Week 6 - The Tetons and the Solar Eclipse

On August 17^th we left Lander, Wyoming and drove across to the Grand Teton Mountains. We passed through another small town named Dubois, with the classic western look that made you feel like you were in an old movie. The main road cut right through the center of town, and I regret not stopping and walking around. I was so close to the Tetons though- I couldn’t waste any time! Continuing down the road, it winded in between red rock hills, and I caught myself looking up houses for sale on Zillow J It was just so pretty! (It’s super expensive to live there, go figure)

I hadn’t looked up a picture of the mountains in a long time; I just knew they were spectacular. One of those places you don’t need to remind yourself of why you’re going – and there’s no doubt that you want to go. So when I saw smaller, yet still huge, grey, rocky mountains, I thought I had arrived. My GPS said I was still 45 minutes away, and I knew I was camping on an adjacent mountain, so I thought maybe I was looping around to the other side of them. I was disappointed because there was no snow on the mountain, but it was still incredible. Needless to say, I was totally shocked when we came around a bend and the actual Teton Mountains were towering in front of me. I actually yelled, “HOLY SHIT!” at the sight of them. I had to remind myself to breathe, and pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t sleeping. I have never, ever seen such an incredible sight.

The best part about that sight was that I got to look at it for the next week! I had searched for weeks trying to find the best boon docking site nearby with a view of the mountain, and boy did I find it. It was on public land off of a forest road that wound up a pretty steep hill. (It was really more of a mountain, but compared to the Tetons, it was a tiny, miniscule hill) It was a dirt road, but it was kept in pretty good condition. At the base of the hill, there was a clearing with a good amount of campers set up. I had read about this campsite, but I knew there was a better view up top, so I headed down the narrow, overgrown road. Luckily I did not meet any other cars while towing up, because most of the road was too narrow to fit two cars, and you couldn’t see that far ahead. When I reached the top I found another large group of campers. At first I felt bad parking so close to the RV next to me, but with it being the week of the solar eclipse, I knew I wasn’t that close. Sure enough, over the next few days a ton of campers packed in.

A few of the sites lined the edge of the clearing and had the best views. Luckily everyone camping in those spots were incredibly friendly and welcomed me to sit with them and soak in the view. We were right across from the Teton’s and I couldn’t have asked for a better location. I just can’t emphasize enough how amazing the mountain range was. There had been forest fires burning in Idaho and Montana, causing the mountains to have a smoky haze to them. Sitting there, watching the sun set behind them, it seemed like it wasn’t real. It really felt like heaven.

That is, besides the heat. There were sites off in the woods with good shade, but the only way to get the view was to be out in the field, soaking up the sun. There wasn’t any electricity, so AC wasn’t an option. I had a sun visor for my windshield that I had never used, so I cut it into pieces and put them over the windows inside the camper. Then I cut pieces of cardboard and covered all of the remaining windows. At night it got very cold, so I took advantage of that and pumped in the cold air all night, before closing everything up the next morning. It was still hot, but manageable.

The first day that I arrived I drove into Jackson. (It also might be Jackson Hole… on the map it is named Jackson, but most signs and souvenirs say Jackson Hole, so who really knows.) Jackson was expecting about 50,000+ people to come into town for the eclipse, as we were right in the path of totality, and even a few days out it was extremely packed. I would love to go back to visit without the crowds, because the town seemed very cute. When I got back to my site, there was a tent hanging on to the ground by two corners, ready to blow away. I went over and weighed it down with rocks but couldn’t find who was staying there.  Later that night I did finally meet the tent owner, Susan, who quickly became my friend over the next few days.

Susan had lived in California before subletting her apartment for the summer and taking her own cross country trip. She had spent a month at a spiritual retreat in Virginia (I think), practicing meditation and simpilier living. It sounded wonderful, just the kind of thing I’ve always wanted to do. She was also at a bit of a cross roads, trying to figure out what she wanted out of life.  The next day her and I rented out a canoe together and went across Jenny Lake to the Hidden Waterfalls. The water in the Lake was so clear, you could see all the way to the bottom even when we far from the edge. Susan had been on a tour the day before and told me all about what she had learned. Apparently there wasn’t just snow on the mountains; most of them were glaciers!


The next few days I spent relaxing and enjoying the freedom of not going anywhere. For the most part of the trip I had been driving 3-6 hours a day, staying a night or two, and then repeating. I hadn't minded it, and had originally been annoyed knowing I had to get to this site so early in order to have a spot for the eclipse. Once I was settled in though I realized how nice it was to just sit still! I had no where to go, and nothing to do but relax. I had my rug set up outside and spent most of my time sitting there, looking at the mountains.


