The favorite part of traveling, to me, is the journey more than the destination itself. However, for the July 4th weekend I was interested in both. Opening up an atlas, I spent a couple of hours casting my "net" all around Nebraska, until my eyes settled on Wyoming. Far enough to seem elusive, yet near enough to be alluring. Having decided on the journey, I had to decide on the destination. After considering (and rejecting) Yellowstone National Park, the destination presented itself in the form of the Grand Teton National Park.
Armed with little more than an atlas, a rental car, and a semi-formed idea of what to see, the journey had begun. The snow-capped mountains in the far distance were calling, and an almost primeval urge needed to be fulfilled.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Driving in Wyoming is quite enjoyable. The traffic is light, the roads are wide and well-maintained, and the views are always changing and seldom do they fail to catch the eye. At first it looked a lot like eastern Nebraska, wide-open plains...
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
...which soon gave way to valleys, passes, and a hint of bigger things to come in the future.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
The rapidly changing elevation and vistas also meant that the weather changed dramatically depending upon which side of the valley was being crossed. Fortunately, since you can see for miles on end, predicting the weather to come is not that big a hassle.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Evidence that the storm was by-passed by the narrowest of margins...
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Messages come in all shapes and sizes. This one left me speechless. I guess it's time to start cashing in those savings bonds.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Anyhow, having traversed more than half the width of Wyoming, the city of Rock Springs, WY, was the first break in the journey. The attendant at the hotel dryly remarked that there was nothing really to see in Rock Springs. Luckily, her version of "things to see" differ greatly from mine.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Unfortunately, three hours on the road was not enough to espy any horses. The gravel road and vistas it accorded more than made up for that.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
Looking east from the ridgeline, if you squint your eyes, you can see one of the snow-capped ranges that forms the backbone of Wyoming.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
This is Pilot Butte, the distinctive geologic feature that gives its name to the wild horse scenic tour and the probable location of all those afore-mentioned but unseen wild horses.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
A little bit of wind and water over lots of time have carved very unique and eye-catching rock formations.
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| (C.S. Manish 2010) |
And that was it for the day. Day 2 would hold promises of snow-capped mountains and herds of bison. Or at least that was the plan. Like all good plans....well, let's save that story for another day. Come back for scenes from Day 2, which will be posting shortly.
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