Photo courtesy of Cody Yellowstone
Buffalo Bill’s Cody, Wyoming
Wonders of the Wild West at Yellowstone’s doorstep
Strolling down Main Street in Cody, Wyoming, past bustling saloons and imposing 19th-century brick storefronts, it’s impossible not to feel the town’s Wild West history still very much alive underfoot. And no wonder—Cody was the vision of legendary showman William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody, who brought the world of thundering hooves, twirling lassos, bucking broncos and dusty shootouts to audiences across the country in his traveling tent shows.
This year, Cody celebrates the 130th anniversary of its founding, paying tribute to this larger-than-life figure who worked as a Pony Express rider, gold prospector, trapper, cavalry scout and stagecoach driver. A man of contradictions and surprises, documented history tells tales of how Buffalo Bill befriended Queen Victoria and other royalty, championed the rights of women and people of color, and took on the building of a massive dam—at the time the tallest in the world—to bring water to the namesake town. He even turned his hand to journalism, launching the town’s newspaper, the Cody Enterprise, still in publication today.
Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness. Photo by gettyimages.com/gerald_corsi
History
Visitors can explore Cody’s frontier history and the life and times of its founder at the Smithsonian-affiliated Buffalo Bill Center of the West, a complex of five Western history collections including the Whitney Western Art Museum, the Cody Firearms Museum and the Plains Indian Museum—where Lakota and Cheyenne beadwork, blankets and feather headdresses are stunning in their intricacy. Artifacts like Buffalo Bill’s bright yellow Deadwood stagecoach and buffalo fur-trimmed suede coat, Sitting Bull’s beaded pouch, and Annie Oakley’s saddle engraved with her name bring these legendary figures to life.
All summer, festivities will center around the 130th anniversary, with a celebration for Independence Day featuring fireworks, music and more. You’ll find rowdy country rockers and champion bluegrass flatpicking at the Cody Cattle Company, and a medley of performers at the Colonel Venue & Cigar Lounge, from locals to big names.
Deadwood Coach, Buffalo Bill Museum. Photo courtesy of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Play
Unlike most Western hamlets, which grew up around railway stops, river crossings and other landmarks, Cody was created with visitors in mind. In this small town, find quirky museums and galleries throughout the highly walkable downtown, among them the accurately named Dug Up Gun Museum, which showcases rusty shotguns, rifles, knives and other paraphernalia unearthed around the area. The By Western Hands Museum & Gallery showcases contemporary artisans continuing the Western craft traditions exemplified by Thomas Molesworth’s Shoshone Furniture Company. Find Western-themed inspiration for the inner cowhand at Custom Cowboy Shop and Mercury Leather Works, where the fine craftsmanship extends to cowhide backpacks and luggage, titanium buckles, bespoke boots and concho-bedecked saddles.
Don’t miss the saloon and Hole-in-the-Wall cabin, where the real-life Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid allegedly went, among the 28 historic buildings rescued from abandonment and preserved in Old Trail Town, where the plank sidewalks and packed-earth main street seem to await the next stagecoach.
Outside of Cody, the historic Sayles building in the town of Meeteetse houses several small museums including the Belden, home to the Charles Belden Museum of Western Photography that displays images captured by rancher Charles Belden of the traditional “cowboy” life. In nearby Powell, the Homesteader Museum documents the hardscrabble lives of early settlers, while the Heart Mountain Interpretive Center provides a memorial inside the sprawling internment camp, which at its peak imprisoned more than 10,000 Japanese Americans.
Rodeo Arena at Cody Stampede. Photo by istockimlenny.
Chief Joseph Scenic Byway. Photo courtesy of Cody Yellowstone.
Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West shows served as the inspiration for professional rodeo as we know it today. Visitors can experience contemporary events at the Cody Nite Rodeo, which runs seven days a week from June through August. The lively pageant, which showcases bronc riding, steer riding, bull riding and barrel racing, pauses for an even more dramatic display of talent when as many as 900 of the country’s top rodeo champions gather to compete in the spectacular Cody Stampede Rodeo, June 30 to July 4, with payouts of as much as $400,000. Come June 30 for Xtreme Bulls, a nail-biting showdown between the country’s top bull riders.
For those looking to get into the action, the Cody Wild West Riverfest (August 7 to 9) hits the tumbling waters of the Shoshone River with kayak, paddleboard and raft races, along with a free concert in Cody City Park.
Photo Courtesy: Cody Yellowstone
Indulge
For traditional Western steakhouse fare, don a Stetson and try Rocky Mountain oysters fried in cornmeal batter, fried green tomatoes and bison burgers at Proud Cut Saloon. But options go well beyond the expected. Start the day with fresh cinnamon rolls and fluffy pancakes at Our Place Cafe, a local favorite for breakfast. For lunch, grab an Italian sandwich featuring thinly sliced ham, Genoa salami and mortadella on slices of fresh focaccia at Sitti’s Table, known for luring even Guy Fieri to taste the fresh hummus. Cap a day of adventures with pappardelle in creamy lobster sauce, wagyu sliders, crab cakes or pork belly tacos at The Blanca Tatanka in the newly revamped Scout Inn. Bistro vibes prevail and signature cocktails feature local artisanal spirits and mixers like habanero bitters and Wyoming-made dragonfly ginger beer.
Stay or shop in the Victorian opulence of the Irma Hotel, named for Buffalo Bill’s daughter—who is said to haunt the establishment, sharing the halls with three other purported ghosts, including the great showman himself. The Wild West Emporium on the ground floor carries the hand-tooled and embroidered creations of the Tres Outlaws Boot Company, which have adorned the feet of dozens of actors, musicians and celebrities including Johnny Cash, Steven Spielberg, Joni Mitchell and Tom Cruise. Dining on the porch of The Irma Hotel provides a front row seat for a reenactment of Wild West gunfight, complete with shrieking dance hall girls, which takes over the street every night but Sundays at 6 p.m. From its imposing brick exterior to its lush courtyard and airy plant-filled conservatory, the Chamberlin Inn encloses you in secluded elegance right in the heart of town. More music, from country to jazz, is on offer in the Spirits Lounge, though you may be tempted to curl up in the sunroom or library with a good book.
For a more outdoorsy lodging option, settle into a one- or two-room log cabin at the Bill Cody Ranch, where campfires flicker at night, fly fishing abounds and the ranch’s 72 horses are ready to saddle up for a trail ride anytime. UXU Ranch adds whitewater rafting to a roster of activities including trail rides and excursions into Yellowstone National Park.
“Cody Marshall” Buffalo Bill Historical Center. Photo by gettyimages.com/john_elk
Downtown Cody. Photo Courtesy Cody Yellowstone.
Explore
It’s a surreal experience to walk across the Buffalo Bill Dam, look down to the Shoshone River in the canyon below, and realize that this was the tallest dam in the world at the time of its construction in 1910. The Visitor’s Center features a documentary and exhibits that detail the ambitious feat of engineering and construction.
Yellowstone’s Lone Star Geyser. Photo courtesy istock/kwiktor
Cody’s townsite was chosen for its proximity to the entrance of Yellowstone National Park, 52 miles up the Buffalo Bill Highway, and it’s a low-key experience to enter through the less-traveled East Gate. From there it’s a straight line to highlights such as Yellowstone Lake, Old Faithful, the burbling fumaroles of Grand Prismatic Spring, and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
At day’s end, linger in the grasslands of the Wapiti Valley to watch for moose, bighorn sheep and grizzlies seeking out their evening meal.
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