We had truck trouble – “water in the fuel” on Saturday during our drive to Alcova. We felt we should not drive until we had it checked, so Sunday, a rainy, cloudy day, we stayed an extra day in Rawlins and watched a lot of football.(September 15, 2013)
First thing Monday morning, the 16th, Tom took the truck to the GMC dealer in town. We did not have an appointment but were just hoping they would fit us in. They were able to drain the water from the fuel filter, prime it again, and showed Tom how to do it if we still had a problem, which was a possibility. We were told that the gas station we had used Saturday morning, a Shell/TA station, has had this problem before with their diesel fuel. Oh well. At least we did not do any apparent damage to the engine. So we left Rawlins about 10 am and headed toward Lander. The day was gorgeous, with blue skies and perfect 70s for temperatures. We passed a lot of open land with some cattle and pronghorn antelopes. We had learned that out here, to raise one cow you need 100 acres of land! No wonder the ranches are so large! We saw some pretty magpies soaring overhead too.
“The Notch”, a landmark used by the early travelers remains to day as a reminder of those that went before us,
Ice slough is a small stream that flows into the Sweetwater River. The marsh land around this small stream insulated the ground. The water below the marsh area freezes and the insulating maintained the ice into May and June. Travelers along the trail would stop, dig up some ice and use it to cool their drinks.
We reached Lander about 1:30 and stopped at the City Recreation Center office. Our friends Steve and Carol had just spent time in a free city park campground and recommended it to us. We got directions and it is so very nice. Our site is right by a rushing, rocky stream and nice and quiet. No electricity or water, but we can manage for a few days without these.
After getting set up, we took the truck and drove south of town on 28 to see the Red Rock Canyon.
We took a side road that took us very close to the rocks, and then drove further down 28 to see an overview of the whole canyon. It was simply stunning in the afternoon sun.
A lone female mule deer was visiting and she gave us the opportunity to take her picture.
The view from the rim of the canyon near South Pass provided and overview of the entire canyon. In the winter the canyon is home to as many as 650 elk,
We stopped for fuel and groceries and returned to the campsite for a nice quiet evening listening to the stream go by.
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