The Good Life, in Wyoming

We arrived in Lander, Wyoming on Sunday evening (before dark, intentionally) after a really long and interesting ride from Casper where we just had a ball (particularly at the annual High School Rodeo). This was a hoot and Jasper was in his element.
We rode the way of the Oregon, California, Mormon and Pony Express trail from Casper to Lander. This was really cool to be on the trail that led us as Americans from the east to the west. What it really meant for us, aside from the amazing history lesson that we received along the way, was that the 3 hour trip took us over 9 hours to accomplish. The trail is marked with innumerable historical locations and overlooks that simply felt wrong to ignore, so we didn't.
We spent additional time at a couple of the really significant and interesting historical locations such as the Mormons ranch and memorial to a specific hand cart group who suffered a costly and fateful loss of a large number people during one very early winter storm for a couple of days on their way to Salt Lake City in 1856. This ordeal cost the lives of over 190 people in that group who either froze to death or succumb to exhaustion, starvation or illness, all while help was on the way from Salt Lake.
Another location is called Independence Rock. This very large rock formation stands independent from the rest of the mountains around it but it also had a second significance in that if the wagon trainers made it to the rock by July 4th (Independence Day) they were almost assured of making it through the Rocky Mountains before winter set in. Marking this high point of their journeys they chiseled their names and dates of their arrivals into the rock, all over the rock, but especially on the top. Which we climbed to, took pictures of the names and took a look at the view those hearty and certainly weary travelers experienced from 1841 thru the 1869. Some 500,000 people passed by this rock on their way west and most of them carved their names in.
From Lander we were headed to the Grand Teton National Park. We arrived there on Tuesday afternoon after another wonderfully, beautiful ride and the customary bunch of stops along the way to glean more western history and meet some really nice folk.
Upon arrival at the park we met the guy on duty who sees to it that we are registered in the camp site. These are hired hands for the season thru a hospitality group who gets the contract from the government to run the place. His name was Joey and he was an experienced host in his late twenties who does this work because he loves people but really because he loves traveling and this gig gets him all over the planet in different parks for 6 months at a time. Once in his location he works, but focuses on hiking the area he is in. He is real good with folks and was just super with us, helping us to find a location that would work for our unit. As a result we asked him to stop over for late margaritas and burritos when his shift was over. He showed up at about 10:45 PM and we drank, ate and talked travel stories and philosophy for a couple of hours.
That was fun and all but the most delightful part of the getting situated for RV camping at this park was that there were only two possible sights left where our RV would fit. One was OK but not great, the other was better but a tight fit and.... I had to shovel 14" of snow on the back 1/4 of the space to allow us to get the Rv into the slot. Now, didn't I leave CT to get away from the snow?????. We have headed into the north country again, way to fast. Anyway I did it and we got it in and situated and after having drinks and supper with the girl next to us also sporting license plates from CT and then with Joey later, we headed off to sleep in this springtime, winter wonderland.
Wednesday morning, Jasper spent the entire morning playing in the snow and although it rained thruout the night it started snowing again in the morning. Although it wasn't sticking then, it did not quit, ever, all day and into the night. This was just a gift from heaven for Jasper and you can probably imagine my enthusiasm as well. Well, while he was playing out doors I spent time plotting my immediate course south so we could beat it out of there as soon as humanly possible. Or so I thought!
When I had finished that exercise, I felt a strange gravitational pull to run north, up the street just another 70 miles or so to get into Yellowstone National Park which borders Grand Teton. We had come this far and I really wanted to leave to go south the next morning, having already paid for Wednesday nights stay in advance, but not without seeing the geysers. So at about 1:30 PM we convinced Jasper that there would be more snow on the ground up in Yellowstone and he begrudgingly got in the car and off we went. 28 miles to the park entrance and 45 miles to the site of Old Faithful. Yellowstone, by the way, has the most geysers of anywhere on the planet.
We also saw lots of wildlife on the way; Buffalo, Grizzly, Elk, Moose, just wild and wonderful. When we got to the longish entrance road to the parking area for the Old Faithful site and as we rounded the first corner, from a bit of a distance, I guess you could say we were lucky in that we could see that Old faithful was going off. Intrinsically knowing that that was what we were witnessing, we each snapped a picture or two from the car to catch the moment.
