July 28 Day 44 Images Dubois, WY to Colter Bay Village, WY

Pinnacle Butte, 11,000+


another Divide
we aren't sure if we are atlantic or pacific


the Tetons appearing the haze


prime real estate


an hour of riding, the Tetons still a haze away


a scenic overlook, apparently the haze is the day


Becca celebrates our 3000th mile


celebrating the day with Vance and Steve

July 27 Day 43 Images Lander, WY to Dubois, WY

Day 45, July 29th Colter Bay (Grand Teton), WY to Madison Campground (Yellowstone)

The night passed sans bear attacks... yay! and we were up bright and early with the cold weather. I guess that is just going to be how it is from here on out. Vance was up doing his stretches in his super cool yellow and red warm up suit with gloves and hat to top it off. We were much inspired.

Our other two mates were still slumbering, but we headed on back to the grocery to get some breakfast as it opened, and then take our snacks down to the beach and get our mountain fix.

We loaded up on cheap discounted eats, coffee, yogurt and some other nonsense. To our greatest pleasure, the Tetons were crisp and clear this morning and we spent almost 1.5 hours just taking them in.

Around 9, we decided that alas we must move on, so we hopped on our bikes to get our butts over to Yellowstone. The first part of the ride had its challenges, but we were still enthralled with the mountain/water scape on our left, and then viewing the enormous amount of damage still evident from the 1988 fire. It just amazed us that dead trees, some of which only were a hollow charcoal shell, could stand for 20 years. Amazing.

Our buddy Jay caught up with us just before we entered the Yellowstone, and I don't think we had even gone a mile when we stopped at "Moose Falls" where we lingered, dipping our feet and heads in, and just trying to absorb the beauty. As Andy later noted, these things are so beautiful you just want to be a part of them, and so sometimes engage in slightly dangerous activities you might not otherwise do. We didn't step on a geyser or anything though.

Moving on, we struggled to keep pedaling, between the small shoulders, gorgeous canyons, rivers, lakes, scary RVS and wildlife, it was hard to keep the momentum going. There was also about 5 miles of gravel road construction that was awfully unpleasant, but we might have actually been making better time through there just based on our adrenalin.

We stopped at Grant Village for some overpriced grub, bought another SD card with our camera (thank you Christie!), and I got a flat. So surprising. I took this one hard though, and it was super annoying. There was another Steve (from Oklahoma) at this place. A jovial fellow biking north through the parks and doing it at an awesome pace, like 10 to 30 miles a day, and just enjoying himself. Nice dude. Also there was another motorized bicyclist. We guess we'll take him too.

Getting late in the afternoon, we still had quite a ways to go, and some serious passes to climb. I was kind of upset from the flat (man I am such a girl) and being grumpy, when, we saw a bear! Granted it was pretty far away, but that is probably where it should be, and its wild presence helped get us over those climbs. We passed over the Continental Divide twice, again, and met 7 bikers. The first were a couple from Delaware on a tandem with matching yellow everything, even socks with sandals. We stopped Jeanne and Brian mid-climb, which they seemed to sort of appreciate, but it was awfully hard for them to push off with their tandem and trailer. You can check their progress at http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/teamhanson08.

We also met a group of five guys who all were carrying a musical instrument, from guitar to melodica to shakers. Very cool guys. They are sponsored by Clif Bar and have a van following them, that only carries their clif bars. We were a little disappointed they didn't offer us any, but we liked them just fine anyway. They are also making a movie about the trip, they're doing 7500 miles, or planning that anyway. Check out www.bikingthestates.com.

So that all took some time, and then there were the Cascade Falls, and by the time we got to Old Faithful, it was already 7pm. We split some chunky soup out of a can and a variety of other things as we waited for the eruption. A nice family behind us got us back to a better mood, especially as their daughter tried to figure out how to fit our bikes in their car to drive us the last 16 miles to Madison (we're not lazy, just getting dark and do not want to be eaten by wild animals). Around 8, Old Faithful blew her major steam, and we rushed off, really pushing ourselves that last bit. The terrain coorperated. It was pretty flat from then on and downhill. We were sad to not have time to look at the additional crazy blue and orange sulfur smelling geysers that look like the moon or Mars, but camping beckoned. We hope to return someday.

We made it to camp just as it really got pitch dark, just around 9, having seen another coyote in the middle of the road. We got set up for fairly cheap (for Yellowsonte that is). The cool thing is they have biker/hiker rates for camping. We set up tent, bear bagged or stuff, and went straight to sack.

