Cody, Wyoming

Waking up in our cozy cabin and realizing we had a 7 hour drive ahead of us was a bit daunting so we opted for a hearty breakfast at the lodge to prolong the inevitable. We hit the road and settled in for our long ride. Having zero clue what scenery was ahead of us, we were pleasantly surprised and the intimidating drive soon became an enjoyable adventure. From forest to farm country and back again through the Big Horn National Forest, the every changing scenery was incredible. Our 7 hour drive soon become 8 as we stopped at every scenic overlook and then some.

Realizing we still needed a place to stay, Erica got on airbnb as soon as we have service and came across Rod’s listings just outside of Cody. From tee pees to a sheep wagon, we had a hard time choosing what we wanted to sleep in. We opted for the sheep wagon and headed meet Rod, a certified organic beef farmer. We pulled up to his farm and were greeted by pigs, 3 border collies and a field of sleeping dreams. We drove to the field below his house and set up our wagon which conveniently came with a mattress and sleeping bags. We stayed just long enough say hello to a few fellow campers and catch the awesome sunset.

Tim’s dad had suggested we see a rodeo while in town since Cody is the rodeo capital of the world, so we headed out for the Stampede Park. Erica had never seen a rodeo before and was in for a treat. There was cattle roping, barrel racing, bull riding and a sprinkling of rodeo clown acts that bordered on hilarious and crass. The rodeo started with roping, which is a whole art form of it’s own. Two people, on horses of course, head out chasing a cow and the goal is for one to rope the front hooves and the other to rope the back….all before the cow gets to the end of the ring…..and these guys made it look easy! Things got even more wild as we watched females of all ages (starting at 12) race horses in a dead sprint around a maze of barrels without falling off in under 14 seconds. And for the finale, of course there was bull riding. While we were watching we came to the full realization that these guys are nuts, they tie a bull by the balls and hop on their backs with the full knowledge that the only way off is being bucked from a pissed off animal with giant horns that you’ve got by the balls. We’d like to thank our parents for not introducing us to this sport at an early age when it probably would have seemed like fun.

As the rodeo ended, Erica snapped a picture with the clowns and we headed to the historic Irma Hotel for a beer. Full from the nights adventures, we headed back to our wagon to count sheep. We woke up to the smell of pancakes and organic sausage and the sounds of fellow happy campers. 2 helpings of pancakes later, we had all my friends, even Roux. We talked to Sam, who was working on Rod’s farm as a WWOOFer. WWOOFing, as we soon learned, stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. A farmer can sign up for extra help and to teach the ways of organic farming in return for food and lodging...or like Sam you can sign up to WWOOF for a farmer and get free room and food. Sam signed on with Rod for a few months and has no intentions of leaving just yet. He explained that you can WWOOF all over the world and it’s become super important to know how to sustain of your own lands. Maybe next year we’ll try WWOOFing our way back east! We also met a couple from Pittsburg and few girls who worked at Yellowstone that provided some insider tips like DO NOT camp at Yellowstone and spend time at the Grand Tetons. We said goodbye to our new friends, picked up a magnet and tshirt in town and started our trek towards Old Faithful, giddy up Subaru!

Smallest Town: Trent, Population 89
First Pullover: Verbal Warning