*Birds we’ve seen on our 2010 trip so far: white-wing dove, ravens, Gamble’s quail, western tanager, roadrunner, violet-green swallow, California condor, great blue heron, mountain bluebird, wild turkey, black-chinned hummingbird, juniper titmouse, magpie, osprey
*National Parks/Monuments visited on 2010 trip so far: 22
*State Parks visited on 2010 trip so far: 4
*Total number of Jr. Ranger badges so far: 18
[Click on any picture to enlarge…then arrow back to the blog]
On our way to Thayne, WY, we stopped at Fossil Butte National Monument (www.nps.gov/fobu), again this year to get our National Park Passport book stamped since it was right on the way. There had been a couple new additions at the visitor center. Outside around the perimeter a Journey Through
Time railing had been installed just 3 weeks earlier. With every 9 inches equaling 1 million years, signs along the railing identified different events in Earth’s past beginning 4.5 billion years ago, and followed the history of Earth and life as they evolved into what they are today.Inside, near the ceiling, was a “mass mortality” slab measuring about 3’ x 8’ of over 300 fish fossils. No one is absolutely certain what caused these types of mass mortalities but all the fish were killed suddenly. We also watched a ranger in the lab preparing and cleaning some fossils (which takes incredible patience) as she explained the process.
Once back on the road, we made a pit stop at Salt River Pass, elevation 7,630 ft., once used by the pioneers as they made their way to the Oregon Trail. The pass also marks the point from where water flows north to the Snake River and eventually to the Pacific Ocean or south to the Great Salt Lake (though we couldn't see any of the streams from where we stood).
We spent the next week at Star Valley Ranch Resort (http://starvalleyranchresort.com/) in Thayne, and were both amazed at the serene beauty of this area. When we arrived, there was still a little snow near the mountain tops, and we heard that there had been a big snowstorm a month earlier…glad we missed that! This is quite a large resort, and we were placed in the new section which meant no trees to block the satellite. It’s actually all the way in the back with gravel lots, and where many of the workampers are placed. It was fine with us, and we rather enjoyed the larger spaces and view of the surrounding mountains.
The 4th of July was celebrated on Sat., the 3rd, beginning the day with a golf cart parade followed by several activities for the kids. We bought tickets for the evening’s dinner held in “The Barn” that consisted of steak, baked potato, salad, roll, and lemonade, all for $8/person. Plus I guess they had a few bucks left over and announced that there were two tubs full of beer for t
he taking on a first come, first served basis, so of course we each grabbed one. A couple hundred people were in attendance, and the meal was actually very good. We chatted with our tablemates as we listened to the tunes of Ed Carter and the Sawmill River Band. An announcement was made during dinner that since it was the resort’s 25th anniversary, more fireworks had been purchased than ever before, and the evening concluded with a really nice fireworks display in a field down the road.
On one day we took a drive into the other small towns nearby, stopping at a wildlife area just off the road, and on a platform high in the air was an occupied osprey nest…very cool! We also passed the oldest surviving cabin in Star Valley, WY, built in 1889, and a guy who was selling homemade elk antler chandeliers
and furniture from his truck on the side of the road. Never quite seen anything like ‘em.The weather was much cooler than the last few places we’d been, and with full hookups we didn’t have to worry about electrical issues. Russ spent a good part of the week reading and researching more about house batteries and inverter/converters, and made some adjustments. We are preparing to spend the next two weeks in Grand Teton National Park with no hookups.
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