Leaving Cody we headed to Keyhole State Park located in central Wyoming and close to Devils Tower National Monument. We were directed to this campground and many other spots by our good friend and backroad traveler Greg Wood. Very grateful and appreciative of him sharing all the travel and campground information.

The Drive from Cody to Keyhole was a work out. Highway 16 turns into the 14 as you approach the Big Horn Mountain range. The grades are steep and the roads are winding. These are fertile cattle lands and ranchers have been driving cattle up into the mountains during the summer months and down to the valleys in the winter months for over a hundred years. The pass is over 9000 feet and the Windryder got us up and down safely. The eastern side of the pass offers fifteen miles of 7% to 8% grade and some gnarly cliffside turns. Stay in a low gear and take it slow. The hillside was dotted with deer which made it difficult to keep my eyes on the road. This part of the country is so beautiful.

Once safely over the mountain pass the road opened up to the prairie and the winds.

The winds were steady with gusts up to fifty miles per hour. Despite our namesake, the Windryder does not at all ride the winds well. It was all I could do to keep her in her own lane for hours on end. It was especially fun when big rigs passed as they sucked our rig into theirs or pushed us over towards the shoulder depending on the wind speed. After several hours we finally made it to Keyhole State Park. We were greeted by a herd of Antelope as we pulled into the park.

Keyhole has a number of campgrounds surrounding a huge reservoir. Only one, Tatanka has electricity. There are a couple dozen sites and we scored a lakeside spot. I think we may have gotten the best one. Since we arrived late the kids were ready to try and catch our dinner. Glad we were stocked with food as they only caught two perch, some  branches and weeds. We did have a gaggle of twenty-four turkey waddle through our campsite. The kids were begging me for a turkey dinner. I think we had tacos.

The weather took a turn to the cold side as there was rain and temperaures dipping into the forties prerdicted. It only sprinkled but it got really cold that night and the next morning the kids got up at day break to fish. They lasted about half an hour, just long enough to lose three jigs and get cold.  It wasnt long until they retreated to the warmth of the coach.

We waited until it warmed up a bit and made our way to Devils Tower. A forty minute drive down a dirt county road. Since we are towing a four wheel drive truck it was fun to get behind the wheel and let loose a bit. The road is well maintained but also traveled by much wild life, cows, horses and deer. You have to watch your speed.

As we rolled up to the Gate of Devils Tower we were met by Ranger Grumpy who seemed a bit tired of dealing with tourists asking the same questions over and over. Helllllllooooooo Ranger Grumpy…thats your job. This has been the only ranger with which I have ever had a negartive experience. Once we left Ranger Grumpy to his grumpiness we came upon the true gate keepers of devils mountsin. Hundreds and hundreds of Prairie Dogs. They look giant tan hamsters popping in and out of their holes. They are so fat and cute. A little BBQ sauce and they would make a good dinner. We spent a few hours hiking around this amazing geological wonder. There were a couple climbers half way up on the south eastern side. Despite them being a few hundred feet above us you could clearly hear them giving each other direction on their next move. This place is viewed by many cultures, mostly Native American Indians to be a spiritual place. In June there is a volumtary climbing ban out of respect for  these peoples who annually pilgrimage here around the time of the summer solstice.