We left Yellowstone, circling around the lake and exiting the East entrance. This steep and windy road provides beautiful views. After leaving the national park, you enter the Shoshone National Forest which offers several campgrounds situated on the river. There are also many guest ranches along the highway. Ending in Cody, we headed south through the open prairie of Wyoming on HWY 120, passing through several rock tunnels and an amazing canyon.

We reached Douglas, Wyoming in the late afternoon and checked into the Douglas KOA Journey. This KOA is surrounded by ranches and is a few miles from downtown Douglas. We were shown to our spot that included a picnic table and full hook-ups. We all needed showers after a few days without them.

It was much warmer in this part of the state. Our winter clothes were no longer needed. The KOA gave us several visitor brochures and we decided to pick up a pizza for dinner from a local pizza place, Friendz Pizzaria. They have all types of options and specialty pizzas with an excellent selection of toppings. We ordered a large pizza margherita. The owner told me it would be ready in 15 minutes.
Douglas is the home of the Wyoming State Fair. But more interestingly, it is the official home of the jackalope. The jackalope is a cross between an antelope and a jack rabbit that people claim to have seen in Wyoming at various times. Towns across the state have jackalope museums and souvenirs. Each town claims to be the place where the jackalope originated, but a previous governor of Wyoming declared that Douglas is actually the official home of the creature. The town placed a larger-than-life sized statue of the jackalope near the downtown depot and park the day that the governor made this important decree. We had to get a picture because the jackalope is so rarely seen.

The town of Douglas is quaint and clean. The downtown is comprised of blocks near the railroad tracks that have various restaurants and shops. It was not too busy at 5 p.m. on a Saturday. The fairgrounds is closer to I-25 and looks like a nice area. They also allow camping at the fairgrounds and in a grassy park with trees near the fairgrounds that appeared well maintained.

We headed to Friendz which was only a block away from the jackalope statue. The owner greeted us. The restaurant is cozy and is decorated with pop culture cardboard cut-outs, signs, and memorabilia. The fun atmosphere is filled with the smell of fresh pizza baking behind the counter. Our pizza was ready. It is important to mention that they deliver to the KOA despite it being a few miles out of town. We were on a jackalope quest, so picking up the pizza worked for us.

Back at the camper, we devoured the entire pizza. The sauce was tasty and there was just the right amount on the pizza. The cheese was perfectly melted and the toppings were fresh. We all enjoyed this amazing pizza. After dinner, we investigated some of the attractions at the KOA.

 
This specific KOA offers both long and short-term camping. Long-term campers have a separate area on the outer rim of the park. Within the park, we enjoyed the heated pool and the tennis court (sports equipment can be checked out at the front counter). A miniature golf course looked fun, but we didn’t have a chance to try it. There were benches and areas to relax. They offered a pulled pork dinner plate for $7 that we did not try and a root beer float for $1 that we did. It came in a “collectable” KOA cup (I say this because I now have three in the camper).

 

In the morning, the ice cream social area becomes a coffee bar complete with a lovely patio to enjoy your treats. We enjoyed our root beer floats and finished before the lightening storm started.

I recommend this KOA if staying in the Douglas area. Everything was clean, the staff were friendly, and there was plenty to do.