Category: Wyoming 2013

Fossil Butte National Monument: a geology nerd heaven: Cokeville to Kemmerer

Monday June 24, 2013, 38 miles (61 km) – Total so far: 2,263 miles (3,642 km)

There is not much to Cokeville. There is a diner that’s for sale, two motels, one truck stop, one out-of-business truck stop, a post office and a school. A man bombed the school in 1986, and that may have been the last event of any consequence to occur in this town. It is pretty dead.

The road south out of town is federal highway 30, so there are a decent amount of trucks on the road. They are all moving way over for me this very early morning, though, as I head down the Bear River Valley. Thanks, guys! Read more →

Exploring Flaming Gorge: Manilla, UT – June 26 and 27

Wednesday June 26, 2013

My mom and I spend two days exploring Flaming Gorge.

On the 26th, we hike all of the trails in the Red Canyon area and spend the late afternoon driving the tour loop and getting all nerdy in the Sheep Creek Canyon Geological Area. Parts of this driving tour are on dirt, but the road would be fine for a regular touring bike like mine. You can download a guide for the loop off the internet. The main road has all of the formations identified with large signs. The main Uintah fault is quite easy to pick out. Read more →

The quiet and then… I-80: Manilla, UT to Rock Springs

Friday June 28, 2013, 62 miles (100 km) – Total so far: 2,325 miles (3,742 km)

I stand by the side of the road. The silence is absolute. The few cars on the road this early morning seem to be spaced about 20 minutes apart. In between, the only sound is my breathing, the whir of my freewheel on a downhill and the buzz of my tires on the pavement. When I stop, it is silent. Nothing chirps or calls or creaks or snaps. The silence pours forth from gullies and hills; it winds its way through gaps in the sagebrush; it flows down off the buttes and into my ears, filling my head with the nothingness and quiet that I love so much. Read more →

The best night of the trip: Rock Springs to South Pass (BLM land)

Monday July 1, 2013, 79 miles (128 km) – Total so far: 2,404 miles (3,870 km)

You could throw out most of the crayons in a Crayola 64-count box if you were colouring in a picture of this landscape. Just save all the shades of brown and pale and deep green. You’ll definitely want copper, burnt sienna, desert sand, bittersweet, tan and mahogany. Fuschia or lemon? Not so much.

The colours here are all gentle and subtle. The conditions for life are not. The high desert does not feel welcoming. The sun blazes down, making you squint. The dry heat sucks all the moisture out of you and everything you are riding through. The wind flings grit against your calves and cheekbones in an abrasive assault that brings the textbook term ‘wind erosion’ to life. The wind even makes your peanut butter sandwich seem like it’s been spread with ‘crunchy’ instead of ‘smooth’, if you stop for a snack on the roadside. Read more →

The real climbing comes after the pass: South Pass to Lander

Tuesday July 2, 2013, 44 miles (71 km) – Total so far: 2,449 miles (3,941 km)

I peek my head out of the tent. It is 4.45 am. First light illuminates the sky, though the land here still lies in pale shadows. All is grey and olive green down here. It is cool and crisp. The light scent of sagebrush fills the air.

And the wind? Well, it is already bending back the tips of the grass. My dearest Wyoming, I’m falling in love with you, but your constant wind is nearly as annoying as the constant high heat of summer back in Oz. Seriously, it is 4.45 am! Can’t you please just give me until 8am before you start about your business? Read more →

To Independence Rock on the 4th of July: Lander to Independence Rock (county land parking area)

Thursday July 4, 2013, 103 miles (165 km) – Total so far: 2,551 miles (4,106 km)

The origin of the name “Independence Rock” is contested. Like many historical places, there are several stories about how this site got its name. Some say Captain Bonneville named it in 1832 to reflect that the rock stands out on its own from the rest of the Granite Mountains. Another story says that it was named by General Ashley who camped here on the fourth of July in 1825. Or it may have been named a year earlier on the fourth of July by a mountain man who capsized his boat near the rock. Choose your story.

There are two things that are certain, however. Read more →

Absolutely love it out here!: Independence Rock to Casper

Friday July 5, 2013, 51 miles (82 km) – Total so far: 2,602 miles (4,188 km)

I wake to the pungent smell of cow shit. Good morning, Em.

I unzip the tent and fly. I poke my head out. Fog is lifting, the sun’s rays filtering through the low cloud in a dim and hazy manner.

There are three cow pats out there, about 5-10 feet away from the tent. The odour-producer must be around where I can’t see it. I can see the sources – three members of the cattle herd are about 15 feet away in the grass, all staring at me as their jaws munch in circles. The slightly concerning thing I discover is that this is not cow shit. It is bull shit. Or young bull shit. I don’t know what you call young, weaned bulls. Read more →