Wyoming

I loved Wyoming. Despite the fact that I had no cell phone reception and there were miles upon miles between any signs of civilization, I loved it. It was just so beautiful. Being from the flat lands of Illinois, I'll admit that I'm easily impressed by any sign of elevation but Wyoming really was that nice. Unfortunately, I was driving, and there weren't that many places to stop so I passed by most picture opportunities (they had one or two places to pull off the interstate to take pictures, but I think I would have put them in slightly different places - also, the entire area around Exit 88 was just neat - lots of hills and inclines). Closer to Sheridan, the landscape changed a bit; the whole area just looked big and vast, with mountains looming in the background. Unfortunately, my camera could not quite capture the feeling, since I can't do panoramic, but it's definitely worth the drive. Although, based on Wyoming (and also Montana), I have to say I'm still not that supportive of the idea of "scenic routes" as advertised in South Dakota: I-90 through Wyoming and Montana is basically a scenic route, and at points, I was having problems keeping my eyes on the road and not the surroundings.

Actually the very lack of civilization might have been the reason it was so picturesque. And another plus: very few billboards. Oddly enough, there were actually billboards for Wyoming in South Dakota: "74 more miles until Wyoming and cheap gas." Of course, once I got into Wyoming, I needed gas, and the first gas station was about twenty to thirty miles into the state.

Even the view from the gas station is amazing.