By YellowstonePark.com/Yellowstone Journal Corporation Set against the beautiful backdrop of Yellowstone National Park and the Absaroka and Beartooth mountains, Buffalo Bill’s Yellowstone Country sits at the doorstep to some of the nation’s most scenic country. This makes it the ideal getaway spot for the outdoor enthusiast, boasting more than 300 days of sunshine each year amidst a land filled with undeveloped, and sometimes undiscovered, wilderness. Cody, Wyoming, located 52 miles from the East Entrance to Yellowstone National Park, was founded in 1896 by Colonel William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody. Visitors will enjoy a myriad of outdoor activities, including horseback riding, hiking, hunting, fishing, mountain biking, rock climbing, windsurfing, rafting, golfing and camping. Panoramic views and abundant wildlife create some of the most extraordinary scenic drives in the country.
Attractions Abound
Regarded as America’s finest western museum, the Buffalo Bill Historical Center is the area’s premier attraction. Located in Cody, its five museums – the Buffalo Bill Museum, the Plains Indian Museum, the Whitney Gallery of Western Art, the Cody Firearms Museum and the Draper Museum of Natural History – help this complex live up to its nickname, the “Smithsonian of the West.” One ticket allows admission to all five museums and a ticket is good for two consecutive days. Enjoy a leisurely historic trolley tour with Cody Trolley Tours. Offering several tours daily, these one-hour tours allow glimpses into Cody’s past and show you a present-day Cody that will remain in your memory as a highlight of your vacation. Images of the Old West live on at Tecumseh’s Trading Post Old West Miniature Village and Museum. Thousands of miniature figures trace the history of Wyoming and Montana from the 1600s to the late 1890s. Scenes include tiny buffalo driven over the edge of a cliff, a mountain man fight, Indian attacks and electric trains that run around the diorama. The museum section of the complex includes hundreds of Western and Native American artifacts. No visit to Buffalo Bill’s Yellowstone Country would be complete without a stroll through Cody’s Old Trail Town. This attraction boasts a collection of 25 historic buildings from Wyoming’s frontier days, a cemetery of famous mountainmen, and Indian and early pioneer artifacts and collections in the Museum of the Old West. End your day with rip-roarin’ action at the Cody Nite Rodeo, performances nightly June through August. Watch competitors in events such as bullriding, bronc riding, barrel racing team roping and steer wrestling. There’s even an arena event for the kids in the audience. Dude and guest ranches in Buffalo Bill’s Yellowstone Country offer visitors the complete Western experience. Ranch guests stay in modern cabins or rustic lodges. Hearty appetites are satisfied with chuckwagon cookouts of typical western fare, including steaks, trout, and buffalo burgers, complete with square dancing and authentic cowboy sing-alongs. Cody Country is also home to some of the best hunting and fishing in the West, satisfying the call of the wild in any outdoorsman.
Camping
For those outdoor adventurers with their own gear, campgrounds and RV parks serve Cody Country campers in natural surroundings with hookups, tent camping, picnic tables and amenities such as swimming, laundry facilities and playgrounds. The Shoshone National Forest campgrounds, located west along Highway 14-16-20, and northwest along the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway, offer large sites along trout-filled rives and streams, with beautiful mountain views.
Fishing, Rafting or Kayaking
With the Shoshone River flowing from the nearby Shoshone National Forest right through town, Cody is the ideal stop for the water enthusiast. Get wet on a river float trip through scenic Shoshone River canyon, where you’ll see wildlife, Indian pictographs and spectacular scenery.
The waters surrounding Cody are brimming with native and stocked brook, cutthroat, German brown and rainbow trout. There’s probably no other area in the West where anglers can catch trophy trout right next to the road. Fishing licenses are available at most ranches and lodges or in Cody fishing shops.
Reaching the Summit: Hiking, Biking or Climbing
With more than 1,500 miles of trails and 500 mountain lakes, the Shoshone National Forest around Cody is a backcountry enthusiast’s dream. The 2.4 million-acre national forest borders Yellowstone National Park and offers a wide variety of terrain and scenery for hikers, backpackers, mountain bikers and rock climbers.
Hikers and campers are advised to be alert for bears.
