Old Cheyenne

Union Pacific Statement

Cheyenne, Wyoming. 7/24/2015:  Cheyenne is a railroad town, most definitely not a cow town.  It was created and settled by Union Pacific in the 1800s to be its operations hub on the high plains. Later, it also became the maintenance center for the giant steam locomotives UP drove over the Rockies.  When you drive into town down the Lincolnway, you get an idea of just how large the yards must have been.  They still are impressive..so is that building you see up there.  It's a terminal that makes a statement.  Construction started in 1886 and finished in 1888.  It is positioned smack-dab at the end of the boulevard that leads to the state capitol.  Union Pacific officials wanted legislators to look out the window and see just how important the UP was/is to Cheyenne and the state.  It does a good job.

   Don't confuse "railroad town" with something it isn't.  Before Cheyenne had a thousand citizens it had 26 saloons.  Famous gunfighters like Wild Bill Hickok  hung out here; so did Tom Horn, the last man hung legally in Wyoming.  There were gunfights, brawls and bordellos..and the Doctors sold coffins.

   Things really got interesting when they started the rodeo, but that's another story.

   Needless to say, it's one of my favorite spots, so I brought my new bride, Jane, for her first visit..and we went shopping.  

   We went to the Wrangler.  Throughout most of the year, the Wrangler serves ranchers and their families.  During rodeo..or Frontier Days..it's full of us out of towners looking for something snazzy to wear. 

  The hat market is up in some quarters..

   But good straw is still a popular buy.

  They're not selling that sign..or the horns..but if they do, I want both.

  We saw shirts, boots, jeans, jewelry and gimcracks by the gross.  The store is an experience in itself.  I wouldn't miss it.

   Jane has a sore ankle, so she didn't buy boots this time..couldn't try them on.  So she found something bigger.

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   This scrap-metal horse (look closely) stands in the plaza outside the railroad station:

   That picture is for my friend, Larry Guss, who also does art work with a welding torch.  That's a lot of spare parts, Larry.

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   Cheyenne sprawls.  Nice neighborhoods with everything from small Victorians to elegant mansions..old buildings like the one above that speak of a certain time. Moreover, it's an important moment in American history, helping to glue together the transnational rail system that tied us together.  Crossing the country in a wagon train took an average of 166 days.  When the railroads came, it took 10 days.  Cheyenne helped to make that work..it still does.

  It ain't all rodeo, Pard, but right now rodeo's the thing.  They've been doing the big show here for almost 120 years.  Tomorrow, we're going out and help them notch up another one.  

  Seeya when we get back.

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JS.  7/24/2015

First Glimpse of the Rockies

Ft. Collins, CO.  7/23/2015:  We came over a slight rise and there they were--the Rocky Mountains, right where I left them.  I admit they were as hazy as you see there, but there was no mistake--it was the mighty Front Range of the Rockies, rising full force and splendid out of the prairie.  The sky was bright and wonderfully blue in contrast to the murk and rain we've been having in the east. 

   We were elated.

   We had arrived. 

   And it takes no imagination at all to see that cloud giving us the big "Number One."

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  That was a long ride from Delaware, Ohio.  We started Tuesday morning, drove to St. Louis.  Went on to Salina, KS the next day.  Left there and arrived here in Ft. Collins, CO this afternoon.  We'll be ready for a day of shopping in Cheyenne tomorrow.  We go to the great Cheyenne Rodeo on Saturday.  

   Stand by for pictures.

   But for now--time for a nap.

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JS. 7/23/2015

Bits and Pieces

Corn Marches On

Salina, KS, July 22, 2015:  There is Zen in long-distance driving.  I love to do it.  I can ride for hours through open countryside and lose myself in its grandeur, its dignity. its beauty and its grace.  The picture above is a place along Interstate 70 in eastern Kansas.  The sky is big, the land goes on forever.  

   You see these things and wonder:  Who lives there?  What is their life like?   How big is that farm?  Where does it end and the next one begin?  How do these folks see their lives and would they like to be somewhere else..or not?
Where do they go for a gallon of milk?   

   Things like that.

   Meanwhile, you keep your eyes open for the little things, too.  For instance:

   Three brand new trucks pulled by one brand new truck.  Where are they going?  All to the same owner?  Will he get a discount on the first truck because it will be more used than the others by the time it gets there?  Or will he just suck it up?

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    Sometimes it pays to keep your head down.

   This guy was dusting crops in a field to the right, just out of camera view. I don't know what the fellow in the white van thought about it.  But he got more than one good look:

     Jane got those shots with my cell phone.  Good eye, fast trigger.

