Story Aunt Gus & Little Bear's Great Adventure Book 1 (Complete)

[Kathy in FL]

Jun 25 – Jul 1: Off to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming (Part3)

June 27th
Another day in Lava Hot Springs KOA. I spent much of it going over the van from top to bottom and fore to aft. I mean I pulled everything out; including beds, linen, and completely emptying the “garage.” Benny got a chance to ride his bike in front of our campsite with an older boy who was watching his little sister at the same time. The kid was twelve but was decent. He seemed relieved that all he had to do was watch because Benny and Abby entertained each other. Abby has Downs Syndrome, very high functioning, but her fine motor skills weren’t great so even though she was eight she and Benny were about the same speed on the bikes.

I noticed the Dad – Mr. Danner – was keeping an eye out as well.

“Thank you,” I told him coming out from under the van.

“Sure. Though I should be thanking you. Abby usually has to play odd man out. Benny is a good kid.”

“Abby is outgoing without being overpowering. The kind of person that Benny does well with.”

He came over and asked, “Mind if I look under the hood? If it wasn’t for the kids, the wife and I would love to downsize.” When he caught me looking, he said, “She’s laying down. She’s a traveling nurse and her case load got ahead of her, and she wore herself out. Again.”

“The entire family travels with her?”

He nodded an affirmative and said, “I’m a retired PA. We used to do it as a team but after Abby was born one of us needed to be with the kids full time.” A little defensively he added, “We homeschool, and the kids are doing fantastic. Our oldest is in college.”

“It’s cool. I was homeschooled as well. When my father died I went to go live with my brother for high school and was also dual enrolled, but I was still homeschooled. My brother essentially told the grief counselor that I was fine and it was none of their business. They basically said that if he wanted to screw me up then fine, there were other kids they could help.” The man chuckled in understanding then stopped smiling when I completed the story. “Then he passed away and now I raise his son and … to be honest I’m hoping I can home school him. I just don’t have a partner to share expenses with so …”

Interested and understanding at the same time he said, “That’s a problem for sure. But it is more doable now than it was when Diane, my wife, and I were in school. Lots of remote career opportunities these days, you just have to have a schedule and be self-motivated … and plenty of internet access.”

I didn’t tell him about the blog. I had kinda over shared as it is. But sometimes you just have to be out there to make any kind of connections. I showed him around the Ark and not long after that Abby needed to take a break as she’d gotten hot. Benny needed to eat so we went our separate ways. Benny admitted having fun but that he was all fun’d out and wanted to play with the Crew after lunch. He’s getting better, or maybe we’ve just gotten lucky the last few social interactions he’s had with kids. Either or, I made a point of saying thank you to DJ (the brother) and telling him I appreciated him spending some time with younger kids. That it set a good example.

I wasn’t blowing smoke at the kid. I had appreciated him doing it and Dad and my grandparents taught me that positive reinforcement is a good thing. They taught me work was a healthy activity as well so after lunch Benny helped me with the van, and I said after that we’d go back to the hot springs.

I disconnected the freshwater tank and got it cleaned out. While that was going on I changed the oil and all the filters. Topped off fluids if they needed it. Cleaned under the hood and around the engine where I’ve been driving and picking up a lot of dust. That was an area the no-water car wash hadn’t reached.

I told Benny, “You are a most excellent helper Little Bear. Gonna have to see about a special dessert or something as a reward.”

“Can we pop some popcorn and have butter and garlic? After we go swimming?”

“Whew, so long as you promise to brush your teeth before bed.”

“All right!”

He is so easy to please. I wonder when that changes?

Just too tired to write much more tonight except to say that was some fantastic pizza crust from the gluten free baker. They deserve the good reviews they have. Plus I’m trying to get to sleep a little earlier than normal, assuming everyone here in the campground cooperates. Lord some people need to put a leash on their kids, or at least duct tape their mouths if they can’t be at least a little considerate. I know Benny can get loud and I’m trying to remind him of that and help him learn better habits, but at least he doesn’t shriek. Gee whiz.

It isn’t Abby or the Danners. There are two families about three RVs down from us and their kids seem to be feeding off each other. I really don’t mean to be cranky, but that noise is getting on my nerves and I want to be in tip top condition for the drive into Grand Teton, not a crabby auntie. Geez and there they go again, and they bounced a ball off the van this time. Okay, my patience is at an end. Time to talk to the parental units.

 

[kyrsyan]

Dagnabit. Cliff is visiting everyone today.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jun 25 – Jul 1: Off to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming (Part 4)

June 28th
Driving Route:

I didn’t have to say a word last night. Not only had they bounced a ball off the Ark, they did it to some other vehicles as well, and then ran in front of a golf car that one of the camp hosts was driving. That’s what really got them in trouble.

One of the dads of the not-so-adorkable crowd tried to get in the face of the Camp Host and I thought there was going to be a fist thrown … and the Camp Host was this wimpy little dude that would have been crushed. Uh no. Not on my watch.

I fast walked over to where they were and backed him up. If you know how to do it it isn’t that hard. I didn’t lay a hand on him, he just wasn’t quite as big and bad as he thought. I’m not quite as bulky as I was when I was in training, but I’m not that much smaller, and I still do good “you’re going to be my beotch if you don’t back it up right the frell now” face. I guess I startled him a bit because when he backed up he nearly tripped and it must have hurt his wee little pride. I was prepared but I didn’t have to do anything because a coule of men were there; they’d run over and had just been a little slower than me. One of them was one of the other dads of that crowd and they all explained that they saw what had happened and what the kids had done.

Quick and fast de-escalation by everyone because no one really wanted any kind of confrtontation, not even the guy who’d bowed up on the Camp Host. He thought he was protecting his kids from bullies, a problem they’ve had in the past, but came to understand that his kids hadn’t been the innocent parties he assumed they were … at least not this time. They guy even made the boy and girl apologize. I kept a good eye on them for a bit to make sure he wasn’t going to take anything out on the kids but count me surprised because when he lost his patience with their whining, he didn’t react the way I expected.

“I don’t want to hear it. You were told what the rules were, you broke ‘em, you live with the consequences. Now get your butts back in bed. You might get away with this at your mother’s house, you ain’t getting away with it with me. And keep pushing me and see if you don’t wind up back in counseling and it ain’t gonna be one of your grandmother’s buddies this time. You’re gonna learn I ain’t playin’ one way or the other. I should have listened to the judge the first time around. And no, you can’t go back to your mother yet either. She said you were going to live with me this entire summer so she could go back to school and do her own thing for a while so don’t think you’ll be playing that game with her either. She’s full up. No more negotiations and blackmail, I’ve had enough so enough with the noise. You lost. If you don’t mind me, you can forget the pool tomorrow. I’m just fine watching you while the other kids get to go.”

Good enough for me and I was more than happy to get my nose out of their business and the area finally settled down for the night. Sounded like Family Dysfunction 101. Part of me felt sorry for the kids and a bigger part of me didn’t. They’re making life harder that it has to be; theirs and other people’s.

This morning I was awake at 4:30 am and we were on the road at 5 am. I wanted to watch the sunrise at the park this morning but it wasn’t happening. Still turned out to be a gorgeous day. It was almost a three-hour drive to get to the park’s southern entrance. Traffic was non-existent for the first little bit so I was able to mentally review and drive at the same time.

One of the first things that I learned when I started researching the national parks is that the number one thing you need to do is plan ahead. In some parks this is particularly important and Grant Teton is one of them. Second thing is … bears. We had black bears in Florida but they were few and far between though there was one cranky specimen that hung around the bend in the river where I lived with Dad. We had to be really careful with garbage and we couldn’t have an outdoor freezer or anything like that. And when I went fishing, unless I wanted my gear tore up, I had to clean and put it away after every use. Well bears are very common in some parks and again, Grand Teton is one of them. And not just black bears but grizzlies as well. We’ll have to pay particular attention to site clean up in camp as well as what trails have seen bears and avoid them.

The reason prior planning is so important is the issue of crowds. But Benny and I have a secret weapon for that. We are both early risers. If you are up and on the trail before 9 am you don’t have any trouble parking. After 4 pm is another time we can utilize. We’ll just have to be careful because the park’s animals are the same way. I don’t want to be the first one to run up on a momma bear or a cranky elk, not with Benny with me.

While we want to get up and going quickly, we must be vigilant to slow down on the roads, even the major highways that run through the park. The crowds use them and so do the animals and sometimes both of them create roadblocks.

I also wanted to get Benny’s Junior Ranger stuff as soon as possible. And I did, when we checked in at the ranger station and got the park newspaper that listed all the ranger-led programs so I could get them in our schedule as soon as possible.

Entering the park, and after a quick stop to check in and get all the park info, we started the 42 Mile Scenic Loop Drive which is otherwise known as the scenic drive along Teton Park Road. It follows the base of the Teton Range between Moose and Jackson Lake Junction. I mean … wow. Wow. Wow!! The views were amazing. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Florida, but it is geographically flat and at sea level. Great for some things, not so great for others. The mountains here just seem to pop up out of the ground and go all the way to Heaven.

I didn’t bother doing the entire road today as we’ll be driving along it our entire time in the park. I detoured to Jenny Lake Road, tracing the eastern shore of Jenny Lake. The route turned us west to put us closer to the mountains. I couldn’t resist the turnouts and Benny and I stopped at most of them for photographs and just to breathe in that mountain air.

We got down to business at Jenny Lake. Place was insanely crowded already but everyone was in a good mood so it was a bit like going to an amusement park, but instead of rides there were mountains and a lake and hiking trails. It was beautiful. It was still morning so everything was nice and cool, so much so that we added a light wind breaker over our t-shirts.

We hiked along the southern edge of the lake. From the boat dock on the other side of the lake the trail begins climbing upward through a beautiful conifer forest and it is still pretty full of people. There were huckleberry patches along this stretch, as was pointed out to Benny by a student docent that was leading another group of people from Jackson Hole, WY. The huckleberries is why the trail is a popular one for bears as well as people.