On one day I drove to Yellowstone National Park. My GPS said it was a little over an hour to the park, so I took my time and left later in the day. When I arrived to the pay station, I learned that Old Faithful was still an hour past there! I wish I had known this because I ended up needing to leave earlier than I wanted to in order to get back to feed Coop Dog. I arrived at Old Faithful 30 minutes before the next predicted time, so I walked around and looked at the geysers. They were amazing, despite the strong smell of sulphor they gave off. Each geyser was a different color, though most of them were a shade of blue or orange, and they bubbled and steamed from the heat. There was a wooden bridge-path that wound around the geysers, and signs that warned of the delicate ground below. You could feel the heat coming off of the geysers even from feet away. From there, I walked back to find a spot to watch Old Faithful. It seemed everyone in the park had came to circle around, so I watched from afar before beating the traffic out. I wish I had more time to explore Yellowstone; hopefully one day I'll get to go back and really take my time there.


August 20th marked 4 years since my dad passed away. None of my trip would have been possible without him, starting with his encouragement years ago when I first came up with the idea, and ending with the settlement from his accident giving me the funds to go. That has been the hardest part of this.. Knowing that I wouldn't have been able to afford to go if he was still alive tears me apart every day, particularly on this day. I hadn't cried so hard in so long. Cooper heard me crying and jumped into my bed for the first time, insisting on smothering me for comfort.


The rest of the day was a lazy one. I brought Moxie over to the group of campers on the edge of the field and shared it with them in a toast to my dad. Moxie was his favorite soda, and can only be found in New England. I stocked up before my trip and still had about 20-30 cans left.


The next day was the day of the eclipse!! Everyone set up chairs together and brought food for a pot luck. It was a really cool experience, eclipse aside, being a part of a temporary camper community, made up of people from all over the world. There were a few full time RVers, otherwise most everyone there had only been traveling for the eclipse. There were 4 people from the UK who had rented RVs and had been traveling the US leading up to meeting here to see the eclipse together. Another group was made up of people from a few different countries who had met in college, one of which was going to school for astronomy and had a telescope set up. Susan had a friend drive from Arizona who joined us as well. We had mimosas and cocktails, all eagerly counting down to the eclipse. One of the guys from the UK had made his own lens protector using a piece of film and a toilet paper roll, and was getting amazing shots of the sun with his camera. The girl with the telescope had it set on the sun as well. It was tough to see through it, and you had to catch it at just the right spot, but when you did, you could see the sun as a little red ball with the fire rings shooting out of it.


We all had our solar glasses, continuously checking to see how close we were to the full eclipse. The sun was opposite of the mountain, and since I didn't have a lens protector for my GoPro, I set it up to watch the mountain as the sun went away. Slowly it got darker, and colder, and soon we all were bundled in sweatshirts. Finally we reached totality and everyone cheered, taking off our solar glasses and looking at the ring of light in the sky. You could see all the stars and it truly felt like it was night time. A short few minutes later, the moon uncovered a sliver of the sun, and the birds started to chirp as if it was dawn. Even though only a little bit of the sun was peaking through, and it was still noticeably dark, you could no longer look at the sun without the solar glasses. It was such an amazing experience, I am so glad I was able to witness it.


We spent the rest of the day drinking and just celebrating the occasion. Susan's friend from Arizona wanted to go swimming in a glacier lake, so we took off in his car to find a spot. He was Turkish, and was playing Turkish hip-hop on the radio. I didn't understand a thing they were saying, and with a pretty good Fireball buzz, I felt like I had been transported into another dimension. The day was just so strange; first watching the sun disappear, now sitting in the back seat of this strange car, cruising along in a Turkish daze. We got to the lake and at first we didn't want to go in - it was freezing! Though once we were in it was amazingly refreshing. I floated along on my back, looking up at the mountains towering over the water. Of all the moments I would like to go back to, this would be pretty close to the top of the list. I could have floated there for hours, in awe with the day, with the world, with life.


Later on that day the kid from Turkey left and Susan ended up sleeping on my couch with how cold it was outside. In the middle of the night I woke up to find a mouse inside! I had thought I had heard a mouse the night before, but I wasn't really sure and couldn't find it. But that night I heard it loud and clear. Milo had heard it too and was running around trying to catch it. I woke up Susan who then helped me in catching it. The people in the RV next to us had to have woken up from our screams, but eventually we got it out! (With no help from Milo)


The next day Susan left to make her way back home to California. The person subletting her apartment was moving out, and she had to go back and figure out what she was going to do next. I was originally planning on leaving that day as well, but ended up hanging out for another day. My plan was to head to Alaska after the eclipse, but I was getting really short on money, and cutting it close to the start of the Alaskan winter. A couple who were full time RVers had told me of a service in South Dakota that took care of your mail while you were on the road, so I decided to back track to get my license and become a resident there. The service is called America's Mailbox, located in Box Elder, SD. To sum it up, if you stay in South Dakota one night every 5 years, you can be a legal resident. Once you stay your night, and you set up a Personal Mail Box with America's Mailbox, you take that address to the DMV to get your license, and then off you go! Where ever you are, you can request your mail to be sent to you. Seeing that the biggest issue I had ran into with moving into my camper was not having a mailing address, this was a huge solution for me. Two other big perks were that you didn't get your vehicle inspected every year, so I wouldn't have to drive back to PA, and the state also didn't have an income tax. My end goal right now is to find a job I can have on the road, so this would be a huge bonus.


