Friday, October 15, 2010
Road Trip – Omaha to Seattle – Recap, Thoughts
It was a great trip. I have seen some amazing natural beauty. I went through definite ups and downs along the way. Rain, car troubles, etc. could have gotten me down, but more often than not, it was just fine and sometimes enhanced the experience. I know the car thing already has made for great conversation starting. $1000, but who cares? I wonder how much money I have made in my life to this point? It always seems to come and go. Sometimes there's plenty, sometimes it's tight, but I have always made it through just fine with very little sacrifice. I know the experiences I have had on this journey by far eclipse any issue I have with money and hopefully I carry this attitude for the rest of my life. I regret not getting into Canada and I wish I could spend another day or two in Seattle, and maybe go further down the Oregon coastline, but that sounds like it would be a nice little trip sometime in the future. It got a bit lonely at times, but not too bad. In the future, I will probably try a trip like this with someone else, or have a trip like the one last year, where every few days I was meeting up with a friend. Probably the last long trip my Outback had in her, but, we'll see. Trips like this always leave you with time to think and put things into perspective. I am grateful for my friends and family. Also, Omaha seems boring in so many ways compared to many places I have been. It wouldn't be that bad, but there isn't really even anything close that is cool. You know, if you lived in Portland, you are less than an hour from mountains and less than two from beautiful beaches along the ocean. In Omaha, you're an hour from Lincoln and two from Des Moines. Maybe a couple State recreation areas, but not even any state parks and definitely no National anything. Oh well. C'este la vie. I have had many other thoughts in the days past about the trip and life and many other things, but this is what I feel today. I hope I can do something like this again soon. I love it.
Road Trip – Omaha to Seattle – Day 23 – Casper, WY – Omaha, NE – October 3, 2010
Not much to report for my last day, I'm afraid. A few things happened, but I'm also writing this blog about 12 days after I got back, so some details are going to be lost at this point. I woke up and left Casper fairly early. Stopped into the office and quickly complained about the room being cold all night. They said it was an old building and that if I would have called last night they would have adjusted my heat for me. They said the thermostats are such where you can only have heat OR air conditioning without having someone come up and adjust something. I told them no big deal and went on my way.
Drove for about two hours and got into Nebraska. In the small town of Harrison, there were three cowboys on horses driving some cattle up the road, that was pretty cool. After that I arrived at the Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, one of Nebraska's only National anythings. It was pretty small and tame compared with what I have seen on this trip, but it was interesting and seemed like a good way to wind it down. Evidently, a very long time ago, this area had several watering holes. Animals came to these holes and drank and ate the vegetation around it. There was a drought and the water started drying up, and the vegetation died out as well. Some of the animals ate the vegetation to a radius around the water and then came back to the water for survival. Soon enough though, they had eaten everything within distance and ended up getting stuck at the water with no plants in eating distance. They died in large numbers in the watering hole and so did other scavenging animals. Like 100 years or so ago, these areas were discovered and excavated and it was groundbreaking as far as the period, type of animals, and quality of the remains of these animals.
There are only 2 short hikes in the park, and I decided to do the shorter of the two. First, I looked around the visitor center. They had a lot of Lakota Sioux items on display from James Cook's collection. James Cook became very close to Chief Red Cloud and was a trusted white friend of the Sioux. They personally gave him several items to archive and save for future generations. The exhibit was pretty cool, and today, I was very interested. I then went on my 1 mile roundtrip hike to see the excavation site of daemonelix, which are prehistoric gopher tunnels they had found. It was ok. I was more impressed with the landscape. The sandhills and western Nebraska are actually interesting compared to middle and eastern Nebraska.
Got done around 3 and booked it back to Omaha after that. Only stopped for gas and a Runza dinner in North Platte. Made it back home around 10:30 pm and immediately met Beth, Seth, and Larry at the Interlude lounge. A drink sounded good. It was good to be back.
