Great People and Great Parks (Part 2)

As many of you know, Yellowstone National Park is sitting right on top of a supervolcano. The thermal energy under the ground is what drives the geysers and the hot springs and the bubbling mud pots. Janice and I spent about two and a half days riding through Yellowstone and enjoying its steamy beauty and abundant wildlife. As we moved through Yellowstone, Janice and I thought a lot about our mother, Monica, and brother, Chris, and friends Jamie, Travis, and Graham, who were all with us two years ago when we rode through the park.

After Yellowstone came Grand Teton National Park. There we came face to face with the beautiful and rugged peaks that make up the Teton Range. These mountains held my attention--I found it hard to look away. I wanted nothing more than to climb among them and walk around.


The Teton Range.

We stopped at Colter Bay and went to the visitor center. I felt a strong urge to learn the names of the peaks, and the kind people in the visitor center were a great help. Janice and I debated riding more, but we decided to spend the night in Colter Bay. We cooked pasta, and did laundry, and then went over to the general store to eat ice cream and look at books.

Outside the general store we met Jennifer, one of the park naturalists. It was getting late in the evening, and Janice and I needed to get to the campground. We asked Jennifer for directions, and that one lonely question sparked a whole conversation about bicycle touring. Janice and I were happy to answer Jennifer's questions because it was obvious that she was truly interested. Some people see us as a strange breed of traveler. Our form of travel is radically different and they find this hard to understand. They ask questions to satisfy their curiosity, and it sometimes seems like we are on display for them. But then there are people like Jennifer, people who really care about what we are doing. These people make us feel good about our adventure and ourselves.

So we talked for a while with Jennifer. And as we talked the sky grew darker. But Jennifer was observant, and she could sense that we needed to get to camp. "What are you guys doing tonight?" asked Jennifer.
"Nothing," I replied.
"We're just gonna go to camp and relax," said Janice.
"Well," said Jennifer, "If you want, you can come back to my place. We can hang out there and eat some food. You can definitely camp on our porch. There might be a campfire, or a party, or something happening."

So we went back to Jennifer's place and met her roommate Kat, who is also a park naturalist. Both Kat and Jennifer had been living and working in the park for about one month. They were excited to share the park with us, and we were happy to have some friends to share the night with. We ate Fritos and salsa, and talked about trees and traveling. We watched shooting stars and talked about the bears. When it got late, Janice and I rolled out our sleeping bags and slept on the living room floor.

In the morning, Jennifer and Kat made us an incredible breakfast feast, with eggs, waffles, tea, toast, and orange juice. Jennifer and Kat had to work, but Janice and I stopped by the visitor center before we left and it was there that we took this photo:

Kat, Me, Janice, and Jennifer.

Thanks again Kat and Jennifer, ya'll are awesome!