Sometimes, the little things are the big things.
Originally, we were going to continue heading north from Oregon into Washington State, but we got a better offer, and as a result are heading a bit east, and quickly found ourselves in southwest Wyoming.
But not before first stopping in Garden City, UT just a hop, skip and a jump from Bear Lake for… drum roll… a large raspberry shake! As attested to by my niece’s daughter, these shakes are amazing. Bone density and general health can be aided by the addition of calcium and fruit.
From Bear Lake, we very quickly found ourselves in Wyoming, albeit briefly.
For a night’s stay, we stayed in the Sweetwater County Events Complex in Rock Springs, WY because, well, they had electricity (it was hot out and we wanted to turn on our AC), and it was along our path heading east. Not all our decisions have to be about big things. In fact, most aren’t.
Now we have been to a rodeo before. But we have never been to a rodeo that wasn’t a rodeo. Did that make sense?
We stayed at the Sweetwater Events Complex, which is a big venue if you are a rodeo. Or concert. This is a big deal; there are over 1,200 full hook-up sites for campers, a 1,000 car parking area, huge pavilions, and a huge agricultural area.
We checked in with the Caretakers upon arrival. With 1,200 sites available, I think we were maybe the 4thor 5thcamper in the entire park.
I asked the caretakers if the place ever fills up – she says, “Oh yes, it was full last weekend.” This place hosted the high school Nationals rodeo competition and the place was jammed! If you have over 1,200 campsites, and a huge facility, do you think you need some golf carts to rent to get around the place?
When I asked the caretakers if they lived here just for the season, they said no, they have lived here year-round for over 32 years. He was a cowboy, and she was either a cowgirl or the wife of a cowboy – not sure. Long live cowboys.
For the nationals, he and 4-5 of his buddies evaluated over 1,900 saddle horses, which apparently is part of the process for nationals. Imagine housing almost 2,000 saddle horses at one time, and that does not include the broncs and other animals involved in a rodeo!
You know what you get when you have that many animals? You get a lot of crap.
Anyway, we didn’t see a rodeo, but we got to see a little bit of the back stage areas as the aftermath of a huge rodeo. Pretty cool! So if you are thinking of getting 1,200 of your closest friends together for a full hook-up rally, think of this place! And don’t worry about the poop – they have an app for that.