Geysers and a Few Bumps in the Road

Sorry, no internet access for a while. We made it to Yellowstone, where a traffic jam generally means bison are crossing the road, and it's snowed at least a little every day. The girls were amazed by Old Faithful, but too cold to want to linger over the experience! After some hot chocolate and a day indoors, we started hiking again.

We've made a couple of 2-mile hikes through the geyser basins. I'm so proud of how Noni has been holding up on the hikes. She goes slowly but steadily until she suddenly falls to pieces--usually about 1.75 miles into the hike. Gloria can handle them easily, although she's more likely to whine that she's tired of walking. At the end of a particularly impressive route, Gloria told a Park Ranger that her favorite thing she saw were the buffalo chips ("bison poo-poo") beside the trail. And she has actually asked me to turn on the dvd of Yellowstone attractions instead of looking out the window at the same features. (Ouch!) At least she's enjoying herself.

After a few nights at a campground inside the park, we came in late one night, and while Dad and I were walking the dogs, the carbon monoxide alarm started to go off, terrifying the girls into uncontrolled shrieks. Suspecting a problem with the furnace, and unable to do without it on a night that fell to 22 degrees, we gathered everyone up and moved on to the sofa in Dad and Glenda's RV for the night. The next morning, we moved to Baker's Hole, a national forest campground just north of West Yellowstone, Montana, with electrical hookups so we could use an electric heater instead and avoid the CO risk. Dad has ordered a few furnace for us and a new water heater, and we'll be here until they arrive and Dad can get them installed. Soon, we'll be on our own--whatever else breaks, and Dad will be able to go back to retirement!

Gloria's birthday

Gloria has been very concerned that she would be having a birthday without the presence and attention of all her friends--after all, these things are very important to a five-year-old princess. The night before her birthday, Papa and Grandma came home with a cake, topped with strawberries and the "Happy Birthday, Gloria." We ate it by a campfire with "Moose Tracks" ice cream. They also gave her binoculars, a laminated field guide, and a kid's guide book to the park. She was in heaven.

Today, for the actual birthday, we took a boat ride across Jenny Lake and climbed first to Hidden Falls and then on to Inspiration Point. It's about 1 mile each way, but parts of the trial are fairly steep and rocky. Gloria hiked the whole way by her self, telling everyone she met that today was her birthday and that she is 5 now. Two-year-old Leona cajoled her Papa into carrying her about 25 percent of the way, but she did well, too.

The girls listened and described the sounds they heard in the woods, they imitated bird calls, and were gleeful over the marmots, chipmunks and ground squirrels that seemed to pose for us. We heard that a mother grizzly was spotted with her cub just a little beyond Inspiration Point, but we didn't go far enough to see them.

Waiting on the boat dock to ride back across the lake, we ran into some of the people who had heard about Gloria's birthday, and about 20 hikers sang happy birthday to her. She said it made her "a little shy."

We visited a historic ferry and homesteaders' site, and then at park headquarters, the girls both became official "young naturalists" (the version of junior ranger they have here).

To finish the day, we went to Chinatown Restaurant in Jackson, Wyoming--Gloria's pick. She's adjusted very well to regular picnics and meals around camp, but for her birthday, she really wanted to go out. The food was surprisingly good--really good--but mild on the spiciness scale. It is, after all, Wyoming. The girls had watered-down jasmine tea and felt very special.

We made it through the birthday with smiles and excitement. Gloria had a lot she wanted to tell Drew when he and Auntie Rhonda called to sing Happy Birthday.

In the Tetons

Driving through Wyoming, I had a strange experience. I passed by the sign for the Trial Lawyers College, and I thought about people I know being in this spot in Wyoming, which feels so far from life in Dallas, and learning things to take back there. It was odd. And then, I heard from someone directing us through road construction (hard hat, reflective vest, etc.) that Jerry Falwell died. About 10 minutes later, I drove past a golden eagle while both the girls were sleeping. Sometimes, this trip is surreal.

We decided to spend a few days in Grand Tetons National Park before going to Yellowstone. There are 2-3 moose who visit our campsite everyday, and bald eagles nest here. We've had to stop to let bison cross the road in front of us, pronghorn are scattered all over, and elk come down in waves from the hills in the early evening. We are constantly warned to secure food in avoid attracting bear to the campgrounds, and so far we haven't seen any.

Gloria and Leona are working toward being junior rangers here. I don't know how much of it Noni understands, but she wants to try and the rangers are willing. I'll add pictures and more tales of our wilderness adventures soon.

The Middle of Nowhere

We left Estes Park this morning and drove to Jeffrey City, WY. On the way here, across miles of land populated primarily by antelope and hours away from the last cell phone service I had, I had a shockingly vivid image of breaking down out here--wondering how far I could walk with 2 kids and 2 dogs, how long it would take for someone to stop, and whether that person would be trustworthy enough to improve our situation. I was so glad to have Dad and Glenda within sight.

