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Published: March 28th 2006
Pocatello Camping
We stay at the fairgrounds cammpground in Pocatello with the contestants-- Mont knows a lot of them and ,in some cases, their dads. Tass thinks the truck can't runif he isn't in it. If you see the word "Wyoming" and think "Jackson", you are thinking from the outside. We moved to Thermopolis 12 years ago and hope to give you an insight into how we residents see our state. First of all, we agree it is crazy that our capital is way down there in a far off corner of this sparsely populated state. The joke is,I was told-- that's so it is easier for Colorado to run this "territory's" business. Sometimes we feel it isn't really just a joke though.
The main thing to realize about Wyoming is that it is a long drive to anything, whether it is the capital or just another town. Our kids ride school buses to high school sports events farther than many people in the east ever travel in their lives. We think nothing of having to go 60 miles to the nearest WalMart either; driving is just a way of life. This is compounded by the fact that several major mountain ranges criss cross the state. The term "as the crow flies" has new meaning when you see how it interferes with driving from Point A to Point B.
Case in point. On Thursday, March 16,
Back Seat Driver
We bought the pickup with the dog's comfort in mind. He doesn't usually have those cushions, tho. On all the other trips he lays on a Navajo rug but we knew he would be sleeping there for a couple hours while we were in the rodeo so we felt sorry for him we decided on the spur of the moment to go to Pocatello Idaho for the last three performances of the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo. Since our Hallmark popup camper stays on our 1999 Ford F250 Powerstroke (diesel) pickup, Mont simply had to do his usual thing-- check the tires, battery, oil, transmission and you know all the usual guy things that keep that puppy happy.
There are two ways to get to Pocatello-- the northern route is via Togwatee (pronounced Toe-got-ee) Pass over the Continental Divide, then over Teton Pass west of Jackson and come into Pocatello from the north. The other is a southern route via South Pass over the Continental Divide , through Kemmerer and around Bear Lake in Idaho to come into Pocatello from the south. This route is notoriously windy with no towns to stop for meals.
We went to Pocatello via the northern route. The weather made the decision for us. We knew a winter storm was coming in from the southwest and had lots of wind with it. We knew we would be over the mountains before noon so that would put us to Bubba's in Jackson for lunch. Why Bubba's? It is
Shopping at Winco in Pocatello
We don't have any "bulk" grocery stores in Wyoming so we go shopping in the barrels for our entertainment!!! Mont loves it more than I do, I believe. where the snowmobilers and crosscountry skiers eat too since they serve you fast and good portions!! Mont likes their barbeque special and I like everything. And they keep my coffee cup full!!
We came back via the southern route also because of the weather. A new storm had blown in while we were in Pocatello this time from the north and we knew the mountains around Jackson had lots of new snow. Translate "slick road". This gave us an excellent chance to compare the two routes.
Let the records show that Thermopolis to Pocatello Idaho through Jackson is 356 miles and took 8 hours. The same trip through Kemmerer is 404 miles and took 8 1/2 hours. Diesel was $2.65 in Thermopolis,
$2.57 in Idaho, $2.38 in the little town of Cokeville (they selling from an older delivery, they said). Both roads were slick over the top--especially South Pass-- but Mont liked the southern route because there was so little traffic. I hated the absence of a decent lunch stop. But the main thing always is to get home safely when driving Wyoming in the winter. We did that but we always are prepared for an emergency. We always
elkhound heaven
Just give a male elkhound a tree and some snow and he is happy. Of course, he would be happier if I would turn him loose and let him chase those rabbits for a couple hours. Not going to happen..... carry extra clothing, blankets, some kind of food, water, a good jack, a lariat AND a length of chain ( so far we only have had to use these to help other folks.) Oh, and extra food for the dog Tass who goes every place we do.
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Elaine Lidster
non-member comment
Ruth, I love reading about your travels. We went to Japan and Malaysia for Christmas and wish we could have done it twenty years sooner also!!!! Wonderful memories though. Elaine