July 25 Day 42 Images Lamont, WY to Lander, WY

Ellsbeth, just pass the Muddy Gap
her partner Brooke pulled up late


"Elk poop" mountains


Looking out over the Beaver Rim


Wyomings' landscape, looms large and vast
with these interesting diagonal uprises

July 26th Rest Day Images

Main Street Books (and community gathering center)
our saving graces (Jim and Sue, Emma reading on the job)


Landers' locals on a day tandam trip


the amazing city park
our resting spot and yoga studio

Day 44, July 28, Dubois, WY to Colter Bay (Grand Teton NP)

The morning was quite chilly, so we moved fast, wrapped ourselves up in all available clothing, including turban esque headwraps. We swore to invest in some gloves and hats as we took down our tent. We set off for a breakfast at the local diner, resisted all the donuts their, and then headed across the street to grocery store.

On our way out we saw Jay again, who, in his vagabond fashion, had camped about 20 miles back after the wind had also eaten him alive. Together we started our trek over Togwotee pass, another continental divide crossing, and according to our maps about a 25 mile climb. The climb was gentler than we expected, but it still exhausted us, and we were more than thrilled to get to the top, away from the tight curves and teeny shoulders, and into a more Sound of Music view with lots of pastures, colorful wildflowers, and downhill.

Jay really kicks those downhills, but we would eventually catch up. There was lots of construction on the way down and wind to slow us down, which we appreciate, because 40 mi an hour on our bikes just isn't our style. On the way down we met a guy who had come up through the deserts of Idaho on his bike and was most excited to have the wind at his back for getting over the pass.

We took an unexpected ride in a car for 3 miles (disgraceful I know) but the DOT insisted, and so the 3 of us were piloted dangerously in the back of their pickup. We passed the place we had wanted to stop and get some grub, but their was no way we were heading back up that mountain.

When we got dumped, Jay again rushed down the hill, and left us to meander our way down. The very very hazy Teton range began to reveal itself to us, and as we approached we kept taking little gasps. Unfortunately the "towns" also became more resortish and expensive. The place we had lunch was overpriced and we were underfed. Their was only lettuce in my caesar chicken wrap, not good news for a hungry biker, but we eventually got over it, especially when another 8 miles down, we were able to send back 5.5 pounds worth of stuff to my lucky parents.

Feeling lighter we made our way to the park entrance, where we were greeted with a $24 entrance charge. The grumbling over this was soon forgotten as we got closer to our destination and the Teton range began to unfold. What an incredible site. Everyone must go. The end.

The camping was cheap comparatively ($5) for cyclists and hikers and away from the car camping, which was nice. After storing everything that could possibly smell like food in our assigned bear box (except perhaps our mouths), we went in search of food ourselves and some more Teton views. The grocery in Colter Bay proved to be the most resonable, so we had a very eclectic picnic dinner down by Jackson Lake next to the Tetons. We were amazed how small the Tetons actually look sitting on the other side. They also were still quite hazy and almost looked like a ghost range.

After eating, we took a dip in the chilly clear water of the lake, and then laid out on the the beaches' pebbles to dry off and absorb this amazing day where we had reached our 3000 mile mark. Which of course called for ice cream. So after we got chilly enough that we were willing to leave our priceless view, we got coffee and cream from the grocery. We remet Jay there, as well as Vance, a 50 something cyclist, who definitely knew what he was doing.

We offered to share out site with him, so he joined us for our ride back. Then Steve, whom we had met a few days earlier, appeared from the campsite next to ours and invited us to join him around his campfire. Vance and I shared a can of Steve's Miller lite. Vance is a German Lutheran pastor from Minnesota (his wife is Norweigan and everything Garrison Keillor says is true). Jay joined us a short bit later and it was a very very chummy evening. We went to bed quite happy.

July 26th 5th Day of Rest in Lander, WY

Since Andy's cellphone had most likely spent the evening in the movie theater, we decided it would be best to wait till it opened, or till we could find some chap to open it, to set off. So we resigned ourselves to pretty much enjoying a day off, since afternoons tend to be trickier for riding in this climate.

