Westward 2011, Day 5

So, we finally made it to Wyoming today. Holy cow, it's very different from entering South Dakota. We couldn't really see a difference in South Dakota from other places in the Midwest at first. Once we entered Wyoming, however, the scenery completely changed. We definitely felt like we were in Wyoming when we got here. Low, rocky hills covered in yellow grass and green shrubs, beautiful rock formations off in the distance, and a clear, blue sky above us...it was amazing. I instantly fell in love with Wyoming...and my mom and I both agreed that Glacier National Park might be less of a priority...enough so that we might just skip it entirely. It's sad to say it...but I'm feeling so at home here, and I can't imagine Yellowstone and Grand Teton are going to make me change my mind about it.

Right in the middle of the state, we ran into the Bighorn Mountains. Not the Rockies, but the first snow-capped mountains I've ever seen. While we were driving through them, we found a little rest stop with a couple viewing points over the Shell Falls. We were practically the only people there, and it didn't seem like a huge tourist attraction...but I thought it was cooler than the Tahquamenon Falls. Hilarious. Also saw a yellow-bellied marmot on a cliff on the opposite side of the river, which was pretty cool. We then drove through the Shell Canyon out of the Bighorn Mtns., which was also an amazing experience. The highest edges of the canyon were sheer rock faces, but they turned into grassy, rocky slopes for most of the way down until they came close to the Shell River, where they turned back into small cliffs.

Tonight we're staying in Cody, which is about fifty miles east of Yellowstone National Park. We went to the world famous Cody Rodeo when we got here, which was pretty cool. After all day of being in a car, though, I was pretty sick of sitting and looking at stuff, so we left after it was about halfway over. Tomorrow, we're just going to check out the town and chill. Should be a good time.

Here's a picture of part of the Shell Canyon:

Peace.