Few things in life are certain, but I can practically guarantee this: If you live in Cody/Yellowstone Country you will have company at some point, most likely in the summer. And if your friends and relatives are anything like mine, they are curious about what makes the town and surrounding area tick.

I have developed a surefire way to answer most of the questions these folks have and to make their visit so much better by helping them understand what they are seeing.

Here’s my three-step process.

1.  I take my guests over to the Buffalo Bill Center of the West and we make a hard left straight to the Draper Natural History Museum. We walk over to the edge of the top level and look down at a big tile floor map of the region. By starting big, we get our bearings and see where Cody, Park County, the Park and the whole Yellowstone ecosystem fit together.

We then head down the ramps and begin to learn about some more specific topics like the area’s wildlife, how forest fires are actually good for the environment and the reintroduction of wolves to the area.

Then we spend some more time exploring the other four museums under the Buffalo Bill Center of the West roof. My visitors always want to learn about Buffalo Bill Cody, and the Buffalo Bill Museum does a terrific job of presenting his life and adventures. There’s also the Plains Indians Museum, Whitney Museum of Western Art and Cody Firearms Museum. My visitors are always amazed that we have such a world-class museum in our little town.

2.  Next, we head over to the Cody Trolley Tour for a one-hour, 22-mile tour that is a great way to get acquainted with the town. Lively narrators tell the compelling story of William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody and showcase the town he created.

We learn about the town as it was more than 100 years ago, how the dam changed agriculture in the region, what it took to drill tunnels and create the road to Yellowstone and more.

My favorite part of the tour is when they point out the houses people ordered through the Sears catalog.

3.  At this point I am pretty confident that my visitors have a broad understanding of our slice of Heaven and why this whole region is so special. Our next step is to pick out specific things to do and see. Some people want to head straight to the park looking for grizzly bears; others are more interested in human history and can’t wait to get to the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center and others want to hike into a lodge pole pine forest that burned 25 years ago and is growing back with a vengeance.

Me? I think I will head back over to the Draper Museum.

Until next time, I lovin’ life and playing tour guide in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country…

                                     Corrie N. Cody

It’s going to be a big week for me in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country with some serious decision-making going on.

That’s because I am going shopping for furniture, and I am not talking about your basic sofas, loveseats, chairs, ottomans and recliners.

No, I like to buy my furniture one or two pieces at a time from one of many fine artists in town. You probably didn’t know that our little town has attracted some of the finest builders and designers of Western furniture and accessories.

This is not something that happened overnight, and we can trace Cody’s roots as a center for Western furniture back to the 1930s to our most famous designer and builder – Thomas Molesworth, owner of the Shoshone Furniture Company. Molesworth combined the basic furniture designs that local cowboys used in ranch houses throughout the area with elements such as leather, horsehide, elk antlers, Native American weavings, brass tacks and more.

After building furniture for us locals, Molesworth’s work became known by Easterners, many of whom traveled to Western dude ranches and Yellowstone National Park. He subsequently received commissions to design and build tables, chairs, couches and other furniture for homes across the country. In the process he became the best-known designer and builder of furniture in the Western genre.

In 1989 the Buffalo Bill Center of the West (then known as the Buffalo Bill Historical Center) held an exhibition called “Interior West: The Craft and Style of Thomas Molesworth.” This exhibition sparked a renewed interest and helped to attract builders and marked a resurgence of Western design, particularly among furniture builders.

Since that spark almost 25 years ago, furniture builders have opened shops, trained apprentices and taken traditional techniques and designs to a new level. We now feature approximately two dozen artisans creating unusual furniture in both traditional and modern Western motifs. Their wares are available in the town’s galleries and directly at many of the artists’ shops or through their web sites. Most artists are happy to provide tours, and most have showrooms.

Much of the distinct design comes from the fact that the original ranchers often had limited materials with which to work. The original Molesworth chairs often featured branches from lodge pole pine trees that developed those big knobs, and he incorporated them into the design. The hides from cattle were used for upholstery, and Rocky Mountain junipers added wood grains you could spot a mile away. And then there are the antler specialists who use elk, deer and moose antlers to create those spectacular chandeliers, lamps and more.

The question is: Do I go for the coffee table with the antler legs or the jewelry box trimmed in leather and brass tacks?

Until next time, I’ll be shopping for that special furniture piece in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country!

Corrie N. Cody

I had the best weekend! The first trip to the park every spring is always special, but this year’s venture had the extra bonus of knowing that so many citizens of Cody banded together to help make the east entrance snow plowing happen on time.  

I am so proud of my peeps and the way they refused to let politics, budget cuts and a little snow get in the way of their livelihoods.