Soon the trail crossed the Cascade Canyon Creek, and from there it is roughly three-tenths of a mile to the Valley Trail which also serves as the western portion of the loop hike around Jenny Lake.

At just over a half-mile from the boat dock we passed the horse trail leading up from Jenny Lake. A short distance later we reached the short side trail leading to Hidden Falls. Talk about your wow factor. The waterfall was extremely impressive explaining why this part was one of the most popular hikes in the park. Situated near the mouth of Cascade Canyon, Hidden Falls drops roughly one hundred feet in a series of steps. I would not want to fall from the top.

After viewing the waterfall a lot of people turn back to go back to the parking lot or to take a boat ride on the lake, but a fair number of them keep going and we were among them. We returned to the main trail, turned left, and continued on towards Inspiration Point. From the falls the trail climbs along a very rocky and rugged trail. As we neared Inspiration Point we passed over a short section of trail that traverses a fairly steep ledge. This granite-carved segment of trail was built by Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) workers in the 1930s. This is the only section of the trail that bothered me, not for myself but for Benny’s safety. Had we been the only hikers I could have put him on the inside and been fine. However, the trail was crowded like a bottleneck and some of the nutcases were stopping to take pictures and selfies and other silliness. I could have done without their posing.

As we climbed higher I understood the temptation, the views of the "Cathedral Group" towering above the canyon towards the west is nearly indescribable, or at least it is for me. Any words I put down on paper fail miserably. But the middle of a dangerous and crowded section of trail isn’t the place to fool around. This group of mountains collectively known as the “Cathedral Group” includes 12,325-foot Teewinot Mountain, 13,770-foot Grand Teton and 12,928-foot Mt. Owen. Now use your imagination and you still won’t get close to what we viewed, unless you’ve been there yourself.

At 1.1 miles we reached Inspiration Point. Now this is the place to take pictures from. From this vantage point we had outstanding views of Jenny Lake, Jackson Hole, as well as the Gros Ventre Mountains towards the east. A professional photographer who was there was using special lenses because the sun poses problems in the morning. He told us, given I was just using my phone and GoPro to wait until we were on our way back and the pictures would turn out better. I’m glad I took his advice because our photos going were nothing compared to the ones we took on the return trip.

Even more people turned around at this point but still more than a few kept going as the trail continued towards the west. I was grateful the elevation gain became much more gradual as well. It wasn’t the climb that bothered me, but that I didn’t trust other hikers not to create a problem that could impact Benny’s safety. I’m no Helicopter Auntie, we wouldn’t be on this adventure if I was, but doggone some people are stupid foolish and don’t seem to understand (or don’t care) the impact their actions could have on others.

Soon we entered the mouth of Cascade Canyon, and at almost 1.5 miles from the trailhead, we passed the north horse trail junction. Over the course of the first couple of miles the trail passes through numerous huckleberry, thimbleberry and wild raspberry patches. While passing through these areas it's a good idea to make a lot of noise in case there are any bears around, especially near Cascade Canyon Creek where bears may not be able to hear you approaching. While black bears used to be the most common in the area, grizzly bears are now every bit as common. Luckily the crowds on the trail served at least one purpose. No way was anyone accidentally sneaking up on a bear; too much noise. It wasn’t as bad as the halls at training school, but it wasn’t like a church during a funeral either.

As we went further into the canyon it began to narrow, and at roughly 1.9 miles we reached the first in a series of large boulder fields resting along the southern slopes of Storm Point. The first time we saw a pica and a marmot I thought Benny and I both were going to laugh ourselves silly. The pica looked like a round-eared mouse who’d lost his tail to a cat at some point. Or maybe a kind of hamster. Maybe. All I know is they move at roughly the speed of sound and then stop so fast they nearly vibrate. The marmots were much larger and were too busy scolding us. Boy oh boy, it was hard not to imagine what they were probably thinking of all the hoo-mans walking through their territory and disturbing their rest.

Someone said they saw moose near the willow-choked creek but we didn’t; probably the wrong time of day for it. The views of Mt. Owen, the prominent mountain on the south side of the canyon, were freaking awesome. At 12,928 feet Mt. Owen is the second highest mountain in Grand Teton National Park, and is named for William O. Owen, an organizer of the first ascent of Grand Teton in 1898.

At roughly 2.6 miles by my GPS we reached a series of ponds. We saw the neatest birds up there and Benny found out they were called harlequin ducks and common mergansers, types that are common to those shallow waters.

As we proceeded further into the canyon, 11,106-foot Table Mountain and 10,840-foot The Wigwams will came into view towards the west. These two mountains help to form the western boundary of Cascade Canyon. The lay of the land was also considerably more forested starting at that point.

At 5 miles we finally reached the Forks of Cascade Canyon, our end point. I considered continuing beyond the "Forks", either towards Hurricane Pass and Alaska Basin, or up to the North Fork of Cascade Canyon, and eventually on to Lake Solitude. Both had their appeal but since we’d gone five miles and some in, it meant taking five miles and some back out and there were still other areas of the park to see.

We snacked during the entire trail but were both near starving by the time we got back to the van. We did manage to hang on until we could drive to Jackson Lake Lodge where we picnicked on the grounds. Had I not had a surprise planned I fairly certain that Benny would have been happy to simply hang out there with the Crew.

“A surprise? Another hike?!”

I laughed and said, “Easy on my ears Squirt. How about instead of letting our feet haul us around we do it on a boat?”

“A … a boat? Really?! Like the one out there?!”

“I don’t know for sure. Let’s go check it out after we put our gear in the Ark. And … if you want to … you can take the Crew. But they have to stay in you backpack. No cheating and getting out. Someone might get left behind accidentally.”

The boy nearly tripped over himself three times helping to put everything away and then making sure the Crew was firmly secured and understood the rules.

We headed north to Colter Bay Village, a hub for adventure both on and off the water. I had even more plans but I didn’t give them away just yet. As it is we had to check in for our scenic lake cruise. Scenic lake cruises take you on a journey across Jackson Lake. Our guide shared local history and folklore, pointed out the various peaks and glaciers, and taught us about the local wildlife. The water in the lake is mostly made up of 100,000 year old glacier melt, or so said our guide. Trust me, it was cold enough. Brrr.

When we got back to the Lodge we were just in time to see a raptor presentation. Benny was one of only three kids, the other two being babies in backpacks, there and was allowed to get even closer than everyone else. What was funny was when he talked to the hawk and said, “You’re beautiful.” His voice was reverent, but it was the bird sudden preening and showing off that made everyone chuckle and wonder if maybe the bird couldn’t at least understand he was being duly admired.

Right afterwards was a mountain lion presentation. There was even a live mountain lion but everyone was kept far back. I wasn’t real happy when the beastie kept sniffing the air in Benny’s direction but trust that nephew of mine to like it.

“It’s okay Aunt Gus, we just stink good to him. We weren’t wearing smelly stuff, just smelled real and natural, so he thought it was cool.”

“Uh huh. Do tell. I catch you trying to make friends with something that big and cranky and we’re gonna have some words. Got it?”

“Oh I wouldn’t do that Aunt Gus. He’s a wild animal. You don’t play with wild animals. You could hurt them.”

Uh uh. I am not letting the hamster get ahold of the thoughts I was having. Honestly, Benny would personify a rock if he thought the rock had feelings.

We were finished and spent a little time at Colter Bay Village. First at the Visitor Center, we gave a brief look around at the souvenirs, and then did bits and pieces of the trails in the area like the Lakeshore Trail, the Swan Lake & Heron Pond Trails, and the Hermitage Point Trail. They finally had our site cleared out, apparently several someones overstayed their time and it caused a back up for sign-in’s and set-up’s. We weren’t the last one waiting so I gratefully took our site number and headed there.

We are staying the next four nights at the Coulter Bay RV Park with full hook ups. Maybe to some people that’s not camping but once we get into Yellowstone we aren’t going to have those types of amenities. Yes, it is pricey. Even with the discount it is $77/night but the water access alone will be worth it.

We have a back-in site that gives us ten feet to spare. There are also laundry and showers on site for an additional fee. Well, we’ll save the cost of the shower because we have our own and the water spigot hook up makes it lovely. Laundry I am going to save up and do right before we head out to Yellowstone because again, fewer amenities and that includes laundry. A big plus is that complimentary wifi is available at the restaurants, marina, stores, and laundry. The one complaint that I heard … besides the crowds … is that no generators are permitted at all. At any time. Period. We are fine with that because when we need power we use the solar set up that runs on rechargeable batteries, not a generator. The only complaint that I have is that no wood fires are allowed in camp. There were some picnic grills along the lake but that means I likely can’t use the Bio-Lite. I’ll either need to use the stove top in the van’s galley or use the solar oven. That leaves out some of my recipes that I wanted to try, especially the foil packet meals. I’ll save those for Yellowstone I guess (hope) and just figure it out here in Teton. On the other hand, the sites along the lake are only a five to ten minute walk from our site so maybe … bah! … down you blasted hamster! Back to your cage! Back I say!!

Fine, I’m a little loopy. Long day and I will admit I am excited for our activity tomorrow. I just hope my fanny survives.

I’m gonna put things away, set all the photos to upload to the cloud and back up to an external hard drive while I clean up and … [looking over to find Benny asleep and drooling on his Jr. Ranger booklet] … get Little Bear into bed and then call it a night.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Dagnabit. Cliff is visiting everyone today.

Not for long. We are up here at the BOL doing some land clearing. There are a lot more trees coming out than I anticipated. It isn't a bad thing, but I do need to get used to it. A carport will go on in one side of the home lot and on the other a 40x40 metal barn will go up. Back behind the house we are building a gazebo. The money we've been spending on traveling the last couple of years is going into the BOL since this may be the only place we will be traveling to for a while.

One thing at a time, one thing at a time. Though I do wish I could wiggle my nose and have it all done.

