Fort Collins CO to Evansville WY 23 June

Blue Sky 222 miles to Drive. Joined by John and Gail Maloney

A choice today of driving via Cheyenne or Laramie both of which bring back childhood memories of black and white cowboy programs on the “telly”, The Man from Laramie etc. We were advised that Cheyenne could be missed because it is now a big industrial city and not much fun to drive through.

Laramie lacks that image of the old west, but does have an old prison that is worth a visit. The prisons claim to immortality is that it once entertained as an inmate by the name of Butch Cassidy – he of the famous film. Lots of black and white photos of infamous inmates all of whom suffered, by today’s standards, a harsh regime and it was bitterly cold in the winter.

Heading north we stopped for lunch at the town of Medicine Bow famous for being the home of Owen Wister the author of “The Virginian” later turned into a long running TV show. We paid a visit to the towns’ museum by the railway track full of memorabilia and items from the 1930’s run by two eccentric ladies. Outside the museum was a board showing all the local cattle brands – quite a few! Across the road from the museum is the Virginian Hotel built in about 1910 to cash in on the fame of Owen Wister all red plush and chandeliers. A self guided tour of the hotel left and impression of creaking floorboards, damp, lethal electrics and third world plumbing. The lunch we were served in The Virginian was the worst we have ever been offered in America.

We travelled on to Casper/Evansville through a hot arid landscape to The C’mon Inn a spa hotel half the rooms look inward onto a courtyard liberally scattered with hot-tubs. The other half of the rooms were facing the outside world and railway tracks.

We celebrated Pauls birthday at the Silver Fox Restaurant in Casper, which was very enjoyable and great fun and sent us all to bed in a happy frame of mind.