Escapee Friends

A few weeks ago we got an email from Mike and Loretta,(Mike and Loretta are fulltimers who have been on the road for ten years), saying they would be passing through Wyoming and wondering where we were at. So it was really nice when we heard their air horn and saw their mdt and fifth wheel out our side window.
Their original plan was to go to Frontier Days but they had changed them and weren't sure where they were going and so they spent a couple nights parked across from us at Buckbosrd Crossing Campground.
We actually were able to grill fresh caught salmon over a wood pit fire. Loretta made a pasta salad and we also had wood fire baked potatoes and French bread. It was a real challenge as storms roared past us and we were just able to cook the salmon and eat during a lull between the storms.
The plan for the next day was to go for a boat ride up Flaming Gorge, and to maybe catch some smallmouth bass for dinner. The next morning we loaded up and went to the boat ramp. The game and fish inspector actually walked to the campground road head to make sure we got our mussel inspection done and after the usual questions she okayed us and we launched the boat.
It didn't take long before we were heading up the lake, with our destination being Firehole and Chimmney Rock. The trip was nice and we chatted about the gorge, John Wesley Powell and the numerous boondocking sites along the shore.
We stopped at the mouth of the Black River and pointed out the road called Lost Dog. There was a large fifth wheel there, here you are allowed to boondock for sixteen days and so many haul their campers out and simply leave them for the entire time. They then come out on weekends and days off and no one sems to mind although they are supposed to be occupied!
From there we raced up to Firehole and Chimney rock. I wasn't really sure which rock was chimney rock as there are two large towers or pillars of rock that dominate the landscape. Renita pointed out a window on one of the buttes and of course we took more pictures.
We headed further up the canyon and the gorge narrowed with the water becoming muddy. A couple of boats passed by and I kept my eyes on the depth finder as it sh allowed.
We stopped at a point which was the futherest we have ever run up the Green,(the river that fills Flaming Gorge), and Mike suggested we use our gps to find the location on Google Earth, duh!
Heading back down lake we stopped and cast crankbaits and do nothing rigs but no smallmouths volunteered to be part of a fish fry. It didn't matter as we had plenty of cornbread for the nights meal.
As we neared Buckboard Marina we pulled into a sheltered cove foe a bite of lunch. It was a pretty sheltered spot and someone actually had a boat dock parked in one of the arms of the cove,(the rules for a dock permit are that anyone can use your dock). The dock wasn't attached to the shore however so we went past it before beaching the boat.
I looked for fish fossils but didn't find any. Cumulonimbus clouds were forming over the Uintas and so we finished lunch and headed back to the boat ramp. Renita drove the boat on to the trailer and hit it perfectly on the first try. She is really good at it and I know she is secretly pleased as others watch her load the boat as they are meant to be loaded.
It was a fun day and right on schedule the wind rose and began rocking our fifth wheel. The mountain and valley breezes here are almost like clockwork. Loretts said that she could understand why we like it here, not meaning that they were desert fans, but what do you expect from people who lived their lives in a place with trees.
It was a nice and pleasant time with Mike and Loretta and we waved goodbye as they fired up the Freightliner and headed east. They didn't know where they were heading and that's what you can do when you are fulltimers, just mosey on down the road. Clear skies.