 

[ydderf]

if you master the nose wiggle please let the rest off know how it works.

 

[ydderf]

my federal gov't through the transportation safety board has just absolved the two railways of any responsibility for the fire that destroyed my community on June 30. just think it started 5 feet from the tracks but they could find no evidence it was started by a train. Trust me I'm from the government.

 

[9idrr]

Thanks very much for the chapters.

 

[sssarawolf]

Thank you, I got to catch up

 

[CGTech]

my federal gov't through the transportation safety board has just absolved the two railways of any responsibility for the fire that destroyed my community on June 30. just think it started 5 feet from the tracks but they could find no evidence it was started by a train. Trust me I'm from the government.

Heard about this on the way home from work last night. CN has too much pull with the gov to be implicated like that. That was horrifying how fast your village got wiped out...

 

[Sportsman]

Thanks.

 

[nancy98]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jun 25 – Jul 1: Off to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming (Part 5)


June 29th
We were up early as was our usual habit. I don’t know what I did to give it away, but Benny was watching me fix breakfast and then put his hands on his hips and every bit a Barrymore looks at me and says, “Aunt Gus? What are you up to?”

I swear I almost had to sit on the ground to finish laughing. “Oh man. I swear you looked just like your grandfather when you did that.”

“Um …”

“It’s a good thing Squirt. And yes, I am up to something. How would you feel about a horseback ride today?”

It seemed to take a moment for the words I said to reach his brain, like he was having an APD moment. But I wasn’t disappointed when he figured out I wasn’t fooling. “Oh yeah!!!” Then he did his weird Snoopy dance. “Oh yeah. Uh huh. Oh yeah. Uh huh.”

That just made me laugh again. Then I laughed some more when I plated up his breakfast. An egg, bacon, and cheese sandwich on one of the gluten free hamburger buns I’d picked up at the bakery. I love mornings like this. Everything feels so good. I wonder if this is some of what Heaven is like? You just feel good and laugh, laugh again, and laugh some more. There are days when I have to make myself not frown and smiling is just beyond me. But not this morning and it set the tone for the entire day.

“Oh wow,” he said reverently as I put his plate in front of him. I could see the spit forming in the corners of his mouth. He almost forgot to say the blessing before nearly inhaling his food except for the last couple of bites which he seemed to savor.

We had to get going because we needed to be at the Swift Creek corral and signed in before 7:30 am. The business has been owned and operated for over fifty years and the family has a history of eight generations growing up and living in the Tetons. The corrals were only one mile from the park boundary but aren’t associated with the NPS. And they don’t take reservations, it is all first come first serve but they have over 100 horses. Their advertisement said that because of their location we’d have a better opportunity to see wildlife. We were going on a three-hour horseback ride called Elk Horn Bridge Ride. And the ride consisted of creek crossings, forest trails, and views of the Tetons from Kodiak Hill.

Wow. The first bit, before we started, the wranglers took the time to match each rider to a horse best suited to their personality. Benny and I were both put on mares. Benny’s was sweet natured but very capable and sure-footed and she preferred child riders. Mine happened to be the grandmother of Benny’s mount and they often rode close together.

Let me tell you, we cowboy’d up. They did have Benny wear a helmet due to his age but that was no biggie for my boy. He loves him some safety rules. The ride was fun. The views were gorgeous. But I had just as much fun watching Benny as what was going on around me. We definitely made some lifetime memories. One of the wranglers took a photo of us together and it has already been added to Benny’s digital photo frame.

The three hours flew by, and we were back at the corral before we could even get hungry for lunch. Though I will admit, my bum had gone a little numb. Benny and I laughed it off once we waddled to the van and climbed inside.

We were going to have a “walking” lunch today. This one started with a “Walking Taco Salad” all prepped and ready to eat inside an individual size Frito Chip Bag. Lettuce, tomato, frito chips, and taco meat with a little bit of salsa and sour cream to make it interesting. Yum. We also had a walking apple salad where I had used an apple, hollowed it out, diced the apple and mixed it with other ingredients, restuffed the apple, and kept the top of the apple on with toothpicks. Another yum. The hike we were going on left from the Jackson Lodge’s corral area.

Parking wasn’t easy to find but we got a spot and luckily it was sized for the Ark and not for some small flexfuel electric piece of nonsense that a good stiff wind could put a dent in. Those things irritate me for some reason. Or maybe it was the year that Lawrence taught me to drive and then took me passed a wreck of one of those things for effect. It had an effect all right. I still despise those blasted roller skate cars.

Anyway, we parked. grabbed our gear, and got going. Shortly after leaving the parking area, we traveled under the Teton Park Road overpass. During this first section of the hike we were also sharing the path with horses from the concessionaire at Jackson Lake Lodge. Lots of horse poo on the trail as a result. And flies. Did I mention horse poo and flies? At just over one-tenth of a mile we arrived at the junction where the loop around Christian Pond begins and left the poo and flies behind. We took the left fork towards Grand View Point.

At roughly one mile from the trailhead according to my handy dandy GPS we passed an alternative trail to Grand View Point that had a gravel base on the trail. I didn’t want that one, I wanted the one that went through meadows that were supposed to be full of wildflowers this time of year so we stayed straight and it wasn’t long until we were indeed walking through a series of grassy meadows. Yellow balsamroot, Blue lupine, and Red gilia mixed with grasses in clumps. As we began to climb higher, views of Grand Teton, Mt. Moran and the northern Teton Range appeared towards the west.

At 1.4 miles the trail reached a four-way intersection. I’m glad I had read the trail instructions beforehand because the trail sign had been pulled up. It looked like they were doing some trail maintenance and hadn’t finished. The trail leading to the right was part of the Christian Pond Loop. Straight ahead was the northern leg of the Emma Matilda Lake Trail. To continue towards Grand View Point we had to turn left. I reported the trail signs being down when we got back and a ranger left immediately to go check. Hopefully no one got lost because of it.

At roughly 2.3 miles we passed a side trail that led to the Grand View Point parking area off Teton Park Road. Again the directional sign was down but I knew to proceed straight ahead there. Although much of this section of trail traveled through wooded terrain, we had sporadic views of the Tetons, especially the higher our elevation gain went. At roughly 2.7 miles we reached a hillside meadow that offered one of those stunning views of Grand Teton, Mt. Moran and Jackson Lake that you see on all of the postcards and posters.

Just beyond this point the trail entered another wooded area near the top of the hill. On the other side we emerged from the canopy where we got some great views of Emma Matilda Lake and Two Ocean Lake towards the east. And, from this spot Grand View Point was only a quarter-mile away.

Although Grand View Point offers some amazing views of Two Ocean and Emma Matilda Lakes, I liked the small unmarked outcropping just before reaching the highpoint better. There was an outstanding panoramic view of Jackson Lake and the Grand Tetons together.

The entire hike was six miles, but it didn’t feel like it. I think Benny and I are really starting to stretch and grow ourselves as outdoorsmen … outdoors people. You know what I mean. I should have clocked all our hikes since the beginning of our adventure. It might be cool to track how many miles total that we walk or hike. I probably could if I went backwards with my smart watch but to be honest that is too much like the kind of busy work they used to give us in college. Geez. Just nope. It isn’t like we are tracking it for some kind of award. I like to know the length of most hikes, but I don’t need to add up all the miles all the time. I’m doing that enough to track our road mileage and expense and I know I’m still off and more estimating than actually getting it all. That’s all I need to do is set an OCD bomb off in my head and turn everything into a gotta-do chore instead of just trying to enjoy things with Benny.

And speaking of enjoying things, there was going to be a ranger-led activity at the Oxbow Bend Turnout, and it would count for one of Benny’s activities so he could earn his Junior Ranger badge. I knew the parking area would get busy, so I decided to get there early and then fix our dinner while Benny took a little rest with the Crew. I fixed kabobs with the solar oven. I got a lot of attention especially from several males. And then boom.

“Wait … you’re Aunt Gus! Tell me you’re Aunt Gus!”

The guy was about my age and looked like he’d been out in the sun all summer and was brown skinned and bleached blonde. It might have bleached his brain a little as well.

“Uh … okay?”

“Oh Crazy! And there’s Little Bear live and in person!”

The guy with him was a little embarrassed by his enthusiasm. “Sorry. Jace is a little … er … passionate about vanlife.”

“Uh huh. He’s not going to pull something is he? Like a muscle or maybe his brain stem running around like that?”

The guy chuckled. “He’ll wind down in a sec. He’s probably trying to call his sister. She’s totally into your blog. She and her husband are taking next year off, packing the kids into their van they’re renovating, and doing at least some of the national parks. The entire family has food allergies so she’s loving that there are other families out there that have figured out a way to challenge themselves while still addressing special needs.”

“Hey, I learned from people, glad I could pay it all forward.”

I felt more grilled than the kabobs after all their questions. On the other hand, Jace the Cali-Boy is a Raw-Food Vegan and gave me some ideas for how to “cook” without fire.

The first was “chaat” which is basically an Indian (dot not feather) snack type food. Basically it is uncooked food stall type items. It is a common street food. Usually the items are savory but there are a few sweet versions as well. Foods are mixed together to create some harmonious dishes using hydrating liquids, some are almost like vinaigrette, and they meld the flavors of the ingredients. I’m not sure if I would totally consider this a method of cooking but my understanding is that the things that are mixed together form very nutrition-dense meal.

Matt – Jace’s friend – was not a vegan, not even a raw foodie. He managed some of his food needs by using a three-wick candle and a stove ring. He said he could heat a pot of soup in no time flat without there being much of anything to notice. This is skimming the rules a bit in areas where open flames aren’t allowed, but I also put this in my memory banks for future use.

Another interesting method came from this book called “Manifold Destiny” where you use your car to cook your food. Now that I might be willing to try assuming I can figure a way to hold the food in place and not get the engine block covered in mess.

