Leg 9

Short day means a short post.

The ride out of Vernal and into South West Wyoming was the first time on this entire trip that the size and scale of the scenery left me feeling small and ingsignificant. I cant properly describe the expanse, the emptiness, the sheer solitude of the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area other than to say that I stopped a handful of times to just sit and stare across the Gorge and I was astounded to see literally nothing that signaled humanity other than the highway I was on. No towns, no lights, no buildings, no power lines, and no other cars. For miles, literally as far as I could see, I couldn't see any other signs of human markers.

It was the first time I the thought creeped into the back of my mind that if something were to happen to me in this place, the possibility of a rescue or help would have little chance.

However, the ability and power of a space like that is one that I believe all people should experience. It provides a perspective that most, if not all, people should gain. To sit and stare humbly at the world and yourself and realize that your existence is insignificant to anything other than the people you touch. You will live, you will die, but the earth will not remember you or even care that you were there. The people you meet, the people you help, the people that you love are the ones that will care and remember you.

Staring at hundreds and hundreds of miles of emptiness is a quick way to not just learn, but remember that.

From the Flaming Gorge, I trekked West before heading north towards Jackson. Originally I had planned on two days in Jackson so that I could enjoy the Tetons and the town, but ignorant me forgot how expensive this town is and how popular the campsites are. So, one night here and then north to Great Falls. There's some mermaids behind a bar calling me with their siren songs of cold beer and an iconic motolodge.