Cody Yellowstone, and Yonder
Cody Wyoming is the rodeo capital of the world and the eastern gateway to Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone was the first national park and is voted best of all in many polls. Famous for Old Faithful geyser, the park is filled with incredible landscape you’ll want to escape to.
On a day tour we were awed by thousands of bison along the scenic byways. We stood at the appropriate distance, not to be gored like some tourists who are no longer among us. Breathing the same fresh air with these magnificent beasts in their natural valley habitat with snowcapped mountains above is inspiring.
May to early June gives birth to spring wildflowers and babies. Bison calves, grizzlies, and black bear cubs wobble and prance on their new little legs. A moose peaks out of the forest as we zip by on a tour bus and big horn sheep dance on the cliffs while elk and pronghorn graze the meadows by crystal clear lakes and ponds.
Mammoth Hot Springs is one of several lodging areas to stay for a night or few to explore inside the park. The springs water is too hot for bathing, but the geology is amazing to witness, in the mud pots steaming with sulfuric acid. The Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone drop 308 feet, viewed from above a 760 feet deep canyon that is 1500 feet across and preferred by most, over Old Faithful, which spews every 94 minutes, if you only have time for one or the other to visit. And it makes a nice loop for the day trip from Cody, entering the northeast gate and exiting the east gate of Yellowstone National Park.
The Golf
Golfers don’t flock to Cody just to play but they can get their fix while there on two beautiful courses. Olive Glenn Golf Club is named for the original owners, Olive, and Glenn. They have passed away and passed it on to the family. Matt Gibbons, from San Diego, has thirty years of experience in managing golf operations and with his team, has been upgrading the course and property over the last few years. It is looking great, right in town and in fact part of the Trolley Tour.
The golf course has a straightforward design with water running through, crossing many holes. The greens are pure, and the views are striking from the high desert to purple and frosted mountains. Norfleet and her husband are members. She and her brew master partner at Pat O’Hara are the only female brewery owners in Wyoming. Norfleet grew up in Pinehurst and says, “That kind of country club wouldn’t go around here.” She loves Olive Glenn and how they keep the prices reasonable for locals. We love their broncing buck golfer logo.
Powell Golf Club is thirty minutes from Cody with a GM who represents the heart of golf. Doug Firth’s office is a relocated dorm from the Japanese internment camp at Heart Mountain and it is filled with golf memorabilia. Doug’s mom grew up in Powell and he first played with his grandma on this course as a little kid and had not seen it since then but returned from Utah all these years later. He has among his 1000+ putters, the one his grandma gave him during college for which he was offered a thousand dollars and refuse because of the sentimental value. When he told her about the offer he had declined, she asked, “Didn’t they teach you anything in college?” His office reminded us of Tom Stewart’s Golf store in Pinehurst, and he said they were in fact kindred spirits and have done business together and talk for hours.
Powell puts the country back in country club with antique farm implements showcased on every hole. The front Desert 9 were designed by a local named Rickert who has a draw bias with doglegs left. It has tons of character and geographic dimension with an elevated par 3, number 3 down to the green by a pond left side. Don’t draw the ball here. Number 4 is another high tee box by a sheer wall. Launch away. The Pines 9 is as imagined, through the pines with more narrow fairways with accuracy required. It’s a pretty spot.
Back to Cody, the epitome of a Wild West town, there are endless activities and adventures for indelible memories. Buffalo Bill built the town back in the day and his Irma Hotel stands solid after Mike Darby meticulously restored it to its historic glory, complete with the magnificent bar sent to Buffalo Bill by Queen Elizabeth. His western boutique, managed by former NY model Emily is unrivaled and includes custom boots by Scott Wayne with a very long list of famous recipients. The boot artist takes a mold of your feet and designs by hand any leather type, color, and etched work to meet your perfect size and personality.
Mike Darby is one of many leaders in the 30k populated area of Cody who are dedicated to preserving the wild west culture and nature. Ryan Hauck is the spirited Executive Director leading the Cody Yellowstone Tourism team and Wes Allen, Principal of Sunlight Sports store wrote the book on hiking the territory which has the most wildlife outside the Yellowstone Park gates. He gives guided nature tours with bear encounter training and stellar views.
