9-13-19 (Day 51 - Bighorn Mountain Snow)

We had 3 Bighorn Sheep in the parking lot when we got up this morning.  When Lauren went out to take their pictures, they walked toward him.  They are very photogenic!

Our plans to ride Amber changed when the wind was blowing this morning.  We took off in the truck to check out the snow on the Bighorn Mountains.  We saw bunches and bunches of Bighorn Sheep before we got out of the park.  We also saw Deer, Wild Horses, and Sandhill Cranes along the way.

The mountain snow had begun to melt on this 48 degree, sunny day.  A section of the road to the Medicine Wheel Trailhead was impassable due to 2 foot of snow across it.  We could have walked up to the deeper snow, but decided it was too far to walk in the cold wind.

We made a picnic stop at Horseshoe Bend Lake and then hiked Sullivan’s Knob Trail.  We were told by the ranger that this is a very beautiful hike and it is.  A big herd of Bighorn Sheep were headed up the hill when we were coming off the trail.

We walked the Two Eagles Interpretive Trail then headed back to camp, seeing more Bighorn Sheep along the way.  We just haven’t found Daddy Bighorn yet.

The 3 Bighorn Sheep that were at camp this morning came back by for a visit this afternoon. 

Our nice, quiet campground ended this afternoon when the last campsite was taken.  We heard their music before they drove up the hill.  They played their music loud until bedtime.  Good thing, we have the same taste in music.  They have a remote airplane that was fun to watch.  Even Ferny Kat enjoyed watching it fly.

We built our campfire, ate leftovers, and called it a night.


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9-12-19 -(Day 50 - Barry's Island Hike)

We woke up to clearing skies this morning.  The river and the mountains are much prettier when it’s not raining.

Ferny Kat came out and gave her approval of the campsite while Lauren cooked breakfast on the Coleman stove.  After breakfast, we headed to Barry’s Island Trail here at the campground.  We found Bighorn Sheep tracks in the red mud after the rain last night.  We followed the tracks to the water looking for the sheep but didn’t find any.  

The trail was on a red dirt road then became a narrow path around the island.  It was a beautiful hike, looking at the water, canyons, birds, butterflies, plants, etc.  It was a quiet, peaceful walk with no one else around. 

When we got back to the trail head we continued on to the boat ramp to wash the mud off our hiking boots.  We hiked 5.85 miles with 39 flights.

We took a ride on Amber to Devil Canyon Overlook.  We found 2 different herds of Bighorn Sheep below the hill from the campground and then saw another herd on the main road.  On our way back from the overlook, Lauren spotted a coyote hunting in the grass.

The Bighorn Mountains had pretty snow on top of them that wasn’t there yesterday. We will check that out tomorrow.

When we returned, we had 2 camping neighbors.  We really enjoyed being the only ones camping here, but there is plenty of space between the sites, so it’s not a big deal.  There is only one more camping spot left in the campground.

We watched a herd of Wild Horses across the canyon, built a campfire, and cooked steaks over the campfire.  It was a beautiful full moon glowing above the canyon tonight. 

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9-11-19 - (Day 49 - Barry's Landing Campground)

We left civilization this morning.  We traveled 28 miles and are at Barry’s Landing Campground in Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.  There are 4 campsites on the top of this hill and the only one occupied is ours.  We are pretty much off the grid.  We have no cell phone service, no internet, nobody, and beautiful views.  This is our kind of place.

It is a cold, rainy, windy, day with the temperature 48 degrees.  We cranked the generator and drank hot chocolate as we were standing by the electric heater.

After a couple of hours, we took a ride in the truck to look for critters.  We saw Bighorn Sheep and a few Wild Horses. 

We got back to camp, locked the door, and heated up leftovers.

Ferny Kat was ready to go outside when we got back.  She was totally out of luck.  She nestled up to the propane heater then cuddled up under a blanket.

This is the dreariest day we have had since we left Crossroads 7 weeks ago.  We have no complaints.   It was time to slow down and relax for a day.

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9-10-19 - (Day 48 - Another Day Hanging around Lovell)

It's hard to believe that Ferny Kat allowed Lauren to sleep until 8 am, 2 days in a row.  She must be enjoying camping under these cottonwood trees.