Drove for about two hours and got into Nebraska. In the small town of Harrison, there were three cowboys on horses driving some cattle up the road, that was pretty cool. After that I arrived at the Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, one of Nebraska's only National anythings. It was pretty small and tame compared with what I have seen on this trip, but it was interesting and seemed like a good way to wind it down. Evidently, a very long time ago, this area had several watering holes. Animals came to these holes and drank and ate the vegetation around it. There was a drought and the water started drying up, and the vegetation died out as well. Some of the animals ate the vegetation to a radius around the water and then came back to the water for survival. Soon enough though, they had eaten everything within distance and ended up getting stuck at the water with no plants in eating distance. They died in large numbers in the watering hole and so did other scavenging animals. Like 100 years or so ago, these areas were discovered and excavated and it was groundbreaking as far as the period, type of animals, and quality of the remains of these animals.
There are only 2 short hikes in the park, and I decided to do the shorter of the two. First, I looked around the visitor center. They had a lot of Lakota Sioux items on display from James Cook's collection. James Cook became very close to Chief Red Cloud and was a trusted white friend of the Sioux. They personally gave him several items to archive and save for future generations. The exhibit was pretty cool, and today, I was very interested. I then went on my 1 mile roundtrip hike to see the excavation site of daemonelix, which are prehistoric gopher tunnels they had found. It was ok. I was more impressed with the landscape. The sandhills and western Nebraska are actually interesting compared to middle and eastern Nebraska.
Got done around 3 and booked it back to Omaha after that. Only stopped for gas and a Runza dinner in North Platte. Made it back home around 10:30 pm and immediately met Beth, Seth, and Larry at the Interlude lounge. A drink sounded good. It was good to be back.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Road Trip – Omaha to Seattle – Day 22 – Yellowstone NP – Casper, WY – October 2, 2010
So, I figured out the formula... Regular socks, wool socks, waterproof rain socks, shoes, long john pants, sweatpants, rain pants, base layer shirt, t-shirt, hoodie, windbreaker, winter coat, rain gloves, winter gloves, and a stocking cap and sleeping in a 20 degree rated bag = waking up warm. I actually slept in a little because I was so comfortable.
Errors and omissions: In a previous blog, I stated the trees that didn't lose leaves were deciduous, they are coniferous. Also, the pizza place in Glacier, WA is called Chair 9. And Fabio's real name is Kevin.
Went back up near West Thumb when I woke up and did a little two mile hike to Duck Lake. Heard some activity in the woods on the way there and was hopeful to see some more wildlife down on the beach. When I got there, the water was still steaming a little bit from the early hour sun. Quite beautiful. I was the only one there. The only negative was you could see the street in the distance, but it was ok. I sat by the beach and just sat for awhile. After a bit, I heard some noise and an 8 point buck elk came out of the woods and stood by the water, probably 30 yards from me. I went to point my camera at him and he took off running, so I didn't get the best pictures, but the experience was awesome. After that I walked back up to the West Thumb geyser area and did that walk again. Right as I got in, there was a small crowd. There was another large buck standing in the middle of the boardwalks and in between two hot springs. That might have been the picture of the trip, but I'll have to remember it in my head, because by the time I changed lenses, he had moved from that spot. Beautiful, though. There was also momma and baby grazing in a field nearby.
Went back to camp and made bacon and eggs again. Tore down my tent, did my dishes, packed everything up, and remembered I had a note waiting at my site the night before saying they only charged me for one night, so I drove to the registration desk and gave them $21.80 more dollars. I thought it seemed cheap when I paid previously. Totally worth it. Changed my clothes and brushed my teeth at the shower area. By this time, it was about 11:15, about three hours after I woke up, and all I needed now was a t-shirt and shorts. Crazy weather shift. Wanted to drive up and see the canyon area and maybe take a hike, but when I got there, it was more just a shopping area, so I thought I'd do the south rim canyon drive and go to artist point, where my Transylvanian friend had recommended the night before. That was very stunning. There was a beautiful, large waterfall in the back and a blue river below and the canyon surrounding it just looked painted by a master.