Others guide hikes on horses, rafting the rapids and Out West Adventures have UTV trails to arrive at the special points of incredible views where you might want to sit for a day and if lucky, spot a herd of wild mustangs.
An immersion in culture and history lies in the Buffalo Bill Center of the West’s five museums and many more, including Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center and Old Trail Town with historic cabins famed by Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid. Jeremiah Johnson was buried here and Robert Redford who played his character in the movie was a pall bearer.
Cody of course has dude ranches and day ranches and the best Holiday Inn in the world, located downtown, close to all the restaurants and shops. USA Today Cody calls it the #1 Small Town Beer Scene with four local breweries.
As the Rodeo Capital of the World, every night is an opportunity to watch the cowboys and girls rope and ride for 90 days straight beginning in June. We all use the phrase, “It’s not my first rodeo,” but have you really been to one? You’ve probably seen a bit of the athleticism of both the horses and riders on the series Yellowstone, but it is thrilling to witness live, each event, and it is heartwarming to feel the good old time American sense of place and fun humor.
That humor might begin with the dinner and show at the Cody Cattle Company next door to the Rodeo. It’s a bottomless chuckwagon buffet with unparalleled musical talent outside of Nashville.
If you fancy the line, “Live like you were dying,” put Cody Yellowstone on your list and visit the national park for the best postcard pics and mental images to carry to your grave.
YONDER, while in Wyoming, golfers should trek through the amazing Big Horn mountains, breathtaking at every hairpin turn to Sheridan, another western horse town with The Powder Horn. This golf community showcases 27 superb championship holes and all the amenities of a charmed life.
The Eagle nine has wondrous waterways while the Stag nine waterways are more often in the way. The Mountain nine has as imagined, the top views which are astounding, serenaded by red wing blackbirds.
All are designed by Dick Bailey with brogue names for each hole, like tickly tap and different colored powder horns mark the tee boxes. The rough throughout is truly tough to get out of and the grass lining the rough and water is a Venus fly trap for balls. The aroma of fresh mown grass blends with the flagrant fragrance of phlox blooms to soothe the golfers’ soul.
It is a Troon Privé experience with a beautiful clubhouse, great merch and food plus a pool and tennis courts. Powder Horn Realty arranges stay and play packages. Our Creekside studio with a fireplace was sweet for resting after rounds.
Further yonder, Devils Tower was a Close Encounter of the Third Kind in the ‘77 Steven Spielberg movie. Today, The Golf Club at Devil’s Tower is a great encounter with impeccable service starting with Drew handling bags and Isaac at the pro shop counter inside interning for Brett, the golf pro and all the helpful gals on Kelvin, the GM’s team.
Devils Tower is a BIG course in every way, 7,111 yards from the tips, set in the Black Mountains of Wyoming with Devils Tower Monument in view on several holes. The wind blows the tall grass like waves of water, and it sounds like a rushing river blowing through the trees. Greens contrast with red mountain walls.
Lots of the members are hunters here and all are hunting for balls in the thick grass. Of special note is number 5, par 5, a convoluted dog left with 6 bunkers and a pond to maneuver.
The new clubhouse, 77 Steakhouse and member cabins are perfectly constructed and decorated to complement the landscape. A large family photo in the impressive bar reveals cowboys in chaps playing cards with a pistol on the floor and the same chaps are displayed in the dining room.
Kelvin shared that members come from 30 states for the golf, ranch activities, deer and turkey hunting, lakes and proximity to Deadwood. This is a unique consideration for regional, national, and corporate memberships or golf outings – from Hulett’s tarmac to tee in ten minutes.
Billings Montana is where we flew in, a little airport two hours from Cody. The drive to Cody is a beauty, passing cattle ranches where herds are nursing their babies, horses nuzzling their foals. There are trains and more trains to transport products – crude, coal and cattle, grain, and sugar from beets.
The road back to Billings from Sheridan passes by more beautiful ranchland and the Battle of Bighorn site. The common utterance on our Wyoming trip was, “stunning.” God bless America. Save the long flight to Switzerland and book to Billings instead for a wild west road trip to Cody Yellowstone, and Yonder.
