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THE GREAT OUTDOORS by eons and the elements, our group found
remnants of the region’s human history: an
array of Native American petroglyphs
Cody’s backyard encompasses miles etched into rock faces in the so-called Ore-
and miles of open space – including the gon Basin, once a byway on Oregon-to-
2.46-million-acre Shoshone National Forest Wyoming catttle drives.
and 2.2 million acres of BLM land in the
Bighorn Basin. I was lucky enough to ex- We spotted abundant wildlife, mostly
plore a bit of both. pronghorn antelope and white-tail deer. A
The scattering of elk watched us from a dis-
tance and we
Bighorn Basin found a newborn
is a 100-mile- deer a few feet
wide swath al- from our dusty
most entirely makeshift trail –
surrounded by but no bighorn
subranges of sheep anywhere.
the Rocky We searched for
Mountains: the wild mustangs
Absarokas, said to roam
Beartooths, these rugged hills,
Pryors, but on this day
Bridgers, and they eluded us.
Bighorn
ranges. Actu- At mid-day, we
ally, the feasted on deli
Bighorn seems sandwiches and
more a assorted ice cold
plateau than a basin: It rises 4,000-6,000 beverages delivered in a four-wheel-drive
feet above sea level. The best way to get a GMC pickup to a windswept bluff where our
feel for its grandeur (and immensity) is UTVs stood like sentinels, parked in a row.
from the front seat of an off-road racer. Our outdoor café overlooked a rocky
I grabbed a seat in a posse of six UTVs canyon that let to an expansive wide open
headed out on a guided full-day tour of- praire.
fered by Out West Adventures. (A Utility On a distant ridge, we spotted a soli-
Task Vehicle has a cabin for two to four tary sign of human civilization: an RV. Our
riders who sit side by side, thus the vehicle guide explained that campers are wel-
is sometimes called a “side-by-side”.) come on BLM land in Wyoming. No permits
With a red paisley bandana secured are required and camping is free for up to
over my nose and mouth to filter dust, I two weeks in any one spot. Pick your par-
adise. After 14 days, pick another. Repeat.
jammed my head into a bulky black full-
face helmet, dropped its clear eye-protec-
tor visor and re-checked my seatbelt. I The Bighorn Basin is rich with fossils and
was ready to blast off into an immersive ancient signs of human history.
journey through time and terrain. Archeologists' excavations show 11,000
Along with stunning geography shaped years of continuous human occupation.
188 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE FALL 2024