After that, time to head out. I wanted to check out the color in Grand Teton NP, and it didn't disappoint. Everything was yellow, with some golds, reds, and oranges mixed in as well. I could go on, but I'd probably bore myself trying to explain the beauty, just ask me to see the pictures. I went on one hike and headed out down to Jackson where I ate ate a combo pizza at Mountain High Pizza Pie. Looking at the staff, I could see why they called it that. The pizza was good and fresh, and I typed my next destination into the GPS and found out the fastest way was not out of Jackson, as I had assumed, but I had to head 70 miles back up where I came from and then head east! I lost about 2.5 hours there, but c'este la vie. It was a beautiful sunset and all the colors were unreal. Had a little construction hold up, but the drive was mainly straight with very slight curves, so, even in the dark, I just pinned the cruise control on 72 and went.
Stopped at about 4 stores to try and finish buying my souvenirs for family and friends with no luck, so I just waited til I got into Casper, which seemed to be a large enough town. I think Wyoming University is here. Hit a gas station and got the gifts out of the way, and checked into my Motel 6 for the night. Ate my last two leftover pieces of pizza. Blogged. Charged batteries. Super tired, it's about 1 am mountain, and I'm running on Dr. Pepper fumes. Night. Hopefully home tomorrow night!
Errors and omissions: In a previous blog, I stated the trees that didn't lose leaves were deciduous, they are coniferous. Also, the pizza place in Glacier, WA is called Chair 9. And Fabio's real name is Kevin.
Went back up near West Thumb when I woke up and did a little two mile hike to Duck Lake. Heard some activity in the woods on the way there and was hopeful to see some more wildlife down on the beach. When I got there, the water was still steaming a little bit from the early hour sun. Quite beautiful. I was the only one there. The only negative was you could see the street in the distance, but it was ok. I sat by the beach and just sat for awhile. After a bit, I heard some noise and an 8 point buck elk came out of the woods and stood by the water, probably 30 yards from me. I went to point my camera at him and he took off running, so I didn't get the best pictures, but the experience was awesome. After that I walked back up to the West Thumb geyser area and did that walk again. Right as I got in, there was a small crowd. There was another large buck standing in the middle of the boardwalks and in between two hot springs. That might have been the picture of the trip, but I'll have to remember it in my head, because by the time I changed lenses, he had moved from that spot. Beautiful, though. There was also momma and baby grazing in a field nearby.
Went back to camp and made bacon and eggs again. Tore down my tent, did my dishes, packed everything up, and remembered I had a note waiting at my site the night before saying they only charged me for one night, so I drove to the registration desk and gave them $21.80 more dollars. I thought it seemed cheap when I paid previously. Totally worth it. Changed my clothes and brushed my teeth at the shower area. By this time, it was about 11:15, about three hours after I woke up, and all I needed now was a t-shirt and shorts. Crazy weather shift. Wanted to drive up and see the canyon area and maybe take a hike, but when I got there, it was more just a shopping area, so I thought I'd do the south rim canyon drive and go to artist point, where my Transylvanian friend had recommended the night before. That was very stunning. There was a beautiful, large waterfall in the back and a blue river below and the canyon surrounding it just looked painted by a master.
After that, time to head out. I wanted to check out the color in Grand Teton NP, and it didn't disappoint. Everything was yellow, with some golds, reds, and oranges mixed in as well. I could go on, but I'd probably bore myself trying to explain the beauty, just ask me to see the pictures. I went on one hike and headed out down to Jackson where I ate ate a combo pizza at Mountain High Pizza Pie. Looking at the staff, I could see why they called it that. The pizza was good and fresh, and I typed my next destination into the GPS and found out the fastest way was not out of Jackson, as I had assumed, but I had to head 70 miles back up where I came from and then head east! I lost about 2.5 hours there, but c'este la vie. It was a beautiful sunset and all the colors were unreal. Had a little construction hold up, but the drive was mainly straight with very slight curves, so, even in the dark, I just pinned the cruise control on 72 and went.
