Wyoming: A path less chosen

Just because I went to bed early last night doesn't mean I got more sleep. I ended up waking up earlier than I have so far since starting my road trip. But, I had something important to do before leaving Cody. When I visit certain states, there is always the quest for Diet Code Red Mountain Dew. You can find the regular soda everywhere, but the diet version is more elusive...and I can't get it at home. Not only did I find it at the Albertsons grocery store in Cody, it was ON SALE! I ended up buying three half cases, plus some deli salad for lunch. Mission accomplished!

My first sightseeing destination of the day was only about an hour east of town... Red Gulch Dinosaur Tracksite. From the highway, I had to negotiate a hard packed dirt road for about five miles to the site. The geological topography in the area reminded me of what I've seen in South Dakota and Oregon.

When I arrived at the tracksite, there was no one around, which is just the way I like it! The tracks were not super duper obvious, so it was a matter of scanning the rock very carefully. This site has the best dinosaur tracks in the state of Wyoming.

At the lower end of the tracksite was a gully, and I noticed some other sort of tracks in the mud. Coyote? As I was walking on the boardwalk back to the parking lot, I suddenly saw three huge bunnies...okay, desert cottontails...bounding away. I managed to snap a pic of one before it, too, ran off. Look at that cottony tail!

Continuing down the highway, I stopped to check out Shell Falls. The interpretive center was closed, but the viewpoints were still accessible.

In the afternoon, I briefly encountered a cloudburst, then sunshine again. I was a bit disappointed I wasn't seeing many pronghorn antelope as I drove along. My afternoon sightseeing destination was a small museum in Gillette. The Rockpile Museum is named after the big rockpile adjacent to the building. The Rockpile has been a local landmark since the first settlers arrived in the region in the 1800s. Sitting near the entrance to the parking lot was a large, donut-shaped rock. Somehow, rock formed around a tree and retained its shape when there was no more tree.

As for the museum, its exhibits depict the history and people of Campbell County. I had never heard of a four track cassette player. And, why don't people make things out of their hair anymore?

Tomorrow, the weather forecast says cloudy and windy. As long as the rain holds off, I can do my hike in the morning. If it rains in the afternoon, that's okay...I just have another museum on the agenda.