Now that we are in Jeffrey City, the biggest thing around for a while, I look around and see virtually nothing open. It's too dismal even to be a ghost town. The RV Park is operating on the honor system and is for sale. Everything else I could see on the way in was boarded up. Dad says that we are a little early for activity in Wyoming, but I have trouble seeing this little town bursting into life in a few weeks. It's no Radiator Springs.

I'm learning more about my trailer everyday. The refrigerator is working and I used the propane stove for the first time tonight. We have our little heater working, and it's very cozy in here with the wind blustering outside. Tomorrow we will continue toward Yellowstone!

Junior Ranger!

Gloria is now officially a Rocky Mountain National Park Junior Ranger. She learned why we don't feed wildlife and how to stay safe outdoors. She picked up trash and recorded all the animals and plants she saw--elk, bighorn and mule deer as well as several types of birds and trees. We're all so proud! As you can see, she had an official badging ceremony at the Park.

Estes Park is lovely, and we've had such a nice time visiting with family here. The only difficulties have been Hank, who is too interested in our host dog Baxter, and Jackson, who is just too interested in barking.

Rhonda and Drew have gone back to Dallas, and I hear that the house will go on the market this weekend. Dad has made some final fixes to the trailer -- now named Rosie by Gloria. We will be heading out toward Yellowstone on Sunday, I think.

Making it to the Mountains

We made our first significant goal today--reaching Estes Park three days behind Rhonda and Drew but still two days before they fly home. My aunt made brownies for the occasion, and I had a hot bath. Such luxury. My aunt and uncle, aka Mama Nell and Papa Bob, live outside Estes Park, Colorado high on a mountain with National Forest surrounding them. I love it here.

This morning, in the Dumas, Texas City RV Park, I was exposed to my first "Skip Hug." The Escapees are a very active RV group, headquartered (as Kevin knows) in Polk County, Texas, but with members roaming all over. They hug whenever they meet another Escapee (called a Skip Hug), and I was privileged with one because I was with my Escapee family and trying life in an RV. There was a lot of visiting between trailers and motorcoaches this morning in between handling business at the dump station and disconnecting from power hookups. After "Hello," the first question is always, "Where are you headed?" A high percentage of the group was headed toward some part of Colorado. It made me feel like part of a migration.

The girls and I have been discussing the things we see. Gloria especially liked the fields of modern electricity-producing windmills, but I still like the old-fashioned ones you see by dilapidated barns. She also spotted a couple of rabbits alongside the road, many herds of (one hundred thousand, Gloria would say) cows and occasional horses, antelope and elk. She liked the cowboy galloping his horse along the road, but I have to admit she generally seemed more interested in getting my to turn on another DVD. It reminded me of how I annoyed my father by lying in the backseat reading when he took us on car trips through Colorado every year. I understand why he resorted to paying us coins for the animals we spotted (an eagle was worth 50 cents, but antelope, even a whole herd, were only worth a nickel. Leona loved spotting things and pointing them out to both of us, but generally only she could see them.

Tomorrow, we'll find more elk and try to find the family of foxes that Drew's been watching this week.

The Launch

We've finally hit the open road. I spent days cleaning and packing the cozy 1982 Taylor Coach travel trailer that was years ago my mother's, then my grandmother's, then my aunt's, and now mine. With only occasional breaks for killing scorpions that like to climb into bed with my children or for brushing fire ants off the girls' legs, everything found a place. And after repairing four water leaks, replacing the refrigerator, the water pump, and a large piece of aluminum from the front of the trailer, and rewiring the van, Dad called the trailer road ready and we started off from Madisonville at about 4pm on Sunday, May 6. We made it about 20 miles before Dad had to pull over at a rest stop to repair a leaking cooling hose on his RV, but we enjoyed sandwiches at the rest stop while he worked, and we were soon on the road again. We spent Sunday night in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Decatur, just a little northwest of Fort Worth.

Tonight we are at a city park in Dumas, Texas, about 45 miles north of Amarillo. The girls are so excited, they are wiggling and singing, far too keyed up to sleep. Two playground stops seem to have done little to counter the stir craziness of being in the car so long. But tomorrow night, we should be in Estes Park, where Rhonda and Drew have been waiting for us since Saturday night. At least we will get there before they return to Texas. Drew is saving a Cinco de Mayo pinata to share with the girls, so everyone wants us to get there quickly.

So far, we have seen and discussed windmills, tornado shelters, oil wells, and a herd of camel just north of Clarendon, Texas. Gloria is very aware of the changing landscape as we've moved north. At first, she thought the rolling terrain just north of Amarillo must be the mountains!

So far, all is well. The girls call the trailer our home and seem to have embraced the "home is where you park it" attitude -- especially if there is a playground next to your parking space, as there is tonight.