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   And then there's this:

   I have passed this place near Topeka many times and have always wondered how the jet got there.  It's in a front yard near a tree.  What does it mean?  Was it the owner's pet airplane?  Who retired first..the plane or the owner?  Is there an airport back there I can't see?  Will it ever leave?

   The mind boggles.

   Interstate travel is never boring if you know how to do it.

   You just go with the flow, Baby, and wait for what turns up.

   Tomorrow, the Rockies turn up.

   And won't that be grand.

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JS.  7/22/2015

Rodeo Time

St. Louis, MO.  July 21, 2015:






     The Star Gazer lilies are blooming in the Eastern mountains..

..the corn is eye-high in Ohio.

That means it's Rodeo Time in Wyoming.

Time to hit the road.

      We left Delaware, Ohio early Tuesday morning and made St. Louis by dinner time.  The plans are to be in Ft. Collins, CO on Friday and in Cheyenne the next day.  Saturday ought to be great--a parade and then an afternoon of full-tilt
rodeo; contests that will lead the winners to the national finals.  It's a fantastic show, and I'll have some pictures for you..watch this space.

      Later, it's Steamboat Springs, CO, the Grand Canyon, Santa Fe and points in between.    
      
      Seeya down the road.

      We're headed west again.

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      7/21/2015

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We Go In Search of Warmer Weather--Tucson, Green Valley and Ft. Worth.

The goal: sunny days, wonderful skies.  This, near Tubac, AZ

Editor's Note:  This rather lengthy tome is mostly for our kids, who wonder what we're really up to when we venture off like this.  Mostly, we have fun.



February 20th, 2015:  We set out early in the morning through snow-covered fields in Ohio, hoping to get past St. Louis by late afternoon.  

We made it, but it didn't matter what time it was, we were headed west.  Jane took pictures, I drove.

Actually, the first day was pretty easy.  It was interstate travel, after all; the roads were smooth and clear.  We had big plans; a stop in Oklahoma City at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Tucson.  The trip usually takes me about three and a half days if I keep to a reasonable speed, stop early enough to get a good dinner and some rest in a nice motel.  Pretty standard stuff.  I've done it a lot of times.

This time was a little different.

 For instance, this was Jane's first visit to the "Cowboy."  

The first glimpse as you enter the museum takes your breath away.  It's a full size "End of the Trail."  Look at it awhile, consider it, and it will bring a tear to your eye.

I've been a member of the museum for a number of years, falling in love with it as soon as I walked through the door.  I've seen everything the Smithsonian has done and this is as good or better than any of it.

The Cowboy tells the real story--what it was like to settle the west and to work in it.  Only one gallery is devoted to the movies..most of the vast museum deals honestly with the way it really was..and still is..done.  I can only imagine what it took to make your way in the early west and the responsibility that goes with managing it today.  Cowboy is too light a word to describe the people who do it. The museum makes that clear.

It has a great restaurant, too.

                                                  -0-

Every journey has its potholes.  We found ours at Amarillo, Texas.

Freezing rain and then all-out snow forced a stop whether we wanted to or not.  We had hoped to make Tucumcari, NM from OK City, but Ma Nature had other plans.  We spent two nights "stranded" in a very nice Residence Inn at Amarillo.
It was the prudent thing to do.  The road rises as you go west and I'd rather be stranded like that, than sitting in a snowbound car waiting for rescue.

Travel Tip:  Always carry a good book.

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We got to Tucson on February 24th:

In the Saguaro National Forest, Tucson.

But there was another hitch.  Somewhere along the way, My right foot  picked up a case of cellulitis. It was red and swollen, hard to walk.  I was afraid something was broken.  So I paid my respects to the Tucson medical establishment, who x-rayed me, poked me and pilled me.  I would be OK, they said, but it would take about two weeks.  

Hey, this is supposed to be a vacation!!

What're you Gonna Do?

Trying to be a good sport, I posted the picture above on Facebook.  My son, Marc, who is a professional artist, thought he could do better.  So I stand corrected...and royally photoshopped.

Hmph.

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We persevered.

My cousins, Dale and Betsy Robinson, put up with my hobbling around.  Dale took Jane on a tour of the wonderful Saguaro National Forest, lending his great knowledge of the desert.  She was entranced.  We promised to come back next year a little later in the season when the desert is in bloom--but what we saw was spectacular.  We also went to the theater--Tucson's famous old Gaslight theater, where we saw a mellerdrammer about the old west--and we went to my favorite restaurant, Casa Poca Cosa...Mexican cuisine to die for.  Boy!

