Cody is about a five hour drive from the ranch and lies near the eastern entrance to Yellowstone NP. It is the home of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center which is an absolutely world class museum. The collections of Western art, American Indian anthropology and firearms are superb. In Cody one can also visit the Old West Trail Town and rodeos are held every evening during the summer. A loop can be made in two or better three days by driving first north east from the ranch through the Wind River Canyon to Cody and then westward through the park and south to Jackson Hole.
Cody evokes the spirit of the old West more effectively than any other town and is steeped in Western folklore. It is named for its founder, Colonel “Buffalo Bill” Cody, that expert army scout, Pony Express rider, buffalo hunter and showman par excellence who personifies the cowboy mystique. His Wild West shows captivated crowds from the Mississippi to Eastern Europe and enthralled millions with the exotic charm and excitement of the American Frontier. He persuaded his friend, President Theodore Roosevelt, to facilitate the building of a dam on the nearby Shoshone River, making possible a hydroelectric plant and irrigation of the surrounding area which greatly stimulated the economy. Colonel Cody also built the still operating Irma Hotel, named for one of his daughters, which exudes the atmosphere of the past.
The only passage to Yellowstone Park on its eastern side passes through Cody and brings many tourists to the town so that tourism is by far the most important activity. The Buffalo Bill Historical Center includes a vast number of exhibits ranging from the wildlife of the area to Western Art and cultural history. Visitors could spend days here studying these exceptional artifacts and paintings which are beautifully displayed and described to bring our history alive. The Old West Trail Town contains many painstakingly reconstructed buildings from pioneer days which give the feel of those old days. The spirit of the West is also manifested in Cody by the rodeos taking place there every evening in the summer.