There’s the traditional can o’ sterno (aka “canned heat”) but that’s still an “open flame” type cooking method. And if you can bring water to a boil, or at least get it close, you can cook a fish by recycling a campfood meal pouch. Jace said if I had a dehydrator (which I do) then I could fix many a raw food meal. He gave me enough websites to keep me researching for a long time. Matt also told me about how he sometimes just digs a hole, burns a few charcoals in it and then vents his soup can and allows it to cook in the “pit.”

There has to be other methods out there and I think I’m going to start looking for them and creating my own cookbook that is also an instructable type file. Get enough of them together and maybe, just maybe, I can put my own book out and earn some money that way. “Non-electric Cooking Methods and Recipes for Special Diets” or something like that. Or maybe I’ll just call it Scrooge Food. Short and to the point. I did know this guy that used to cook his food on the pilot light of his gas stove. He lived alone on the river and Grandfather Barry was about the only human he would interact with. Mr. Harpo showed up for Grandfather and Grandma Barry’s funeral but that was the last time I saw him. He let me hug him and gave me a wooden bobber which I’ve used successfully many times since. I should ask Meemo if she knows what happened to the old man.

Finally the ranger showed up, and Jace blew our cover. I mean I haven’t been “hiding” on purpose or not on purpose, but I just keep things private for Benny’s sake. The ranger came over and asked if Jace was crazy or if we were really who he said we were. She didn’t say it like that, but you could tell she was hesitant to take his word on it.

Trying to stay polite and not chucking Jace the Bigmouth Cali-Boy into the river tested me, but I pulled it off well enough that the ranger smiled brightly as did Jace and his friend Matt, though Matt probably suspected because I saw him thump Jace and tell him to cool it.

The hike we went on to the Oxbow Bend area was short, maybe about a mile, but since there was a decent sized group doing it, it took an hour. It was sunset and the ranger explained what an oxbow was and how it formed all with the backdrop of the Teton Range perfectly reflected in the Snake River.

An oxbow is a crescent-shaped section of river lying alongside a flowing, winding river. The oxbow is created over time as erosion and deposits of soil change the river's course.

The skeeters came out right as we got back to the van so the fact that I had forgotten bug spray wasn’t a total failure on my part. I need to put some repellent back in my backpack. In a few places the horse flies can be brutal. I got a bite on the back of my calf even wearing scout socks that are knee length.

We made it back to camp and Benny was already yawning again. I told him he could build a tent if the Crew agreed to settle down for the evening and give me some time to organize my thoughts.

“Are they good thoughts?” Benny asked.

“They aren’t bad thoughts,” I answered. “I just want to put some of them in print so I can go over them again another time.”

I think he just needed assurance there were no problems I was hiding from him, and he quickly fell asleep. And now that I’ve gotten my thoughts organized and received the permit I requested earlier in the day, I believe I am off to bed myself. I hope that Benny enjoys tomorrow, I know I will.

 

[9idrr]

Thanks for the morning treat.

 

[kyrsyan]

I almost didn't come look. I'm glad I did.

 

[sssarawolf]

Thank you kind lady.

 

[CGTech]

Thank you!

 

[Sportsman]

Thank you. Nice that there's not been any drama for them lately. But, I know that won't hold long.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jun 25 – Jul 1: Off to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming (Part 6)

June 30th
Sunrise was glorious. Nice and quiet and it gave me time to get my head on straight for the day. Benny climbed up in my lap, big boy that he is turning into, and we watched the sun come up together.

The one cloud on the horizon was that the sky looked a little less than thrilled to greet the morning. That was a potential pinch of the activity I had planned for later, but I put the worry aside – the permit was for two days so if we didn’t use it today there was always tomorrow. I fixed us breakfast burritos and even let Benny make his egg with a recycled Ziploc bag suspended in boiling water. That was a trick that Lawrence had taught me from his Boy Scout days.

As soon as we cleaned up from breakfast, we were on our way to Menor’s Ferry Historic District for our first hike of the day, though it was only 0.4 miles roundtrip. The Menor's Ferry Historic District is located roughly two-tenths of a mile north of the Moose Entrance on Teton Park Road. After turning off the main road, we drove another seven-tenths of a mile to reach the parking area for Menor’s Ferry. The short walk began from the east end of the parking area.

This was interesting park history and I included it in Benny’s portfolio. Also, given the winters this area suffers through, I was having a hard time imagining how they did it with what they had during that time period. A man by the name of William D. Menor came to Jackson Hole and set-up his homestead beside the Snake River in 1894. In addition to his cabin and general store, he built a ferry that became an important crossing point for the early settlers in the Jackson Hole valley.

On the self-guided trail we visited Menor's cabin, general store, ferry, and the transportation shed that houses a collection of wagons and coaches from the homesteading era. The site also includes Maud Noble's cabin.

The first building on the tour was Bill Menor's cabin and general store. Menor built the west wing of his original homestead cabin in 1894, and then added the central wing during the following year. In 1905 he added the east wing, which would become his general store. You can go inside to see period furniture in the home and general store. I’m a minimalist by nature but I can see how some creature comforts make life more bearable even if they are mostly useless. Sure is better than looking at four gray walls and one cookstove when you are stuck and alone during a blizzard.

The Menor Cabin also played another minor part in history when it became the point of departure for the first ascent of Grand Teton on August 11, 1898. Given that it was the only thing for miles around it was as good a starting point as any. The general store wasn’t even built yet.

Speaking of, next to the general store is an old storehouse and root cellar. Just beyond the cabin and general store is Menor's Ferry itself, which was also built in 1894. Menor operated the ferry until 1918 before selling to a woman named Maud Noble who continued operations until a steel truss bridge was built over the Snake River at Moose in 1927.

I found the ferry very interesting as a mode of transportation. It is basically a pontoon of two floats connected by a platform. We learned that this type of vessel is known as a "reaction ferry," which has a design that dates to ancient times. The ferry would use the force of the river to propel the pontoon along a thick rope or metal cable stretched across the river. The cable had to be checked frequently to make sure it didn’t break in the middle of a ferry run. The platform had sufficient room for a wagon and four-horse team though I gotta admit it doesn’t look all that sturdy. Menor charged 50 cents for a wagon and team, 25 cents for a horse and rider, but was free for pedestrians if a wagon was crossing. They have a replica of the system on display these days that gives you a good idea of how it worked. If the river was running rough or had too much ice in it the ferry would close and travelers would have to wait until conditions corrected.

From the ferry the trail swings to the south and heads towards the transportation shed which has been turned into a type of outdoor museum. There were wagons and coaches from the homestead era, as well as other early methods of transportation.

Beyond the shed is the final stop, the Maud Noble cabin. Noble purchased the homestead property from Menor in 1918, the same year she purchased the ferry business. In that same year she moved her cabin from the east side of Cottonwood Creek to its current location. A few years later the cabin would become the site for an historical meeting that would eventually lead to the creation of Grand Teton National Park. Cool huh?

On July 26, 1923, Maud Noble hosted a meeting with Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Horace Albright, and a small group of local businessmen and ranchers. Concerned with commercial development in the area, the group developed a plan for a wealthy individual to purchase private land that would then be donated to the federal government in order to preserve it. Albright would eventually convince John D. Rockefeller, Jr. to form the Snake River Land Company, which began purchasing land from ranchers in 1927.

Rockefeller also purchased the Noble property in 1929. He restored the structures and the ferry and donated the entire property to the National Park Service in 1953. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969.

Also at the Menors Ferry Historic District site, but not on the walking path, is the Chapel of the Transfiguration. This log chapel was built on land donated by Maud Noble in 1925. At first glance I thought, “Wow, what a cute old log cabin church.” Then I went inside and figured out what the wow factor of this place really is. The chapel was sited and built to frame a view of the Cathedral Group (Grand Teton, Mt. Owen and Teewinot Mountain) in a large window behind the altar. When someone is giving a sermon, the Creator’s power and imagination is framed right behind them to put a point on the exclamation.

Now as if that isn’t enough here is the rest of the story, or at least more of the story. The chapel was featured in the 1963 movie Spencer’s Mountain that had been filmed in Jackson Hole. The movie is practically ancient these days, but I’d actually heard of it because of Grandmother Barry who was very particular about what I was allowed to watch and see when they were taking care of me. It starred Henry Fonda and Maureen O’Hara and became the basis for a popular TV series called The Waltons. I also know what The Waltons is because it was one of the few that Grandma Barry considered appropriate. “Goodnight John Boy!” Wasn’t a bad show, just it was a little difficult for me to understand their family dynamics since it was so different from mine.

Our next trail was also in Moose Junction and was also short. Schwabacher Landing Trail is 1.3 miles roundtrip. The road to get to the trailhead was a little rough but the Ark handled it without a problem. The same couldn’t be said of another car that looked like, if it wasn’t a broken axle it was something pretty close, and had been abandoned along the side of the road in the recent past.

From the parking area the trail follows beaver ponds created along a braid of the Snake River. The trail traverses the boundary between wooded and wetland areas towards the west, and sagebrush flats towards the east. The entire area is very photogenic, especially when the water acts as a reflective surface.

After walking two-tenths of a mile from the trailhead we passed a large beaver dam. At roughly four-tenths of a mile the wide, well-worn path comes to an end and a narrow backcountry trail continues northward for another quarter mile through the sagebrush. At roughly two-thirds of a mile the trail begins to fade into the sagebrush flat marking the end of the hike. I would have preferred a sign that said, “Stop. Turn around or the bears’ll get you.” Well maybe not the bear thing but certainly a definitive stop rather than having to guess where the best spot to turn around was.

The entire hike passes through what the park newspaper called excellent wildlife habitat. I have to agree. We saw moose, elk, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, coyote and bald eagles, as well as a bunch of waterfowl.

From there we got in the van and headed to the Jackson Lodge area. Benny still had no clue and I was having a hard time not acting excited. His first hint that something was different was when I said that we needed to get over to the Pioneer Grill and pick up our boxed lunch.

“Aunt Gus?”

