Cody, Wyoming: More Than a Gateway to Yellowstone

Arriving in Cody, I made plans to spend the night and allowed only enough time for a quick stop on my schedule.   Having entered the town so late, I wanted to find a place for a quick dinner and settle down for a restful night of sleep.  I planned to wake early for the complimentary breakfast and start my journey towards Yellowstone.

I had expected fast food restaurants and steakhouses before finding Juniper:  Bar + Market + Bistro.  I ordered the Columbus Tapas Plate and a glass of wine.  The small plate was the perfect size with samples of manchego cheese, chorizo sausage, camembert cheese honey drizzle  served with pickled vegetables and garlic crostini.

I woke earlier than I had expected, so with a couple of extra hours, I set out to explore the  charming cowboy town of Cody before heading west towards Yellowstone.

Cody is the eastern gateway into Yellowstone National Park.  It is named after William Frederick Cody, famously known as Buffalo Bill.   At first glance, Cody looks like your typical western town with its mountains in the distance and sparse surroundings, but its historic roots run deep.

The Buffalo Bill Center of the West Museum is comprised of five museums and an extensive research library that preserves the exciting history of America’s Wild Wild West.  Starting towards the back, I located the Buffalo Bill Museum to learn more about this  interesting icon of the American Old West.

Born in 1846 in the town of Le Claire, Iowa Territory of the United States, William Frederick Cody would later earn the nickname “Buffalo Bill” by the age of 21 while supplying buffalo meat to the railroad workers out west.  He fought in the Civil War alongside the Union soldiers and battled the Indians in sixteen of the American Indian Wars.  Known for his sharpshooting skills, Cody was featured in a story by writer Ned Buntline of the New York Weekly based on Cody’s wild adventures.  Buntline invited Buffalo Bill to perform in The Scouts of the Prairie, the original Wild West show and Cody would eventually produce his own show, Buffalo Bill’s Wild West, which would make him world-famous.

Exiting the Buffalo Bill display, I entered the Plains Indian Museum for the opportunity to study the culture and history of an Indian tribe that had created some of the most beautiful artwork.  What began as a collection of Cheyenne and Lakota costumes from the Buffalo Wild West show, has expanded with donations from private collections covering two hundred years of history.    The museum houses one of the country’s “largest and finest collections of Plains Indian art and artifacts” with over 6,000 items.

The annual Plains Indian Museum Powwow is sponsored by the museum where dancers from all over North America take part in this celebration of Native American culture.  A competitive dance competition includes several dance categories where various age groups compete to win prizes.  North American Indian tribes sell arts and crafts such as authentic beadwork, pottery, paintings and sculptures.

In addition to the Buffalo Bill and Plains Indian Museums, the Center of the West features the Whitney Western Art Museum, Cody Firearms Museum, the Draper Natural History Museum and the McCracken Research Library.

I found The Station in Cody for a lovely cappuccino before strolling through the Old Trail Town,  a restored Wild Wild West settlement on the original town site of Cody, Wyoming.  With nearly 25 buildings to explore, many of these authentic structures were carefully disassembled from their remote locations in Montana and Wyoming and reassembled at Old Trail Town to create a town reminiscent to a small village on the old frontier.  On display are a total of eleven cabins, two stores, a schoolhouse, post office, livery barn, blacksmith shop, museum, carpenter shop, granary, commissary and saloon.

One of the most popular sites at Old Trail Town is the “original cabins used by Old West outlaws Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and a Wyoming saloon frequented by Cassidy’s Hole-in-the-Wall Gang.”  Butch Cassidy (Robert Leroy Parker), a notorious Wild West outlaw known for committing train and bank robberies.  His sidekick Sundance Kid (Harry Alonzo Longabaugh), Harry’s wife Etta Place and Cassidy decided to flee the United States to Argentina to escape the pressure of law enforcement.  Although Cassidy’s death is documented as November 7, 1908, several acquaintances of Butch Cassidy claim that he returned back to the United States.  The search continues for the remains of Butch Cassidy when a recent DNA test was conducted in 2017 on human remains in Goodsprings, Nevada.

In addition to the homesteads erected within the Old Trail Town are graves which were also relocated to this site.  The most recognized gravesite is that of Jeremiah “Liver Eating” Johnston, who was portrayed by Robert Redford in the 1972 film Jeremiah Johnson.  Johnson’s nickname, based on legend, states that Johnson was married to a woman from the Flathead American Indian tribe who was killed by a young Crow Indian.  To avenge her death, Johnson claimed to have scalped 300 Crow Indians and then ate their livers.  From that point forward, the name stuck and Johnson was feared by all.

By afternoon, I was ready to begin my drive to Yellowstone National Park and realized that I would have missed the great hidden gems of Cody had I not decided to stay for the morning to visit the museums.

The drive out of Cody was absolutely gorgeous, surrounded by Rattlesnake and Cedar mountains.  It was no doubt that I was in cowboy country when I passed by the Cody Stampede Park.

The city of Cody sponsors a weekly rodeo over the summer months and I had just missed the last performance of the year.  The most famous of all rodeos taking place in Cody is the Cody Stampede.  I learned from the front desk associate that some of the top cowboys in the country come to compete during the Stampede.

Cody is appropriately known as the “Rodeo Capital of the World”, which has been hosting the annual rodeo for nearly 100 years and is known as the longest running professional rodeo.

