Week 9: June 29 - July 5
A drive down memory lane.
The week started with a drive to Casper, WY. That was mostly a waypoint on the way to my real destination of Landery, WY.
Eleven years ago I rolled through Lander, arriving on July 2, staying overnight the 2nd & 3rd, and rolling out of town the morning of July Fourth. Watching the town gear up for an epic 4th celebration that I didn't get to see. I made a mental note that if I was ever in this general vicinity around this time, I'd try to get back to Lander.
My trip route wasn't built around this visit, but situations conspired to put me in this general vicinity in July, and I didn't hesitate to add it to the itinerary!
I thought this week was going to revolve around the Fourth of July, since that's why I came here, but it turned out to be more of an all around nostalgia trip. Traveling some of the same roads I biked, visiting a few of the same places, and feeling the same vibe of being in town at this time. So that ended up being the theme of the week, with Independence Day as more of a single day part of the overall whole.
Sunday, June 29. Day 56
The Journey is the Destination
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO -> Casper, WY
Farewell RMNP, I’ll think of you often!
Probably while I’m spending hours and hours processing all the photos I took there!
The drive out of Estes Park was beautiful. Of course it was. But in a different way than the park. Instead of going up the mountains, the roads wound down through steep-walled canyons along a river, before opening up into wide mountain plains.
It’s always been interesting to me how the terrain noticeably changes when going into another state. I would think the state lines to be somewhat arbitrary. Sure a lot of them are set by rivers or other features, but for the terrain to change so noticeably from state to state is odd.
The last time I was in Wyoming was on my cross-country bike trip. In the time since, I’ve spent a lot of time in the American southwest: Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Texas. I love the red rocks of the southwest and will never tire of them. But I’d forgotten how beautiful Wyoming was. Wide open plains with rolling hills and dramatic rocks jutting out of the landscape. It somehow feels both calmly welcoming and inhospitable.
The drive was nice. It didn’t feel like I was trying to get to the next place, I was just enjoying a serene drive through the beautiful country. Sometimes that’s enough.
Still, I was trying to get somewhere - Casper, WY. Along the way we stopped in Laramie for laundry and lunch. It’s a cute college town with it’s own personality, yet also not terribly different from the dozens of other small towns I’ve rolled through.
In the late afternoon I’m driving through endless country roads, mountains to one side and storm clouds to the other. The wind is buffeting my van, it’s been a while since I’ve driven in harsh winds.
There’ve been storm clouds off to the left most of the afternoon, but in the early evening it finally started raining. Or, more accurately I turned the left into the storm cloud. It’s a fast storm, but soaking, with fat raindrops and a heavy smell of ozone and petrichor.
The land is so vast and flat I can see for miles, including clear blue skies at the edge of the storm cloud straight ahead. There is no reprieve however, the road veers left into the heart of the storm.
Occasionally, there is lightning. Somehow the lightning is different, a single long strand straight down from the clouds.
I go over a hill and suddenly the mountains are in front of me in silhouetted layers. The rain on the road reflects the late day's light - looking like a silver snake winding through the mountains.
Rolling into Casper, WY late in the evening, we find our spot in the RV Park. This time we share a space, squeezing the 2 vans next to each other on one site. In the morning I extended my awning to cover the space between the vans and we ate breakfast.
Good: The drive. Beautiful, dramatic, serene.
Bad: I had to leave RMNP. It’s for new adventures and new scenery, but it tugged at my soul to have to leave.
Unexpected: I’d forgotten how beautiful Wyoming is, and how different it is from Colorado and other parts of the southwest. Also I had almost forgotten how windy it is.
Photo credit: Pics of my black van on the road were taken by Tracie, who was following behind me!
The 6th photos down, there's a pic of my van driving towards some wind turbines taken by Tracie. At the exact same time I was taking the same photo of the turbines in front of me (7th pic)
Monday June 30, Day 57
I fall in love just a little, oh a little bit every day with someone new
Casper, WY
Why Casper, WY?
As my new friend Tracie and I were making plans for her to join me somewhere along my route, she sent me tour schedules for a few bands and asked me to see if any of them lined up with my travels. The Hozier show lined up perfectly with my plans!
Most of the day was low-key. Ran some errands and picked up some groceries… for my new fridge!
