Coachman Inn Motel, Green River

Coachman Inn - Green River Wyoming Saturday, August 20, 2005 When it?s time to pull off the road after significant hours of automobile travel, one?s priorities shift away from glitz and toward comfort. At the family owned Coachman, no-nonsense comfort is what they do best. As viewed from the outside, after you wind down and around from Exit 90 (off of Interstate 80), the Coachman is mid-century adorable with a big sign and cozy buildings. Eager ?40s newlyweds should be disembarking from a vintage Packard.Inside, the whole family is as nice as can be, tag teaming the desk clerk duties, handing out room keys, swiping credit cards and so forth. When I asked about a good place to eat, I was referred to Casa Chavez, 6 blocks down and then over one (see restaurants for more info). The rooms themselves offer an excellent balance of home-style comfort and modern amenities -- including the ideal combination of refrigerator, microwave and small coffee pot. The Cable TV offers most of the familiar favorites. The phone service is very easy to use in coordination with a calling card ? and a long phone cord. The bathrooms are perfectly clean. Particularly impressive is the practice of wrapping a loop of thin paper around the toilet seat and cover to verify that you will be the first to use it since it was last cleaned. My queen-sized bed was firm and lump free. The bedding was just the right volume to keep me comfortable but not overwhelmed all the way through to the crisp morning. There was a dumpster available so I could unload all the tissues, coffee cups and fast food containers from my car?s wastebasket. Reservations are recommended since the Coachman is deservedly popular. The management?s approach to late arrivals and early departures is also very sensible and convenient. While I was ?trip planning? a series of road trips between Bellevue, Nebraska and the San Francisco Bay Area, I determined that ? factoring in time changes ? Green River, Wyoming was an ideal midpoint for a two day itinerary. As of this writing, I have completed one trip, with two more to come in September. In each instance, I will avail myself of the Coachman?s magnificent hospitality to ?come down? from a full day on the road and get a good night sleep before doing it all over again the next day. Cortland Kirkeby Bellevue, NE