Start: Thermopolis, WY - <a href="http://www.eaglervpark.com/">Eagle RV Park and Campground</a>
Destination: Alpine, WY - <a href="http://www.greysrivercove.com/">Greys River Cove RV Park</a>
Odometer: 103,909 (start)  104,189 (end)   280 miles
Date:  Monday, September 5th,  2011

The previous night in the cold caught us unprepared, but this night/morning, we fortified ourselves.  The insulated blanket on the cot was a big help for my Dad, and my sleeping bag provided adequate warmth (my sleeping bag has been in our family since I was a kid and I have gotten great use from it...I think Gail (a friend of mine and of the family) gave it to us.  On the other hand, my Dad’s sleeping bag I got when I opened an account at a bank a few years ago).

We left the campground around 6:30, and headed down the road a couple of miles to the Thermopolis Hot Springs State Park, the “World`s Largest Mineral Hot Springs” (it's written on a mountain, so it must be true).  It being Labor Day, we were concerned there would be crowds.

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The park is always open for people to walk around, but the bath house didn’t open until 8am.  We took this time to drive around looking for the Buffalo they apparently had in the park, walking over the intentionally wobbly suspension bridge over the Wind river, and checking out the various mineral springs that dotted the park.

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We didn’t see any buffalo, despite several loops around the drive.  Turns out they don’t really come out until later in the morning when they are fed.  Little did we know, we would soon get to the point where seeing buffalo would become mundane, if not annoying (more on that in future posts).

The walk over the bridge was a short, but pleasant walk.  I had fun rocking the bridge through some simple harmonic motion vibrations while my Dad and I were on it.  He became a might nervous, but it was all in good fun.

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It was around 8, so we headed over to the mineral bath house.  We met up with a local who had returned after several month away who educated us.  Amongst other things, we learned a reason that the bath is free, is that this was part of the deal they signed with the Indians when acquiring the land.  (The water slide park however was not free.)   He also knew the staff people, and we were able to get in a few minutes early.

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Neither of us has been to a mineral hot spring before, so we didn’t know what to expect.  I am used to, and enjoy hot tubs, but my Dad is water averse, and made an exception for this park.  At first, I was annoyed that we were supposedly only allowed to stay in the water for 20 minutes, so we quickly readied ourselves in the bathroom and went to the outdoor pool (there’s an inside one too).

We were both glad we made this stop on the trip.  It was great.  The water is 104° and we could feel the difference between it and regular water.  There were stone blocks in the pool for sitting, and railings to keep from floating away or resting one's head.  It seems there is quite a local community of bathers who come each morning, because before we knew it, there were near a dozen retirees in the pool with us.  I can definitely see why they would settle in this area.

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After more than 20 minutes (they weren’t strict on the time, and it can be uncomfortable to actually stay in the water much longer), we showered off and got dressed.  We not only felt refreshed, but our skin complexion had noticeably improved.  We highly recommend you make this park a stop on your trip if you’re going to be nearby.  The GSP was set for Alpine, WY, and we were off.

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There were more great landscapes along the drive in Wyoming, but the one that stood out was when we saw a mountain in the distance, behind some mist.

ADD PICTURE WITH ROAD AND GRANT TETON'S IN MIST

At first, I thought they were the Rocky Mountains, but Dad was better aware of geography, and dissented.  We eventually realized that they were the Grand Tetons.  They are an impressive range of mountains, with peaks reaching over 10,000 feet and appearing to touch the clouds.  As my Dad noted, the surfaces are bare and the beauty of the mountain is not blocked by the presence of trees and other vegetation.  There also seems to be a constant haze around them, even when on the road right next to the them.  As described by a friend of mine who recommended this stop, they do rise majestically from the flat planes that surround it.

Also along the way, in Moose, WY we saw, a few hundred feet from the road, a herd of buffalo grazing and wasting the time of day.  We looked at them through the binoculars my Dad had brought, impressed by our first buffalo sighting of the trip.

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We were also  fortunate on this trip to find, along the side of the road, a nice picnic area next to a reservoir.  We had some peanut butter and honey sandwiches, watched a family having fun on the water in their motor boat, and had a nice Labor Day picnic of sorts.

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Now, we had originally planned to stay in Jackson (Hole), WY.  We soon realized that Jackson is an expensive resort town, where even a campsite was over $40.  As we drove through, noticing the fancy cars and stores, we realized this was not our kind of place and were glad we were staying elsewhere.

Our destination was definitely not of the Jackson, WY type.  The campground office is located in the tavern and the bartender handles the reservations and there is a Family Dollar next door.  She was friendly and we were checked in without incident, but we were definitely in the more every-day sort of Wyoming.  The views and proximity to the river, the free WiFi, and hot showers were also nice features of the campground.

For dinner that night, I sauteed/fried the perogies (I wasn’t confident in my ability to boil water).  They turned out well, but we also finished off the apples and the Morningstar Maple “sausage patties” I had been sitting in the cold water in the cooler.  Everything turned out g

After dinner, I had a much needed shower, and we went to the Family Dollar to buy some misc. items, such as a gallon of water, some metal forks, and paper towels.  I made use of the internet to send some emails and post on the blog, while my Dad relaxed in the tent.

We went to bed as the only campers in the site (there were RVs along the perimeter), ready to experience Yellowstone in the morning.  The 40mph winds ended up giving us an early start on that journey.