In the morning I replaced the dead fridge; pulled the old one out and installed the new one. It wasn’t complicated, but knowing how to strip and splice wiring was a handy skill.
The new fridge is just sitting awkwardly in the huge space and I’m trying to figure out what to do with the leftover room. For now it’s just extra pantry space, which is nice to have.
So far it’s quiet and works well. It’s nice to have cold drinks, someplace to put leftovers, and be able to keep things like coffee creamer and cooking basics.
Also, camera film does not like heat and normally I store it in the fridge. I was worried some days when the van got really hot that literally hundreds of dollars worth of film was going to shit. Only time will tell if the film was actually affected, but I think it should be mostly ok.
All that said, the rest of the day was chill.
In the evening we took an uber over to the venue for…
Daily Listen: Hozier concert!
I’m familiar with a lot of his songs, more than I realized, actually. I’ve also been listening to his albums a bit in anticipation of the show.
The concert was great!
Even though we got there early, we missed the opening act waiting in the merchandise line. Tracie told me “Do not let me buy another hoodie!”
She bought another hoodie. Hey, I’m not the boss of her.
The production of the show was excellent. A high-definition screen behind the 11 piece band showed a mix of prepared graphics and live shots. Sometimes mixing both. The songs were great, and I especially noticed that Hozier (that’s the main guy’s last name) really shared the stage with his band. Everyone got featured on the big screen and throughout the show he called out his bandmates by name and talent.
They played for 2 hours and it never felt like there was a lull. I think some of the songs off the new album didn’t get a lot of crowd response, but he’d follow it up with a banger and everyone was energized.
For the encore Hozier came out to a small stage in the middle of the arena and did a couple solo songs. During the closing ballads the crowd turned on their celllphone lights, they looked like a field of fireflies.
Hozier returned to the main stage and did an extended kind of beat poetry about everyday kindness, civil rights, lgbtq rights, end to genocide and more. It was poignant without being preachy. The audience skewed younger, and in ruby-red Wyoming the crowd lit up at his comments. The future is progressive.
The concert closed out with a couple of his most popular songs, and the whole set was strong. I’m glad I went.
Good: Fixed my refrigerator myself! Saved a few hundred bucks and got the model I wanted.
In the middle of the night I drove my van over to the RV Park dumpster and ditched the old one. IDK if that pissed anyone off, but then next morning I saw the trash collector truck so it was good timing at least.
Bad: I tried to get a haircut today; called around to half a dozen places, but nobody could take a walk-in. Ended up doing a cleanup myself in the bathroom mirror. (That’s not the “bad” part, it came out well!)
Unexpected: The concert. Once again, a literal unexpected since I’m only a passive fan of the band. Would I know a lot of songs or would I feel out of the loop? Would it be a good show or kind of ‘meh’? I’m glad it was amazing, and that is also unexpected.
Tuesday, July 1. Day 58
A drive down Memory Ln.
Casper -> Lander, by way of Jeffery City
I’m not sure how much of this trip is intentional nostalgia for my cross-country bike trip.
Some is, and some just kinda happens.
There aren’t a lot of highways in Wyoming, so it’s not exactly coincidence when I end up driving a stretch that I previously biked. This stretch was very familiar, and even somewhat intentional.
Going to Lander, WY was very intentional. A long time ago I decided if I’m ever in this part of the country around the 4th of July, I have to go back to Lander. So here we are.
Getting here via the same route I biked is more of a coincidence led by the stop in Casper, but I’m glad for it.
Also, I realized that on the way to Lander I’d be passing by Jeffery City.
The infamous Jeffery City. Where the whole bike gang got shitfaced drunk. Where we slept in a dirt lot next to an abandoned motel. Where the swarms of mosquitos threatened to exsanguinate the lot of us! And where the restaurant had the biggest, most amazing pancakes I have ever witnessed.
I wasn’t looking forward to most of that, but I really wanted to go back there and get those pancakes.
Unfortunately the restaurant was closed. A few years now, according to the potter across the street.
Which we also stopped at, since his pottery shop was the one place in the entire town that was open! Operated by a real character. He was friendly and happy to have someone stop in. We bought a few pieces. There were also a bunch of abandoned cars I stopped to photograph.