Stopped at about 4 stores to try and finish buying my souvenirs for family and friends with no luck, so I just waited til I got into Casper, which seemed to be a large enough town. I think Wyoming University is here. Hit a gas station and got the gifts out of the way, and checked into my Motel 6 for the night. Ate my last two leftover pieces of pizza. Blogged. Charged batteries. Super tired, it's about 1 am mountain, and I'm running on Dr. Pepper fumes. Night. Hopefully home tomorrow night!
Road Trip – Omaha to Seattle – Day 21 – Yellowstone NP – October 1, 2010
30 degrees is freaking cold! I gotta look forward to that again tonight. I'm bundling up extra tonight though, and doing my blog earlier so I can put gloves on as soon as possible. But today was a good day. I took about 800 pictures, so it was pretty much all sightseeing. Woke up and put my contacts in and went potty. Headed up the lake to a place called West Thumb. It was about an hour after sunrise. The light was really great though and it was still cold enough where all the hot springs were really staeming so it made for excellent photos, I think. I may have just noticed the recurring spot I get on my image sensor or lens, so we'll see. I may have some photoshopping in my future. The beach was gorgeous though, and I knew it was going to be a good day.
I decided to go back to camp and finish getting ready and make breakfast. On the way back, there were two elk grazing right off the side of the road. Great pictures there. Got back to camp and it was still really cold, but warming up. I broke out the stove I borrowed from Beth and made myself some delicious bacon, eggs, and toast. Washed it down with some generic oj and was totally satisfied and ready for the rest of the day. By the time I brushed my teeth, did my dishes, and packed the car it was about 9:30 and I headed North up the east side of the park. Or so I thought. It appeared after a bit that this road was familiar. I had spaced off at the interchange and accidentally took the Old Faithful route again. Oh well. It was still a beautiful drive and I just corrected my path at the next junction. The roads are laid out in a figure 8, my camp is on the lower right lower circle. Old Faithful is on the lower left lower circle. So I just missed the upper left lower circle, and cut across the middle and headed up the right side of the upper circle. (?)
Anyway, I ran across a place the ranger had mentioned that when you get out of the caldera, you can drive up Mt. Washburn, the mountain closest to the upper rim of the caldera, and see a mountain on the lower rim. This, he said, would give me a scale of how big this volcano is. I drove up the potholed road at a huge incline. My knuckle bearing didn't like me very much. At the top, it was another 3 mile hike to the summit, but there was a controlled fire going on and visibility was super low, so I decided against it. I may try again tomorrow if I'm up to it. Truth be told, I'm almost ready to be home, even though I've been surrounded by such beauty. I want to do a couple more things in the morning, but hopefully I'm in Cheyenne tomorrow night. So, anyway, I drove back down the steep grade and at this point, I'm near the top right of the upper loop. Traffic was slow, but I could see why. The valley cut down super low and got rocky. Limestone and basalt cliffs, over a blue river. I pulled off a few times. Then the trees started turning yellows and reds for a bit, took some more pics, walked around. After a little bit, there were a couple cars pulled over where it looked like they shouldn't really be. There were 50 bison in the field right in front of us! Later on the same thing happened and there were two yellowish coyotes running through a field. Great pics of both. Soon enough, I had arrived in Mammoth Springs. I filled up my tank, probably could've waited, but I was getting scared. The day of driving 45 mph the whole time had my mileage at 356 miles and I still had over 1/8 of a tank! I think I could've made it to 450. Either way, I got 30 mpg out of the subaru and was quite content.
