Life cannot be understood flat on a page. It has to be lived. A person has to get out of his head, has to fall in love, has to memorize poems, has to jump off bridges into rivers, has to stand in an empty desert and whisper sonnets under his breath. “I’ll tell you how the sun rose, one ribbon at a time.” It’s a living book, this life.
– Donald Miller, “Through Painted Deserts”
Pipestone Lake to Pinedale
23 miles
A porcupine visited our camp last night and was quickly shooed away by Drop n’ Roll, but only after the critter nibbled on her trekking pole. The porcupine then ran toward my tent and I let out a scream that woke everyone up. The poor thing scampered away.
My visit through the Winds has reminded me of some of my favorite special places in the Sierra Nevadas: Palisade Basin, Thousand Island Lake, Tuolumne Meadows, the Sierra High Route, and Seldon Pass. We passed lake after beautiful lake with gentle passes connecting them together. It was such a great feeling.
In order to avoid carrying massive amounts of food for our Winds adventure, we chose to hitch into Pinedale to resupply. This is a great little town with everything we need. Everyone in town has been very helpful and informative. We were even able to finally find out the gender of Kate Middleton’s new baby. The group has been anxious about this all week. Haha.
During our stay we were also informed that bear spray is now a necessity as we head north. We are now armed with bear spray and bear bags for hanging food as we head back into the winds. We have also decided to take the Napsack alternate. This will add some miles, but it is supposed to be incredibly scenic and challenging. My favorite.
Fun fact about Wyoming: there is no one in Wyoming. At least it seems that way. Sublette county is the largest county in the United States (larger than Rhode Island), but there are less people than any other county in the country. 70% of Wyoming is considered unlivable space, and there are actually more cows in the state than people. There is no one in Wyoming.
Wikipedia shows a very long list of people from Wyoming. But…nearly all of them are dead.
🙂
Beautiful photos.
There is no one in Wyoming. But I did see a Mooooose in one of the photos.
Really liked the picture of the lilypads against the granite. Lovely
Be safe and watch out for the Beeeeaaaars up there!
I know you are waiting with baited breath. The chosen name is” George Alexander Louis” and he will be called ” His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge”.
The name George may be a tribute to the queen’s father, George VI, who famously rallied England during World War II.
So beautiful. What are the pond flowers. How cool is that?
I am not sure what the flowers are called. They looked almost artificial. They were in a few lakes along this section.