What this really means is that you have to wait approximately 90 minutes more if you want to see it up close and personal, and we did, probably shouldn't have, but we did. The shouldn't have relates specifically to the underwhelming sense I had standing there watching it spew water vapor into the sky. Now this may sound crazy or unpatriotic since this is one of the natural wonders of the world, but it just didn't seem all that exciting in person. I am real glad that we went to Yellowstone. The wilderness is awe inspiring. This is the first designated national park in our country and it set the model in place for the preservation of great open spaces here and it is spectacular in most every sense. Including the amount of snow still on the ground in late May. The park was established during the presidency (1869-1877) of Ulysses S. Grant in 1872.
Speaking of snow, it was still coming down and getting colder, as it was now a little after 5 PM. We would have to wait to 6:49 or so to watch Old Faithful blow from the grand stands. So we meandered around, went to the gift shop, went to the bathroom, went to the cafeteria, met some nice folks from Germany and talked to them until 6:40. We found out that they were visiting for the thrid time to the US and each time they have come they head to our western states and visit another national park or two. They were tent camping and were worried about the weather and the falling temps as they were, by their own admission, under prepared with just the tent and three season sleeping bags and not so much as an additional blanket or pad to sleep on. We were concerned for them but they seemed to be set on trying to find a way to manage for them selves. He, I guess, seemed more set on handleing it or at least more confident then she was. She was asking it we thought they would be OK or if we thought they should sleep in their rental car. We said our goodbyes and parted ways. Us to stay and watch the geyser and they to do what they were going to do about staying in the park for the night. We went to go outside to get up as close as you can to watch the event. But it was still snowing and blowing and cold so I decided to watch it from indoors thru the windows of the cafeteria. Megan followed me back indoors and as we stood there quitely waiting, both of us were still consumed by thoughts of the couple and their adventure of sleeping out of doors in the park. I spoke first and asked Meg if she happened to have any of our business cards on her. I at least wanted to offer them our numbers to call us, minimally if they came back to the states and wanted a personally guided tour of the Eastern states. She did happen to have a card in her wallet. As she handed it to me she remarked that she felt that we should ask them to come back to ther RV and sleep there for the night. I quietly considered this proposal but couldn't really see how it would work andwondered if they would even consider this from people they just met. I guess with that I just dismissed it and set off looking for them throughout the quite large building. After looking in several areas I spotted them at the reception desk of the lodge we were standing inside of, presumably checking to see if they could get a room for the night. I gave them the card and asked them to make sure they called us the next time they were in the US. They we very glad to take the card and to have made the connection and we shook hands again and I parted never asking them if they wanted to come and sleep in the RV for the night. I took off back to where I had left Meg and Jazz and met up with them again inside in the same place, moments before the geyser actually began shooting up. When it actually started spouting I ran out to snap a picture or two. I don't think it was really worth the wait but there I was and I was gonna have a picture of it.
After that sighting we headed out to our car in the parking lot. As we were sitting there warming up the car and getting ready to roll the same German couple came right in front of our car again and noticing it was us began laughing at the peculularity of seeing us yet again in the parking lot. They came over and he seemed serious minded and ready to get to their car but she wanted to ask our opinion once more about what we thought they should do regarding their sleeping situation. We made a few more suggestions but again did not ask them to come to the RV for the night. As you can tell we were feeling real weird about not asking them because this is most normally what we would do. I seem to be the one who shys away from it so it is most likely my lack of asking that had them not following us to our site that evening. But everything workis out as it should. Once out of the Old Faithful site and onto the main road, we began heading south towards our home. But 50 feet or so down the road we decided to turn around and head north again for another 16 miles to see if we could see some wolves where they are said to haunt. Welll 16 turned into 30 miles as we got caught up in the wilderness and the vistas. Along the way there are spectacular sites to be seen in the way of bubbling pools and spouts, just all over the place ,of boiling hot water pushing up thru the ground and bringing with it all sorts of highly colored minerals (and their accompanying odors) and reactions of every sort imaginable as this water comes in contact with the air and cooler water running by in streams. We encountered more wild life, including a Buffalo herd on the road and another posing Elk, but no wolves. As we reached 30 miles further north at about 8:30 PM or so I thought it was really time we headed back as we were now about 2.5 hours from our camp. Again, it was still snowing and looking more serious and the temp was now 32 degrees and falling. The minimal traffic had slowed to mostly 30 but at times 20 or less miles per hour and this was going to make the journey that much longer. So I settled in for the ride, declared a 10 min no talking meditation and focused on the road and managing the now freezing up roads gathering depth and slippage.
