1993/07 Rockies trip - Bighorns and Cody |
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Eventually we were on our way west towards the Big Horn mountains and Cody. On the way, we saw a badger stroll out into the middle of the road, realize that it was jaywalking, and then head for cover. Very unusual to see one in daylight. No pictures I'm 
afraid so I've included this one taken at a zoo. They are smaller than British badgers but they are more ferocious, exclusively carnivores.
The Big Horns run north-south through Wyoming, and although you don't hear much about them, they're very substantial mountains and tough to cross. There're three routes, all of which are steep and twisty, so I chose the Shell Canyon route which has some spectacular geology, rapids, and a waterfall. .
On the way up to the pass, grinding up at 25 in bottom gear, there was a white flash, a loud bang, and a cloud of smoke from the truck. 
After all this, I was quite surprised that we were still moving. We couldn't find anything wrong, so we continued cautiously, expecting to flake out at any moment. Later, we realized that an air-conditioning hose had exploded. The white flash was $50 of Freon on its way to the ozone layer, and the smoke was the oil in the Freon burning on the exhaust. It was a Saturday, so nothing could be done about the a/c, and we continued without it.
After all that, we enjoyed Shell Canyon, and the drive across the plains to Cody. Lots of pronghorn and deer, far more than I remember on previous trips.
We squeezed into the last spot in the KOA campground in Cody, and then set off for the Buffalo Bill museum. This has stuff from his Wild West show, Indian relics, guns galore, Russell and Remington paintings and sculptures, enough for two days of looking. So, we stayed until it closed, went to eat at Grandma's in town, and then were back next morning when the museum opened for a few more hours.