Further down we came upon a rest stop / “point of interest” along the road that I distinctly remember stoping at 11 years ago. Back then I wanted to climb on the rocks. This time, I wanted to climb on the rocks! So I did.
I remember them being bigger.
Took a bunch of photos, enjoyed the stop and the reminiscing. I was very happy to revisit this random place for which I have distinct and fond memories.
The rest of the drive into Lander magically got more and more beautiful the further we went and the later the day got. If I had stopped every time I wanted, I never would have gotten to the campground. Though I did stop a fair amount, it’s too pretty not to.
I'm looking through the photos for the day, and can't believe how much was squeezed into a day that was essentially 'drive to the next town.' Like, a whole lot!
Stopped for a hike at a spot called Devil's Gate.
Helped a guy with car trouble at a scenic overlook.
Photographed a bunch of rusted old cars.
Bought pottery.
Climbed rocks.
Got more wildflower pictures.
Stopped to see longhorn steer.
Hit 80,000 miles on the van (aka, 7,000 miles on this trip)
Good: The drive between Casper and Lander, WY is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen.
Bad: The restaurant in Jeffery City with the plate-sized pancakes is closed. 11 years later I remember them and was looking forward to having it again. Pancake photo below from 11 year ago for reference.
Unexpected: Between the nostalgia and the unparalleled beauty, I’m overcome with emotion.
Last 2 photos: Then and now, same spot.
Wednesday, July 2. Day 59
Don’t go chasing waterfalls
Lander, WY
Being in a campground with full hookups is nice. I get to make coffee every morning and occasionally breakfast too. My travel companion even has a portable ice maker, for iced coffee and cold water through the day… such a luxury!
The last time I was in Lander several people told me to “Go see Sinks Canyon! It’s only 7 miles away!”
Well, 7 miles on a bike - after having ridden 65 miles that day - and then 7 miles back, was not happening.
This time I was going to make it happen.
The trail in Sinks Canyon was the Popo Agie river falls, 2 miles mostly uphill to some spectacular waterfalls. The hike was a little challenging due to the elevation, but totally worth it. I brought some specific camera gear and got a bunch of photos I’m really happy with! The whole hike was amazingly beautiful, and I got a bunch more new wildflower photos. This is definitely becoming a thing. Still, the waterfalls were definitely the highlight.
One of the great things about hiking in mountainous canyons like this is that the hike down is almost a totally different hike because you get to see everything from a different perspective.
Back in Pennsylvania the hikes are generally all the same. Trees, more trees, look - even more trees. Didn't we already go down this tree-lined trail? No, that was a different tree-lined trail? Hmm, that tree looks familiar.
I like the mountains.
Maybe it's just a matter of seeing something new and different.
The hike was hot, and I didn’t bring enough water, so afterwards I just wanted to chill in my van and lay down.
For dinner we tried to go to the local fancy restaurant, but there was an hour wait. We wandered a bit and found a couple local artists still in their studio. I immediately recognized one of them from an amazing mural we'd seen earlier in the day.
We hung out and chatted and they were excited to show us their work. They also recommended another restaurant across the street that was just as good, but not as crowded. We headed there and as we were being seated I got the text notification that the table was ready at the first place. Too bad, we liked the menu and the atmosphere here! Added bonus, the owners are from Pennsylvania, just an hour away from me!
Good: I finally got waterfall photos the way I’ve wanted to take them! The trick is to have a dark filter on the lens in order to do a longer exposure, plus have it in a tripod for the long exposure. For whatever reason I’ve never had both the filter and the tripod with me when I’ve hiked to a waterfall - but this time I did!
Bad: I wanted to sign up for the Lander July Fourth 5k run, but registration closed yesterday!
Unexpected: I’m in better shape than I thought, I tackled the hike at elevation in the heat with no problem.
Thursday, July 3. Day 60
This is not my first rodeo
Lander, WY
What does a “day off” look like when my life is one long road trip?
Mostly it’s taking care of the basics, same as anyone. Laundry, clean the van, grocery shop, cut up a watermelon, watch a little tv, read. Only difference is I’m doing it in a van at a campground.
The laundry machines here are cheaper than most other places, only $2 per machine, vs $3.50-$4 in most of the laundromats I’ve stopped at.