Anyway, I headed due west to the park – we locals usually refer to Yellowstone as “the park” – early Saturday morning. With the sun at my back the light was perfect, and I stopped several times along the Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway to shoot some photos of the rock formations. While there are plenty of “Castle Rocks” and “Chimney Rocks” wherever you go, we have formations called “Old Woman and Her Cabin,” “Snoopy the Dog” and “Chinese Wall.” My favorite is “Laughing Pig Rock.”

As I departed the Wapiti Valley I waved to Buffalo Bill’s original hunting lodge – Pahaska Tepee – and headed up Sylvan Pass. Since I was in no hurry, I stopped at a pull out and looked over the edge and down at the road cars used almost 100 years ago. The old road was so steep that it circled back on bridges over itself to create a corkscrew effect. Vehicles often traveled backwards at times because it was so steep that gasoline would not flow from the gas tank to the carburetor any other way.

After meeting a friend at Lake Hotel for a couple of days of hiking and exploring, I decided to drive home via Lamar Valley and the town of Silver Gate. In Lamar I saw plenty of bison and elk, one grizzly bear, four wolves and two bighorn sheep.

After leaving the park, I was in Montana and drove through the small towns of Silver Gate and Cooke City before quickly returning to Wyoming and the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway. Sights along this route include the single-span Sunlight Creek Bridge, the highest bridge in Wyoming and Dead Indian Pass overlook area where the Nez Perce tribe outran the U.S. Cavalry for several months in 1877. After driving down from the pass, I continued to Cody in the shadow of Heart Mountain.

I have made this trip more times than I can remember, but it never gets old and I always see something new.

Here’s a tip for you to help get your bearings. Go to the Buffalo Bill Center of the West and check out the Draper Natural History Museum before you make this drive. The newest of the five museums at BBCW, the Draper provides a fantastic overview of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Make sure you stand at the railing overlooking the floor below with a tile map of the whole region. Then head down the winding ramps to learn about each elevation’s wildlife, geology, plant life and more.

Until next time, here’s to living the dream in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country.

                                                                                 Corrie N. Cody

Ask anyone in Buffalo Bill’s Yellowstone Country who watches the sun, moon and stars when summer starts and they will tell you June 21.

The rest of us know better. Summer starts Memorial Day Weekend.

For me that means an extra morning to sleep in, at least two barbecues and some long walks that start out short but expand because I keep running into friends who are eager to catch up.

There is one thing, however, that I always make sure I do and one that serves to remind me to never take for granted the beauty that surrounds me and the freedom I enjoy in my little corner of paradise.

About halfway between town and the airport – 2519 26^th Street to be exact – is the Wyoming Veterans Memorial Park

Currently this park features monuments and memorials to our state’s military people killed during World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War. The process is also under way to dedicate the Freedom Memorial to honor those killed during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, the Iraq Wars, the Cold War, other engagements and in peace time.

This Memorial Day I spent an hour on the walking path and on a bench remembering some of the people I knew personally and whose names are posted. I also thought of those I did not know but who are still appreciated and deserving of our complete support, love and honor.

Like many people, I had – and still have – relatives who served in the military and were fortunate enough to return home unscathed. To you, I thank you for your service to my country. For those who did not return and are on the memorial, I will never forget you.

Until next week, I am loving life in Cody, Wyoming.

Corrie N. Cody

This summer I am planning an Independence Day date with a 94-year-old and a few after dinner rendezvous with a 75-year-old. And I truly am excited about them.

You see, I am not just some opportunist hoping to weasel her way into an inheritance a la Anna Nicole Smith. Nope, the old timers I am referring to are the Cody Stampede and the Cody Nite Rodeo.

The Cody Stampede dates back to 1919. It has twice been named the “Best Large Outdoor Rodeo of the Year” by PRCA. This four-day event attracts the top cowboys in the world as they compete in all of the disciplines like bull riding, roping and buying fine Western jewelry for their favorite bloggers. Okay, I made that last one up, but I will say that I am partial to turquoise and anyone who wants to know my ring size can send me a private e-mail.

In addition to the rodeo events, my favorite Fourth of July activity is watching the parade. In Cody, it is not just any parade. Our grand marshals have included a few people you might have heard of. How about John Wayne, Chuck Yeager and Steven Seagal?

The Cody Nite Rodeo is celebrating its 75^th anniversary this year. Every night from June 1 to September 1 – except during the Cody Stampede –visitors fill the stands as they watch up-and-coming cowboys and cowgirls compete for real prize money in riding, roping and racing.

The Nite Rodeo is the only rodeo in the country operating seven nights a week in the summer. The rodeo grounds are located east of town and feature views of the Shoshone River, Heart Mountain and Buffalo Bill’s secret grave. There are also some thermal features nearby that inspired the term “Colter’s Hell.”

This summer is shaping up to be another season of great rodeo. I hope to see you at the rodeo in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country!

                                                                                              Corrie N. Cody