Our first morning stop was the bookstore/coffee shop on Main Street, where we met some super nice people who helped us with our woes, served us good coffee, and let us use their cellphones. Kathy, the owner, whose daughter lives in Portland and son in Manhattan, got us the numbers for the owner of the theater, etc. And Emma, the 20s barista let Andy use her cellphone over and over to make some calls. We also met Jim and Sue Downham. A retired English teacher, Jim gave us the rundown on Lander, giving us the impression that it is the blue dot in a mostly red state. At some point Andy left and regained control of his phone. Hurray! Emma's mom also came in, she writes grants for the NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) which has a headquarters here. She offered her house and laundry facilities to us, which we didn't take, mostly because we were lazy and didn't want to bike the 3 miles out of town. Our loss.

We made our way around town. Ate good food for lunch, explored the various sites, including the gallery that connects to the town's foundry. The mother of the foundry owners, Trudy, a very sweet lady, was babysitting the gallery and showed us around the western oriented bronzes. She gave Andy the manager's name and number and they ended up having a long telephone conversation. Always looking for job opportunities. Apparently, in the future, we may move to Lander, WY. Who knows?

Went back to the park, reset up our tent. Taught Andy a yoga class, where I made him open his mouth really wide and resplit his lip open. Still, he seemed to feel better about it, and I definitely needed the practice. Then we went to eat dinner at Tony's pizza, where our entire conversation consisted of naming euphemisms. We pretty much exhausted the town's restaurants while we stayed their, although I think we missed the Maverick Lounge and the Folklore Cafe.

The winds were picking up back at the park, so we staked everything down, and crashed, with dreams of living in Lander. Ahhh.

Day 43, July 27 Lander, WY to Dubois, WY

The night passed uneventfully. When we rose, we met fellow biker, Jay, a VT architecture student, doing the the TransAm going west solo, and with the least amount of gear of anyone we've met. The kid doesn't even have a tent. He just has a bivvy (sp?) sac for his sleeping bag. He also sometimes rides over a hundred miles a day, on a double. Crazy.

The three of us wandered down to the grocery store, Mr. D's, to get some food for the day and have breakfast. Andy's lip is split open, he's getting a sty in his eye, and his glands are swollen, so we loaded him up on cranberry juice, with supplements of day old pastries, bananas, peaches, breakfast burrito and coffee.

Jay escaped to explore Lander a bit more, and we rode off towards Fort Washakie through the Indian Reservation. Apparently Chief Washakie was a smart fellow and saved the best land for his tribe (the Shoshone I believe) because there was more water on this land than we had seen in many many miles. The houses looked a bit like a shantytown though and some just looked totally abandoned. Their were also several knicknack stores which we refrained from entering.

From their we went to Crowheart, through hot desert, following the Butte River along some pretty interesting rock formations.

If only we had decided to stop at Crowheart and camp behind their gas station. The first 45 miles had taken us a little under 4 hrs, the next 25 miles took us 5 hrs. The Wind River became our guide and it was so aptly named. We though Kansas had wind, but that was nothing compared to this. In almost our lowest gear, occasionally standing up even going downhill, we passed beautiful striped red bluffs, herds of antelope, and happy people driving in cars. We were desperately trying to enjoy ourselves, but we both would have hopped into the back of a pickup truck for the remainder of the ride, if it had been offered.

We stopped once at a fishing inlet on the river to get off the road and soak our feet in the chilly stream. Our toes did not catch anything, but some of the stress seemed to flow outwards. We took a million pictures, because any excuse to stop was welcome.

We did, ultimately make it to Dubois. The Cowboy Cafe seemed like the place to eat as it was absolutely packed. After briefly waiting for a table, we plopped down in our chairs. Another older couple was also waiting for a table, and we offered them to share ours if they wished. They accepted, and our ensuing conversation totally rejuvenated us. Dougald and Virginia, currently of Northern California, had just celebrated their 25th anniversary with all their kids and grandkids (a sort of a Brady Bunch gathering) up in Yellowstone and had a blast. He is a retired biologist, although I don't think you can actually retire from that, and she a retired psychotherapist (which you probably never really retire from either). They gave us the rundown on the NPs and inspired us with their energy and tales. The food at the cafe was also really, really good. A little pricey for our budget, but the maple pecan pork chops and the toffee pecan pie (apparently we wanted pecans) were scrumptious.

Our plan had been to head another 9 miles up to this bicycle hostel, but the thought of getting back into a yelling match with the wind did not appeal, so we shelled out the $22 for the KOA in town, which was more than satisfactory. We were able to do laundry, swim, take showers, and sleep peacefully surrounded by a moat of warrior RVs.

