Anticipating a busy day with the forecast of rain (They haven't got a clue. I swear the meteorologists use a dart board, and not a very good one at that) we headed back to the Rio Grande Trail (packing ponchos just in case). This wins the prize for spectacular bike trails. Of course, we plan to bike along the Grand Tetons Thursday so we'll see how long Rio Grande can hold the record.
We have had several reader complaints that (1) bike trail shots only show Laurie's back (I am biking in back of her with camera in hand) and (2) boredom due to the mis-perception of lack of variety in Laurie's cycling wardrobe. Speaking as her valet (schlepper), I can assure everyone that Laurie has a variety of black/white outfits for any and all occasions but to keep our readers stimulated we will, going forward, make a greater effort to showcase Laurie's wardrobe. Unfortunately, we would have to extend our trip to display her entire collection in these emails, but trust me, our bags are bursting at the seams.
Here, Laurie is wearing a chic black jacket which brings out the subtle gray tones in her helmet. And, oh yes, don't miss the rugged rock formations up ahead.
Later, Laurie shows her layering versatility with the jacket-in-basket look. See how her white top coordinates with the light and fluffy clouds. (Remember the rain forecast? Ha!)(You know I'm having fun with you. We love all of your replies and comments. I was wondering if anyone would notice the white-top series and the fact that we received multiple comments made our day. Keep 'em coming.)
Next up was a 10 hour drive to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We were able to have a more relaxing morning in Aspen, which is spectacular, by axing Dinosaur National Monument plus it made the drive shorter. We faced mostly good weather but a few storms along the way and three areas of "Stimulus Money" at work. They actually had a sign saying that but it went by too fast for me to record.
No fun driving in this. All this loose gravel makes me glad we're not making this trip in a new car. Throw in a little rain and my clean car was a distant memory. This was a perfectly good stretch of road, two lanes but plenty wide and smooth with a 65 mph speed limit which they totally screwed up and for what I'm not sure. This is one 20 mile stretch along a much longer highway. So what?
Did you know they had Bordellos in Wyoming? If you can't afford the Bordello you can just rent a video.I have lost all confidence in my BMW navigation system. We were zipping along a stretch of interstate when we decided to make a pit-stop and clean the windshield. As we pulled off the road, I saw a sign reading "Pinedale ## miles." Pinedale? That's where I tried unsuccessfully to book a hotel room for the night, about 75 miles short of Jackson, which would have made today's drive a little shorter and still allow us to get into Jackson early in the day. Checking my Mapquest directions, THIS was the way to Jackson, so why was the BMW directing me to get back on the interstate then take a different road north? There is no "Independence Pass" this way so what's up? I fired up my Garmin for a third opinion. Garmin agrees with Mapquest AND cuts out almost 60 miles and an estimated 45 minutes! We follow the Garmin/Mapquest route while BMW is having another fit (Make a legal U turn, No go back, No you're going the wrong way! Listen to me!) After about 20 miles BMW gives up and admits that this is the shorter, faster route. I we hadn't pulled off at this exit for a pit stop we would have driven for another 40 minutes at least and when you're getting to the hotel at midnight that's a big deal.
Wednesday, August, 4, 2010 Jackson, WY
Arriving after dark, we had a Larry moment in the morning: Wow! Jackson is beautiful. We packed our bags (successfully bringing in only what we needed for a one-nighter) and headed to the Amangani, which is supposed to be the highlight hotel of the entire trip. Only 40 rooms, great views, spectacular pool, etc. Only problem is the pool is crawling with pesky KIDS! So much for relaxing at the pool.
We signed up for the "Yoga Package" which includes a private yoga session every day, plus other goodies. Now that we are here early instead of later in the day after driving in from Dinosaur, we needed to make our yoga session an hour earlier and dinner an hour earlier so we could get to bed an hour earlier. Oh darn, the yoga studio was booked. They had to schedule our session in our room.
What an inconvenience. Oh, well. We may as well have it in our room for the next two days too. Fashionistas, notice how Laurie's top coordinates with her pants! And how about Steve's red-on-black look? Sharp!One more thing: We had a little earthquake today, right before our yoga session. A rumbling sound and a lot of rattling. The building shook. It was pretty short leaving you with a "what was that?" Magnitude 4.8!
Tomorrow, more biking and hiking in the Grand Tetons. They got a little higher today.
Regards,
Steve & Laurie
PS: Laurie wanted me to include a picture of a portion of the view from our room without yogis blocking the view. It is even better to the right. Maybe I'll include that view next time.
PPS: Two weeks down, four to go.
No comments:
Post a Comment