Away For A Day

 Yesterday was the first cloudy day that we have experienced since arriving in Cody.

It was not only cloudy - it was also colder and during the day there were periods of snow showers.  

The weather has been warm enough though that the snow did not stick to the ground in town, and by late afternoon the clouds were hanging low in the sky.

This place looks very different right now than it did just a few days ago.

There is a lot of new snow in the mountains surrounding Cody.

Nights here are in the upper twenties and low thirties, but in Yellowstone temperatures are still in the low teens.

We were told the other day that Yellowstone will not open until early May.

As with Juneau, I was stunned to see how much bigger the mountains look when there is snow on them.

I forget sometimes that some of these mountains are 8,000 feet and more high, because Cody sits at just over 5000 feet.

These pictures were taken around town on a day when LC and I decided to not drive to points all over the countryside (as we have been compelled to do so much since we arrived).

Cody sits in a bowl surrounded by mountains, but in town there are many places that overlook and provide great views of the area.

These are some pictures from some of those viewing areas..........

Up near Cody's recreation complex.

The views are lovely, but I am still not used to everything looking so......brown.

Everything in rain forest Juneau is green and that is what I am still used to.
('Course in Juneau on a very cloudy day all of my pictures looked like they were taken in black and white).....  
 

I know that Tennessee is brown this time of year as well and that spring is just around the corner.

I like it but am still trying to become accustomed to it...........

This is a very very nice town.

Very clean, very wide open, very small, with neat and sweet and well-kept homes, very nice people............

 

 There is a small dog park close to the recreation complex and at this place is a long and very interesting set of signs depicting the topography of the area.

I took a series of pictures to capture the entire length of the sign............

 

 

 

 View of the long gravel walkway leading from the dog park and rec center parking lot down to residential areas in town...........

 

 From the rec center we drove through town and stopped for a few minutes at another elevated point that begins with residential homes and then quickly leads to the sand dunes we visited the other day where we enjoyed walking and watching dirt bikes and four wheelers.

These pictures look down over the outskirts of town to the west.

This highway eventually leads to Yellowstone 50 miles away...........

 

 

 

 

 

 After stopping for a few moments in a parking area overlooking the outskirts of town we took an up-til-now unexplored road and came across this very large and very beautiful cattle farm.

LC smiles every time I say it, but there are "lots of babies"

Yes yes I know they are calves.  

Just like I know that "Christmas trees" are pine trees.

Karinisms I guess.............

Views of this very lovely cattle ranch near the end of the day with so much new snow in the mountains and with the clouds low in the sky..........

 

 

 By this time the herd was visually following someone in the field who was driving a four wheeler.

They all turned en mass and headed for the barn as the four wheeler passed them by.............

 

Although I enjoyed taking pictures of many different things when I lived in Juneau there were always certain things that I inevitably and frequently seemed to gravitate towards.

Water and boats, mountains, pine trees, trails.

I don't think that I will run into many boats here - at least not the type that I ran into in water abundant Juneau.

But the rest I can find with just a little driving.

And often no driving at all.

But already I am realizing that there are new things in Cody that I also seemingly gravitate towards.

Farm animals, fences, animals and trees and farmhouses against mountain backdrops.............

 

 Everyone noisily heading for the barn.........

 

 

 Everyone heading for the barn, except for one mother standing alone in the field with a newborn still too new to walk.......

 This deer was happily grazing alone on the grass in someones yard.

It was only after he took a few steps in alarm at seeing me standing at the end of the driveway that I realized he had an injured back leg.

He limped a few steps, stopped to turn back and look at me, limped a few more steps and stopped again to check on me.

I see deer everywhere in town and I really like them.

I really do like them, and greatly enjoy having them so close, so accessible.........

 

 After spending a few minutes watching, enjoying and picturing this sweet but injured deer I climbed back into the truck, we turned down one more street still exploring this new-to-us neighborhood and came across a small herd of deer grazing in yet another residential yard...........

 Downtown Cody with low lying clouds, completely changing the appearance of this small western city.
The clouds only lasted for one day.  By this morning it was cold but very sunny again........

 

 After cruising around town, finding places to stop that overlooked the area, and taking a bunch of pictures we made one last stop at the Buffalo Bill statue (that is sandwiched by the Cody Heritage Museum on one side of the street and the county hospital on the other).

The statue is at the end of a dead-end street that overlooks the mountains.

It is quiet, lovely, and contains a series of sandy trails..........

 

 

 

 As much as I am greatly enjoying exploring this new town, this new state, this new area, this new life, I find myself needing to walk..........somewhere.

For a while.  Away from town.  Away from manicured lawns and thoughts of homes and taxes and phone calls to make and utilities to start.

I think about walking, just briefly with my dog and my guy in the mountains in the snow close to Yellowstone Park some time last week.

That is something that sounds really good to do again soon.

Maybe snowshoe.

Maybe dig out cross country skis and try them out again.

Away from nice people in a small western town.

Nice people - but away from them anyway for a day...........