July 23 Day 41 Images Saratoga, WY to Lamont, WY

Sunrise over our camp


Sunrise over Saratoga Lake, upclose
Photos do not do justice


Clint heading east


'nuff said? the sign glittered
Andy loves glitter


Sinclair, WY, the west's most modern refinery
it is the town


Another Continental Divide, hohum, a little anti-climatic


Wyoming begins to open up
over the edge, a high plateau reveals miles upon miles


Mountains on the high plataeu, a slight rainbow on the right
Experience definitely trumps photos


Dinner at Grandma's Cafe
service is better when it's open


our camp at the cafe


Grandma's dog checking on us

Day 42, July 25, Lamont, WY to Lander, WY

The night in Lamont was crazily windy. Considering that we were right up against the cafe, we were very surprised how much we were whipped around. Since we were on the sidewalk, we hadn't been able to stake down the tent, and so the poles scratched the sidewalk in a sort of inhuman way and the tent kept trying to roll over us.

We did get up pretty well rested though, must have been soft concrete, packed up quickly and headed into Grandma's for a breakfast. The place itself had some charm, with round tables and booths piled high with various condiments.

Grandma was not exactly who we expected. She was quiet, perhaps a little gruff, unmakeuped, had a hard time walking, I guess she looked like she had fathered sons who worked the oil rigs and dropped toolboxes on their sons' heads (story from grandson).

Her breakfast was good though and after about 4 cups of coffee and a similar number to her little girls and boys room, we set off at 7 on our 92 mile day towards Lander.

Our first delight was a male antelope eating just beside the road, just before we headed over the continental divide for the 4th time on our trip (less and less exciting each time).

We met two girl cyclists about 15 miles into our trip, Ellsbeth and Brook, who were doing the National Parks cycle tour. They were family childhood friends and seemed to have perhaps had enough close time together on the tour. They gave us some good tips on Lander though and what to expect, or rather not to expect from the places on the way there.

Brook had mentioned some very cool rock formations coming up that looked like "pile up elk poop", we're glad we're not the only ones losing our class, and these were very accurate descriptions, also sort of like drip sand castles. Split Rock was what it was called I think.

We went through Jeffrey City, a ghost town almost, only the bar and cafe was open still. When it was a uranium mining town I guess there were close to 4000 people living there, now just about 50. We had some oj and toast and our own snacks at their business, and set off again into the big open WY, since there wasn't much else to distract us.

At Sweetwater junction (a rest stop 20 miles further) we ran into 3 other bikers, a slightly skiddish LaVerne from Indiana doing the Parks tour also, an Australian smoker named Scott doing the TransAm East, and Steve, a pony-tailed late 40s smoker going west, who called us "monsters" when we said we did 60-90 mi usually. We do not consider ourselves monsters under any circumstances. The fact that anyone does this smoking kills me, or them. Who knows.

A bit refreshed, but still with numb fingers and sore seats, we pushed on to the last 40 miles, of which we were expecting some great downhills. The downhills were great, and the views that went with them, although there were lots of strange tarred ruts in the road that kept throwing our tires as we braked down the 6% grades for 5 miles at a time. But wow, this route was definitely the scenic byway to be on.

But then, there was a flat. Mine of course, but the other tire at least :=/ So grumpily we fixed it as a thunderstorm sort of seemed to be side stepping us. I realized it was still coming for us though, as Andy got my tire back together while I tried to convince him to abandon the project for minute, suit up for rain, and get away from our metal bikes on the other side of the road as lightning approached and we were definitely the tallest things around. When he saw the wall of water coming right for us, he acquiesed and we hopped onto the other side of the road, crouched down a few yards apart from each other and let the storm come. It came with hail that hurt and we quickly put our helmets. We kept our backs to the storm and watched the pelting hail, the surviving sunflowers, and the lightning.

It wasn't too long before it stopped, we got our now mud covered stuff back together and set off for Lander, now 20 miles in our future.

Some good hills, but mostly downhills awaited us, as well as firey red cliffs, streams, antelope, and striped rock forms.

We were still pooped when we got to Lander. We set up camp in their gorgeous city park with super tall trees, lush grass ?, and a creek, headed to the indoor pool for a quick swim and lukewarm showers, and then got us some fantastic grub for dinner. The town was a pretty cool place and we constantly beat around the idea of staying a day.

The movie theater was playing "Wanted" with Jolie, MacAvoy, and Freeman so we indulged our need for pop culture and went in. The movie (super violent, but entertaining) was a pretty big shock to our system and we realized what a cultural gap we will need to bridge when we return to "normalicy."

