The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1917-07-23
YELLOWSTONE'S
CODY ENTRANCE
The Tourist Will See Picturesque
ShOshOne Dam, Largest In the
WOrld-BuffalO Bills Old
Home,

The eastern gateway to the Yellow
stone National Park is called the Cody
entrance, because at Cody, Wyo., the
traveller leaves the train for rides
of sixty-three miles by automobile to
the park boundary.
Cody was founded many years ago
by the famous scout, the late Col VIM.
F. Cody, Buffalo Bill" and is a typi-
cal western plains town. 1t Is stu
ated on a bench or shelf above the
Shoshone River and below the table
land that stretches away toward the
east. 1t is therefore invisible to the
traveller on the roads from Thermo-
polls, Basin, Powell and other WyO-
ming towns to the eastward until he
comes very near the limits of the
town.
Leaving Cody for the trip to Yellow
stone Park, the road leads into the
Shoshone Gorge, across the Shoshone
River, and thence to the Burlington
station on the plain opposite the town.
From here the road turns southwest
ward through the plains and runs for
several miles through an arid, tree
less waste. The sulphur mill on the
east side of the river stands out prom
inently short distance from Cody,
The wonders of the trip to the park
begin with the entrance to the Sho-
shone Canyon, the stupendous gorge
through which the Shoshone River
takes its course. On the right lies
Rattlesnake Mountain and on the left
Cedar Mountain. The two constituted
a single mountain until the river cut
q deep, narrow cash through its CEN
ter of solid rock The walls Of the cany
on are nearly perpendicular, and yet
along the face of Rattlesnake Noun
tain the Reclamation Service of the
Department of the Interior blasted
from the solid rock splendid road
eight miles long.
Great Engineering Feat
In many places the road passes
through tunnels in the granite walls
This Is the road that is Travelled
through the gorge and out to the park
The Government found it necessary tt
construct this road through the ap
parently inaccessible canyon in ordel
to provide the means Of transporting
materials to construct the great dan
of the Shoshone reclamation project
This dam Is the second highest In thu
world, 1928 feet from the lowest foun
dalton to the top Of the parapet, be
ing 48 feet higher than the Flatirol
Building in New York. At its base !
is 1913 feet thick up and down strean
and only 80 feet long. On top 1t is 10
feet long and 10 feet thick
The cost of its construction was 81,
s56,5S5, but the value Of the crop
raised by the use Of the stored waite
In 1916 was 1901 900 and only abou
one-slxth of the irrigable area wa
cropped last year, The irrigation sys
tenn Is being rapidly extended and sew
eral thousand acres will be throw
open to homesteaders during the au
tumn.
Leaving the dam, the road follow
the shore of the beautiful Shoshon
Lake which was formed by closin
with the great wedge Of concrete, tn
narrow cash In the rock walls Of tn
canyon. Scientists state that this lax
occupies the basin of an ancient bod
OF water which exlted thousands Q
years ago. Where this lake overflowe
the water gradually wore a passage
way through the solid granite noun
tain. and In the course Of numberles
centuries formed the shoshone Gorg'
Wonders Of the Gorge
Al the upper end OF the lake u
road turns into the Valley Of the Mort
Fsrk Of he ehoehons River and skir|
W. boundaries Of seynnl ranohs