When I said I would share some of my activities this summer and that I would keep them short I was wrong on both accounts. After going through my entries I realized there were some from last year that I would like to share as well.
This post is from December 2020 and I apologize but it is also quite long.
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The last couple of months have been a bit of a whirl wind but so much fun.
Sarah’s baby was due to arrive December 15th so we had already decided to spend Christmas with her and then the German government made exceptions so that Grandparents could visit newly born grandchildren so we also planned our trip that was cancelled last August.
Sarah ended up delivering Ezma on December 6 so Lisa changed her flights and arrived in Glenrock December 7. I flew out December 22. We flew back to San Diego January 4 and then we flew to Frankfurt Germany January 6. We flew home from Germany on January 23. We have spent the last few weeks trying to catch our breath.
I have been gone for over a month but Lisa has been gone for seven weeks.
It was a bit of a shock when I landed in Salt Lake. I used to live in that cold weather but how quickly you forget. Once I got to Casper it was even colder.
I was welcomed into Wyoming by a snow storm. We stopped in Casper and Sam and Sarah treated us to dinner at this cool hamburger place.
The next morning we woke up to six inches of snow. As much as I don’t like the cold I figure if it’s going to be cold then I might as well have snow. It was kind of pretty.
On Christmas Eve Sam and Sarah gave us a tour of their town. It didn’t take long; Glenrock is a small town of about 5,000 people roughly 15 miles east of Casper. At first glance it is a desolate barren wasteland but if you take the time to look around it does have a beauty all its own.
The town is on the Platte River but a small stream called Deer Creek flows through the town and drains into the river.
In this picture you can see the trees in the foreground. The trees follow Deer Creek. They actually call this valley “Mormon Canyon”.
It was a beautiful hike and a very long day. It was a good way to say goodbye to Wyoming.
Sarah’s baby was due to arrive December 15th so we had already decided to spend Christmas with her and then the German government made exceptions so that Grandparents could visit newly born grandchildren so we also planned our trip that was cancelled last August.
Sarah ended up delivering Ezma on December 6 so Lisa changed her flights and arrived in Glenrock December 7. I flew out December 22. We flew back to San Diego January 4 and then we flew to Frankfurt Germany January 6. We flew home from Germany on January 23. We have spent the last few weeks trying to catch our breath.
I have been gone for over a month but Lisa has been gone for seven weeks.
It was a bit of a shock when I landed in Salt Lake. I used to live in that cold weather but how quickly you forget. Once I got to Casper it was even colder.
The next morning we woke up to six inches of snow. As much as I don’t like the cold I figure if it’s going to be cold then I might as well have snow. It was kind of pretty.
There isn’t a whole lot to see and do in Glenrock so I figured I would go for a walk at least once a day. On my first day in Glenrock I went for a 5 mile walk.
On Christmas Eve Sam and Sarah gave us a tour of their town. It didn’t take long; Glenrock is a small town of about 5,000 people roughly 15 miles east of Casper. At first glance it is a desolate barren wasteland but if you take the time to look around it does have a beauty all its own.
The town is on the Platte River but a small stream called Deer Creek flows through the town and drains into the river.
In this picture you can see the trees in the foreground. The trees follow Deer Creek. They actually call this valley “Mormon Canyon”.
The water tower up on the hill is very close to Sam and Sarah’s house.
I went for a 3.4 mile walk on Christmas Eve and then for a 4.3 mile walk on Christmas day. The plan was to actually go for runs but it was far too icy to run. I would have certainly fallen. I almost fell many times while just walking.
Christmas was a quiet day and because we were flying we only took a few small gifts with us. It actually worked out well for us. We had Christmas with Sam and Sarah on the 25th, we had another Christmas in San Diego on Jan 4th and then we had a third Christmas with Alex and Lisa on Jan 7th.
It was kind of cozy since we had Christmas in the basement around their very cool fireplace.
On Sunday, (boxing day) Sam and I got everything ready to remove his old water heater and connect his new tankless water heater. We mostly figured out the electrical wiring but we didn’t actually do the work until Monday.
Most of the day on Monday was spent hooking up the new water heater but I was still able to get in a walk. Later we all went on a walk as a group. Between the two walks I manage to get in 9.2 miles.
On most of my walks I basically made a huge circle around the town but once that got routine I decided to head north into the wilderness. I walked up to the water tower and saw way in the distance a ridge with a cool rock on it. Sam had shown me early the Rock in the glen where Glenrock got its name. I figure this must be the Rock in the Glen.
After a wonderful hike I finally got to the rock and managed to climb on top of
it. With all the ice and snow it was a bit nerve racking but I had some wonderful views from the top of the rock.