I snickered but just said, “Hey, I’m allowed a day off from cooking.”

“You cooked breakfast.”

“Well, you helped.”

He was still giving me the eye and then when we got back to the van and I got out the ladder and started taking the kayak down I thought he was going to wiggle out of his shoes. That’s when I explained that I got a permit to go kayaking on Jackson Lake.

We didn’t have to rent kayaks because we had the tandem kayak, but we did need a permit which I’d gotten the preceding day. I had organized our water gear into a single dry bag while we were in Lava Hot Springs and all I had to do was reach into the “garage” and grab it out.

I walked the kayak to the Signal Mountain boat ramp … just in time to run into a kayak tour group doing the same thing. It caused a bit of a back up but I had Benny listen to their guides for some additional lessons.

Grand Teton National Park is Grizzly country. We need to minimize our risk of conflicts with bears and keep any smelly stuff in a bear-proof container. This isn’t just about toiletries, but insect repellent and fishing tackle as well. My waterproof/breathable jacket and pants, a life jacket and spray skirt fit with no problem. I was glad that I’d gotten a size larger for Benny because he was obviously already growing into the ones we’d picked up in Glen Canyon.

I asked one of their guides if they minded if we entered while they were still teaching their people how to. Benny and I are practiced and we didn’t even splash.

“Well done!”

“Thanks,” I said with a smile eager to get going. I made sure that Benny was comfortable and that we were both secure and then away we went. There is nothing quite like the push, pull, and drag of a paddle while you are kayaking. It is both zen but at the same time you have to be completely in the zone of being situationally aware. I could feel my body aligning and stretching and more importantly could feel my brain aligning and stretching.

We paddled across Jackson Lake toward Donoho Point. The views from the water are incomparable. Occasionally we would hear guides from other groups giving an overview of Jackson Lake and the Teton Range. This included information about geology, wildlife and the mountaineering and skiing history of the range mixed in with some tall tales. If Benny seemed interested I would hang nearby. If he’d had enough I would keep paddling.

Summer days are long at 44 degrees North. We were able to stay out on the water a long time seeing lots of animals and watching fishermen bring in their dinner … or lose it and have the beginning of a good fisherman’s tale. Eventually though all things must come to an end and we paddled back to the Signal Mountain boat ramp enjoying views of the Gros Ventre and Absaroka Mountains.

Benny and I were both hungry and tried – in a good way – and the boxed lunch seemed a long time ago. I did not plan on being so tired, but we were also on the water longer than I expected. I didn’t lose track of time, we were just enjoying it too much to stop. As a result, dinner was not what you would call haute cuisine. I used some of our canned soups – the ones I knew Benny can eat – and then made cornmeal flapjacks instead of crackers to eat it with.

We were back in camp and eating as darkness fell. We both practiced our listening skills by enjoying the natural sounds of camp. Everyone must have had a hard day because a lot of camps were already asleep, or as quiet as if they were. The stars were incredible as they came out in the near perfect darkness.

I was talking to Benny and turned to find that he’d fallen asleep with his head on the picnic area. Being on the water has always done that to him. I didn’t wake him but carried him into the van. He was already in his camp shoes so all I had to do was pull off the crocs and roll him into bed. I made sure the Crew were in their pack and nearby in case he woke up looking for them.

The trick of keeping Benny asleep is not being too quiet. He didn’t even budge while I cleaned up dinner, cleaned up me, and then climbed up into the platform bed and wrote this entry. It is a little late, but I just hate for the day to end. Still, there is tomorrow though it is our last day in Teton. Day after that we head out to Yellowstone.

 

[9idrr]

Gosh, another one for me to read in the morning. I could get used to this, Ma'am.

 

[beaglemama]

Thanks, Kathy!

 

[nancy98]

Thanks again Kathy. You never let us down.

 

[sssarawolf]

Thank you very much.

 

[ydderf]

Thanks Kathy
.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jun 25 – Jul 1: Off to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming (Part 6)

July 1st
I am hacked … or was hacked. Depends on your grammar and how literal you are. Or at least they tried to hack me which is much the same thing when even a hint of a possibility of it happening means you have to go in and change all of your passwords, security codes and security questions, resubmit your latest identity papers, etc etc. Even the cryptobank got hit. I didn’t lose anything in the estate, but it was locked until I managed to get a call through and provide them all the damn … sorry, no bad habits I have to break myself of for Benny’s sake … dang security question answers and re-send the docs and all of the other rigamarole that required over an hour. Whew.

Day didn’t start that way though so I guess I’ll tell it in order and add an extra layer of gorilla tape on the hamster’s cage to keep it from running amok.

The morning was beautiful. Cool with just enough breeze to keep the air crisp but not cold. Can’t believe it given it is the first of July. It would be a sauna 24/7 unless you were right at the waters edge on the river back home.

Since dinner last night was crap, I wanted breakfast to be special for our last day in Grand Teton. I fixed something I learned to cook when we were transitioning from a gluten diet to gluten-free. Caramelized Banana Oatmeal. Yum. No way can you feel deprived eating this stuff. Fix your favorite plain oatmeal in any style from steel cut to instant. I have to use gluten-free oats but it doesn’t matter. Just make them the consistency that you choose. From there it takes about five minutes to cook the bananas and I had a couple this morning that needed to be used before they got overripe. Put your oatmeal in a bowl, top with the cooked bananas, sprinkle a few pecans on top of that and … yummmmmmm.

Our primary hike I had planned for the day was Signal Mountain. It was nearly 7 miles roundtrip from Jackson Lodge parking area. Since it was a popular one I wanted to start early to avoid most of the crowds. To reach the trailhead from the parking area we walked westbound along the road and found it located almost directly across from the employee housing area.

You can drive a vehicle along the paved road to the top of Signal Mountain, but I found taking the hiking trail far more rewarding.

Although the trail doesn't go all the way to the summit of the 7720-foot mountain, it does offer freakin’ outstanding panoramic views of the Grand Tetons, Jackson Lake and the Snake River from a vantage point known as Jackson Point Overlook. Once you get on to the main trail, it makes a relatively steep climb up to Signal Mountain Road, and crosses over it at almost the half-mile mark from the parking area.

A short distance beyond the road the trail passes a pleasant lily pond. No flowers on the lily pads but we did see a couple of moose – my hamster tried to psych me out on the plural of moose being meece – which I avoided rather than risk irritating and having them chase us down.

Although the early portions of the hike are under the canopy of a conifer forest, we had an excellent view of Mt. Moran at roughly two-thirds of a mile. At just over seven-tenths of a mile we arrived at a fork in the trail which marks the beginning of the short loop portion of the hike. We took the right fork (Lake Trail) on the way up, and then return on the opposite side on your way back down. I’d read the hint on the All-Trails website because it gives you great views of the Grand Tetons while descending along the north side of the loop (Ridge Trail) on your return trip. Although the southern half of the loop is more wooded, it does visit a pleasant lake along the way.

As the southern loop meandered past the small lake, we saw moose, moose poop, bear poop, mule deer, deer poop, ducks, and plenty of duck poop. Notice we saw no bears. I think we heard one however and that was good enough for me. The dang thing sounded big enough as it crashed through some underbrush on the other side of the lake.

This portion of the trail was relatively flat. Duh. Lake, so obviously. I’ve never seen a lake surface sitting at an angle. On our return trip the northern loop had a few more ups and downs. The terrain along this section of trail became open, and passes through a fairly large sagebrush meadow that offers sweeping views of the Grand Tetons. Other posters on All-Trails wrong to be prepared to stop and smell the flowers. I don’t know if they smelled – a couple made me sneeze – but both loops of the trail had a plethora of wildflowers.

At almost 2.2 miles we reached the upper junction, ending the loop portion of the hike on the way up. From this point forward the trail resumed a moderately steep climb – or so claimed my calves - while alternating between lodgepole pine forest and grassy meadows. At roughly 3.5 miles we finally reached Jackson Point Overlook. Wow, the views are coffee table artbook worthy. We also saw some large birds of prey, such as golden eagles and red-tailed hawks, gliding on the warm thermals.

I thought that the name for Jackson Point Overlook came from the views of Jackson Lake and Jackson Hole from the vantage point. Nope. According to a sign-thingie it's actually named after William Henry Jackson. As part of the 1871 Hayden Geological Survey expedition, William Henry Jackson took the first photographs of the Grand Tetons from the west side of the range. During the 1878 Hayden Geological Survey, Jackson took the first photos from Jackson Hole, including the first photos from this spot that now bears his name.

And there’s more mountain stories for this hike. Here’s one. The mountain itself received its name as a result of a suspicious death. John Dudley Sargent, along with his partner, Robert Ray Hamilton, a great-grandson of Alexander Hamilton, ran the nearby Merymere Lodge which overlooked Jackson Lake. In August of 1890 Hamilton went missing during a hunting trip. Search parties were organized with instructions to light a "signal" fire atop the mountain when he was found. A week later his body was found floating in the Snake River. Speculation swirled as to whether he was murdered by his business partner, who was also suspected of murdering his wife several years later.

I was feeling frisky and fine when we got back to the van and was telling Benny he could have some free time in camp while I did our laundry before Yellowstone if he wanted to. He’s as excited as I am about going to Yellowstone and seeing all the weird stuff there so it wasn’t a chore to get him to cooperated. It all went as planned and I was leaning against the washing machine while Benny had the crew out in the abandoned laundromat area washing spots as he found them when I thought, “Heck, got the free wifi, so why not use it and kill two birds with one stone. Dirty clothes and adulting tasks.”

And that’s when things started going downhill. As soon as I opened my emails there were all these bold red titles saying I need to contact such and so asap; banks, cards, etc. Emergency, Emergency, Emergency. Well frack. I pay a service to make sure this doesn’t happen. And they’ve helped take care of notifying all of my financial institutions, websites, etc ad nauseum. Seems someone tried to get into my information through them. They wanted to know if I’d given my sign in to anyone.

