August 23, Fort Bridger, WY

We just read that the 2 guys who held 4 people hostage at the Super 8 had a suitcase full of drugs, several guns, wads of money "rolled up like in the movies" and were high on meth. One killed himself and the other was taken to jail uninjured. None of the hostages were injured, just scared.

Today we saw several antelope along the roads and we saw cattle next to the road in one place. We also saw trail ruts in two more places.

Kids, we saw a wild animal today and I got a close-up picture of it. The picture is a little later. See if you can find the wild animal.

Sarah, this is what the ground and mountains look like when there is no rain or water. They can't grow corn or beans or anything else. A few cows are in the fields but they just have to eat the dry sagebrush. We also drove all day today and didn't see a Wendy's or McDonald's or anything like it. Just like yesterday.

This is what the land looks like down in the valley where there is a small river with water. The ranchers have to irrigate their fields. Irrigating is putting water through pipes out into the field to water the crops. It is kind of like watering our garden with the hose.

Just scenery.














Here is where, in 1825, the mountain men (fur trappers) held their first rendezvous. There were about 800 people there, half of whom were women and children. It started as a time for trappers to get needed supplies and sell their furs without going to St. Louis. Later it then included testing of skills, time to swap stories, and talk with old and new friends. They kept having a rendezvous until 1840 when beaver furs were no longer in demand. There are now re-creations.

This is the first that we have seen braille beside the printed information in any state or federal historical site. This was at Fort Bridger, WY which is a state historic site.

Here is another quilt.

 Girls, would you like a bear skin rug like this in your room? Maybe we could find one for you.

Another quilt.

Here is the wild animal! Have you ever seen one like it?

This is the first red work that I have seen. There has been some embroidery but none of this.

Mandy, if you are reading this, I thought of you today. If I recall, archeology is one of the 5 areas of anthropology.

This is all that is left of the original Fort Bridger, WY.

This is one of the two buildings in the recreated Bridger trading post. The other building was smaller and is where Bridger lived. The area to the right was a corral where the cattle and horses were put at night so they didn't wander away or get stolen.

Here is the outside of the post which was surrounded by a stockade for protection from Indians.

This is the first that we have seen a live bear trap. It is from 1900. I wouldn't want to be the person who took him out of it.

Here is Bear Lake which is in southeastern Idaho. It is the  most blue lake I think I have seen.

Another view of Bear Lake. We are staying in Montpelier, ID tonight. It is just northwest of Bear Lake. The Oregon Trail went right through here. It went to the north of Bear Lake and our road went to the south of the lake.

We drove down from the top left of the picture through a gorge or split that you can see, to the lake edge. It was very winding with some right turns and a 6% grade.