Friday, August 16, 2024 BigHorn Mts, WY

 Friday, August 16

Happy Birthday, Bryan.  

We were going to stop at Fort Phil Kearny this morning, but there is a lot of construction going on and they want $8 each, so we decide to pass. We can see the wood stockade (a reproduction since the Cheyenne burned the fort after it was decommissioned) but the construction is at the visitor's center. This was an outpost of the US Army in the late 1860's at the height of the Indian Wars.  

(The man back in Medicine Bow told us that rattlesnakes can bite for nearly 24 hours after they are killed.  He said he nails the ones he kills onto his fence and lets the critters eat them, as he doesn't care for the taste.)

Instead we drive to the Fetterman Battlefield marker, another remnant of the Indian Wars.  Here  79 soldiers and 2 civilians (the entire command) were killed by a gathering of Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians.  Part of the sad history of that time period.

It's easy to see where the waterways are, as that is the only place there are trees.

 We then head into the Bighorn Mountains on 14W, which is filled with switchbacks and steep inclines to 8347'.  Quite a climb!

Beautiful day!

We stop at beautiful Sibley Lake in the Bighorn National Forest, and hike around the lake, which  takes a while since there are several wet boggy areas that have to be skirted.

Some wildflowers still blooming here.  A few families fishing but otherwise we have the area to ourselves.  We are back to cool mountain air! Signs of beaver as we see several gnawed tree stumps along the shore.  A few ducks, too.

We stop at a ranger station later on and he recommends Porcupine or Bald Mountain campgrounds, but first a side trip down to Shell Canyon and the waterfalls there. 

We see some smoke on the way down and come upon a recently started grass fire.  A ranger is arriving as we get there, so we know that it has been reported and hopefully will be extinguished before it spreads.  At Shell Canyon the rangers assure us that they are taking care of it and a helicopter has been called in.

We thought the  waterfall at Shell Canyon might be small this time of year, but it is quite robust!  Just an awkward angle for photos.

 We walk the short trails there, then head back up the mountain to get back on 14W.   We pass several people fishing in small streams, several campgrounds.  We camped at the Dead Swede one once before.

 At 9430' elevation there is an observation spot and we see four bull moose hanging out in a meadow! Wow! We were told that they like high elevations in the Summertime.

 There is a big granite outcropping between us and the moose, so we walk over there for better viewing.  They are still pretty far away but the zoom lens helps. 

 Picked up a few pretty rocks with a mix of granite and pink and white quartz and some other unknowns.

We next stop at Bald Mountain Campground, which has a few empty sites but is very near the highway. We opt to to check out Porcupine Campground instead, as it is about 2 miles off the main road.  We spotted this lonely female moose as well as a few deer on the way in to the campsite.

Nice level campsite, #13,  amid the trees. This is a view from the rear of the campsite - look closely and you can see a friendly local squirrel that liked traveling by fence.  Greg gets some firewood from the camp host and starts a good fire.  Feels good as the temperature falls to the 50's.  

For dinner, we have shrimp which we brought from home in the freezer,  assorted veggies and chips.  Pretty sunset and bright star-studded sky.