Why not!
I’ll admit that Cody, Wyoming wasn’t on my travel radar until I had family move there, but after spending time in the area in September 2020, this hidden gem would make a great weekend getaway worth a two day add-on to your Yellowstone visit. If you see nothing else in Cody, see the Buffalo Bill Center of the West museum. It is superb!
Since we were coming from Billings, MT we drove the Beartooth Pass to go to Cody, WY. The Beartooth mountains are gorgeous (pictures below) and there are plenty of good dry camping spots as well as campgrounds.
Basic Information about the Buffalo Bill Center of the West:
- This museum, in Cody, WY is associated with the Smithsonian Institute.
- For less than $20 per ticket you get admission for two consecutive days. How helpful is a 2-day pass? Extremely, as it will take that long to see the exhibits here!
- There are essentially 5 different family friendly exhibits within the center plus a birds-of-prey show:
- Buffalo Bill Museum,
- Draper Natural History Museum,
- Plains Indian Museum,
- Whitney Western Art Museum,
- Cody Firearms Museum and the
- Birds of Prey Show
Most visitors attend for the center’s flagship Buffalo Bill museum. This museum reviews the life of William F. Cody as well as the Buffalo Bill character he created which made him world famous. Born in 1847, Cody had his first job at age 11 tending cattle. He was a rider for the Pony Express, a Union soldier in the American Civil War, a father, a buffalo hunter and a scout for the US Army during the Indian Wars all before his mid-20s. The museum’s artifacts walk you through each of these phases of his life.
In 1883, he founded the Buffalo Bill’s Wild West which was a huge touring company that performed cowboy themed shows from the frontier and Indian Wars. He had sharpshooters like Annie Oakley, a huge cast of horses, cowboys and Native Americans and would re-enact stagecoach robberies, Indian attacks on wagon trains, and Custer’s Last Stand in front of huge stadium crowds in every major and mid-sized city across the US and worldwide. The sheer scale of these shows was impressive and the logistics, formidable. As popularity in the US and then in Europe grew they even travelled with their own fire department and cooks. At one point, his large cast of nearly 700 required 3 tons of beef, 225lbs of coffee, 6,840 eggs to feed each week! The diversity of the cast with a large number of employed women, Native Americans, people of color and performers and cast members from many different nations is emphasized in the museum exhibits and it’s fun to view actual footage of these very popular shows. Not surprisingly, this exhibit was my favorite in the center.
US Map indicating each city toured
That said, the Plains Indian museum is a beautiful display of domestic artifacts, clothing, religious ceremony outfits, and historical information displayed in a helpful timeline format.
The Whitney Western Art museum has wonderful sculptures and paintings. The staff there is very knowledgeable and pointed out interesting details in several works that I would have otherwise missed.
Kids and adults alike will love the Draper Natural History museum. This museum is arranged in a spiral that begins in the alpine ecosystem and winds its way down to the plains/basins with interactive displays at each level of the animals, birds, trees, etc. found there. Sounds, trivia, and interesting facts add to the experience of the animals displayed in their natural environments. I’ve never seen a more cohesive natural history museum.
We expected to do a quick run-through of the Firearms museum. Even though most of my family members own guns, I’m not well versed in the different types and didn’t think I’d get much out of the exhibit, but I was gobsmacked! I probably could have spent an entire day in this exhibit alone!
We expected to do a quick run-through of the Firearms museum…[I] didn’t think I’d get much out of the exhibit, but I was gobsmacked! I probably could have spent an entire day in this exhibit alone!
There’s an incredible timeline display that shows the evolution of firearm technology that was riveting! There are huge exhibits on weapons used in different wars, informative interactive displays on different operating mechanisms, an entire section on the intricate and beautiful art of carved or inlaid handles, and a display on use in entertainment/movies to name a few. There are library-like racks and drawers filled with firearms, so I have to believe they own nearly every commercial model and many that are simply one of a kind! If you don’t have time for all of the exhibits see the Bill Cody exhibit and this one, whether you believe in owning firearms or not. It is informative, balanced and interesting.
One small aisle of this museum
Rescued birds of prey are found in the center’s outdoor courtyard and several times a day they host a birds of prey show where they bring out at least 2 of the birds and walk through some amazing facts about these impressive birds.
As an example, the short eared owl can pinpoint their prey within a millimeter due in part to 1) a disk of feathers around the eyes that serve to catch sound waves and 2) it’s offset ears (one high and one low) which allows it to not only hear prey to it’s left and right but also understand it’s position above or below. The short-eared owl also has fluted wings that provide silent flight so it can sneak up on and catch its prey.
The peregrine falcon on the other hand catches prey by relying on it’s incredible eyesight (it can see prey up to a mile away) and its speed of over 200 miles per hour in a dive, the fastest animal in the world! To handle these speeds it has a third eyelid that acts like a windshield and has a spiral nostril structure that causes the air to curve as it breathes instead of rushing straight to the lungs, which at 200mph some sources say would cause the animal’s lungs to burst.
We saw the shows every chance we had because they bring out different birds each time.
We barely got to everything in these 2 very full days at the museum so we greatly appreciated my father, Tom, and stepmom, Cindy who made us wonderful meals and shared some great wine as we shared our day’s learnings. They shared their gardening and classic car restoration hobbies with us. They also sent us to Buffalo Bill Cody’s Irma hotel downtown, which contains a massive cherrywood bar given to Buffalo Bill by Queen Victoria.
This little town is full of history, cute boutiques, and I’d argue a world-class museum that should not be missed. If you’re anywhere near the area or if you just love history, particularly of the old west, add Cody as a vacation destination.