“Of course not. What kind of lame brain do you take me for? Not to mention I actually read the contract you make customers sign saying if we do that it absolves you of any responsibility.”

The guy was surprised into silence at first and then handed me off to the next level up person.”

For whatever reason I was sent three more levels up before I started getting information. Whoever had stolen my identify the first time around likely tried to do it again to gain access to the cryptobank account. They misspelled my middle name … Sumer instead of Summer … which is what set off all the alarms. And bang, just like that, I knew who did it and sic’d the company on them. Mizzou. She can’t spell worth a crap and I know for a fact she spells “summer” as “sumer” because she had used my name some order some stuff with the credit card that Groucho had given me to get cleaning and repair supplies while I was living there and fixing the place up.

I explained how I was sure who it was, had them pull up all the documentation and police reports from the stolen identity stuff, and then told them about a week ago her ex was cutting her off and moving away and it might have precipitated some potential revenge since I’d given the ex and his new wife the info and yada yada hillbilly soap opera.

Everything is all fixed but I’m going to have to be even more careful because a case manager is going to be assigned to my case and anything that is out of the ordinary is going to get flagged. I had to go over all of the payments I make online and my schedule so that they wouldn’t accidentally be overzealous. Uh huh. The real problem is that for the next two to three weeks they want me to do all payments manually and to only use any of my cards if there is an emergency, not just for casual purchases.

I am very lucky they have an ATM machine at Jackson Lodge. While the identity protection company was on the phone with me, they walked me through liquidating some crypto, sending to a special account they held, and then having it put on an EBT card which the stupid ATM spit out. They also said that, despite it being old-school, I should consider getting cash and holding it. I didn’t tell them that I have cash in the Ark as well as my wallet. What I did do was have them note that I was taking my cash limit out of the ATM today and then will do the same thing tomorrow morning before heading to Yellowstone.

My hamster started running like a speed demon somewhere in there and it wasn’t easy to stay calm. The only bright spot in all of this is that Benny’s accounts are rock solid and I got an investment counselor that said he would look everything over, that he is sure that there is a way to increase our interest income and get us some potential tax savings at the same time.

I thought I had everything figured out, the guy that is going to be keeping an eye on things made me feel a little foolish though I don’t think he was doing it intentionally. I think some of it is my age, on their end and on mine. I thought those boneheads would have given up by now but apparently not. They are either just that stupid or just that desperate … or both.

After I got everything straight, or as straight as I could I called and left a message for Stella.

Hey Lady, I know it is late so you don’t have to call me back. For all I know you are in transit between Key West and Lake City. Just giving you a heads up. I gave her a brief rundown of the attempt to hack my accounts and why I think it has to do with Mizzou. So, whatever you did, assuming you did, lit someone’s tail feathers. Y’all watch out. Tomorrow Benny and I are heading into Yellowstone and our connection to the outside world will be slim to none on occasion. Stay safe!

If I’d had something planned this afternoon it wouldn’t have happened. As it is I’ve got an entire load of socks hanging from a rope down the middle of the van. Benny thinks it is hilarious. Ha ha. Stuff your face with popcorn little boy. And no, I’m not angry at him, just stressed. This didn’t have to happen. Why do people have to be stupid? Worse, I’m angry with nothing and no one to take it out on. I can’t even get out and exercise with a good run because I won’t just lock Benny in the van and go. There’s real world reasons why I don’t trust people. And all those asshats – Mizzou and her friends – are just reinforcing it.

Look on the Brightside Gus, or try to. Benny’s accounts weren’t part of this. For the win and now I’ve got them double locked down. None of my accounts actually lost anything either, they never made it through the security … but they could have and that’s what twists my guts the most.

Grandfather Barry used to say, if you don’t hold it you don’t own it. He still had bank accounts and retirement accounts and stuff but he also had what he said was his “safety net” that he kept at the River House. Or said he did. Neither Uncle Daniel nor Dad ever found it. I tried to ask Dad if they had looked in the safe that Grandfather had set in concrete in the wall behind where he did a bit of work for friends on boat engines. I don’t think I was making much sense because I was stone cold messed up there for a while. A few weeks later I remembered to ask Dad again but he didn’t know what I was talking about, that everything had been set up with Judge Phelps. Or maybe Grandma Barry moved it like she moved Grandfather’s medals so they could be put on his dress uniform to be buried in. I asked Lawrence about it one time and he had no clue what I was talking about either. So who knows but the memories have given me something to think about.

What if all of it suddenly goes away. Dad’s estate and Lawrence’s. How do I have enough money to last Benny and I until I can figure something out? I think I’m going to start taking small amounts of cash out here and there and adding it to what I already have in one of those floor safes that Groucho installed. The van may not be the safest place for that but it is all we have at the moment.

This was a close call today and it puts me in a bit of a lurch for Yellowstone. Fuel will be the biggest challenge though I hope they’ll take the EBT card at the fuel stations for that. But I gotta say, I am really glad we did all of that shopping on our way to Lava Hot Springs. In hindsight that was providential rather than just being silly.

I also will have to watch how much I’m spending on “extras” and “surprises.” I’ve already got all of the reservations taken care of for Yellowstone and all the way through Glacier National Park which takes us into the very beginning of August. Surely by then everything will be smoothed out. Either way I need to be looking ahead and remembering all of this comes to an end and I need to be saving money, being frugal.

And I’m going to get my frugal butt to bed. I’m not letting Mizzou interfere with Benny and I and our lives. She’s done enough of that, no more.

Cumulative Fuel Expense: $3958
Cumulative Accommodation Expense: $2073
Cumulative miles: 9198

Resources:
Lava Hot Springs Hot Pools, Swimming Pool & Water Park - Idaho Hot Springs
Lava Hot Springs, Idaho Campground | Lava Hot Springs East KOA Holiday
Brochures - Grand Teton National Park (U.S. National Park Service)
Virtual tours: Virtual Explorers - Grand Teton National Park (U.S. National Park Service)
Three wick stove: Cooking With Three Candle Flames
How To Cook Fish Without A Fire
Caramelized Banana Oatmeal - Dirty Gourmet

 

[nancy98]

Me thinks we are being lead down the path to a poop storm soon to happen. Thanks Kathy.

 

[Siskiyoumom]

Thank you!

 

[9idrr]

At least when she has to deal with an ID thief it's a dumb one.

 

[Sportsman]

Ok, that much drama I can handle. It does make me wonder what's coming down the road.
Thank you.

 

[sssarawolf]

Thank you.

 

[ydderf]

Thank you Kathy

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jul 2 – 19: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (Part 1)


Weather: 60F/33F
Driving Route:

Brr freaking brr. Where did summer go?! They say that it is going to warm up and I sure hope so. The high today was only 60F degrees. It was almost to freezing tonight.

Oh, and I found something nifty out. There is limited cell service, so we aren’t completely cut off and the booster definitely makes a difference. There are cell towers at Mammoth Hot Springs, West Yellowstone, Old Faithful, Grant Village, Lake Village, and Mount Washburn that provide service in most of the developed areas and to the North and West entrances. Texting is the most reliable, but if you do it late at night or early, early in the morning you can send and receive calls and use a little data as well. Which is what I’m going.

During the day the number of users can overwhelm cellular circuits. There is also a limited amount of free wifi available at the Albright Visitor Center in Mammoth Hot Springs that can be overwhelmed by too many users which is a problem this time of year as I understand it. We won’t be going there yet but at least it is an option if I need it. However, I also have access to the satellite phone that Groucho insisted I get, but minutes are very expensive and I only have a limited number of them before having to buy more. And with the finances locked up, that isn’t happening right now. But in an emergency, it is another bolt in the quiver. The ranger said sat phones are a fairly reliable means of communication in Yellowstone except when the satellites are not in a position to transmit.

I’m also not going to freak out quite so much about fuel either. Service stations can be found at Canyon Village, Fishing Bridge, Grant Village, Mammoth Hot Springs, Old Faithful, and Tower Junction. All service stations offer 24-hour, year-round credit card fueling. And they do take the EBT card. I checked by trying it out today.

If I get really hard up and have to go ancient snail mail, there are Post Offices at Canyon Village, Grant Village, Lake Village, Mammoth Hot Springs, and Old Faithful and you can pick USPS. Yellowstone even has multiple general stores with a wide range of good available: groceries, souvenirs, camping and hiking gear, and apparel and all sorts of yada yada. They also have restaurants and ice cream counters. General stores are located in Canyon, Fishing Bridge, Grant Village, Lake Village, Mammoth Hot Springs, Old Faithful (Lower and Upper), and Tower.

And the best thing and why they’ve really beefed up the cell service throughout most of the park is the Yellowstone App that gives you live updates on the status of lodges, campgrounds, road and traffic conditions, and geyser predictions. It also features downloadable interactive maps and interpretive stories that can be used on hikes and self-guided audio tours to use in the park even when offline. And the app is GPS capable which means you can see where you are located within the park, find what is nearby, and all sorts of safety bulletins.

There are lots of tools for this national park to hopefully make our experience a good one despite the number of people we are going to be sharing the park with. Nearly 300,000 people use the South Entrance alone in the month of July. That doesn’t include all the other entrances. It wasn’t bad today, or not as bad as I was expecting.

I’m going to try and keep my worry – and if I’m honest anger – about the near-hacking of our financials under control. I caught myself multiple times during the day thinking it to death and wanting some kind of revenge. The problem is that while I think Mizzou and her idiot friends are who did it, I can’t say with absolute certainty that is what happened. What if they sold the info they had to someone and they just replicated the misspelling of my middle name? What if someone hacked them and then info got transferred that way? I need to keep it under control. I did get an email from the identity protection company asking me to confirm, in writing, that if they caught the perpetrators that I agreed to prosecute regardless of who it turned out to be. I am committed to it. Please don’t let it be some stupid kid or some cancer-riddled grandma that was desperate because she is the sole breadwinner for her family. Gah! There I go again, worrying at it. Don’t activate the hamster Gus, there’s not a dang thing you can do about it right now. Focus on something else for now.

