A Winter Campout at Sheridan Ranch

I had the opportunity to accompany the local Boy Scout troop to the Sheridan Ranch for an overnight outing last weekend. The ranch is a 32,000+ acre operation owned by Mr. Frank VanderSloot. We were allowed to “camp” in two of the cabins that house the ranch hands during the summer.

The four foot blanket of snow left only the tops of the fence posts visible as we approached the cabins. Entering the two buildings, we discovered that the floors, counters and furniture appeared to be covered with a blanket of black peppercorns. It was a layer of dead flies! Grabbing brooms and shovels we set to work rounding up the unwelcome house guests. After removing several gallons of insect remains, we built a fire in the fireplace and set about cooking dinner.

After dining on ham and potatoes, we unrolled our beds and called it a night. Morning began with a breakfast of ham, eggs and potatoes. Drew Oakey and I were accused of snoring in harmony during the night. Jerry Tingey offered an iPhone recording as evidence. I am sure that the recording was doctored!

With full bellies, we jumped on our sleds and headed to the reservoir for some ice fishing. The surface ice was slushy so everyone drilled a hole next to their sled. Sitting on a sled was preferable to standing in ice water while waiting for a bite. It wasn’t long before the fish began accepting the impaled offerings. Most fish were caught and released but a few large trout were taken home. Rance Dye rode his sled out to the ranch for the day. He was happy to be enjoying the activities that he loves again. His day was punctuated with the landing of a nice trout.

As the interest in fishing subsided, everyone dispersed to run their sleds across the freshly fallen powder. The scouts were safety conscious and stayed on the flatter terrain while some of the adults seemed bent on seeing who could get the most stuck. Finally as the afternoon waned, the scouts and leaders cleaned up the cabins and rode their sleds back to where the plows stop at the west end of Yale-Kilgore Road. We loaded the sleds onto the waiting trailers and headed for home.

It was a great time with great boys and enjoyable adults. Scouting and Island Park go so well together. We are blessed. I’d like to thank Mr. VanderSloot and Steve Hyde, manager of the Eagle Ridge Ranch for their generosity to the scouting program.

By the way, did you know that some flies that appear dead reanimate as they get warm? It’s true. I was dive-bombed while in my sleeping bag!  

Yellowstone Country Safety * Welcome Back Rance "

It was great to see Rance Dye out for the first time since his accident. He was excited to share in a little snowmobiling 

and ice fishing time with the scouts!

A Host of Friends

A close friend of mine occasionally brings me a couple of gallons of raw milk from a local dairy. My taste buds had been craving some Frosted Mini-Wheats drenched in the cream-rich milk. I received a call informing me that a delivery was on its way. When my friend arrived, he apologized for being tardy in dropping off the two one-gallon milk bottles but had been distracted by the hefty snowfall of the past few days.

As he opened the back of his vehicle to retrieve the milk, the image that confronted me was at first confusing. The rising hatchback unveiled two ice cream-filled glass containers that appeared to have been shattered with a hammer! “I guess the milk froze when I left it in the back of the car overnight”, my friend deduced. “Yep, no fresh milk for my cereal this week” I sighed.

A few days later another friend of mine asked if I’d drop by a cabin that he maintains and replace the filters in the hot tub. “No problem, what’s the address?” “2142 North Big Springs Loop” he replied. I drove over to North Big Springs Loop and began looking for the cabin. There were 4200’s and 4300’s but nothing approaching the numbers that he had given me. I called my friend, “Are you sure about the address? I can’t find anything even close.” “You have to just look a little. I have driven past it myself. It’s just a little east of Robin’s Roost” he said encouragingly. After spending forty minutes searching up and down the street, I received an apologetic call from my friend. “I am sorry, that address was actually the door code (I changed the numbers for obvious reasons).

With a new year come more experiences. I cannot wait to see what my friends have in store for me in 2016.

Coming Together Over Christmas in Island Park

When Sheri and I began dating about 14 years ago, one of the hurdles that we had to overcome was our religious differences. Sheri is Baptist and I am LDS. Initially I found it not wise to discuss religion. Sheri had felt socially excluded when interacting with many members of my church. We decided to concentrate on things that we could agree on and build a relationship of trust, understanding and love.

