denver, co

Our plan initially was to stop for the night in Cheyenne, Wy, however we made a decision this morning to add a day onto our trip by pushing through to Denver from Utah. How fortuitous!

We left the lovely Echo Island RV Park at 8:30 this morning planning to arrive in Denver around 5:30 or so. Wyoming is a little like Nevada: lots of land and not very many people. However while we thought Nevada was a bit barren in all the worst was, we thought Wyoming was just harsh.

To emphasize the point and provide a bit of legitimacy to our thinking, I mentioned to the matron of a filling station that Wyoming was “beautiful”. Yes, in spite of, or maybe because of it, Wyoming’s harshness has a beauty to it that Nevada lacks. It’s not just the vegetation, it might be the sky. Nevada’s sky is like a dry-eyed hangover. Wyoming’s sky has a bit more clarity to it, like morning’s first coffee. It’s dependable, hot, and let’s you get on with it.

Anyway, the filling station matron said to my observation, “Yeah, it’s cold and windy too.” I felt justified that a Wyomingan could see the same cup of coffee in that big-sky.

Along the way we had an issue with the truck Hillary. The left indicator light housing came unmoored. So we got out the gaffer’s tape and fixed it so we could continue. It will likely be ok until we’re home.

We cruised into Cheyenne and checked out the capitol building and drove around for a bit and we both thought it was like west Petaluma, our home town. It’s quaint homes and buildings … I dunno, the comparison made sense at the time, but now, eh, it’s a pretty town. So we left and headed to Denver and about an hour into the trip we SAW A FUCKING TORNADO FORM!!! HOLY SHIT!!!

No for real. Finghin called it. He noticed something odd in the clouds and said, “I think that’s a tornado” and I said, very know-it-all-dad-like, “no son, that just rain” when HOLY SHIT IT WAS A FUCKING TORNADO!!!

Again I didn’t have my camera ready to show what the locals do when there’s a tornado. The pullover, just like the tourists, and take images of it. If it wasn’t so scary it would have been funny. It really blew us away and made us grateful for bypassing Petaluma, Wy.

Tomorrow is Dodge City, Ks, and you know what happened in Kansas.

Finally tonight we’re staying in a hotel and eating pizza because TODAY WE SAW A FUCKING TORNADO!!!

Images are below.