Riding back to camp in the pitch black, we were up later (11) than we had been in many many weeks, we hung our food, and went to bed.

Not five minutes passed before Andy realized that his phone was not with us and had probably fallen out at the movie. I could not stop laughing.

We got out. Looking vainly around the park in the dark, and then decided to go to bed. Realizing that it would have to be dealt with in the morning and that we were officially out of touch.

(but don't worry- his phone has since been recovered)

July 22 Day 40 Images Walden, CO to Saratoga, WY

Exiting Colorado, beginning "Elk Poop" Mountain forms



Photos simply do not do justice


Becca finally waking up as we enter Wyoming


Becca soaking in the North Platte river
behind her, through the mud is one of the hot springs


Most popular gathering spring to the right in the image
receiving 117 degree water from the spring behind me

Day 41 July 24th Saratoga, WY to Grandma's Cafe, Lamont, WY

We got up early, broke down camp, shook out our wet stuff, made oatmeal and set off for a 75 mile day.

The morning was pretty uneventful, although we did get a biker to stop, Clint, who ended up being the most chatty chap we've met on the trip and had numerous tales of biking adventures and advice that we should take. After pulling away, we stopping in Walcott for a quick OJ break, and then got onto the interstate for 15 miles (not too bad considering the wide shoulder, but still not our favorite experience.) That ended in Sinclair, home of Sinclair gas and the finest oil refinery in the west. What a contraption it was! Just the largest mess of piping I have ever beheld and so fragrant. Andy was afraid to take a close up picture thinking they might come and take our camera away (such a conspiracy theorist). In any case, we pedaled our way through there pretty quick, mailed a Kansas postcard to Andy's bro Dennis (sorry Den), and got off to Rawlins pretty quick. The water we had from our campsite had tasted just digusting, so we were pretty dehydrated by the time we got there.

Not the most majestic of towns, Rawlins has the state penitentary and the gas and some other things, but not a real pretty place. The library was great though and we set up there for an hour (trying to ignore the masochistic teenager who was talking on her cellphone to about 8 different people about her various boy problems, including jail time). Then we got kicked off (although the teenager didn't) and went to eat at the historic Rawlins house buffet (just a dirty stucco house, but the inside was fancy.) Two tiny Asian women were our hosts (not another soul in the joint) and their food, from lo mein to mac n cheese to macaroons, was actually excellent and we filled up.

While we were sitting their the wind picked up quite a bit and when we went outside it picked up even more, throwing sand in our faces and rain, so we ran back to the library, where we parked ourselves for another couple of hours waiting for it to pass and getting our blog stuff done.

When we left, my bike, surprise surprise, had a flat. So we fixed that, and then got a move on to the discount Mennonite grocery store where we stocked up on dry goods for a few days for $8. Sweet. Then we committed ourselves to making it the 33 miles to Lamont where we could camp at Grandma's cafe.

The ride seemed pretty easy with our head and hearts in it and we got breathtaking pictures, saw some antelope (oh we saw a coyote the day before), and made our way into real desert.

Grandma's cafe was the only thing in Lamont, and a real big truck stop.

The pictures are worth a thousand words, but it was just a big oil rig town and all this equipment was piled up, next to trash, dilapadated buildings, the cafe, a house and some trailers.

Grandson came over to us on his ATV as we were cooking our food on some ground up asphalt, and talked our ear off until we went to bed. He was a 14 yr old red headed kid with a flat top buzz and hankering for ATV racing and killing coyotes. We had a lot in common.

We set up camp on the sidwalk (the flatest place) and went to bed.

July 22 Day 39 Images Hot Sulphur Springs to Walden

Rainbow Greenlight and his traveling science/roots/fungi gathering van


Panarama attempt (right side) heading up to Willow Creek Pass


Panarama attempt (left side) heading up to Willow Creek Pass


Second Contintental Divide Crossing, back to the east at 9,600+ ft.
Andy in his weird super hero outfit


Panarama (right side)of North Park County
Ute tribal valley, 30 mile diameter


Panarama (middle)of North Park County
Ute tribal valley, 30 mile diameter


Panarama (left side)of North Park County
Ute tribal valley, 30 mile diameter

Day 40 July 23rd Walden, CO to Saratoga, WY

The night proved to be quite a stormy one. The wind whipped our tent
around and rain came in a little bit under the fly, managing to drench
my cellphone and permanently delete my connection to the outside world
(so please email me your phone number if you haven't already:
ouicollaborative@gmail.com is fine- probably won't get a new phone for
a while). The diaper rash cream seems to be working like a charm for
Andy though andBurts' Bees smells so charming.

