which offer a lot of interesting things to see: a safari style
wildlife loop drive where buffalo, deer and praririe dogs can be seen
closely; one of the longest caves in in the works with highly unusual
rock formations, Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse and the Devils Tower.
All of which we've seen and which is hidden amongst in beutiful
mountains covered with dark pine trees and accesible on curveous
'scenic drive' roads. Those turned out to pose a threat to our car, as
we soon noticed white smoke coming out of the catalytic converter. It
happened after prolonged engine braking (the proper driving technique
in the mountains) as well as after driving steep uphill. The cause
remains a mystery, though we suppose the fuel is not burning properly
in the combustion chamber during heavy load and high revs and gets
burned in the catalytic converter afterwards. But it also might have
been poor quality gas we tanked before. Without being really able to
do anything we adjusted our driving technique driving slower uphill
and relying less on engine braking during descents and frequently
stopped to
check for any signs of smoke.
Soon the car had to face the biggest test so far, which given the
problems on the day before left us wondering about the future of our
trip. On the way from Byffalo, Wyoming to Yellowstone we had to cross
te Bighorn Mountains. This means 30 miles constant uphill driving all
the way up to 9666 ft (2964m) followed by a 30 miles descend. And
guess what - we made it and were rewarded by a magnificent scenery and
a sunset overlooking the distant Yellowstone and Grant Teton mountain
ranges. Better yet- the car didn't show any signs of wear. Was the
catalytic converter problem just a one one time occurence? We'll find
out.
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