We're Off Like A Dirty Shirt!

If you've been following some of my recent blogs, you are aware that Joe has been experiencing problems with his eyes; the possibility that he may be going blind. With that uncertainty looming before our little family, we are spending today and tomorrow off exploring for what might be the last opportunity for him to see any of this fantastic scenery with his limited eyesight.

He's still in bed sleeping a very restless sleep and I've already been in the kitchen assembling our picnic lunch. The water and soft drinks are in the freezing cooling, the sandwiches are stashed in their disposable plastic bags, the can of Pringles is standing at attention on the counter next to the cooler and I've thrown in Little Debbie Swiss Rolls and packets of puddings for good measure. And, in case Joe starts to go low with his blood sugar there is the bit-sized Snickers and a couple of apples. This is usually what we take along with us each weekend (although the Swiss Rolls are our indulgence this weekend). We've always been fortunate to find a wonderful place to picnic and the lunch always seems to taste so good.

Shortly we will leave the house after leaving the television on (our security alarm) and having fed the furry kids with fresh water and food. They'd LOVE to come along, but we never know where we will wind up and pets can sometimes be a hindrance to exploring new places. So they stay behind to guard our home.

The weather report is that the weather should be perfect where we are planning on going - cooler than previous days. And, we have no time constraints so they day will be ours. So, with a full tank of gas, a cooler full of food, our trusty? GPS "Barking Bob", a charged cellphone, camera and someone who knows where we'll be going, I'm off to get my shower after waking my sweetie. And, we'll be "off like a dirty shirt" in the words of a great man (Dad).

I already know that today is going to be a great day!

628 Miles

Let's face it...you just need to get a map of Wyoming so you can keep up with Joe and me. We are making hay while the sun shines - literally! One of these days it will once again turn too cold to go much of anywhere so we're seeing as much as possible.

We left on Friday morning heading north to Buffalo which is about 115 miles north from our home. We spent a rainy day driving around in the Bighorn Mountains (see blog). We will be going back there for more exploring in another part of the mountains. We spent the night in a cabin near the bottom of the mountains.

Saturday morning we got an early start and headed for Gillette to attend the Celtic Festival some 70 miles east of Buffalo. In the early afternoon, we decided to go for some further exploring and headed towards Devils Tower. That was about another 60 miles northeast and almost to the state line of either Montana or South Dakota - depending on which direction you took.

So, between Friday morning and Saturday evening, we traveled 628 miles. That's some exploring, huh?
------------------------------------------
In case you're wondering...we left the furry kids home by themselves with lots of food and water and hoping they wouldn't drive the neighbors crazy. All was well when we returned home to lots of tailwagging and excitement.

Smorgasbord Day

Today was a smorgasbord day. That means we did lots of different things today. Since this was one of my days off, that meant lots of errands to finish and then go have some fun.

After sleeping in until 6:45 a.m. and getting ready to leave, Joe and I took off for a couple of doctor's appointments. In between the two of them, I actually went to the Social Security office and turned in my paperwork and documentation to finally and officially have my name changed to Carol Weaver after almost 5 years!!!

When all our necessary tasks were completed and we had a full tank of gas ($2.30 per gallon) then it was time to play. First thing we did was drive up a portion of Casper Mountain to explore the waterfall we'd discovered while Aunt Ruth and David were here. (Apparently we hadn't spotted it during the winter..I wonder why). Here are some pictures of our trek to the falls.

Resting on the way up. It's quite a walk up to the falls.This was the road we drove down to get to the falls. No pretty pavement here!After leaving the falls, we decided to see if we could locate one of the pioneer graves I'd read about in Evansville which is right next to Casper. We were looking for the grave of a woman and our directions said we had to cross over the railroad tracks, go over the river, turn right at the next road (gravel), travel five miles, turn right and drive .3 miles to a log house and ask permission and get directions. We did, but no one was home. So we'll try again another day. On the way back, I discovered there were lots of wild flowers growing by the side of the road and out in the fields. (My love for western wild flowers used to drive Corey crazy when we traveled out here).

These are some of the flowers we saw and I think you'll agree they are quite beautiful and unique - especially considering some grown in desert like conditions.
This is actually grass and not flowers. The grass is a thin, purplish/burgundy color and very wispy. Yes, this is cactus and it's quick plentiful in the prairie fields. That's why we have to be very careful where we let the furry kids out to do their "business". And, it is now snake and tick season! This is sage brush which the antelope seem to really enjoy. That's the main reason that people don't want to hunt/eat antelope here - too much sage taste. A lone bird sitting on an old fence post. I found this decaying rattlesnake. (I always say..."the only good snake, is a dead snake").
This baby bunny was sitting by the side of the road all by itself.We also saw three dead antelope which I decided wasn't worth capturing in photos. Also, while taking pictures of the flowers, I discovered a couple of Indian artifacts - one appeared to be a spearhead and the other was a cleaning tool.

So, although I didn't find the grave, we did have a good time and can always try again.

Exploring 5/30 - Natrona County

This morning Joe and I decided to do a little exploring, along with the furry kids. (They'd gotten a bath the day before). I made some sandwiches, added some pretzels, Joe's medicines, a dish for the dogs water, some juice and off we went. Well, we went by Wal-Mart first to pick up a few items i.e., a compass, a can of bug spray, a snake bit kit, etc. Then we stopped by an auto parts store to see if they had a better compass. They had a digital one to connect to your mirror, but you had to calibrate it first by driving around in a circle for 40 seconds. No that was fun as every time I tried to do the circle thing, someone would drive by and I'd have to stop and start all over again. We finally got the compass calibrated and headed off to parts unknown after getting a full tank of gas.

I had found out about some pioneer sites on the Internet that was considered "local" so we decided to try and find the sites. About 10 miles from Casper is a shallow pass though a ridge known as Emigrant Gap Ridge. This was the beginning of the pioneers gradual ascent up and over the Continental Divide. It gives you a grand, sweeping view and is marked by an interpretive panel. It's located on a gravel road that turned my black car white with the road dust.

Then we tried to follow directions to go to another sight to see wagon ruts, but ran up on private land and had to turn around. We did find some wagon ruts further down the road as the picture below shows starting at the upper right hand side and winding around to the left bottom part of the picture.One of our stops today was at Bessemer Bend which was the last fording site of the North Platte River on the Oregon/Mormon trail. This was the river the emigrants had followed for hundreds of miles which turned south and became impassable. Toll ferries and bridges downstream were built, but people including the handcart companies who did not want to pay tolls, used Bessemer Bend as a low-water crossing. While there, Blaze decided she wanted to check out the river and jumped in! This is a nice place to have a picnic and fish and just enjoy the river setting. On the way home, we discovered a road named "Goose Egg Road". We decided to explore it simply because of the name. That's when we discovered the Red Buttes which we could see from Bessemer Bend and are a bright brick red color. They also have interesting looking ridges.
A four hour battle took place here in 1865 when a supply train led by Army troops was attacked by a large group of Indians. Only three soldiers survived and made it back to the fort.

So, a fun day was had by all, including the furry kids. (BTW...we live in Natrona County).