So a little more distant, we headed back to the Moose Creek Cafe for a light breakfast of yogurt and fruit. Kiwis in CO? ok.
Then a mile down the road to stock up on some much needed groceries for
the day, since there is nothing before we camp again really.

The
air smells like sage so strongly from the fresh rain, it almost burns
your lungs when you inhale deeply, as we were doing to pass out of the
beautiful Ute valley. The rock formations started to change and become
more bulbous and red as we passed out of CO and into WY. Immediately
there were no more trees, but Wyoming looked so majestic and open, it
invited us right in. About 5 miles into it we were so glad to have a
huge cloud follow us with its shade for a bit. The day started to warm
up quite a bit. We were lucky enough to have a bit of a tailwind and we
were both starting to feel like real people again, so we did the first
50 in less than 5 hours. (Good for us). We stopped briefly in
Riverside, WY, but we were totally digging the wind at our backs, so we
quickly set off again. We were also hoping to get toSaratoga for their hot springs and library pretty quick.

But
as it happens, the winds usually change midday, and so they were in our
face pretty quickly for the afternoon, not too bad though. Great
shoulders and scenery and trying to stop a total of 9 eastbound
travellers to talk (we couldn't get but one to slow down and say hi-
don't know what that was about) kept us distracted enough from the
winds. We rolled down intoSaratoga at about 3pm, but the library was
already closed for the day. Giving us time for other chores, we scooted
ourselves over to the laundry mat and got rid of some much needed
smells and stains.

At the mat, we met a lady (whose name is
written down somewhere) who was super sweet and offered to drive our
bikes back east to upstate NY. Although the locations don't work out
perfectly, we were very touched by the offer. She has a house in
Antwerp, NY that used to belong to her brother who was very sadly
killed in Iraq. She seemed to have at least somewhat made her public
peace with this. This was the first person I had met whose loved one
had been killed there though, and it was quite a sobering moment.

After our clothes had been revived (although they all have funny bleaching marks on them from our camelbaks), we decided it was time to revive our bodies.

The
hot springs were tucked just a few blocks away by the river and free
and very natural. We had been told that the temperature of the water
out of the ground was 117 F. We thought we were pretty tough, but
dipped a toe in and found out otherwise. So we explored the river first
and talked to some nice hairy folks from Alabama who were pretty
knowledgeable on the secrets of the hot springs. The spring dumps and
the river and mixes so it was spotty, but then across and through some
mud was a slightly less intimidatingly hot pool.

Andy was first
to brave the hot spring and returned lobster red and ready for some
cool water. We both eventually made our way there several times (it was
pretty addicting actually- although you have to stay perfectly still or
else it just scorches!) and struck up several conversations with a pair
of very tall LeslieNeilson looking motorcyclists, whose names we never
got, but we'll call Honda and BMW. They had been on a tour up through
the Natl Parks we were heading too and gave us some good rundowns.

Feeling much better, although a bit dehydrated, we showered and headed into town to eat some grub. The Lazy River Cantina
was our pick for the evening. Entertainment was provided in the form of
one of the waitresses having a nervous breakdown and throwing stuff and
we ate salad bar and spaghetti (real food!).

When it was almost dark, we headed the next mile to our campsite. WY is sooo
beautiful when the sun gets low. All the colors in the sky and the soil
just come alive. We were just in awe of the sky. The camping was free
at the park just outside town and right on a gorgeous lake surrounded
by the lowerdeserty mountains. We set up camp quickly as storms were threatening, hanging our food from the swing sets.

A
storm did come, but we were so relaxed from our mineral springs that it
was of very little trouble to us, and slept fine, managing to make for
the latrine in the brief interval between rain, creeping low to not be
tall and lightning rod like.

July 21st Day 38 Images

Morning in our "million dollar view"


Campsite devastated by Pine Beetle, with a "million dollar view"


Dillon Reservoir Panorama attempt, please excuse the super dork


Dillon Reservoir Panorama part 2


Dillon Reservoir Panorama part 3


Yet another picturesque reservoir, congratulations US Army Corps of Engineers


Becca looking strong on her "brat" diet, bananas, rice, applesauce, toast (sans rice)


the treats of traveling, Brian in Kremmling (Bob holding the camera)


Entering Byers Canon, bring on the hot springs