I also redecorated a bit! A friend back home made the cushion covers for my bench/bed. We picked out the fabric & colors I liked from JoAnne fabrics and she sewed them for me. One set was ready when I left, the other was still in progress. She mailed the second set to me at this RV Park and I was excited to change up the colors a bit. The blue is what I started out with, the sunflower yellow is what I just switched to. After taking this pic I changed both to yellow. Thanks NB!
If you're curious about the sleeping setup, the cushion on the right slides out so the back cushion lies flat. I have sheets fitted to this exact size. I don't make and unmake it every day, usually I leave the sheets on, though I do push it back into place every morning.
On the list of things I wanted to do in Lander was go to the rodeo again. This was another thing I did the last time I was here and wanted to revisit it.
It’s such a quintessential piece of Western Americana. The announcer even talked about “This is a part of our western pioneer heritage”. I wonder how many people arrived in a 'Pioneer' motorhome.
There was a lot of pageantry and a lot of showiness, but overall it was fun. The bull riding and bucking broncos were the highlight for me. The steer wrangling I didn’t like, seeing the calfs get roped and yanked to the ground was unsettling.
The whole thing was fun, but after about two and a half hours it started to feel repetitious and I was ready to head out.
I am excited about some of the photos I got, so that was an added highlight.
Oh, and today marks 2 months on the road!
Kind of an inauspicious day for being 2 months, but maybe that’s representative of my life now… a little bit of regular stuff mixed in with something novel and of the area.
Good: Fresh Watermelon! A perfectly ripe watermelon is a delicacy.
Bad: One of the calfs got roped around the eyes, and that was the point where I stopped enjoying the rodeo.
Unexpected: Shock and surprise that I don’t like seeing animals hurt. Actually, not unexpected at all. I should have known what I was getting into.
Friday, July 4. Day 61
No Kings Day
Lander, WY
I came to Lander for their July 4th celebration, and celebrate they did!
In the morning I started out with a pancake breakfast at the senior center. $5 got me pancakes, OJ, coffee, and all the “howdy, where are you from?” I could want!
After that was the town parade on Main Street. It was unstructured and anyone who wanted to be in the parade only had to submit a request and pay a fee. Everything from local clubs to real estate brokers to local indigenous groups were making their way down the street. Many of them were throwing candy into the crowds, and the kids would dart into the street and hoover it all up! It was halloween in July.
The parade was enjoyable, a fun mix of groups and people, and surprisingly not over the top ‘Murica! that I was bracing for being in Wyoming. There was also a nice mix of representation. Well, social representation at least… I’m pretty sure I haven’t seen a single black, asian, or hispanic person in Lander in the 3 days I’ve been here.
All day it was challenging for me to “celebrate America” in the current state of things. But separating out the jingoism and just enjoying the revelry made it more enjoyable.
Immediately Following the parade was the town picnic, where they were serving bison burgers!
It tastes the same a regular burger, only bigger.
It was a perfect day to sit on the grass and listen to a really talented and fun band. I was also relieved it wasn’t country music.
For the evening, planning where to go to see the fireworks would have been a challenge. However, earlier in the week chatting with the local artists, they gave a tip to go up to the cemetery on the hill to watch the fireworks. (“The one just past Pizza Hut, you can’t miss it.”)This was a clutch tip. The whole city was visible from the cemetery, along with the mountains behind. I got there a few minutes before 9, right at sunset, and the fireworks were already going strong. The whole town goes all-in on the fireworks, from one side of town all the way to the other the sky was completely full of explosions. There were thick clouds of smoke hanging over the city from all the fireworks, and it wasn’t even fully dark yet! By the time it did get dark around 9:30 the sparks in the sky were in full swing. A cacophony of light and pops emanating from all over town in an endless procession.
Unfortunately around 10p a storm rolled in. Wind gusts strong enough to knock my tripod over (I caught it, thank goodness!) and driving rain. I stuck it out for a few minutes longer and then retreated to the van.
Driving back through town, the residents were undeterred by the rain and the explosions persisted all around. Even back at the campground the pops and crackles of fireworks continued from all directions. Along with the steady drum of rain on the roof of my van.
