Twirling Blades

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Fred was out early this morning with his camera and watched some of the start up activities of the Guard unit in camp. He talked to one of the people near the helicopters, and got permission to go in and take some close up shots.

After watching the activity while we ate breakfast, we got packed up and headed for home. We went up the west side of Bear Lake, and enjoyed following the coastline of the lake for a while.

It was about 40 miles to the north east end of the lake where we stopped for fuel. We were a little nervous about getting that far, but we did not hear the low fuel gong before we arrived.

With just a couple of rest stops along the way, and a Taco Bell stop in Twin Falls, we pulled in to our home base about 5:30 pm and mostly just let everything sit in place until Monday before unloading.

It was a very different kind of trip, with all the weather and illness detours and delays, but it was still very enjoyable, and we are anxious to go again. We may get to do a short one just after the weekend of the 4th, or may have to wait for September, but it won’t take much to get us going again. Until then, yabba dabba dooo!

Here Comes the Cavalry

Saturday, June 08, 2013
Last night was our second night in Mustang Ridge Campground. The sunset was not spectacular as it was Thursday evening, but it is still a great spot to spend a couple of days.
We were up pretty early and made use of the showers before they got too crowded, and they did. Wilma whipped up breakfast burritos for us; they were delicious, and we were on our way. We headed south on 191 through the thriving metropolis of Dutch John. The town was named after one of the first homesteaders in Daggett County, Utah. Dutch John was basically a company town during construction of the Flaming Gorge Dam. After the dam was completed it just sort of held on. Our first stop was the dam overlook on the upstream, or lake side of the dam. The lake is pretty impressive. Then we went on to the dam visitor’s center and watched the videos on the dam construction and a tour video. Both were very interesting although they are getting a little fuzzy.

The VC bear with us looking way down out the glass wall

We continued south on route 191 then west on 44 and made a stop at the Red Canyon Visitor’s Center. There were stamps available there so it was a required stop. The view of the lake and the red canyon walls was spectacular. The water is several hundred feet deep and the surface is 1300 feet below the rim. The cliffs are very red rock and drop straight down to the water.
We continued west on 44 with a stop to take a look at Green Lake Campground. No one seemed able to get excited over it so we continued on route 44 to the Sheep Creek Geological Loop. This is a 15 to 20 mile loop off of route 44. It has some of the most unusual rock formations we have ever seen. There are huge pillars and areas where the rock has been thrust up at a 45 or so degree angle then swirled. We hope we’ll have some good photos to add to the post. There were some rock climbers there and it looked like an excellent place to go climb a rock.
We continued on 44 to state route 530 which took us to Green River, WY. At Green river we jumped on I-80 going west then took route 30 west past Kemmerer, WY to Fossil Butte National Monument where there were several more stamps for the passport books. Once the stamping was done we looked around the visitor’s center and watched the videos. The fossils discovered here were primarily fish, plants and insects.

The ranger was very informative and interesting to talk with.

Pebbles, is this a newfangled telephone pole?

Climbing all over the thing

Our campground mates

Looking out toward Bear Lake

We continued west on 30 to the south end of Bear Lake, near Laketown, UT where we are now encamped at the Bear Lake State Park Rendezvous Beach Campground. We are here with a Utah Army National Guard air cavalry company and because of the time of the year, there are several battalions of mosquitoes. Thankfully we are plugged in and the air conditioner is running.
Tomorrow we’ll probably make the run for home. Good night all.

To Bedrock and Back

Friday, June 7, 2013
We were up, loaded all of our stuff in the Rubble-mobile and were out of the campground about 8:30 am.  Stopping along the way to see the sights, we went south on route 191 to Vernal, UT. Vernal was all decorated up with flowers, and they play up the dinosaur theme with statutes throughout the town.

There we turned east on route 40 and stopped at a visitor’s center at Jensen, UT.  At the VC we picked up some information on Dinosaur National Monument and some other handouts on northern Utah.  We turned north on 149 to the Dinosaur National Monument Visitor’s Center where we picked up a couple of stamps for the passport books.

