June 23 to July 5, 2008
Driving around Yellowstone from west to east is measured in animal encounters instead of miles. Today it was sixty buffalo (bison), ten elk, two deer and other assorted critters. Of course there were hundreds of humans driving vehicles, most of who seem to forget they are behind the wheel when a buffalo appears; not getting off the roadway when stopped creates problems for those of us who drive a large vehicle. Some of them forget that the animals they are watching are not in a zoo, behind cage doors and bars; these animals can be very dangerous. We saw a film of a little girl being thrown around like a rag doll by a six foot tall, 1,200 pound buffalo. Apparently for some people common sense flies out the window with the excitement of seeing their first wild animal up close.
The scenery changes very little once we leave the park on our way to Cody, Wyoming. Beautiful scenes, one after the other, this is a very unspoiled land. We stop in Cody for the night, thanking Sam Walton for our space by spending mucho dinero in his establishment. The Buffalo Bill museum is a do not miss attraction. We have been before and if we had enough time we would have gone again.
Continuing on our way to Gillette, WY, wondrous mountain scenes turn to more flat land with sage brush and tumbleweeds. Herds of cattle graze behind rusty barbed wire fences with old, wooden ranch houses to take care of both. We stop for the night in Buffalo, WY. Indian Campground has obviously been here for a long time; Cottonwood trees tower above shaded campsites, and white fluff falls like a heavy snow cleverly working itself into every crack and crevice in our motor home. Our satellite can not find an open spot, so there is no internet or TV for the night, oh my God!
After we leave the campground we discover we have some stowaways as gigantic moths seem to appear out of nowhere keeping Connie and Harry busy for several days. Harry talks to them like a duck hunter with a duck call then launches himself through the air in an attempt to catch one.
In between Buffalo and Gillette we meet up with Roger and Edie Houston, our very good friends from Lodi. Roger and Edie were the motivating force that got us to register for the Escapade. No sooner had we arrived at our destination then they got a call that we all dread - one of their best friends had lost her battle with cancer. Rallying around a friend in time of need supersedes everything else so Roger and Edie left for North Dakota and their friend’s farm; we wish them God speed. A couple days later we learn that a brother to our cousin’s husband was killed in a motorcycle accident. We are constantly reminded of just how precious and delicate life is.
The Escapade is a once a year RV rally for Escapees, a club formed years ago by people who worked on large construction sites moving from one to another in some type of RV. Thirty years later the club is over 100,000 strong, past and present. “Sharing and caring” is the Escapee motto, and hugs are the favored greeting. We will have six days chock full of seminars designed to be helpful to the lifestyle of living on the road and/or spending a great deal of time in some style of recreational vehicle. People come from all over in everything from a 13-foot trailer to a 45-foot long, gleaming piece of rolling technology costing over a million dollars. There are a lot more of the former than the latter; the “Captains of Industry” types that have to show off their money just don’t much fit in with us “regular folk.”
Last night we were treated to one of the Great Plains grand shows. Thunder and lightning roared overhead like Zeus wanting to make his presence known. The weather here is warmer than expected, 80 to 90 degrees and then we will have a respite at 70 for a day or two. They say the W in Wyoming stands for wind, and I am here to tell you I believe it. Several antelope play in and around Gillette, running and jumping to delight us all.
The people here in Gillette are some of the friendliest and most helpful we have run into in a long time, and it seems as though most of the residents here are young (in their 20’s and 30’s). We see a lot of young men who have obviously just gotten off work, their faces and clothes heavy with grease, dirt and coal. Coal mining is a huge industry here, and natural gas wells and pipelines are sprouting up everywhere -- this part of the country is hard at work.
Holy fireworks, Batman!!! The Fourth of July fireworks in Gillette were absolutely was the best fireworks display we have ever seen! It started just before dark and continued until well after 11:00 p.m. Everywhere we looked there were myriad flashes of multicolored light; a cacophony of sounds and the acrid smell of gun powder instantly transported me back to Vietnam. It was a bit unnerving, especially with the radio next to us playing The Door’s song “Come on Baby Light My Fire,” popular during the Vietnam era.
Today, July 5, as I write this I put together last night’s visage of Vietnam with our country’s celebration of freedom and remember that “Freedom” is not free; it comes at a very high price. I hope you didn’t celebrate the fourth without giving thought to those that gave so much; I am very proud to have served alongside some of them.
The rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air!