Mammoth Springs was cool, but I had really been looking forward to it, and a lot of the springs were actually dormant or dried up, so it was just cool rock formations. Still awesome, just not what I had hoped. I spent a good deal of time there though, hiking and taking pictures. Ate my lunch off the hood of my car. I had a can of Chef Boyardee's Mac and Cheese left over from either Paddy or Tom. It was the worst thing I can remember eating in awhile. I threw ¼ of it away, and if you know me, I never do that. I was raised with four other kids and we never wasted. Except for the braunshwager incident. ;) Luckily, I had some leftover buffalo jerky and some cookies to get that flavor out of my mouth.
Headed down the left side of the upper loop and pulled off near Norris to check out some geysers. I was starting to get worried about the light though and left a bit early to try and get to the mud volcano for sundown. On the way, stopped at a valley with no less than 60 bison in it and got to the mud volcano. Bubbling pools of mud, sulfur pools, vents, fumaroles, and more. T was cool, there were more bison on the trail this time. We passed in between them, and they were about 5 yards away. Pretty big no no, but it was exhilarating. Just then, I met a man from Transylvania who currently lives in Italy. He was on a trip by himself as well, and we talked and walked for awhile. Turns out he was in Glacier NP about a week earlier and came around a bend on a hike to be about 4 yards away from a female grizzly bear and her two cubs! They left, but he said that definitely got hid heart pumping. I was sorta jealous. If I could see a mountain goat, bighorn sheep and a bear, my trip would officially be the best ever. Nevertheless, I continued on my way, and decided against his advice to go north to artist point for an after sunset waterfall photo opp, and I headed south toward my campsite and toward Yellowstone Lake. The sunset was a beautiful violet over the lake, and I got some really great photos. I did have a moment of remorse because I don't think I have any sunset waterfall pics. But my hands are freezing right now as I type and I keep making typos, so I;m glad I got back to camp an hour earlier than I would have.
Turned out of the lake area and had about 25 miles to go back to camp. I was behind a Massachusetts license plated Volvo the whole time, and it turned out, they are in the campsite next to me. I think they think I might murder them or something because they are just now getting out of their car, and it has been about an hour or more. Maybe they're cool with me now that I have been typing for 30 minutes. Not sure, but I'm cold and hungry. I'm going to bundle up a little more, start a fire, have a beer or two, cook some brats and go to bed.
I decided to go back to camp and finish getting ready and make breakfast. On the way back, there were two elk grazing right off the side of the road. Great pictures there. Got back to camp and it was still really cold, but warming up. I broke out the stove I borrowed from Beth and made myself some delicious bacon, eggs, and toast. Washed it down with some generic oj and was totally satisfied and ready for the rest of the day. By the time I brushed my teeth, did my dishes, and packed the car it was about 9:30 and I headed North up the east side of the park. Or so I thought. It appeared after a bit that this road was familiar. I had spaced off at the interchange and accidentally took the Old Faithful route again. Oh well. It was still a beautiful drive and I just corrected my path at the next junction. The roads are laid out in a figure 8, my camp is on the lower right lower circle. Old Faithful is on the lower left lower circle. So I just missed the upper left lower circle, and cut across the middle and headed up the right side of the upper circle. (?)
Anyway, I ran across a place the ranger had mentioned that when you get out of the caldera, you can drive up Mt. Washburn, the mountain closest to the upper rim of the caldera, and see a mountain on the lower rim. This, he said, would give me a scale of how big this volcano is. I drove up the potholed road at a huge incline. My knuckle bearing didn't like me very much. At the top, it was another 3 mile hike to the summit, but there was a controlled fire going on and visibility was super low, so I decided against it. I may try again tomorrow if I'm up to it. Truth be told, I'm almost ready to be home, even though I've been surrounded by such beauty. I want to do a couple more things in the morning, but hopefully I'm in Cheyenne tomorrow night. So, anyway, I drove back down the steep grade and at this point, I'm near the top right of the upper loop. Traffic was slow, but I could see why. The valley cut down super low and got rocky. Limestone and basalt cliffs, over a blue river. I pulled off a few times. Then the trees started turning yellows and reds for a bit, took some more pics, walked around. After a little bit, there were a couple cars pulled over where it looked like they shouldn't really be. There were 50 bison in the field right in front of us! Later on the same thing happened and there were two yellowish coyotes running through a field. Great pics of both. Soon enough, I had arrived in Mammoth Springs. I filled up my tank, probably could've waited, but I was getting scared. The day of driving 45 mph the whole time had my mileage at 356 miles and I still had over 1/8 of a tank! I think I could've made it to 450. Either way, I got 30 mpg out of the subaru and was quite content.
