Hello Everyone!
It’s been another hot week out here on the road in central Wyoming. July is historically the hottest month in both Wyoming and Montana, but this summer has brought record temperatures to both. Daytime temperatures are once again nearing 100° out here, but thankfully it’s been cooling off enough in the evenings to sleep in my van. I’ve been up and out early most days to get my driving done before it gets ridiculous out and have definitely been trying to scout out some shade whenever possible. Despite the heat, I’ve had an interesting week out here exploring some of central Wyoming’s small towns and what they have to offer. I also spent some time on the Wind River Reservation this week, home to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapahoe Indians. Wyoming is the least populated state in the country and it’s definitely not hard to imagine that out here. Big lettered towns on the map are relative and mean that these are big towns for Wyoming, but not necessarily big towns. With only around 588,000 people in the entire state, Wyoming’s whole population is slightly more than that of Baltimore, Maryland and slightly less than Memphis, Tennessee. I definitely enjoy the small towns and the wide open spaces of the Cowboy State, and I’ve been happy to see so many new-to-me places this week.
After leaving you last week I headed out into the night there in Jackson. I’ve certainly seen a lot of changes in Jackson over the last 25 years since I first visited, and every year it gets a little more L.A. and a little less Wyoming. The place that continues to roll with all of the changes is the infamous Million Dollar Cowboy Bar right there on the town square. The Cowboy Bar opened its batwing doors back in 1937 and has always been a central gathering place for the town. It’s decorated with burled wood beams, taxidermied animals and cowboy relics and even has saddles in place of barstools. With live music every night, I’ve never been there when it wasn’t busy. On any given night, you’re likely to find locals and tourists, cowboys, rafting guides, drifters and beauty queens shooting pool, shooting whisky and tapping along to the band. This night was no different and I enjoyed a few cold ones and a few tunes while I chatted to some folks from Charlotte, N.C. who were in town for a wedding. Long live the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar – may it continue to evolve with the town and somehow still remain exactly the same as the first time I walked into it.