The rain let up around 11, but I couldn’t muster the energy to go back outside to watch more fireworks. By 11:30 I was struggling to keep my eyes open and dug around for some ear plugs.
Daily listen: Low Water String Band.
An excellent 4 piece folk/bluegrass band playing at the town picnic.
They played ‘Brand New Key’
“I’ve got a brand new pair of roller skates, you’ve got a brand new key”
I got to explain what skates/skate key was.
And yeah, I’m old enough to have had roller skates with a skate key.
Good: It was a choice to come to Lander for the 4th of July, and it turned out to be a good choice.
Bad: At the town picnic I waited in a long line to get ice cream. They had huckleberry ice cream and I was excited to try it again! Except they sold out when I was nearly to the front of the line! I got mint chip instead, which was good, but I can get mint chip anywhere.
Unexpected: The magnitude of the fireworks celebration in Lander.
Additional photos taken by Tracie.
Saturday, July 5. Day 62
Wyoming Traffic Jam
Red Canyon, Lander, WY
This was Tracie’s last day traveling with me, and I wanted to make breakfast one more time.
For the day we wanted to check out Red Canyon. Looking all over the internet we couldn’t find any hikes in Red Canyon, which I thought was weird. We drove there, taking a dirt road 4 miles into the canyon. Along the way the road was blocked by a herd of horses! They were not free roaming, we were next to a ranch, but they completely blocked the road and I had no idea what to do. I gingerly moved past them at 2 mph, and they reluctantly moved aside as I went.
Further down I hit the end of the drivable part of the road 1.5 miles short of where the GPS said the canyon lookout was. Because the dirt road became even more of a dirt road and I wasn’t taking my van down that.
However, the road ended at a Nature Conservancy building. This building somehow managed to look like both new construction, and old and abandoned. It was difficult to tell if it was still in use.
Behind the Conservancy I found a hiking trail that may or may not have been a real trail, and I wanted to hike it. We made our way up and it was definitely not actively used, but still clear and easy to follow. It went up into the red rocks, some of it a little iffy, before hitting a barbwire fence. At this point the trail became much rockier, steeper, and all around more difficult. Tracie hung out while I went around the fence and continued on for a bit. I got up to a high plateau that looked out over the valley. I promised Tracie I wouldn’t be long, so I headed back. All in all it was only a 2.5 mile hike, but I got to do a hidden trail and a bit of rock scrambling in Red Canyon, which was pretty cool.
At the Conservancy there was a little birdhouse and some birds feeding a new hatchling. These birds were fast, darting all around. But I managed to snap a couple actual good pics of them in flight, which I was really excited about.
On the drive back to town we saw some painted hills and stopped again to take some more photos.
Compared to my week in Rocky Mountain NP, I don’t feel like I did all that much this week, but somehow ended up taking as many - or possibly more - photos than I did in RMNP!
Daily Listen: Not much. Since I haven’t been doing much driving I haven’t been listening to albums. I’m still making my way through Project Hail Mary audiobook, but I haven’t had a lot of time to listen in dedicated blocks like I prefer.
Good: I got a waffle cone with Huckleberry ice cream! It made up for yesterday.
Bad: All day long I couldn’t find my glasses. I knew they’d turn up at some point, but I had to carry around reading glasses as backups. They finally did turn up in the evening in my shower bag (stuff to take to the campground shower). Which makes sense I put them there last night!
Unexpected: I came across a group of cyclists doing the TransAmerica bike tour that I did! They were sitting out front of the ice cream shop. I chatted with them a bunch, heard about their ride and shared some of my experiences from years back. I also learned that they went to the restaurant in Jeffery City and it was open!! What! I was briefly tempted to drive back out there.
It was really wonderful to run into some bike tourers and get to chat a bit. I shared some of the spots on the route ahead that I remember enjoying, and just basked in their enthusiasm.
* It’s really not that surprising to see bike tourers here since literally the reason I’m here is because I rode through this town around July 4 and wanted to revisit it.
And thus wraps up this leg of the nostalgia tour. Next up is a whirlwind National Park tour, going to Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, and Glacier. Then heading into Canada and Bamff NP, then back down to Washington for Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic. Plus more in Oregon and California! It's also a whirlwind of friends visiting.