Mammoth Springs was cool, but I had really been looking forward to it, and a lot of the springs were actually dormant or dried up, so it was just cool rock formations. Still awesome, just not what I had hoped. I spent a good deal of time there though, hiking and taking pictures. Ate my lunch off the hood of my car. I had a can of Chef Boyardee's Mac and Cheese left over from either Paddy or Tom. It was the worst thing I can remember eating in awhile. I threw ¼ of it away, and if you know me, I never do that. I was raised with four other kids and we never wasted. Except for the braunshwager incident. ;) Luckily, I had some leftover buffalo jerky and some cookies to get that flavor out of my mouth.
Headed down the left side of the upper loop and pulled off near Norris to check out some geysers. I was starting to get worried about the light though and left a bit early to try and get to the mud volcano for sundown. On the way, stopped at a valley with no less than 60 bison in it and got to the mud volcano. Bubbling pools of mud, sulfur pools, vents, fumaroles, and more. T was cool, there were more bison on the trail this time. We passed in between them, and they were about 5 yards away. Pretty big no no, but it was exhilarating. Just then, I met a man from Transylvania who currently lives in Italy. He was on a trip by himself as well, and we talked and walked for awhile. Turns out he was in Glacier NP about a week earlier and came around a bend on a hike to be about 4 yards away from a female grizzly bear and her two cubs! They left, but he said that definitely got hid heart pumping. I was sorta jealous. If I could see a mountain goat, bighorn sheep and a bear, my trip would officially be the best ever. Nevertheless, I continued on my way, and decided against his advice to go north to artist point for an after sunset waterfall photo opp, and I headed south toward my campsite and toward Yellowstone Lake. The sunset was a beautiful violet over the lake, and I got some really great photos. I did have a moment of remorse because I don't think I have any sunset waterfall pics. But my hands are freezing right now as I type and I keep making typos, so I;m glad I got back to camp an hour earlier than I would have.
Turned out of the lake area and had about 25 miles to go back to camp. I was behind a Massachusetts license plated Volvo the whole time, and it turned out, they are in the campsite next to me. I think they think I might murder them or something because they are just now getting out of their car, and it has been about an hour or more. Maybe they're cool with me now that I have been typing for 30 minutes. Not sure, but I'm cold and hungry. I'm going to bundle up a little more, start a fire, have a beer or two, cook some brats and go to bed.
Road Trip – Omaha to Seattle – Day 20 – Jackson, WY to Yellowstone NP – September 30, 2010
Woke up in my motel 6 in Jackson and took my time enjoying the handicapped room I got. Checkout wasn't until noon, so I watched some tv, browsed the net, fb'd, and enjoyed the handicapped shower. I didn't sit in the chair, but I kinda wish I would've now. Also, this Motel 6 had a flat screen and a microwave and a fridge, and it was only like 10 bucks more than usual. Headed out right about noon and had a 2 hour drive ahead of me. Jackson is one of the biggest little mountain towns I've been to and it looked pretty awesome. I didn't stop, though, I was anxious to get to YSNP. The drive was gorgeous, winding mountain roads, this time in the daylight, a bit of traffic, but that was to be expected. Got up to Grand Teton NP and everything was yellow. It was awesome. I have some pictures of a mountain with yellow and orange trees in front that looks so fake if I didn't take it myself I wouldn't believe it. I was pretty excited for Yellowstone to be the same. It wasn't. Come to find out that YS is higher in altitude and much more deciduous trees, meaning they are green year round and don't lose their leaves. Oh well, I am much more interested in the geological atmosphere of YS than anything else really. Went into the park, went through the campsite fees and registration and set up my tent and decided to go to Old Faithful area for the rest of the daylight.
