After leaving Meeker, we drove through Rangely, which looked like an oil bust town. We stopped in Dinosaur Colorado to visit the Welcome Center, where we picked up some brochures, and chatted with the host. Dinosaur is a town of about 300 people, with peeling paint and dead motels. The host says that 400,000 people a year drive through, based on the Utah welcome center statistics.. We had lunch in the Bedrock Depot, which is on Brontosaurus Boulevard (US 40). They had tables outside. Sandi had a Brontosaurus sandwich, which was a turkey sandwich with pesto, I had a Reuben. We both enjoyed our meal.
We headed to the Dinosaur NM Colorado visitor center, but it was temporarily closed. We took the drive north to Harper's Corner and stopped at the scenic overlooks. We got to look down at the canyons, and a glimpse of the river at Echo Park. We turned around and headed back to Dinosaur Colorado, and continued to the Utah side of Dinosaur NM. The Green River campground is lovely, next to the river. It was a warm day, but comfortable once the sun went down. The sunset was beautiful.
On Tuesday morning, we drove down the Cub Creek road, where we saw petroglyphs, as well as Josie Moris's cabin. She lived in a remote cabin by herself for fifty years, which I was very impressed with. We then visited the dinosaur bone quarry which the monument is famous for. We also were able to use the park Wifi; it was pretty slow, but adequate for posting the blog. We went back to the camper for lunch, I laid down for a while, but it was hot. After lunch, we drove to the boat ramp, where our group had taken out a couple of weeks before. No one was there, but we took a seat in the shade. A small private day trip group appeared, speaking Spanish, which was surprising, so I walked over and talked to them. One of them was owner of a tour company offering adventure tours in Peru, Apumayo, and knew Raul, our tour guide in Peru, as well as Nilda, the head of the textile group in Cusco. Its a small world. The next group was 21 folks on an Oars tour, including 6 guides, in five boats. Sandi got to see how a raft group unloads at the end of a multi-day trip. Sandi grilled burgers and vegetables for dinner, as it was too hot to cook inside.
Wednesday morning, we drove to Vernal, UT, where we bought gas, propane, and groceries. We headed north on highway 191, which I recalled as being very mountainous. Yes it is. We spent a lot of time in first and second gear, so progress was slow. Soon after leaving Vernal, we could see a mammoth open pit phosphate mine. It was the largest open pit mine Sandi had ever seen; Richard recalled the mine in Bisbee Arizona as being about the same size. The drive included signs marking geologic layers and features, with a few words about each layer.
Eventually, we arrived at the dam for Flaming Gorge Reservoir. I have paddled perhaps 1/3 of the length of the reservoir, and hope to paddle the balance of it in 2022, as part of my campaign to paddle the length of the Green River. We visited the overlook, and the visitor center. The Bureau of Reclamation built and operates the dam, as part of their system of dams in the Colorado River basin. They recently increased flows from Flaming Gorge and other dams, to put more water in Lake Powell. I spoke to the attendant about how I benefited from the recent increase in flows, when I paddled the Gates of Lodore. She said that Flaming Gorge, Navajo Dam, and the dams on the Gunnison River are all increasing output, which she said would raise Lake Powell about three feet, a drop in the bucket..... The plumbing diagram of the Colorado River shows how the Bureau of Reclamation probably thinks about rivers. :-)
As we were driving north towards Rock Springs, considering our slow progress north, we realized that our plan to spend the night in the Tetons was unrealistic, as it would require driving well into the evening. We had lunch in Rock Springs and considered our options; we decided to stop in Boulder Wyoming, at a very nice RV park that we had stayed in before, the High-Line Trail RV park. We were able to use the microwave and the Wifi, something that we had not been able to do since we left home. We celebrated by dining on leftovers.
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