Medicine Bow Rail Trail

The World at 10 MPH

Friday, November 3, 2023
Bikepacking Journal

My new bike is rad, but I still prefer my vintage 1991 Trek 970 ^. There’s just something great about it.

We knew when we moved here that we wanted to get some junker bikes to ride around on. Just something simple, nothing pretentious. It was surprisingly difficult finding something decent that wasn’t hundreds of dollars or completely rusted out. The local police auction was promising, but the bikes went fast and split decisions were made… That didn’t work out. Against every fiber of my being, I gave up my soul to the devil and registered a Facebook account to be able to access the marketplace. This led us to a late night drive into Fort Collins at the urging of a seller, and we bought a couple of bikes at deep discount out in front of a storage unit at midnight. It felt a little like a clandestine drug deal (but I did confirm the bikes were not reported as stolen). Now we have way nicer bikes than we ever planned for.

The Fish Crew, Fort Collins, CO

Eating and Pooping

Friday, September 8, 2023
Aquascaping Journal

I purchased some aquatic plants from an awesome fish store in Fort Collins and discovered some invertebrate hitchhikers among the roots. They have settled in comfortably at home and all acquired names pretty quickly… It is now my mission to keep them alive, well-fed, happy, and under constant god-like surveillance. I can’t count the hours I’ve spent staring into their habitat on my desk, watching all their antics (mostly eating and pooping) instead of getting my work done.

Wyoming

Gastropods, Ghost Towns, Pyramid Builders, and a Moose

Monday, July 10, 2023
Journal Lens Rockhounding Trip Report

What do a geologist and his rock-obsessed girlfriend (me!) do in a brand-new state with six extra days? They go on a geologic tour of the state, of course!

We are just home from a car camping loop from Laramie to the Wind River Range and everything in between. The car was a bit heavier on the return because of, well, ROCKS. This obsession is a little out of control…

Almost immediately up the highway, we whizzed right by a roadside building that I recognized from my online research. We screeched to a stop and turned back to take a closer look. This historical stone hut made up of thousands of dinosaur fossils sits below a bluff where craptons of dino fossils have been excavated. Apparently, these discoveries contributed a great deal to the collective knowledge of the creatures of the Jurassic. The “Dinosaurium” looked abandoned and in serious need of repair. I’m guessing that any new fossils discovered are used for science and not to patch up this early 20th-century hut…

Kill All the Bad Guys

Monday, June 19, 2023
Journal

Moving to a new place is exciting. It’s like getting a shot of adrenaline after you’ve been asleep for a long time. What’s less fun is the physical act of putting everything you own into boxes and relocating from point A to point B. It’s exhausting. But once we were able to fully focus on moving tasks, we got them done pretty quickly. Both the car and Cuddlebus are expertly packed to the brim without an inch to spare. The apartment has been cleaned to a sparkle-shine, keys have been handed back over to property management. Now the highway and cheap roadside hotels will be home for the next few days.