July 2nd – West Thumb, Grant, and the South
Driving Route:

I figured all the above during this, our first day in Yellowstone National Park. There. Are. No. Words. I mean I’m trying, but just wow. Dad and I used to dream of doing some of the stuff that Benny and I are doing, and Yellowstone was real near the top of the list.

The South Entrance to the park is not open year round, but it is open this time of year. Or it is open, it just wasn’t manned and opened when we were getting into the park. Lucky for us they have one of those AI card readers.

In a freaky-friendly non-gender voice the box I keyed my entry number in said, “How do you do Gold Star Family Barrymore. Welcome to Yellowstone National Park. Please pull forward and proceed when Barrier Gate 3 opens. Your packet will be ready and waiting for pick up when you sign in at Grant Village. Please note for security reasons your Gold Star Family number has been changed. New IDs will be in your envelope. You will need to present two forms of picture ID as well as your entry number to receive your packet. Please have it ready for the concessionaire before reaching the window.”

Ew. Weird. And dang. I hadn’t considered our Gold Star IDs would have been compromised, but as soon as the thought hit, I remembered that the Identity Protection Firm said they’d be checking everything for potential problems including our insurance and so on and so forth and requesting new numbers. It also explained why they needed new photos which they took of both Benny and I via secured communication using my phone’s camera. Doggone good thing I don’t have anything of any import to hide. I know using a phone is like giving the government a leash, but I don’t really have a choice at the moment because of Benny. Maybe one day I can throw this off, or at least learn to minimize the information and breadcrumbs I leave.

The first thing we did after entering the park was stop at Lily Falls to take a picture an read all of the sign thingies at the pull out.

We stopped at the Lewis Falls for another set of photos and sign-thingies. It was still early, before 8 am, so things were mostly quiet and uncrowded. And then I surprised Benny with a special treat that I’d been planning. It was almost too cold, but we had our wet suits. We stopped at the Lewis Lake campground and used the boat ramp there to go kayaking for about an hour on Lewis Lake. Ahhhhh. It was just what I needed despite how cold it was.

“Can we come back here Aunt Gus?”

I nodded. “If not here then Yellowstone Lake. This is too good to only do once.”

It wasn’t easy to get out of the kayak but we did have more neat activities to do. I’ll be honest here, we’ve been in Yellowstone one day and have barely scratched the surface of what there is to see in the park. I know there are people who “do” Yellowstone in a single day but I don’t know how they do it. I could probably go back and “do” everything we did today and still find new things to put in the ol’ memory banks and never count myself bored.

We headed next to Grant Village Visitor Center for a couple of reasons. One, I wanted that packet with our new IDs. Two, and no less important, I wanted to check in and get our campsite number even if we weren’t able to use it yet. Three, I wanted to pick up Benny’s Junior Ranger booklets. Yep, happy campers that is multiple packets. First is just the regular JR packet that covers the entire park, then there is one specifically for the Old Faithful area, and lastly … I think … there is the Junior Ranger Railroad Explorer. Benny fairly vibrated with energy and the desire to start all three of the booklets but I asked if he could hold off until after we did the West Thumb Geyser Basin.

“What’s a geyser basin?”

“Weren’t you listening to the documentaries you watched?” I asked, teasing him gently.

“Wait, you mean we’re gonna go see the holes in the ground that spit hot water?!”

I laughed and said, “Well, let’s go find out.”

There are geyser basins all through the park. West Thumb Geyser Basin is one of the smallest geyser basins in Yellowstone, but because of its location along the shore of Yellowstone Lake it ranks it as one of the more scenic. West Thumb gets its name from the thumb-like shape of Yellowstone Lake and the name was given by the 1870 Washburn Expedition. It was also known as Hot Spring Camp. West Thumb has less geyser activity than other basins; but for its size, has it all including hot springs, pools, mud pots, fumaroles and lake shore geysers.

The Thumb Paint Pots are another feature of the area and constantly changing. In the 1920s and 30s they were very extensive and active. Now they are less active but, depending on moisture, they still build mud cones. From the mid 1970s until the last decade, West Thumb has decreased in thermal activity. Some temperatures have cooled in the basin allowing large colonies of algae and cyanobacteria to grow. As a result, large microbial mats flourish on the run-off channels and along the edges of pools.

They say that all parts of Yellowstone have become more active in the last two or three years. It could mean something, or maybe nothing. Grandfather and I used to watch disaster flicks (when Grandma wasn’t around to scold) and he was particularly fond of ones on Yellowstone’s caldera. I suspect that Grandfather had his own “fixations” but I don’t love him any less for them. It certainly makes you think.

They have a trail set up through West thumb that is only a 0.6-mile loop, but it covers a lot. One of Benny’s activities was to learn about the West Thumb area so we kept notes. Benny’s looked like hieroglyphics but it was cute to see him trying on the steno pad that he had brought. Here they are, mostly in order, but not necessarily all in order.

Occasional Geyser is a lake shore geyser. It got its unusual name from a man named C. Max Bauer, author of The Story of Yellowstone Geysers in 1935. (Temperature 200-206°F Interval 20-40 minutes. Duration 4-5 minutes. Height 3-12 feet.) It is located a half mile north of the main features of West Thumb. The geyser is situated in pre-glacial geyserite, estimated at nearly 18 feet thick. This indicates it is a very old feature and was more active in the past, probably as a hot spring, than it is today. Occasional erupts from three vents. The main, round vent stands above the others and splashes water 3 to 12 feet high during an eruption, while the other two vents generally are restricted to boiling and churning. The run-off plunges over an overhang, undercut by wave action, into Yellowstone Lake.

Twin Geysers are actually two vents together which have the nickname of Maggie and Jiggs, taken from early 20th century cartoon characters. (Temperature 201F Interval irregular to dormancy. Duration 3-4 minutes. Height 120 feet.) The geysers have had periods of long dormancy. A 1934 violent eruption reached 120 feet and ejected water, mud and sticks. When Twin Geysers are active, eruptions can occur every four to eight hours until they become dormant again. Even during dormant periods the geysers constantly bubble and boil, spitting out an even flow of water. Temperatures of 213° to 218° have been recorded during hot periods. Iron oxides have stained the area around the vent.

Abyss Pool is a colorful and interesting pool in the West Thumb Geyser Basin. (Temperature 172°F Dimensions 30x57 feet. Depth 53 feet.) Abyss is the deepest pool known in Yellowstone and received its name for its abyss-like depth. The dark green-colored water gives the illusion of a bottomless pool. Vandalism may have changed this pool's temperature. Coins and other debris thrown in have caused the vent to plug. The reduced spring flow also reduced the pool temperature, allowing abundant algae growth along the edge and run-off channels. The extensive microbial mats now support ephydrid flies, spiders and killdeers. An unusual eruption in 1987 caused the pool to surge and temporarily destroyed the microbial mats.

 

[Kathy in FL]

Jul 2 – 19: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (Part 2)

Black Pool is one of the largest springs in the West Thumb Geyser Basin. (Temperature 132°F Dimensions 40x75 feet. Depth 30 feet.) The dark-colored water is the combination of the natural, transparent blue of the water and the orange algae lining of the pool. The low temperature of the pool is responsible for the abundant growth of the orange-colored microbial mats. Algae and cyanobacteria in combination with sinter deposits have created coral-like formations on the sides of the pool but these are visible for only a few feet. The pH of Black Pool is a slightly alkaline 7.8.

Fishing Cone is a thermal feature unique to Yellowstone. (Temperature 170.4°F Interval dormant. Duration minutes to hours. Height 3 feet.) It is situated on the shore of Yellowstone Lake and received its name from early explorers who stood on the cone and cast their lines into the lake to catch fish. Without taking the fish off the hook they parboiled them in the vent of Fishing Cone. However, the shoreline has changed since those times; Fishing Cone is usually inundated by high water during the early summer. It erupted once during the 1920s and '30s but the cold water of the lake has altered its eruptive behavior.

Lake Shore Geyser is very similar to Fishing Cone. (Temperature 198.6°F Interval 30-60 minutes-dormancy. Duration 10 minutes. Height 20-30 feet.) It is also on the shore of Yellowstone Lake, but its vent is usually covered by water. By August or September the water level is usually low enough to expose the crater. Lake Shore Geyser has long periods of dormancy and geyser predictions are difficult. When it does erupt, a column of water reaches 20-30 feet high which gradually decreases in force after ten minutes.

Blue Funnel Spring is a small, blue concentric pool located in the center of West Thumb Geyser Basin. (Temperature 172-182°F Dimensions 18 feet diameter.) When one walks past this spring, its vent appears to move and reposition. This phenomenon is not unique to Yellowstone's thermal features, but it is easily observed in Blue Funnel Spring. It is an optical illusion caused by refraction. It results when light traveling through the air strikes the surface of water at an oblique angle. One side of the wave front enters the water before the other and is retarded-since light travels more slowly in water than in air-while the other side continues to move at its original speed until it too reaches the water surface. As a result, the light ray bends in the denser water and is refracted, giving the illusion that an object has a different location than it actually has.

Surging Spring received its name from the occasional surges of water which overflow from the spring. (Temperature 193°F Dimensions 33x62 feet. Depth 28 feet.) The cyclic activity which occurs nearly every four to five minutes, begins with ebullition and boiling a foot high. The water level of the spring rises and overflows for approximately two minutes. After a surge, the water level drops four inches below the discharge channel. The overflow from Collapsing Pool may occasionally upset this cyclic balance. An estimated 1200 gallons per minute discharges during an overflow of Surging Spring.

