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Cody, Wyoming: Big Horn Mountain, Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Buffalo Bill Dam, Cody Rodeo, Old Trail Town and Yellowstone /30 – 07/05/2019

We left South Dakota after 2 weeks for our next-to-last stop at Cody, Wyoming, before we meet up with our Canada/Alaska Caravan. I knew we would have to cross the Big Horn Mountain but I did not know how much I would regret the route we took.  Both 14A and Route 16 are marked as scenic routes, so I assumed they would be the hardest to cross.  I did see a sign that Route 16 was the lowest elevation crossing, but because it was called a scenic drive, I think Randy and I both assumed it would be the more difficult route.  I should have researched the route a little more before we left.  US Highway 16 is called the “Sweet 16” and is considered the best and easiest route to Yellowstone Park because of its low grade and gentle curves.  It still probably has some steep drop offs, but I do not think it would have been as steep as Route US 14 that we took.  We did get to see some amazing rock formations and wildlife (we even got to see our first moose—mother and baby) but I did not like the steep grade and vertical drop offs with nothing on the other side of the low guardrails. It was bad enough for me going up the incline, but going down was way worse.  Once we got over 8,000’ elevation my ears were popping like crazy.   The summit was gorgeous with beautiful meadows and there was even some snow on the higher elevations.  We stopped for a short time in a nice pull-off area to grab some lunch, but I forgot to latch the freezer so once we started going down on the sharp switch-backs the freezer kept sliding open.  Randy did his jerk the wheel/RV so the door would slam shut, but it kept opening around every curve.  I decided I didn’t really need to see where we were going, so I sat on the floor to hold the freezer door in until we could get to a level spot where I could find the fridge finder to lock the refrigerator.  Some sections were so steep I could not stand up to find it. 

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