snake River Brewing pint glasses for $4 apiece because I tried their tart red ale - it was a little sweet for a red in my opinion, but good enough to try.  I should've had a sample of the lager before I left.  Sadly, the pizza from the brewpub went through me a little too fast for my liking, but overall the place was good.

Today was spent driving through the Tetons and Yellowstone.  Now here's the only part that kinda sucked.  We've been through the parks fairly recently, maybe three years ago.  Yet, we still had to stop at places we've seen.  Add to that the road from the south enterance to Yellowstone to Old Faithful was closed to due to a bridge out (which adds up to a 4-hour detour; needless to say we didn't go to see it this time) and 50 mph speed limits throughout the park makes it hard to just pass through.  

At least one passenger of our trio didn't care for this arraingment.  Needless to say, I feel much better now that we're past the parks.  I saw most everything three years ago, and got a lot of good pictures from the trip last time.  Add to it that our stop in Jackson and ride through Yellowstone was capped by a multitude of clouds - there was only one really good chance to capture the view of the Tetons - and it was just as well that we did pass through.  Thus it might take only an hour and a half to reach Idaho Falls from Twin Falls on the interstates, going 85 MPH, but to reach Cody Wyoming - which is where I'm at tonight - takes that much longer because of the parks.

The other factor is that around Watapi, Wyoming, the road was all torn up and being worked on, and that there was a time when it was one-lane travel.  Naturally, we couldn't stop to take photographs along the way with a caravan of cars behind us.  But we did stop at the Buffalo Bill Museum in Cody before finding a BBQ place - I'll just keep it simple and say it was good but not as good as Famous Dave's  back home - and I got back to the room and took a nap for two hours before having the clarity to write this now.

Even though we only had two meals today - breakfast and dinner - I didn't find myself to be all that hungry at dinner.  Then I ate too much.  Ugh.  I need more willpower.

We're going to try to hit the rest of the museum tomorrow morning before heading over the Horseshoe Mountains and I-90 towards South Dakota.  We might (?) make it past Rapid City if all goes well?  I'd be happy spending an hour at Mt. Rushmore and maybe Crazy Horse, but otherwise am ready to go home.  I miss my cat and my basement.  Plus there's many other things I could be doing.  (And between you and me, I need a vacay from those in the car for a few days.  Drama, drama, drama.  Not just one, either.  I plead the fifth of Jack.)

The hotel I'm staying at tonight has stuffed African animals in the lobby.  An elephant head, an ostrich, a lion and a rhino.  And a pool, but I'm too full to swim tonight.  Maybe we'll put that swimsuit to work tomorrow night.  Or not.  We'll see.

Tired.  Time to call it.