MaxMetal Custom Motorcycles

Continuing from my last post…
The rain passed over us and a rainbow appeared- but the sky was still very black in the direction of Laramie where we were heading. We made our reservation at the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel, turned around and rode back the three miles to our safe haven for the night.

This was new territory for us. G.T. had never wanted to stay at a Bed & Breakfast. “Isn’t that one of those places where you stay in someone’s home and have to share the bathroom with strangers?”
But with the storm we had just been through, and were sure to encounter again if we pressed forward, the choice seemed to be spending the night at the B&B or spending the night in the Rest Area. We were a long way from Laramie, it was getting late, and there just wasn’t much else available in the middle of Wyoming.

This ended up being a most pleasant stay! The Elk Mountain Hotel was built in 1905 on the Overland Stage Station property. Through the 30’s 40’s and 50’s it was along the route of the Lincoln Highway. It was a popular stopping place for many entertainers as they traveled across the country. The dances at the nearby Garden Spot Pavilion drew crowds from miles around to hear the bands of Lawrence Welk, Louis Armstrong, and others. There are pictures and autographs of many famous people who have spent time at the Hotel.

http://www.elkmountainhotel.com/index.html

After a comfortable night’s sleep, I was wakened by sunshine coming through the windows. I was drawn to the balcony to watch the sunrise and then drawn beyond to explore the meadow with its looming cottonwood trees.

After enjoying the breakfast part of “Bed and Breakfast”, we left that morning, refreshed, renewed, and ready for the road ahead of us. Elk Mountain had been a thoroughly enjoyable experience. The next time you are traveling I-80 through Wyoming, I recommend stopping at the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel.

US Highway 30. Another road from my past. The first trans-continental road, the Lincoln Highway runs from New York City to San Francisco and directly through Grand Island, Nebraska, near where I grew up. It was the main artery across the nation before the interstate system and inspired the plan for the interstate system. Much of Highway 30 has been overtaken by I-80 but we found a stretch between McCammon, ID and Granger, WY that seemed to cut the corner and save a few miles between I-15 and I-80. It ended up being a fairly busy road with a good bit of truck traffic. Apparently others found it to be a “short-cut” also.

We took our one “on-the-road” sight seeing stop at Fossil Butte National Monument. (It was less than a mile off the road we were traveling - not too far out of the way.) That was interesting and I learned something new. In that area, which is an ancient lake bed, there are fossils layered between the rocks. When the rock layers are separated, incredible fossil portraits of plants or animals are revealed.

We watched through the day as powerful white clouds billowed up behind us. The clouds were beautiful against the colors of the Wyoming prairie/desert but we knew they threatened rain if we allowed them to catch us.

The clouds did catch up with us as we neared Elk Mountain, Wyoming and they delivered everything they had promised. The sky ahead of us darkened and we watched as lightening struck the mountain top repeatedly. We were around 8,000 feet as rain started falling. The temperature dropped and the rain came down in frozen pellets that stung through our rain gear. This rain mandated a stop. We were still some 50 miles out of Laramie where we had planned to spend the night as we pulled off at a rest area to get shelter. On the bulletin board there was a brochure for the Historic Elk Mountain Hotel, only three miles from where we were. We called the number and were assured that there was an available room in this remote Bed and Breakfast where we could spend the night - a shelter from the storm.