When I looked back towards town I realized that I was not on the Rock in the Glen because there it was right in front of me. I made that trip a couple of times more.
Sam came with me on several of my
hikes but I had to be careful with him because all that metal in his ankle limits him to about three miles.
The picture below is taken from on top of the Rock in the Glen and is looking back towards what I am now calling Freds Rock.
I found the features in the rocks fascinating. I also saw a number sticks that had been fossilized into the rock.
Towards the end of our stay, Sam and Sarah took us on a road trip to visit Scotts Bluff.
Scotts Bluff is actually in Nebraska and it is named after Hiram Scott. The stories are conflicting and I may understand this wrong but I guess three trappers were heading into the wilderness on a boat on the Platte River and young Hiram Scott (in his early twenties) got very sick. Rather than waiting for him to die, they put him ashore and continued on their way.
The following year they wondered what happened to Hiram Scott so they went looking for him. They found his remains at the foot of what is now known as Scotts Bluff.
On our way to Nebraska we stopped at Register Cliff.
Both Scotts Bluff and Register cliffs were major landmarks for settlers heading west on the Oregon trail. The pioneers would look for these sites to make sure they were heading in the right direction. Because they are available from tens of miles away so they were very useful land marks.
Register cliff is famous for the hundreds of names that have been carved into the cliff face. The sign says that there are many names dating from the 1840’s when the Oregon Trail was most heavily used but this is the earliest name we could find. W. H. E Keart 1872. It is rather amazing to see some of these old names.
Unfortunately we got to Scotts Bluff minutes after they locked up the gate to the road that leads to the top of the bluff. There was still plenty of light so we were bummed that they closed the road. We parked in the parking lot and read the signs and then decided to head up the hiking trail.
As we were hiking the sun began to set and the
surrounding hills lit up in the most beautiful way. This is a picture of Scotts Bluff and we are heading right for that cliff in front of us.
Once we got further up the hill we turned around and saw this hill as well. It was stunning.
Sarah & Sam hiked most of the way with us but Radar stayed with us the entire way.
I went for a 3.4 mile walk on Christmas Eve and then for a 4.3 mile walk on Christmas day. The plan was to actually go for runs but it was far too icy to run. I would have certainly fallen. I almost fell many times while just walking.
It was kind of cozy since we had Christmas in the basement around their very cool fireplace.
On Sunday, (boxing day) Sam and I got everything ready to remove his old water heater and connect his new tankless water heater. We mostly figured out the electrical wiring but we didn’t actually do the work until Monday.
As much as I love Sarah and Sam and thoroughly enjoyed spending Christmas with them the main purpose of the trip was to see this beautiful little girl. I held her a ton and got lots of snuggles but she spent most of our time there just like this. With her eyes closed.
After a wonderful hike I finally got to the rock and managed to climb on top of
it. With all the ice and snow it was a bit nerve racking but I had some wonderful views from the top of the rock.
When I looked back towards town I realized that I was not on the Rock in the Glen because there it was right in front of me. I made that trip a couple of times more.
Sam came with me on several of my
hikes but I had to be careful with him because all that metal in his ankle limits him to about three miles.
The picture below is taken from on top of the Rock in the Glen and is looking back towards what I am now calling Freds Rock.
Towards the end of our stay, Sam and Sarah took us on a road trip to visit Scotts Bluff.
Scotts Bluff is actually in Nebraska and it is named after Hiram Scott. The stories are conflicting and I may understand this wrong but I guess three trappers were heading into the wilderness on a boat on the Platte River and young Hiram Scott (in his early twenties) got very sick. Rather than waiting for him to die, they put him ashore and continued on their way.
The following year they wondered what happened to Hiram Scott so they went looking for him. They found his remains at the foot of what is now known as Scotts Bluff.
Both Scotts Bluff and Register cliffs were major landmarks for settlers heading west on the Oregon trail. The pioneers would look for these sites to make sure they were heading in the right direction. Because they are available from tens of miles away so they were very useful land marks.
Unfortunately we got to Scotts Bluff minutes after they locked up the gate to the road that leads to the top of the bluff. There was still plenty of light so we were bummed that they closed the road. We parked in the parking lot and read the signs and then decided to head up the hiking trail.
As we were hiking the sun began to set and the
It would have been nice to hike all the way to the top but when were about half way up we saw a tunnel in the face of the cliff and Sam told us that the trail goes through the tunnel. We decided to hike to the tunnel and turn around.
It was a beautiful hike and a very long day. It was a good way to say goodbye to Wyoming.
