Frost covered everything when we awoke this morning. It was too
cold to
bother fixing breakfast, so we ate in the restaurant at the
campground. I
guess we're just fair-weather campers.
 |
| Frosty morning in the Tetons |
From Jackson Lake, we headed just about straight east along US 287
and US
26. The Tetons lay behind us, and as we climbed to Blackrock Pass
and
Togwatee (Toh-guh-tee) Pass, Guy and I kept snapping
pictures at each
viewpoint. The Teton Range is magnificent - just like the
mountain
stereotypes in advertisements and on the Busch beer cans.
 |
| Teton reflections |
Togwatee Pass is at 9600', which meant a climb of about 3000' from
Jackson
Lake. It wasn't steep, but it took Jack and me until 3:00 pm to
reach the
top. We could have done it two hours faster, but Jack had three
or
four flats.
 |
| So long to the Tetons |
On the way up, we met Bob Russell, a national officer of the
League of American
Wheelmen, who was returning from the national LAW convention in
Ames,
Iowa. He's a very interesting person: 69, retired, active in
LAW, a
former test pilot (flew the prototype BD-1, or American Yankee),
active in the
Experimental Aircraft Association. He'll be flying a Cessna 180
to the
big EAA meet in Oshkosh in August. He mentioned that Steve Leiby
from
Lansing was elected regional LAW representative. Steve's a good
guy for
the position - really gung-ho for cycling, and a mover.
From the pass, we had a downhill all the way to DuBois - about 20
miles, part
of it along the Wind River. The wind always blows here.
Fortunately, it was blowing our way, strong. The red-and-white
striated
hills just west of DuBois were impressive - more photos, of
course.
 |
| Aren't those stripes cool? |
 |
| Name these flowers! |
 |
| Name these flowers! |
Much of the forest land along the Wind River is lodge pole pine.
Until
World War II, much of it was hand-harvested to make railroad ties,
which were
then flumed to the river and floated to Riverton, the railhead
which lies some
90 miles east.
We're at 7200' here in DuBois. It's much more open country, and
seems
quite a bit warmer. Although huge horseflies pestered us on our
ascent
today, the campground tonight is bug-free. And we took showers
tonight,
the first in three days!
Jack and I had cube steaks for supper tonight - two apiece. With
potatoes
and salad, the meal cost $5 or so - expensive, but it still beat a
restaurant.
There's a riding stable next to the campground. They had just
brought the
horses down from winter pasture, and were getting them used to
carrying packs
again. When I wheeled into the campground, I must have spooked
one,
because he started bucking, and the packs went flying all over.
It must
have taken them five minutes to quiet him down.
The man and wife (she is from Grand Rapids, Michigan) who owned
the stable had
just sold it, and were in the process of training the new owner in
the handling
of horses. They said there was just too much red tape involved in
the
business.