Drove the 23 miles from camp to Old Faithful and bought some provisions from the general store there. I should have geared up in Jackson. I spent like 27 bucks for bacon, eggs, brats, bread, and buffalo jerky. Old Faithful was due to erupt in about 20-30 minutes. It goes off about every 95 minutes on average, so they guesstimate. It can be anywhere from 50-120 minutes. Old Faithful is not quite as faithful as she always was. 140 years ago, it was approximately every 65 minutes. There were about 100 people there waiting with me. It was glorious when it happened. Supposedly a pretty good one, it went for about 7 minutes and got up to 155 feet. There were about another 30 geysers in the area, along with hot springs, sulfur pools, and other geological phenomena. I took my time and got a lot of great pics. Made it pretty much to the end of the area and my stomach started growling at me hard core. I'm not gonna go into too much detail, but I have never had such painful gas, never came that close to pooping my pants without actually doing it. I had to walk about 3.5 miles in this manner and seriously stopped about 4 times to regroup from pain. Luckily, I was in a semi low traffic area. Then, of course, some awesome bison had to be right on the trail and I had to stop and change lenses and take pictures. I basically ran after that. Whew! Relief. Sat in the stall for over a half hour, and still had cramps. I feared acute appendicitis at one point, but I think it was either because I had kept it in so long, or I'm getting old. I hope this is not what I have to look forward to. Glad I didn't go into detail with that!
Not much else after that. When I got out, it was dark, so I headed to camp. It is starting to get chilly and the low is 30 tonight, so I started a fire and got my bed ready. Put on some long johns, gloves, stocking cap, hoodie, and wool socks. With my 20 degree rated sleeping bag also, I should be fine. Looking forward to early light tomorrow, so I'm gonna crash early. Its about 10 now, I've had a beer and half while blogging, I think I'll have the other half, let the fire go out, stare at the stars and pass out.
Drove the 23 miles from camp to Old Faithful and bought some provisions from the general store there. I should have geared up in Jackson. I spent like 27 bucks for bacon, eggs, brats, bread, and buffalo jerky. Old Faithful was due to erupt in about 20-30 minutes. It goes off about every 95 minutes on average, so they guesstimate. It can be anywhere from 50-120 minutes. Old Faithful is not quite as faithful as she always was. 140 years ago, it was approximately every 65 minutes. There were about 100 people there waiting with me. It was glorious when it happened. Supposedly a pretty good one, it went for about 7 minutes and got up to 155 feet. There were about another 30 geysers in the area, along with hot springs, sulfur pools, and other geological phenomena. I took my time and got a lot of great pics. Made it pretty much to the end of the area and my stomach started growling at me hard core. I'm not gonna go into too much detail, but I have never had such painful gas, never came that close to pooping my pants without actually doing it. I had to walk about 3.5 miles in this manner and seriously stopped about 4 times to regroup from pain. Luckily, I was in a semi low traffic area. Then, of course, some awesome bison had to be right on the trail and I had to stop and change lenses and take pictures. I basically ran after that. Whew! Relief. Sat in the stall for over a half hour, and still had cramps. I feared acute appendicitis at one point, but I think it was either because I had kept it in so long, or I'm getting old. I hope this is not what I have to look forward to. Glad I didn't go into detail with that!
Not much else after that. When I got out, it was dark, so I headed to camp. It is starting to get chilly and the low is 30 tonight, so I started a fire and got my bed ready. Put on some long johns, gloves, stocking cap, hoodie, and wool socks. With my 20 degree rated sleeping bag also, I should be fine. Looking forward to early light tomorrow, so I'm gonna crash early. Its about 10 now, I've had a beer and half while blogging, I think I'll have the other half, let the fire go out, stare at the stars and pass out.
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