august 10
day 93
27 miles
total 2,446
happy hour in wyoming is that special hour shortly after sunrise
between when it is 40 degrees with a stiff wind
(usually in your face)
and when it is 100….
with no wind at all.
this morning saw me moving very well up the picturesque wind river valley/canyon. i had to, to keep from freezing.
following happy hour
it was just another broiling hot wyoming day
cooking under the relentless sun.
i have to confess that i blew a mile as i was passing thru dubois.
it was right at breakfast time
and lisa went ahead to order a delicious omelette so i could walk right in, sit down and eat, then leave.
i generally prefer to take no breaks
because i am so slow
but this was a rare opportunity to eat a meal indoors sitting down.
that was special!
along with taking too many pictures in dubois i lost a good mile off the day.
after dubois the highway followed the wind river up and up
all the way to union pass at 9210 feet!
i passed my first big test quite well,
even tho the idiots who built the road thought it was a good idea to go over another steep hill and top out at 9700 feet, rather than go thru the actual pass.
as usual, i think i climb better than i go downhill, and the altitude was not an issue.
fortunately it is cooler at higher elevation
so the temperature was a mere 95 when i topped out.
if nebraska wanted to drown me,
wyoming seems intent on cooking me.
the tetons are just as scenic as advertised.
but at the end of the day we came upon thousands of acres of dead trees in the shoshone national forest.
pine beetles are wreaking havoc.
an interesting observation was that the highest flow i have seen in the wind river was at union pass.
thanks to my discussions with a water scientist from colorado earlier in wyoming i had been watching both the river’s flow (which never changed) and all the diversions for irrigation…
and the inflow from tributaries.
and thinking about all he had told me about the systems used to distribute this vital resource.
it is really impressive how well everything is balanced.
so many people rely on the river,
and everyone gets their share.
so many things that we never think about…
the only reason we never think about them are unsung experts.
what an education in one short summer.
goodnight
laz