No Excursion Drive to Cheyenne

Thursday, September 09, 2021
Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States
The day started with filling up the gas tank at Costco in Omaha.  We’ve found that Costco can be found in most major and not so major cities except in Wyoming where there are NO Costcos.  Gas is typically cheaper and somewhere near the interstate.  
From the hotel to Costco, we drove on the surface streets rather than the interstate.  Beautiful, early 1900’s, well-maintained homes.  Idyllic neighborhoods. We past Central High School which looked like one of the biggest campuses we’ve ever seen!  Beautiful grand building.
We also passed by the Mutual of Omaha corporate headquarters.  Both my mother and Lily worked for Mutual in Michigan until they both retired.
Traveling on I-80 headed for Cheyenne.  Lots of corn fields in Nebraska.  Then, we started seeing rolling plains, and some rock formations the closer we got to Cheyenne.
The Nebraska rest areas are probably some of the oldest we’ve seen.  No handicapped door openers.  Few people with masks.  
We saw the Cabela’s HQ in Sidney, Nebraska… seemed like a likely place for the HQ.
We saw our first train with miles of cars. Up until now, it was all about the miles of trucks loaded with merchandise, cows, and whatever.
Speaking of Covid, Michigan was the only state where we saw a free Covid testing station at a rest area.  So far, masks on this trip have been mostly optional, if you’ve been vaccinated.  At the Herbert Hoover Visitor Center, masks were mandatory which I think is the case at the national parks when riding the shuttle bus.  Seems like this is a federal mandate.
You’ve probably noticed that we don’t mention any lunches.  We brought our car refrigerator with us, and have been making sandwiches for Dick and salads for me.  I make the lunch at the hotel before we leave.  It’s been easy and healthier than driving through a fast food restaurant.  Also, can have cold drinks, if needed, during the drive.  
License plate update: 43 states found.  Have not found Alaska, Hawaii, WV, Delaware, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Rhode Island.
BTW - We crossed into the Mountain time zone in Nebraska.   We’ve traveled in only two states, Nebraska and Wyoming.
Arrived in Cheyenne where there are a lot of open spaces. In talking with the locals asking for directions, they say that something is across town. Then, when we ask how far or how long, they’ll tell you 10-15 minutes or 3-5 miles. Different definition of across town from Cincinnati.  All about perspective!
Tonight, we ate dinner at Wyoming Rib and Chop House-Cheyenne.  There are 12 restaurants in 4 states: Wyoming, Montana, Utah, and Colorado.  We made reservations two weeks ago which is a good thing because this place is VERY popular.  It was recommended to us by Pat and John Leikhim, our former neighbors who now have a house in Park City.  Pat does NOT eat beef and raved about this place.  It was very good. We ordered calamari as an app.  You could cut my filet mignon with a fork. Dick ordered a NY strip.  Lots of pepper on his steak. Thought we’d hit up DQ, but the line was way too long.
So, back at the hotel watching the Tampa Bay-Dallas game.  Of course, Dick is rooting for Tampa Bay because of Tom Brady who graduated from Michigan.
Tomorrow, we drive to Park City to see the Leikhims.  John warned us to get a full tank of gas before leaving Cheyenne since civilization is far and few between, and not to let the gas tank get below half a tank.
So, good night! 
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