We had our nice hot showers after the other campers cleared from the campground this morning.  Then we loaded up and went to check out Deaver Reservoir.  Deaver Reservoir is nice, but not what we are looking for.  Especially, the long ride on a dirt road to the lake.

We stopped at the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area Visitor's Center and got some really great info about the area.  We thought before we stopped there, that we may go in and camp at Barry's Landing tomorrow.  We were more inclined to do so, after talking with the very informative staff.

They told us about the ranches, overlooks, etc.  When Lauren heard there was a black bear sighting at the Caroline Lockhart Ranch that has been climbing over the fence to eat apples, he was ready to check it out.  I insisted that we take a detour to the camper for my bear spray,  just in case. 

We went to Barry's Landing to check out where we may want to move tomorrow.  We saw a herd of Big Horn Sheep on the way to the top of the hill.

We were followed to Barry's Landing by a group of motorcyclist that stopped and chatted.  Turns out they are going to camp at Lovell City Campground tonight.

It was an easy 1 mile round trip hike to the Caroline Lockhart's Ranch and a very impressive ranch.

As we were looking at all the buildings, Lauren went one way and I went another, until I heard a grunt.  I looked around and all I saw was thick brush.  I started hollering to Lauren that I think I just heard a bear grunt and pulled my bear spray out of my back pack.  After I ran back to Lauren, I read the instructions of how to use the bear spray.  Needless to say, I am glad a bear wasn't after me  We saw no bear, but my bear spray stayed in my hand until we got back to Amber.

There were very few apples left in the orchid and lots of evidence of bear presence by the bent wire fencing and the broken tree limbs.  We tasted a small apple that was quite bitter and found a larger apple that we will let ripen.

As we were enjoying the ride back, listening to music, we made a curve, and 6 Wild Horses were walking down the middle of the road.  We pulled over and stopped to let them pass by.  The Stallion came by us without a care.  His harem and 2 colts were a little hesitant.  Finally all the horses except one walked by us.  Pretty amazing.

We made it back to camp, waved at the bikers we met at Barry's Landing earlier today that are camped here, then went to town to stock up on milk, gas for the generator, and propane.  We plan to move to Barry's Landing tomorrow.  We will be off the grid for about 4 days with no cell phone or internet service.

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9-9-19 - (Day 47 - Medicine Wheel Hike)

We slept really well last night. We all must have been tired, because we didn't get up until 8 am.  We are amazed Ferny Kat let Lauren sleep that late.

As soon as Lauren gets up, Ferny Kat is waiting, (impatiently),  for him to turn on the water pump so she can drink from the bathroom sink faucet.  She is one spoiled cat that has trained Lauren really well.

We ran the generator this morning to charge the camper batteries.  The down side to camping under these beautiful cottonwood trees is the solar does not get much sun.

We lounged around all morning.  We took a late morning hot shower at the bath house.   It is so hard to believe this is free, (we will leave a donation).

We ate breakfast at noon today.  We waited for the clouds to clear and took off on Amber under sunny skies and temperatures in the 70's, headed to the Bighorn Mountains.

It was another beautiful ride.  We got off the paved road and traveled a mile and a half to the Medicine Wheel Trailhead.  When we got off the paved road, the wind was blowing and the temperature was 56 degrees. By the time we arrived at the Trailhead, it was 45 degrees.  I thought my ears had frost bite they were so cold.

We hiked a mile and a half on a dirt road, looking at the beautiful scenery, with our hands in our pockets, and our neck warmers on.  Thank goodness we had sunshine.

The Trailhead is 9623 feet in elevation and the Medicine Wheel is 9643 feet in elevation.  Only a 20 foot elevation gain, Not!  The trail has uphills and downhills.  Overall elevation gain is 275 feet.

It was very touching walking around this Native American spiritual site, looking at the display of animal bones and symbolic items.

We continued our travels across the Bighorn Mountains through the town of Greybull then back to Lovell.  It was in the 70's by the time we made it to Greybull.  We got back to camp and heated up leftovers and stayed inside for the night.  We are tired of being cold.

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