So on August 23rd, I hit the road again, heading back across Wyoming. Continue reading about it in week 7!

Week 5, Part 2 - Colorado

Remember the promise I made at the end of Week 4, that I wouldn’t let it go another 23 days without updating this blog again? Well it’s been almost a month and a half, so I am sorry! To be fair, I also said I wouldn’t leave Wyoming before catching up, and I am still here!




On Tuesday August 15th I finally reached a lifelong goal - going to Colorado and seeing the Rocky Mountains! This is been the longest dream I've kept, one that I don't think of often because I've always known it would happen. I just didn't know when, and when I saw the Rockies I remembered just how long I had wanted that exact moment to come true. My animals probably thought I was crazy because I was actually screaming in joy when I saw them! Almost immediately after seeing the “Welcome to Colorado” sign, I saw the Rockies off in the distance.  I could see white patches of snow, but it just didn't seem real - I had to stop at the visitor center. I'm confident that I am probably the most excited person they have ever had stop into that building. There was nothing I could've done to hold back my excitement when I led the woman over to the window and pointed at the mountain off in the distance, "Is that snow!?!?!?" I was completely beside myself with joy. When I got back in my truck, I actually started crying with happiness. I was finally in the moment I had dreamt of, long before I ever dreamt of this road trip. I had finally reached the Rocky Mountains!


Seeing them off in the distance was no match to driving up them though! I had to pass through a canyon to climb the mountain peaks to get to my site in Peaceful Valley. The road wound alongside a river, with the mountains towering on either side of me. Every turn revealed a more spectacular sight - I was in complete awe.  From my campsite I was surrounded by wooded mountains, though I couldn't see any of the other peaks. Later on I took the road up further through the mountains and was able to get some really amazing views of them, including the ones with some snow on it! The highest peak had clouds hugging it, with snow in between it and the other peaks. It was incredible!


After I set up camp I left to head to Boulder. On the way back down the mountains a weather alert came over the radio. Up to this point I think I have only ever heard it as a test, but this time it was a real alert, warning for severe winds and hail damage, and to take cover indoors! I didn't even know where I was, let alone if I was in the area it was warning! The skies didn't look that dark, but I had already seen signs on my way up warning of flash floods (and to leave your car and climb to safety!), so I knew the weather could change quickly at this elevation. Luckily I got out of the mountains and away from dark clouds, so just another weather scare!


I was on the phone with Amber when I arrived to Boulder (as I usually am), and was absolutely ecstatic to go into a Marijuana store. Judge away, but I was in Colorado, where it is legal and practically a norm - how could I not!? I got into more than my fair share of trouble as a kid, and now I could just walk right in and buy it? From a store? I felt high just with excitement! I was so intrigued and had so many questions - I was in a whole new world! When I finally got to a store it was both exactly as I expected and at the same time totally unexpected. Each customer had their own employee, who had their own glass case of weed, and jars of it sitting on top. Behind them hung edibles and wrapping papers. I asked every question I could think of, realizing that I probably sounded insane, but I didn't care! I wanted to know everything! Was he high right now? Was it even legal to smoke at work? (No and no) Is it normal for people to be high in public? Could you smoke in public? (Yes and no-but people do). He was extremely patient with all my questions, and then even suggested which type I should get based off of what I was looking for.


From there I went to walk around downtown Boulder and stumbled upon a store that was below street level, named the "Mile High Club". Of course I had to go in.. Have you ever walked into a tobacco store that featured a few cases of glass pipes? Or even a hippie store that had a room, dedicated to glass pipes? This was a mall version. I have never seen so many before, all in brightly lit showcases. Everywhere that I have ever been in, there are signs telling you that if you refer to them for any other use than tobacco you will get kicked out. I've been kicked out before. Here, you could just openly talk about it! Everyone knew what they were for, and there were no laws to keep you from talking about the truth! I may or may not have spent too much money on things in that store... things that I will probably never use. What can I say, Colorado makes you want to be a pot head! I don't know what it is! (Maybe the hundreds of stores selling it???)


