Monday, August 11, 2014

Adventure update days 6-10

Yellowstone was absolutely amazing.  The place is huge.  The thermal features , pools and geysers were fantastic and I got some good pics. (Sorry I'm not posting them, I have a serious lack of ambition and it's all I can do to write this!) I stayed there the entire day, from 8 am till 1030 pm.  I saw Old faithful at 840 pm, the last time to view before it got too dark to see.  And I showed up just a few minutes before the eruption, so I didn't even have to wait long! 
I know many foreigners say that americans are rude, and I tend to agree, however the foreigners aren't any better.  walking 3 abreast and not leaving room for others to go around, and being generally obtrusive.  But the Americans were doing the same thing.  My biggest gripe is with people whose children are obnoxious loud and whiny.  The park is very serene and quiet, and more than once
(and more than once by the same child) my serene walks and communing with nature were interrupted by the shrieks of an out of control child. 
OK.  I'm off my soapbox now. 
Night 6 was spent in my car at a roadside picnic area in Gardnier Montana.  It was too late to get a room, too expensive, and I was too damn tired. It was almost freezing overnight, and only 42 degrees since I woke up. 
My plan for day #7 was to meander down to southern Colorado to do Mesa Verde before heading east across Colorado the next day.  I realized when planning this trip that southwestern Colorado would place me roughly 5 hours from my bestie in Flagstaff.  After realizing that she likely wasn't on call (I can't really say what she does... but lets say she works for an agency with a 3 letter acronym and carries a gun to work while dealing with bad guys).  So I decided to take the most direct route to Flagstaff, via Utah.  Needless to say it was a very long drive.  I arrived around 330 am Flagstaff time.  Which is weird time as that part of Arizona does not observe Daylight Savings time.  And neither does part of Utah.  so I went in and out of areas that did observe it.  The time on my phone flipped back and forth several times on the journey.  Very Strange.  I was also very tired.  I stopped about 2 hours from her to get gas. I was apparently on the Indian Reservation.  She meant to tell me not to stop there in the dark.  She forgot.  Some Tall Large Native man attempted to sell me drugs.  Aggressively attempted to sell me drugs.  The fact that I had possession of a particular "Item" was apparently enough to make the gentleman decide that "No" really meant "Get the hell away from me right now I don't want your f#%king drugs a$$&@le!"  About 40 minutes after this incident I was just too tired to drive anymore.  There was not any real place to stop, so I pulled over in a small roadside pull off to nap for an hour.  Needless to say I slept with my "Item" in my lap.
Finally I arrived at besties house, had a drink and a nap.  We had a fantastic time
Saturday night and Sunday night.  Saturday night involved alcohol.  I did not take into appropriate consideration that the elevation might affect my alcohol absorption.  I ended up a bit more buzzed than intended.  Oops!
Left this morning.  Day #10.  Tried to stop at Mesa Verde to see the cliff dwellings, but it was monsooning at the time, so I made a brief potty stop and meandered my way east through Colorado.  I am now stopped about an hour from Sand Dunes National park, which is my first intended stop tomorrow.  I am now in a cheap, but not too sketchy motelish type place kinda off the beaten path.
The plan for now is to watch a bit of tv, have a snack, and then go to bed.  My "Item" will be easily available.  The place isn't really sketchy, but... It'll make me feel better all the same.

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