Day Twenty Nine through Thirty Two, Jackson, WY: “Dude, we’ve just lost a day.”

The updates have been scarce lately for two reasons. First, I was already running a backlog of hundreds of pictures from Grand Teton that I had to sort through so I could do the last two posts. Second, I needed a vacation from my vacation.

I have spent the last several days – Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday – in Jackson, a small town of about 9,000 just south of Grand Teton National Park. I simply needed to settle down for a bit, clean up the car, mail some things, pick up some small groceries, and just relax under a roof.

On Saturday night, I went to the Snake River Brewery to try one of their beers. To make a long story short, the stories I was telling at the bar soon meant people were buying me beers faster than I could drink them. I met a forest ranger from the nearby National Forest at the bar, and he offered to put me up for the night. Doug was a great guy and it was a nice gesture.

The next day – Sunday – was my birthday, and I did enjoy hearing from all those who I talked to. I spent Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday night at a guy’s house who I met on couchsurfing.com, Dan, who was a great host. After having spent the previous eight nights outside, it felt great to get under a roof. I spent Sunday night just relaxing. 

The title of the post refers to something Dan said after we spent most of the day on Monday watching the TV show Arrested Development. And that was Monday; I didn’t get much done at all.

I spent Tuesday getting ready for the next week or two; groceries, water, etc. I finished assembling a do-it-yourself solar panel charger, which has an output in the form of a car cigarette adapter, allowing me to charge almost any of my electronic devices – including my laptop – from a lightweight and paperback-book sized solar charger. Very convenient. Finally, Dan and his two roommates and I had a nice “family dinner,” complete with fried chicken and mashed potatoes. It was a nice feeling to eat real food with other people again.

Now it’s Wednesday, and I’m leaving soon for Yellowstone. I may stop another day in Grand Teton; I’m not sure yet. Either way, I am hoping to get back to the more regular update schedule. As long as I can hook onto a cell phone signal for a few minutes a day in the park, I will be able to send out the updates.

Thanks for following along.