Of course I walked out of the store, only to find myself facing another store. I probably could've resisted going in, but it was raining, so why not get out of the rain?? This store was even cooler than the first one I went to, and it turns out they were the largest distributor in the country. The set up was the same personable care, and the guy I had was really cool. All my unanswered questions came out, and then he even answered ones I didn't know I had. I had noticed at the first store that he had talked about processing my credit card as an ATM transaction, but hadn't thought anything of it until this guy mentioned the same thing. Apparently all of these businesses essentially run as ATM's, because we were breaking federal law and therefore the federal banks wouldn't take the money generated. He said there was just a large stack of cash in an undisclosed location, guarded by ex-military and other highly trained men. I thought he was joking, and then realized that he was completely serious! Being that I used to work at a bank, I asked him how they 'ship out' their money if they don't work with Diebold or any armored carrier service. He explained that some of the men mentioned before would come in, with 4 guns each, in a heavily armored car with even more guns inside. "Ready for a 4 hour shootout at any moment," is how he described it. Absolutely crazy!


After leaving there, I got a slice of pizza down the street and then headed back up the mountain to my site. My GPS took me off the main road, on a windy road that cut through the mountains, alternating between dirt and pavement. It was a little unsettling because at this point it was pitch black and I could tell I really was in the "thick of the woods", but the stars were amazing! I continuously stopped in the middle of the road to lean my head out of my window and stare up at them. I couldn't believe how bright they were! Add in the high elevation, and it felt like they were only just out of reach.


The next morning I got up early and drove into Lyons, the town at the very base of the mountain. I had lost cell service almost immediately as I climbed the mountain, and I had to figure out where I was going that night! It had become a very spur of the moment trip, and at this point I really wasn't concerned anymore with where I would stay next; it always seemed to work itself out.


I found a cute coffee shop called The Stone Cup, one of those places I would love to add to my imaginary perfect town. It was a cozy café with free wifi and outdoor seating, and the best Hazelnut Iced Latte I've ever had. (I actually wanted French Vanilla, and they offered me the Hazelnut, starting my newest addiction). After settling down with my laptop outside, I started mapping out where I would stop next. I knew I wanted to be at the Grand Teton Mountains the following night, and had a lot of ground to cover to get there. I finally found a campground on Passport America located in Lander, Wyoming called Mountain View Campground. I had about a 6.5 drive to get there, not including stops, but it would leave me with only 3 hours to get to the Teton's. The woman who answered was extremely worried about me arriving past dark, but told me if I could make it before sundown, then she had a site for me. So, I headed back up the mountain, packed up, and hit the road!


Driving into Wyoming I started to notice these strange fences along the road.. They were just short rows of fences, staggered behind each other in sets of two or threes. There was nothing else around for miles and they didn't seem to have any purpose! Fences are supposed to fence things IN, these just looked like they were mistakenly placed, like a SIMS game error! So I Googled, "Strange Wyoming Fences" and was surprised to find a lot of hits. Turns out they are there to break up snow drifts and keep the snow off the road!


Another bizarre thing that happened once crossing into Wyoming was losing all cell data. I could still make phone calls, but my GPS stopped working. I was trying to get ahold of Amber, to ask her to send me directions, but I couldn't remember the name of the campground I was going to! I stopped to get gas and a girl at the pump next to me gave me directions to the town I was going to. Luckily there really aren’t too many roads, so all I had to remember was one turn! She even told me where she lived, and offered for me to stop there if I needed anything else. At the time I thought it was very strange, but I just hadn't learned about the unconditional hospitality that everyone possesses in Wyoming.


She had described her house as an old café, and I thought there was no way I would be able to find it, even if I wanted to stop in! But, I also hadn't yet learned just how empty Wyoming was either! About an hour later I passed by the old café, and with absolutely nothing else around, and no other roads, it really was very easy to find! As I continued to drive I started to really notice just how empty the area was. I would pass through a town that looked totally abandoned, all of the shops neglected and the gas stations overgrown with weeds.


When I finally made it into Lander, the sun was just starting to set. I pulled over to call the campground for better directions and to make sure they would still take me in. The same woman answered again and continued on to give me extremely detailed instructions, down to the mile markers that I would be turning at. After just being in an extremely remote location in the Rockies, I was expecting about the same, especially with the extent of the directions I received. Needless to say, I was very surprised to find the very obvious, in-plain-site campground. I mean, you could see the other campers from the road, there was no way you would miss it.


Turning onto the road I saw this little old lady, maybe 4 1/2 feet tall, probably 80-90 years old, jumping and wailing her arms all about. Once I pulled up, she showed me the campsite that I would be at, and again it was an extremely obvious site. With one look I knew exactly how to get to it (the sites were in a line with a path behind them to pull your camper through), but she insisted on getting me an escort. A man from one of the permanent sites rode up on a 3-wheeler, and lead the way around the loop to show me just where to go. Yes, everything from the directions to them plugging in my electricity cord for me was excessive, but this woman was the cutest, friendliest person I have ever met. If I am ever back in the area, I will make sure to stop in, even if just to say hi!


The next day I left and finally made it to my solar eclipse destination - the Teton Mountains!