We were taking our time getting things packed up this morning...until the Tetons gave us the bum rush with a thunderstorm that put our packing and preparation for departure into high gear. We did stop at the Ranger Station on the way out so that Sophie could become the newest Junior Ranger of Grand Teton N.P. We didn't get a chance to attend a Ranger session but they were kind enough to let us fill out a scavenger hunt instead.
After receiving her badge, we dropped off the rental car and started toward Rawlins, WY in the continuing rain. I did get some pictures of Jackson on the way through since I didn't get the camera out yesterday. Once out of Jackson, the road opened up for the rest of the ride to our hotel. In fact, the road opened up and the wind picked up. It was windy! Did I mention there was wind? Oh yeah, there was wind. In fact, the wind tore off our satellite antenna and it was banging against the side of the motorhome dangling by it's cable. But we didn't notice that right away. See, when we had stopped it was because the awning was ripping away from the motorhome in the wind. First it was just that the lock wasn't holding and the arms were releasing in and out. So we stopped to fix that. Tried locking it and continuing on our way. Stopped again in what seemed like less than a mile later. Wyoming State Police also stopped with us this time. This was nice since we weren't all the way off the road so having him there with his flashers was comforting. This time we taped the awning arms together. Of course, this was after the wind ripped the door out of my hands and bent the top part of it. So that was nice. Ok, got that fixed, back on the road, see the antenna banging on the side. Stop, cut that off. Back on the road. See awning start flapping in the wind. Stop again. Tom climbs on top and hand rolls the awning back up. On the road again. Spend the next 2 hours staring at the mirror waiting for the awning to start ripping away again. We finally changed directions and were OK for the rest of the trip into Rawlins.
Once in Rawlins, we had an easy dinner of pizza and some fun time in the pool. Mom did laundry (thanks!) and I've been trying to update the blog. I know that I need to do as much as possible on the trip because if I wait until I get back, it won't get done. After a little swimming, it was time for a much appreciated shower. You can't really appreciate showers until you don't have one available for a while. That was it for the day. Didn't do a whole heck of a lot but the wind provided enough excitement for the day. Heading south to Colorado tomorrow and will camp on the west side of Rocky Mt. N.P.
I thought that it was worth noting that for as much as Max has been looking forward to his "hotown" (hotel), he couldn't fall asleep tonight and wanted his camper. Of course, he thought we were going to a Great Wolf Lodge (I tried to explain that we weren't) so he was probably disappointed by the pool a little bit. He'll be so excited next time we go to Traverse City though!
