The Oregon Train - Day 7

Day 7, Thursday, we woke to a mostly cloudy day yet again and 44 degrees.  Along the side of the road was a handmade sign advertising fresh curds and milk.  I do believe that is a first for me.  Made me want to stop and take them up on some of those curds!    The next sign was one warning us that it was a deer and elk crossing.  I surely was wanting to see one of those elk, but of course I did not.  More rain.

We were pretty disappointed in the Great Salt Lake when we saw the part along Hwy I15.  So we figured we would try to see about the Antelope Island State Park which is in the middle of the Lake.  We really wanted to camp this night and there were no other state or federal parks nearby.  When we drove across the long causeway connecting it to Syracuse, Utah we were sad at how much water had dried up and that the lake might not be around for our grand children's children to see.

We were favorably impressed as we viewed the Great Salt Lake from the Island and decided we definitely had to camp here.  We quickly set up the tent and everything inside and ate so we could spend some time just before dusk trying to see the wildlife. 

True to the pamphlets they gave us, we immediately spotted some buffalo, pronghorned antelope, coyote and huge jack rabbits. 

As we were about to return to the camp site, Bop made the statement that he hoped the tent had not blown away.  Of course, I looked at him like he had lost his mind.  As quicly as we rounded the bend, the tent was not where we left it!!!  It was frantically flapping in the wind with the rain flap flying high like a kite.  The whole tent was on the other side of the camp site.  As we drove up, the young couple across the way ran over and said they had chased it down and put our cooler and ground cover inside the tent in an effort to keep it from completely blowing away.  We wrestled to collapse the whole thing and spent the next hour in the car waiting the storm out.  Finally we got the pieces collected and repaired and put the thing up again.  We had only two choices - spend the night in the tent or the car.  The park gate to the mainland was locked at dark.  No way off the island.  If we did not stay in the tent, surely it would blow away and have water all over everything in it - all our clothes and bedding.  So, it was into the tent at 8:30 for one of the most frightening nights I think I have ever spent. 

Three major storms hit us during the night with heavy rain, 60 mph winds and close lightning and thunder.  The flap was just beating and making the most horrible sound almost all night, but it managed to stay attached.  If we had lost it, the whole top of the tent would have been open to the rain.   Lots of prayers were lifted up from that tent and with the help of the Lord, we both actually got lots of good, sound sleep between poundings.  I just want to add that it is really, really cold when you are in a tent in 40 degree weather and gale force winds.  We need to have our heads examined.  This was right up there with sky diving or something crazy like that.

Don't you think we would have known better, if we had just looked at this dark cloud?

Marmalade's Side of the Story

This was a stinky place at first.  When we first got to the Lake it had a stinky sour smell, but then on the Island it was just beautiful and no smell at all.  The animals were pretty impressive, but none of them had these beautiful spots like I do.  I liked the sound of the coyote's howling the best.  You can hear them on Bop's PlaySport recorder.  I got a little scared.

Then there is the storm thing.  That was really great!!!  How often do you get to sleep in a tent in the storming rain?  It just doesn't get any better than that.  I didn't even get a drop of water on me.  I was smart and stayed in the car and watched the flaps blow while Nonnie and Bop were all huddled up out there in the cold.  Pretty smart, huh?

Til later.  Need my travel rest.