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Cody and felt that my experience gave me a clear understanding about the early Western years and life during the Gold Rush.   For now, I am eager to make my way into Yellowstone after a couple of days of long drives, but I am happy that I had the opportunity to immerse myself in the history of Cody and cowboys.

Have you had the privilege of staying in Cody, Wyoming? Do you have any recommendations for my future stay?  If so, I would love to hear about them if you would kindly leave a message in the comments section below.  Many thanks for your suggestions and I wish you many Happy Travels!

What to See and What to Do:

Buffalo Bill Center of the West
720 Sheridan Avenue
Cody, WY  82414
Telephone: 307 587 4771

• Admission Fee:  $19.50 per adult, Children 6 – 17: $13, Children 5 and under: Free, Students (18 & older with valid student ID): $18, Senior Rate (65 and older):  $18.50;   Free admission for active duty military personnel and their families.   Save 50 cents per ticket by ordering online at www.centerofthewest.org .  Admission price includes entry to the museum for two consecutive days.  Members of the Center enjoy free admission.  Group rates are available for commercial motor coach tours and other organized groups by calling 307 578 4114.
• Hours:  Open daily from 8AM to 6PM from May 1 – September 15; 8AM to 5PM from September 16 – October 31; 10AM to 5PM in November; 10AM to 5PM from December to February (Thursday – Sunday only); 10AM to 5PM from March to April;  Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Amenities:  Small gift shop, research library, cafeteria, outdoor playground
• Entrance Locations:  The Main Entrance is located in the center of the building which leads to the Admissions Desk.  A South Entrance leads into the Draper Natural History Museum
• Length of the Tour:  To explore all of the exhibits, I recommend 4 to 5 hours.
• Tips for Your Visit:  Each museum is well done and informative.  Ensure you have plenty of time to visit as much of the museums as possible so you will not be disappointed.  I wished I would have spent more time here.

Old Trail Town
1831 Demaris Drive
Cody, WY  82414
Telephone  307 587 5302

• Admission Fee:  $9 per adult, Children 6 – 12: $5, Children 5 and under: Free, Senior Rate (65 and older):  $8.00;  Admission price for self-guided tour.   Group rates are available for parties of 10 or more by calling 307 587 5302.
• Hours:  Open daily from 8AM to 7PM from May 15 – September 30
• Amenities:  Small gift shop
• Length of the Tour:  1 – 2 hours

Cody Stampede Rodeo
519 West Yellowstone Avenue
Cody, WY  82414
Telephone:  307 587 5155

• Admission Fee:  Cody Night Rodeo: $20 per adult, Children 7 – 12: $10, Children 6 and under: Free; Group rates are available by contacting the Ticket Office at 307 587 5155.  Stampede:  $20 for the first three nights; $25 for the fourth night; Xtreme Bulls tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children 12 and under.
• Hours:  Gates open at 7PM, while the rodeo starts at 8PM.
• Transportation:  Cody Stampede offers visitors the opportunity to ride the Cody Nite Rodeo bus. Contact Mike Smith at Cody Cowboy Stages by phone at 307 272 5573 or by email at codytransportation@yahoo.com.
• Amenities:  Concession stands that serve hot dogs, BBQ sandwiches, nachos, etc.,  No outside food or drinks permitted.  Small gift shop
• Length of the Rodeo:  1.5 – 2 hours
• Tips for Your Visit:  The rodeo will continue as scheduled, rain or shine.  You may need to bring a raincoat.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:  Always check with the venue or the site’s website for the most up-to-date information.

Where to Stay:

Comfort Inn at Buffalo Bill Village
1601 Sheridan Avenue
Cody, WY
Phone:  307.587.5556

Where to Eat:

Juniper:  Bar + Market + Bistro
1128 12^th Street
Cody, WY  82414
Phone:  307.587.4472

I am a superfan of wine bars and charcuterie plates, so when I noticed Juniper: Bar + Market + Bistro, I knew this is where I was going to stop for a quick bite to eat and a glass of wine.  I ordered the “Columbus” small plate, befitting as I am from Columbus, Ohio and love manchego cheese!  The plate included manchego cheese, camembert cheese honey drizzle, chorizo sausage (yum!) served with pickled vegetables and garlic crostini!

The Station
919 16th Street
Cody, WY  82414
Telephone: 307 578 6661
Website: https://www.codycoffee.com/the-station

I ordered a mocha with an extra shot of espresso.

What to Eat: 

• Buffalo
• Chicken Fried Steak 
• Chuck wagon-style meal cooked over a flame
• Elk
• Fry Bread – puffy taco base usually used for taco salads
• Old Fashioned Soda from Annie’s Soda Saloon and Cafe in Cody
• Pig Candy – sweet spiced bacon
• Prime Rib
• Rocky Mountain Oysters – calf testicles
• Soda Bread discovered by the American Indians which is a mix of soda and flour
• Wyomatoes – gourmet tomatoes with a sweet taste
• Wyoming Whiskey 

What to Read: 

• Cody (Then and Now), by Lynn Johnson Houze
• A River Runs Through It, by Norman Maclean
• Colter’s Run, by Stephen Gough

Photo Guide for Cody, WY:

• Medicine Wheel National Historic Landmark
• Castle Gardens near Riverton, WY
• Old Trail Town
• Yellowstone National Park