Day 11 (Full Version)

Day 11
Friday, July 5, 2013

0630 Wake up. Rain and thunderstorms all night long.  Looks like Mother Nature wanted her own fireworks for the 4th of July.  It's very wet outside, but inside the tent - all dry!  For breakfast today we are having eggs and miscellaneous side dishes.  The cooler is getting a bit empty but we still need to get ice.

0944 Leaving the campground.  Things are sort of dried out.

0948 Stop at Lewis Falls for a picture.  Lots of people everywhere!  Time to take a poll on how long we will be driving today.
     Ryan - 9 hours including stops
     Bella - 8 hours including stops
     Felisa - 10 hours including stops (but 7 1/2 hours drive time only)
     Ron - 7 hours
     Sheila - 9 hours or less

0956 Felisa killed a mosquito in the car.  No stowaways!!!  (I killed 11 mosquitos back at the campground this morning.  They are everywhere after the rain.)

1002 Moose Falls.  No one at this pull out because you have to actually hike to see the falls rather than the falls earlier that were by the road.

1003 Time for Best Parts of Yellowstone--
     Bella - the lake
     Felisa - Old Faithful and the lake
     Ryan - Old Faithful
     Ron - Norris
     Sheila - seeing all the scenery and animals
     Rocco - the lake and campground walks

1005 Leaving Yellowstone via the South Entrance

1006 A series of roadside signs-
     We saw wildlife
     From afar
     Until we hit them
     With our car
     Slow Down!

1007 Headwaters at Flagg Ranch.  Stop for gas - $4.05/gallon.  Also pick up ice, coffee, and OJ for the road.

1025 Leaving the gas station

1033 Grand Teton Nationl Park and I get a sign picture!  :)

1040 Lizard Creek Campground.  It looks nice - small and remote.

1042 Jackson Lake.  Great view!  There is a flock of geese hanging out together in the water, just chillin'.

1043 2,992 miles so far

1048 Lots of wildflowers blooming right now.

1053 Laundry and shower facilities at the visitor center here.

1117 Leaving the visitors center.  We have a map of the park, water for Rocco, a smashed penny, and a stamp for my passport collection.

1127 Willow Flats overlook

1135 Jackson Lake Dam

1141 Mt.Moran overlook

1155 Jenny Lake overlook

12:18 p.m. Lots of bicycles out on the road today.

12:22 p.m. Stop at the post office in Moose, WY to finally mail Allie's postcard.  The sign inside the post office says "We appreciate you enormoosely!"

12:30 p.m. We have our 3G cell service back.

12:40 p.m. National Elk Refuge

12:44 p.m. National Museum of Wildlife Art - we should definitely stop there next time.

12:47 p.m. Jackson, WY.  Very busy in town.  There is rock climbing at the city park.  A group is riding horses down the ski hill path.  There are cool antler arches downtown and there is a tunnel into the mountain.

1:21 p.m. Lunch to go from Betty Rock.  We stop to eat at Phil Baux park but unfortunately dogs are not allowed so Rocco waits in the car then walks on the sidewalk.

1:47 p.m. Heading out

2:31 p.m. Look - an actual bridge for sale!

3:13 p.m. Pinedale, WY.  This town has a Mountain Man museum.  Sounds interesting for a future visit.

4:12 p.m. Eden, population 220.  Points of interest include Eden Bar and St Christopher's Catholic Church

4:33 p.m. Wild horse scenic tour turnoff.  (Further research reveals that this is an off-grid, serious 4-wheel drive scenic loop.  We survived the ghost town road but the van probably wouldn't make it here!)

4:46 p.m. Arrive in Rock Springs, population 23,000.  Stop for gas ($3.45/gallon) and snacks.  Ron is charging a 7% tax on all snacks which leads to some tough math problems but one of the kids says "Math is fun!"  Post an update on Facebook while we are in civilization.

5:07 p.m. Sonic!  But we're not stopping...  So sad.

5:08 p.m. Starbucks drive thru is very slow.  Probably because it's the only Starbucks for hundreds of miles!

5:15 p.m. Stop at the Chamber of Commerce for campground maps.  Flamingo Gorge is out - too remote.  Instead we are headed for Rawlins on I-80 East.

5:53 p.m. Onion truck with red, white, and yellow onions

6:06 p.m. Cyclist pulling a double-trailer.  Apparently double trailers aren't just for semis!

6:36 p.m. Blog summaries are up to date but I have tired fingers from thumb-typing it all.

6:46 p.m. Oh no! Construction!

7:07 p.m. Checked in at Western Hills Campground.  We're the first tent here but there are tons of RVs.  Ron picked up fried chicken and salad from the grocery store for dinner.

9:15 p.m. A rainstorm is coming so time to head for bed.

10:20 p.m. HUGE STORM!

10:30 p.m. Whew- it's over.  We're alive.  Felisa says that was the longest 10 minutes of her life.  Now that the storm has passed, we need to move the tent to a better windblock and add lots of stakes!

11:35 p.m. Bedtime, take 2.