The day we started was great!
Well, actually, it wasn’t.
We were happy to be alive after a windstorm that kept us up all night.
The night before, we arrived late. We planned camping at Horseshoe Bend Campground in the Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area. We had a full day, and our arrival was just as the sun set.
Fortunately for us, the tent we own only takes minutes to set up, and we were able to enjoy the evening sun and see some of the surroundings before it got too dark. It was a beautiful location. It was hot but dry, my type of weather. And as a bonus, we were in a region we had never experienced before. Just a few days ago, we were in the mountains, witnessing snow, glaciers, and so many trees. Now, nothing but a Martian landscape. It was very cool!
I loved it.
Charlene loved it.
Beautiful.
We were ready for bed. I did not even bother checking the weather for the night and into the morning because we lost internet and cell service many kilometres ago.
Ah, restful sleep.
NOPE!
The wind started to pick up. Strained and damaged by the storm just days ago, our tent struggled to stay in the increasing wind. It was noisy, and there was no shelter from it except the thin plastic of our tent.
We did experience two collapses while “sleeping.” I had to set up our luggage and step ladder as braces to secure the tent in the wind. It would work, but sleep would not come on this night.
Finally, the wind settled down enough to nap before dawn, and we woke ready to explore this part of the world.
As typical in our campground experiences, we had breakfast, tore down our site, packed the car and went off to this gorgeous red landscape.
An odd sound could be heard at the back of the vehicle. I wondered what it was but chose to dismiss it as the sound of the road. But it was unavoidable when we got onto the pavement – we had a flat.
There must have been a tent peg or something like that that I drove over, and it punctured the tire. There would be no saving this tire, and we had to get the spare. That meant we had to unload our vehicle to reach the spare completely. This was an unwelcomed and unplanned surprise.
Now, the part where we had no cell service was coming into play. I remembered the last location where we had service; it was a long way off. We had to abandon the itinerary in search of a tire to take us the rest of the way home.
It would be a big detour to get to cell service. It was a bigger detour to a Toyota dealership. At the dealership, we learned that our Canadian car was so unique that they did not carry our tire size in America. The closest Toyota with a set of tires was in Denver. That was an eight-hour, one-way trip in the wrong direction. These people at this Toyota dealership were super helpful and started checking other tire dealers for our size. They eventually found a Walmart that was only an hour away.
This unique moment in our car’s life came out of our disaster: 123456 KM!
With a huge amount of gratitude, we hurried off to a new set of tires. I had planned on replacing these tires once our vacation from Alaska and back was done, but the urgency of this matter meant I was replacing them all now.
We would arrive at Walmart. They were very considerate in squeezing us in and replacing our tires. We passed the time, thoroughly searching every aisle. Quietly, I fretted that this disaster would cause us to miss exploring Big Horn. I decided that it was going to have to be skipped.
I lamented. I really was looking forward to this leg of our trip.
Then, I changed my mind once we heard our tires were on.
They had done the tires quicker than expected, and I was overjoyed. I looked at my itinerary and decided to skip the afternoon’s activities and return to Big Horn Canyon.
We both were glad of this decision. It is a beautiful area to explore. Part of our Alaskan Journey was to go to various climates and environments we had never been to. This arid, red land was unique for us. Being from Ontario, we see forests, farms or factories, an expansive landscape stretching farther than the eye can see, featuring our first-ever cactus, first-ever lizard, first-ever ancient Indian site and our first-ever wild horses, was something I was not willing to miss.
There are many trials and sites to see in Big Horn. I abbreviated our time here but insisted on seeing some of the more prominent attractions. At Two Eagles Interpretive Trail, we saw rings of stones. This is something that is so easy to overlook but is, in fact, of historical and cultural significance. Years ago, Indians would come to this area and set up their teepees. The stones were used to hold the bottom of the teepee to the ground and likely helped with the wind (something I should have thought of for our tent and the wind we experienced). Each time they left the site, they simply rolled the stones off. Time would pass, and they would eventually return and use the same stones again when they came to this area.
A simple site, but one that got us thinking just how hard it would be to live in this arid climate. Plus, every single plant that we encountered was not soft and cuddly. Each step we made in vegetation was very similar to a cactus – all pointy and hard and gave us the distinct impression to never walk barefoot here. We would see our first cactus. A lizard moved faster than we could get our camera ready, and then there were wild horses.
Admittedly, wild horses look exactly like tame horses, but they are wild. While reading the Two Eagles site signage, I looked up and nearly screamed, “HORSES!” Charlene was excited and even asked if we could get closer.
I did not want to venture off the trail because of the prickly plants and because of the possibility of rattlesnakes. I hate snakes, but I did want to see a rattler. I would watch the horses feed, wondering what on earth they were eating that would not hurt their mouths. And I noticed that they did not react to any snakes. Because of my snake phobia, I am convinced that there is a snake within three feet of me at all times, especially rattlesnakes in their natural environment. For a moment, seeing the calmness of the horses and their apparent lack of fear of snakes, I had considered going closer.
But that was only for a moment.
We would admire these peaceful animals and watch them until they moved too far to see.
Big Horn Canyon is home to a Grand Canyon-style crack in the ground. It has a river that flows through it and offers much to look at. We stood at the canyon’s edge and watched a boat travel through, the sound of its engine echoing off the canyon walls. There was an abandoned ranch that also served as a campground but was closed due to a particularly aggressive bear. I wished we had more time here and not wasted it because of a flat tire. There is a beauty and peace in this harsh setting. People have found ways to live off the land, and wildlife still flourishes.
We left this site impressed. This location would be one of my favourites, and even though it has been a while since we were here, I think about it constantly. I liked the dry heat, the different vegetation, the history of Indians and modern ranching, the rough geography, and the only thing we heard was the wind. So few people were here exploring it when we were there. It is a shame because it is an experience that is memorable and unique.
After all, isn’t travel about the experience?
- We camped at Horseshoe Bend. This site is open and provides little shelter from wind for anyone in a tent. I should have gone to our alternate site up the road to Barry’s Landing Campground. Barry’s Landing is located in a gully of sorts and has some trees. This place is better suited for tents.
- The part of Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area that we were in was free to explore. There were few other tourists, so it will give you the feeling that you are the only ones around for miles.
- Wear closed-toe shoes. All the plants will leave a mark on any exposed skin.
- Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area, and many other areas that we have seen, is on my Featured Map. Use this map to find places to explore near you.
- To see the original map of our Alaska trip, click here. Some of the places we could not go to (for various reasons), and some areas we added which are not included in this map.
The original itinerary for this trip can be seen here. It does not include sites that we added on.