Last week we attended the annual Christmas Party at the LDS A-frame. The congregations of the LDS Church and the Little Church in the Pines and other community members gathered together to feast on prime rib and celebrate the Savior’s birth. Four years ago we attended this event for the first time. Sheri nearly required the paramedics to break out the heart paddles! Mormons and the church she attended were holding a joint event and enjoying each other’s company. This was unfathomable, apocalyptic stuff!

It was wonderful to visit with many of the Island Park residents that we have learned to love and appreciate. Joining together to acknowledge our communal bonds and a shared belief in the divinity of Jesus’ birth is an event that should be serve as a model other communities.

Perhaps some social conflicts could be overcome if religions were not used as private clubs where non-members hold no value. With all the destruction occurring throughout the world and here at home, there is a desperate need for some of the spirit that was exhibited in last week Island Park.

Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to put on the event. Thanks for the great food, the great choir, the kids program and the wonderful company. This event is one more reason why Sheri and I love Island Park so much.

Christmas in July

I am always amazed how much time is spent in the preparation for Christmas and how fast the actual day goes by. The 4^th of July is Island Park’s big day, it’s “Christmas”. Months of preparation go into organizing the holiday weekend.

The Chamber of Commerce organized the Sawtelle Stampede. The Boy Scouts spent weeks gathering donated items in preparation for the annual Scout Garage Sale. The Hurds worked hard to wrap up their remodeling of Robin’s Roost and stock their shelves for their first 4^th of July as grocery store owners. Joe got himself a spanking new wrecker. The rebuilding of the Big Springs boat launch road was completed. Lakeside readied for the night’s public fireworks display. The ambulance, fire and law enforcement services were all fully staffed and at the ready for any need that might arise. From Last Chance to Henry’s Lake, businesses throughout the caldera had worked tirelessly to prepare for those visitors who planned to spend their holiday weekend in Island Park.

As the holiday weekend arrived, the line of vehicles driving up Ashton Hill testified that everyone’s work was not in vain. Every available cabin was full of renters or owners. The campgrounds were full and many unimproved camping spots were also crowded. The rivers were fished or floated. The runners ran the race. Everywhere one looked were dust trails created by ATVs. It was as if a multitude of low-hanging jet vapor trails could be seen throughout the forest. Merchants and restaurants worked hard to attend to customers as quickly as possible despite the increased traffic.

Finally, Saturday night arrived and the celebratory fireworks were set off. The occasional strings of firecrackers were lit but the forest made it through another 4^th. Mother Nature put a period on the holiday with a Sunday evening rain, knocking down the dust and letting us know that the weekend had ended.

Just like that, the week that required months of preparation ended and the post-holiday exhaustion kicked in. Unlike Christmas where one has a week to recharge, with a new week brings new visitors to the caldera and the people of Island Park must be on their “A” game. 

Detours Can Keep Us on the Road

It isn’t very often that Sheri invites me to attend something that is out of my comfort zone.  Last week she invited me to attend a presentation by Camron Wright, author of The Rent Collector. She had read the book last year with the local book club, enjoyed it and was excited to meet the author. Sponsored by the Island Park Library Friends, it was important to her and I agreed to go. Honestly, I would have been more anxious to attend an elk calling contest but Sheri is supportive during hunting season and I wanted to reciprocate.

The event was held at Harriman State Park, on the grass between the cabins.  We assembled in a semi-circle of camping chairs; Mr. Wright began his presentation with a brief history of the book. His son had gone to Cambodia to shoot a documentary that evolved into a film about a family that was part of a community that lived on the edge of a dump in lean-tos and eked out a living picking and recycling items from the discarded refuse. 

My initial thought was that Cambodia was far removed from Island Park and the story would hold little relevance to me. However as Camron continued to relate the struggle of these people of little means, I was reminded that life is about learning to adapt and overcome.  They had something in common with the early members of my family who scratched out their subsistence a century and a half ago, after crossing the plains to settle in the Rocky Mountains. I reflected on how blessed we are, as Camron gave his presentation against the backdrop of the Henry’s Fork.  Struggling with life’s trials is a universally shared experience. What may seem untenable to us is someone else’s reality. 

Candace Vroman did a nice job of putting the event together. The entire community should be grateful for the work of the Island Park Library Friends. It is worthwhile to join and a bargain at only ten bucks per year! 

We walked back to the truck with Sheri’s trophy, an autographed copy of The Rent Collector tucked under her arm.  I recognized her pride in having filled her tag and I was happy to have participated in the event.