Quarry Exhibit Hall

Once the stamping was as complete as we could get it, we jumped on a shuttle which took us up to the actual excavation site where several complete skeletons and numerous bones were unearthed.  A building has been built over a hillside with literally hundreds of exposed bones on display where they are imbedded in the rock.   The dig in this fossil bed began in 1909 and continued to 1926.   It is a very interesting display.  We were told that the fossils are in place as they were found on the hillside.

Hard to see , but part of the bone pile

They uncovered enough to keep the rock from constantly falling, and to make a good showing, but it is not staged. They said the bones collected there as sort of a logjam pile, washed down stream and collecting there.  It made us all yearn for a good, old fashioned bronto-burger.  

Waiting for the shuttle

The shuttle took us back to the national monument VC and from there we retraced our route to the Jensen VC, which is also a rest area, so we stopped for lunch.

Trivia: I'll just say that the shuttle they use at the monument is interesting in itself. You have to be really long legged or really skinny, or both, to be able to get on or off without a struggle. The opening between the benches is extremely small. On the return trip we grabbed the first bench on the second car because it looked like a larger opening, and it was much easier to get on and off. Remember that if you ever go there!

After lunch we again went east on 40 to the town of Dinosaur, Colorado.  Just past the town is the visitor’s center for the Colorado portion of Dinosaur National Monument.    There were a couple of additional stamps available so we indulged.    There is no fossil bed associated with the portion of the monument in Colorado.  It was named a monument by presidential decree in order to preserve the wilderness area along the Green River between Flaming Gorge and Vernal, UT.  The decree also preserves a portion of the Yampa River as a wilderness area.   The ranger had a good presentation and was a very personable young man.

We then headed back to Vernal and a fuel stop for the Rubble-mobile then back to camp at Mustang Ridge Campground.    Wilma tossed some potatoes and zucchini in the fire pit.   With that and a hotdog we were all satisfied to sit around the fire till it went out.   We are all turned in for the night thinking that Dinosaur National Monument was just like a trip back to Bedrock.   More on the old slab tomorrow.

Down In Flames --- Kind of

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Location: USFS Mustang Ridge Campground, Flaming Gorge, Utah. Sites D and 39, lake view, vault toilets, showers available, $11.50 per night with geezer card

We were up and had breakfast at Bitter Creek Rest Area on I-80, where we had spent the night. We headed west for a fuel stop at the Flying J in Rock Springs, then on to Wal-Mart to pick up a few items for the rolling cave occupants. We turned south on route 191 toward Flaming Gorge and immediately ran into construction. We bounced along over the bridge crossing the interstate, a railroad bridge and another bridge that were being rebuilt and in various stages of being torn up. Fortunately that was the only construction we encountered between Rock Springs and the Flaming Gorge Dam.

We went through the dam visitor’s center and believe it or not got 2 stamps for the passports. The Flaming Gorge Dam was started in 1958 and completed in 1964 as part the Colorado River Storage Project which was initiated in 1956 to store irrigation water, provide flood control and recreation for the Colorado River and its tributaries. The dam powerhouse has 3 generators with an output of about 500,000 megawatts per year.

We drove back north on route 191 past the town of Dutch John to Mustang Ridge Campground where we had a late lunch, made use of the showers, watched the glorious sunset, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire, and have retired to the rolling caves for the night. We have had an enjoyable day and we hope you have too. We’ll chip some more on the slab tomorrow.

Up Hill and Against the Wind

Wednesday, June 5, 2013
We were up and about fairly early this morning and left the Moraine Campground around 8:30.  We drove to the Beaver Meadows Visitor’s Center where there was a stamp available.  Once the stamping was completed we watched a video on the Rocky Mountain National Park.  It was well done and very enjoyable.