By the time we had driven about a hour south we came upon a park police who had closed the gate across the north bound side of the road not allowing any one further into the park. Another 1/4 hour south we came across a park police car that had closed the gate on our side of the road preventing us from traveling the last 30 miles or so to our RV and bed for the night.
I parked in front of his car that was facing north in the southbound lane. Jasper and I got out to have a conversation with him. As I got to his car at what is now 9:45 PM and asked him the obvious questions including the most pertinent, "how the hell do I get to the campsite with my RV in the Tetons National Park", he very politely and way to quickly explained to me that they had closed the road south due to how bad the road was further south and that they were about to close the only other road out of the park to the east but they were patiently waiting for guys like me to get out. I was a bit stunned and again asked him how then, if this road is closed, I could get back to the Tetons park. As I politely listened to the directions he was kind enough to offer me as a route around to my campsite and tried to make mental notes of rights and lefts and road names and numbers in what has been called one of the most remote places in the US, without really understanding what he had just told me, I asked the only logical question I could think of at that point, "How long will it take me to do this side journey back to my roving home?" He again politely responded with, "Oh, at least 5 hours." I was dumb struck. It was almost 10 PM, I was only 30 miles form the camp site straight down the road and now I was supposed to drive till 3 in the morning to get there, in the snow and not knowing where in the hell I am in the first place. Holy Crap!!!! The police guy hurriedly excused himself saying that he had to respond to a possible heart attack up the north road. I figure some other cop had just told that guy the same thing I had just learned, there's no way out of here with out driving to Nebraska.
Keeping my head, as I have so aptly learned and absorbed on this trip, I decided to do what I know works best.... Wait for the miracle. As I swung around to head towards that only remaining open road, the train of events that would lead to said miracle began. The very next thing we saw was an older pick up truck pulling a 16 foot boat. The driver pulls up next to me heading south towards the closed road gate. I stopped to tell him that it is closed and he responded with, "Well, I got one better than that, I'm about to run out of gas and I don't have any money." His wife or whatever is yelling something to me from the passenger seat but with the loud muffler on the old truck and the guy still talking to me, I can't hear what she's saying. I told him that I would give him money for gas but asked him where the hell as gas station was that was open at this time around here. He pointed to the only road out of the park and said the station was down the road a bit and closed but they leave the pumps on. I told him I would follow him there and pay for gas for him. This was a slight mistake as his truck was pouring diesel fumes out of the obviously disconnected exhaust pipe and damn near asphyxiated us on the short ride to the station. Choking and gagging we made it to the pumps and I pulled up behind him. I headed up to the one next to his truck and pulled out my credit card figuring to give him 20 bucks or so to get him to wherever the hell he thought he was going. He simultaneously jumped out of his cab, with his t-shirt poking out of and tightly zipped up to the top of his zipper on his jeans and says, "my wife only has fifties and hundreds and we don't have a credit card." So I insert my card and he starts pumping fifty dollars worth of diesel, at $4.99 a gallon, (don't buy gas or fuel in national parks if you can help it) into his pickup. This gives me the opportunity to find out where in the hell he is going with a boat in the middle of a snow storm in frigging northwest Wyoming. (This entire experience is turning into one of those, what the hell is going on here moments, but I am doing fine, starting to feel the fun and just waiting for the sunshine in the blizzard) He answers with, of course, an answer that is just as obscured as it should be. He says, "I am going to the ocean."