Went to Laramie today for the Wyoming-Air Force football game. It seemed strange to be driving north to Laramie via Cheyenne. I used to drive from Casper to Laramie via the Medicine Bow cutoff. On the cutoff if someone asked what did you see, and you said nothing that would have been a good description. Of ninety miles on the cutoff often the only thing seen in early fall would be antelope and deer or an occasional hunter dressed in camouflage because the season hadn't opened and they were just scoping out the game animals. Later in the fall the hunters returned clad in hunter orange and the game were smart enough to stay far from the highway. At the opening of hunting season I was always a little nervous driving the cutoff for fear that some hunter from New York City or other urban area would mistake my van for an antelope. Anyway I always enjoyed this morning drive into Medicine Bow, home of the famed Virginian Hotel (for Owen Wister fans).

This morning as I was driving east on I-70 a car was on fire and three highway patrolmen were trying to put it out. The rest of the trip to Cheyenne produced no more excitement. My brother and I drove from Cheyenne to Laramie along I-80 (the highway had been closed last night) and saw a trailer full of cans had burned in the other lane and they were still trying to clean up the mess and get the trailer from the side of the road. Although Wyoming got beat, I enjoyed the game. Driving back to Cheyenne they were still trying to clean up that same mess. I visited my mother and ate dinner with her at her independent living residence.

On the way back to Denver from Cheyenne-just short of the Colorado border-a car with its front bashed in was pulled off to the side of the road and the highway patrol was trying to clean up the mess and someone was tending to a deer or antelope on the side of road. Apparently the animal and the car went head to head. Neither fared well. North of Fort Collins there were more highway patrol assisting a wrecker that was toting a car that had been in an accident but unfortunately the damaged car rolled off the side of the wrecker and closed an off ramp. Just north of Denver two cars were pulled off to the side of the road with more highway patrol surrounding them. Apparently the trail car ran into the back of the lead car.
I have to admit driving up from Denver is certainly different from the Medicine Bow cutoff.