RMNP looking over Estes Park

 
The Moraine VC was closed so we were unable to go into it and could not locate that stamp at the other VCs.  We returned to the Fall River VC gift shop where, of all things, we discovered a penny smasher, in fact 2 penny smashers.  Fred and Betty had a great time smashing several “coins of the realm”, which were added to their smashed penny books.

Elk in the park

There was some road construction in the park.  The park road system is being overhauled in anticipation of the park’s 100th anniversary in 2015.

Our Camp sites

We left the park, traveling east on route 34 to Estes Park where we fueled up the caves, then on to Loveland, CO where we turned north on route 287 to Fort Collins and Laramie, WY.   287 is the main route north and south through Fort Collins.  It was a lot more congested than Barney and Betty remembered.  We did manage to locate a Subway in Fort Collins and grabbed a sandwich for lunch before continuing north to Laramie.  Once you are out of Fort Collins, the drive on up to Laramie is a pretty pleasant one.

Going through river canyon

At Laramie we took I-80 west and pointed the noses of the caves directly into the wind.   We stopped at the rest area at Fort Steele but decided it was too early to stop for the night.  We made it to the rest area west of Wamsutter, WY where we stopped for dinner and will dig in the caves for the night.  We are parked in the back yard of a family of prairie dogs which are standing around watching us.    Someone has said that in Wyoming, no matter which way you travel you are always going uphill and against the wind.
That statement seems at least reasonably accurate.

Frank Lloyd Wright designed VC

We Are Not Flatlanders Anymore

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Location: Moraine Campground, Rocky Mountain National Park, sites 219 and 221, 10.00 with geezer pass, no hookups, vault toilets.

After showers and more laundry, we left the KOA (Kampgrounds of America) in Limon, Colorado around 9:00 am heading west on I-70 toward Denver. We then went north on E-470 to I-25 then north to the Loveland, Co exit and headed west on route 34 into the Rocky Mountain National Park.headed for Rocky Mountain National Park.
We are curious as to whether the toll road (E-470) is coming or going. By that we mean are they adding tolls, or finished with them. Knowing the government, why would they ever cease charging for something, so it must be coming. There were signs saying the toll was $2.60, and some that said you would be billed. However, we never went through a toll booth, and the several we passed looked like they were under construction. If we get a bill I guess we’ll pay it.

We made it through Loveland, CO and on to Estes Park, which is a gateway resort town just outside the national park. It was swarming with people, not to our liking.

Barney and ?

talking to the elk tracker

On the way into the park we stopped at the Fall River Visitor’s Center and picked up a stamp for the passport books. Inside the park we pulled off the road near Sheep Lakes where Wilma and Betty put together some burritos for lunch. We drove around a little looking at the elk grazing in the meadow. We decided it was time to look for a place to park the caves for the night. In the process of turning around to go back to the first campground inside the park, Fred and Wilma Spoke to a ranger who was waving a tracking antenna in the air. They learned that he had about 60 elk with radio collars and that every 2 weeks he came into the park to see where the elk were located so they can track their movements in the park.
We learned that the Aspenglen Campground has 50 campsites and is a reservations only campground and that it was full.

We drove back around Sheep Lakes and took route 36 to the Moraine Campground where there were a few camp sites available. We are 
currently settled in and the rolling caves are only two spots from each other,  although Rubbles took one that is more than slightly off kilter. They used some blocks to help, and can tolerate it for one night. There aren’t many level spots to begin with, and the campground was already mostly full.

pretty skies above the cave mobile

The altitude at Limon is probably around 2000 feet and the low temp last night was in the high 40s to low 50s. The altitude at the Fall River entrance to the park is 8240 feet and the temp is supposed to get down to the low 30s tonight. We guess that means we are getting up in the world. Have a cool night.
There is free wifi around the headquarters building a few miles away, but not much out here. We found enough to post the last blog without pictures, and will try this one too, so check back for pictures, although we didn’t really do much today. We will stop at the headquarters VC on Wednesday.