The West Thumb Paint Pots (Temperature 187-199.8 Dimensions 30 feet diameter) were originally named Mud Puffs by the 1878 Hayden Survey. The Paint Pots were one of the highlights for early tourists. They ventured to West Thumb by stagecoach from the Upper Geyser Basin and explored West Thumb's thermal features. From there they continued their journey by boat across Yellowstone Lake to Lake Hotel. Since the discovery of West Thumb Geyser Basin, the Paint Pots have been an active and fascinating feature of the basin. They were very similar to the Fountain Paint Pots, and they were known for the large mud cones produced by midsummer as the mud thickened. The paint pots began changing during the 1970s as roads and buildings were removed adjacent to the paint pots. Ground water now floods and inundates the pots, producing a soupy, bubbly, frothy spring.

Benny and I were both blown away I mean it is such a strange landscape in places. I’ve seen natural hot springs but I’ve never seen anything like what we saw today. And we’ve just begun our days in Yellowstone. Absolutely insane. Here and the Grand Canyon is something Dad and I had always dreamed of visiting together. Instead it is Benny and I, but if Meemo is to be believed, Dad has done all of this since Heaven isn’t just sitting on a cloud and strumming a harp wearing nightclothes and Christmas costume pieces. Heaven is supposed to be an interesting place where you explore and learn things. I suppose that is something I’m just going to have to have faith in. And Dad, if you are watching? Thanks. I didn’t say it enough in life, didn’t understand how hard being in your position was, but now I do. So … thanks. We may not have gotten our adventure together but you’ve made it possible for me to take Benny on the adventure and it means the world to me.

When we finished with West Thumb I asked Benny if he was up for some hiking. It was colder than I expected and I worried a bit. Benny and I have gotten used to the different climates than what we’ve come from but it had been since New England that we’d been out in cold this consistent.

“Sure! Um … can we bring snacks?” he asked.

“We can do better than that. How about we eat some sandwich wraps at the van and bring a fruit bar with us? To be honest Kiddo, I’m still learning the rules around here. I might call you Little Bear but I don’t want to run into a big bear because we were snacking. Know what I mean Jelly Bean?”

He gave it a serious thought and nodded. “But how are we going to take our hiking snacks?”

“Good question. Let me think on it. I might have an idea but wanna ask a ranger about it first.”

So after doing just that … wraps made of gluten free tortillas lined with sprouts and stuffed with tuna fish with a fruit cup as a side dish … we headed to the Yellowstone Lake Overlook Trail. It was barely a two-mile lollipop-shaped loop trail and only that because we were parked on the far side of the parking lot from the trail head. The only reason I knew where it started, since there was no trail marker in the parking lot, was because of the pedestrian crossing marks over the road.

The path entered a new growth pine forest before climbing slightly. It then emerged onto an open, grassy hillside where it got steeper. The final section was very steep and I could hear grunts of effort by some of the hikers in front of us. It was worth a grunt or two as we ascended about 400 feet. We then came to a gently simmering hot pool before the path ended at the viewpoint on the hill top. Just north of us were several other thermal vents but no trees on the summit. Once you get passed the distraction of the sulfur smell from the vents, you get hooked on the views which are 360 degrees revealing mainly mountainous, thickly forested land apart from in the east, where Yellowstone Lake stretches out towards the Absaroka Range on the horizon.

Figuring no bear worth its fuzzy butt would come up there just to make some hoo-mans squeak, Benny and I decided to sit a bit and I surprised him with a snack back of GORP. While he happily munched his share I took some pictures. This may be a once-in-a-lifetime event for me … us … though I hope that Benny’s life going forward will have lot more chances for happy adventures.

Going down was easier than coming up but my calves still thought I needed counseling to stop doing crazy stuff. I decided we’d take a break from the up and down and do a hike I found call “Duck Trail Lake.” It was a 0.8-mile there and back with only a small hill to climb for a view.

The nice thing is that I didn’t have to move the van because it started basically from the same area as the overlook trail had. The trailhead was a quarter of a mile from the edge of Yellowstone Lake. The path starts just across the main road, passing through a thin belt of surviving old growth pines then entering the area burnt in 1988. You’d never know that a fire had wiped out the area though a ranger said that if you dug down a little bit there would be a layer of soil that was obviously burned over.

The trail climbed gently up the side of a low hill and then crossed a cleared area (course of a powerline) at the top, from where Duck Lake came into view 100 feet below. The remainder of the trail descended to the shore, down a slightly steeper hillside and through more thick forest. You could tell where the densely-growing trees on either side of the trail are frequently trimmed back to keep the trail open. There were a couple of USBSA signs where Scouts spent some volunteer hours doing just that.

There were a few recently fallen dead trunks across the path that hadn’t been moved off yet. One was a real climb for Benny and I. The edge of the lake also had a mixture of old logs and new growth. Yellowstone Lake was only 700 feet away, but largely out of sight of the trail at that level. The trail isn’t hugely interesting but it was a nice walk. My understanding from reading the trail guide is that the part to Duck Lake used to be part of the long-distance Howard Eaton Trail, though the continuation route (to De Lacy Creek) is now largely overgrown and rarely used.

We’d had quite a day and even though part of me wanted to keep going I knew it would be best if we headed to camp and I made a good dinner. Grant Campground—elevation 7,800 feet—is located in Grant Village, just off the Grand Loop Road at the south end of Yellowstone Lake. It is one of the larger campgrounds in the park with almost 450 sites. We are going to be here three nights before moving on to another part of the park.

Wood fires are allowed, and they have firewood for sale and for dinner tonight I am finally going to get to try one of the foil packet meals I’ve been wanting to do. Oh, before I forget, an older couple if an RV gave us the wood they had left. They were leaving and heading to Grand Teton but had decided to drive through rather than stop. I was appreciative and told them so. I offered to pay for it, but they said that they’d had some given to them and just if we had any left over to give it to someone else. Nice people. Really nice people.

I’m glad too because a bundle of wood wound up not being cheap. And there’s all these rules. No bringing wood from outside the park except from certain concessionaires. The wood must be kiln dried. You can pick up wood that is dead and down inside the park for personal use, but you can’t use a chainsaw to get it or cut it. You can’t use limb loppers either or a hatchet or ax, unless it is already down off the tree. The wood you can buy has the kindling separated out so you either need to use a hatchet to make your own kindling or you can buy a bundle of that. Well, the RV couple gave us two bundles of firewood and low and behold when we got our campsite we found most of a piece of another one under the picnic table. I had a bag of fatwood pieces from one of our recent wallyworld stops because I thought we’d be able to have a fire before now so I used that to start the fire, but Benny and I will start picking up wood on our hikes, assuming there is any to be had.

Benny dozed in front of the fire while I prepped our dinner. Poor little guy. I know he is having fun, but all of the outdoor exercise and fresh air does seem to lead to a nap when he stops long enough to be still. He was curled up in a camp chair, so I threw a fleece cover over him to keep him from catching chill.

I started simple tonight. The foil packets was filled with boneless chicken breast and mixed veggies with a little BBQ sauces over the chicken. I put it on the coals of the fire, turned it a couple of times with long tongs that Stella had convinced me to bring (and I’m glad she did because they’ve come in handy) and then took them off and plated the contents up after making sure the chicken had been cooked all the way through. Yum. And it made for an easy clean up. I thought Benny was going to choke on his because he was eating so fast.

“Slow down Squirt, it isn’t trying to get away.”

“But it’s goooood.”

“It’ll be better if you chew it,” I told him rolling my eyes. I remember eating the same way. I also remember Dad taking my plate away until I would slow down. I hated that and it only made me want to eat faster. Grandma Barry had the better method. She only put a few bites on my plate and then would make me wait between fill ups. She said when I learned to eat slower and with manners she’d put more on my plate. That taking my plate away thing is one of the few things I hated that Dad did. Oh well. You live, you learn. I’m trying to convince Benny in a different way but if he keeps this up I may start with a cup of broth as a first course and then go to Grandma Barry’s method, assuming it works. Us Barrymore’s are hardheaded and that’s a fact.

After dinner and clean up I banked the fire – I only had a small one for cooking on – and then we headed to the amphitheater for the night’s offering. It was on the history of Yellowstone. There is a different “show” every night. Tonight’s was cool though you could tell most of the kids in attendance weren’t into it. Tomorrow’s is going to be on the West Thumb Geyser Basin and there will be slides. Should be interesting.

After getting back to the van I threw a couple more pieces of wood on the fire and they started right up. Benny was happy to climb in a camp chair and was soon zoning out but thankfully not sliding out of the chair. He was cocooned in a blanket and was borderline hibernating. I turned the booster on and did what work I could, double checked to see if any other hacks had been found – none had – and filled in the day’s expenditures and noted what I didn’t have to spend anything on. I’m going to pay more attention to the budget, like how I was at the beginning of things. Yes, it means more time, but it is just a matter of routine. November is going to get here before you know it and … I need to have a plan figured out.

 

[beaglemama]

Thank you, Kathy!

 

[Sportsman]

Loved our Yellowstone week too. But, the thing that I remember best after a decade is the beautiful colors in those hot pools. They were all gorgeous.
Thank you.

 

[ydderf]

Thanks Kathy

 

[9idrr]

It's nice that things are quiet for at least a little while. They deserve a drama-free existence for at least a week or so.

 

[sssarawolf]

Back in 1996 we were on our way to the Cody reunion in Cody, WY. We stopped for a couple of days in Yellowstone. We had our 6 youngest and they loved all the geysers and etc.

 

[nancy98]

Kathy, you need to sign up for this. LOL

This New Around-the-World Cruise Will Take You to All 7 Continents in 274 Days

Royal Caribbean's Ultimate World Cruise will take travelers to 150 destinations in 65 countries starting in 2023.

www.yahoo.com

 

[Kathy in FL]

Kathy, you need to sign up for this. LOL

This New Around-the-World Cruise Will Take You to All 7 Continents in 274 Days

Royal Caribbean's Ultimate World Cruise will take travelers to 150 destinations in 65 countries starting in 2023.

www.yahoo.com

No vaxx for us so we don't get to go on cruises any longer ... forever? Who knows?

 

[ydderf]

Kathy I am surprised I was sure you would recognize the efficacy of the covid vaccination.