                                     -0-

My old buddy from NASA days, John Taylor and his wife, Marsha have a place in Green Valley, south of Tucson.  

John's like me, a student of the old west, but moreso.  He can take you where the movies were made..show you where John Wayne stood, tell you about the battles and tribulations, and take you where the best art is made and sold.  

He also walks out in his backyard and picks breakfast.  Dale did that, too.  It make me wonder why I live in places where they can't do that.  

Tucson's a lot warmer, too.

You may have seen this picture before.  Les Moore's grave is in Boot Hill at Tombstone, Wyatt Earp territory.

John and Marsha are usually up for a trip to Tombstone.  The history's rich and the shopping's good.  There are a lot more restaurants and jewelry stores in Tombstone than old Wyatt ever saw.  In his day, it was a silver mining camp and the main street was saloons and cheap hotels.

Wyatt didn't go to Tombstone to be a law man.  He figured on doing some gambling and buying into the establishment.  The law thing pushed itself on him and well. you know the story..

But things have calmed down since then.  Jane met Wyatt (L) and his brother, Virgil, on the main street.  They took her under their wing(s).

Old Tombstone today.

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By the way..did you ever see a picture of a smiling Tom Mix?  Me, neither.  I found this one in the Oracle Inn at Oracle, AZ. Just sayin'..

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We moved on to Ft. Worth, Texas to visit Jane's relatives, Jan and Dale Moore, heading east through El Paso, turning left through Oil Country..going diagonally across the state.  A loooong haul.

We went to Justin, Texas, and we bought boots.  What else do you buy in Justin?





We went to the Ft. Worth Stockyards and went through Billy Bob's Texas--one of the world's biggest Honky Tonks.

Jan and Jane did some line dancing.   They could have played pool, if they wanted.

Down the street, they could  have saddled up:

Could've gotten some "tack" (L) or a sombrero:

   They could have bought a horse a cookie..

But they didn't.

Everybody just had a great time.

And we plan to do it again. 

 And again..

Try it.

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Seeya down the road.

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March 18. 2015

Old Tombstone

  Life was uncertain in   Tombstone, Arizona Territory.  You could get in trouble just crossing the street.   I don't really know what happened to Les Moore, but I suspect he had something to do with it...or maybe he just got caught in the crossfire.  

  Before Wyatt Earp showed up with his family, some people called parts of the town Helldorado.  in truth, it didn't change much after they got there, but they added a certain flavor that makes us remember it even today.

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  Once, Tombstone was the largest city west of the Mississippi.  As John Taylor, who took some of these pictures, says: "It makes you wonder what Denver and San Francisco must have looked like then."  

Here's Tombstone now.

   It was a mining town. Silver.  It boomed. Theater and music was imported from the east.  There was dining and drink.  Drink's where the trouble usually started.  Here's an example of what was available..the Oriental Saloon.  The Oriental is where Wyatt Earp settled in as a gambler, hoping to put his gun and badge away for good.  Of course, we all know the story.  There was no escaping his past..everybody knew about Earp's days as a lawman in Kansas and when the trouble started, they wanted him to put it to rest.  When it finally got personal, he did.

     And the past lives..in a way.  Above, you see actors portraying (L to R) Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt Earp, accompanied by Wyatt's friend, Doc Holliday..marching to their destiny at the OK Corral.   

    The fight with Ike Clanton's outlaw bunch lasted about 45 seconds.  Three of Clanton's people were killed, Morgan and Virgil Earp were injured, Wyatt and Doc were left standing.  Somehow, Clanton escaped the fusillade and ran.   What happened afterward is a mixture of fact and fable, but whatever the final truth, Earp paid heavily; his brother, Morgan was killed by an assassin, Virgil was seriously wounded.  The legendary Earp started a campaign to root out the gangs..and did.

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  Eventually, the silver ran out.  The big money was gone.  Tombstone began to fade.  

  It never became a ghost town, but it got pretty sleepy.  The big theater, the Bird Cage, was shuttered in 1889.  It was purchased and unsealed in 1934, when the new owners found everything inside pretty much as it was back then.  Today, the Birdcage is one of Tombstone's major attractions..complete with bullet holes in the walls, carefully preserved.

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   Going back to Tombstone every once in awhile does wonders for my imagination.  I revisit the old story and wonder what life must have been like in that day.  After all, people did live there and raise families.  It wasn't all gunpowder and whiskey.  But while there was money, those things set the tone.

  The chief and I will be looking for you.  

  Check your gun at the door.

                                                   
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3/4/2015