After signing off of my Day 9 entry a series of unfortunate events befell the climber's ranch. A major storm hit the area which knocked out power to the ranch. Then an hour later the water stopped working. Eventually the power came back on, but the water pump was no longer functioning. The ranch staff posted a sign telling everyone they could either filter their own water from a nearby creek or drive 10 miles to the next town to buy water.
Seeing as how I was on a bike I wasn't looking forward to doing either option. I am all about the backcountry do-it-yourself way of doing things, but the backcountry is free, where as the climbers ranch charges $24 a night. I know that's not a lot of money but its more than I would pay if I just pitched a tent a half mile down the road next to the aforementioned creek.
Anyway, I can't say I am a big fan of this ranch regardless of this incident. It seemed like most of the guests were too cool for school. I guess some of it is climbing culture, "who is das alpha male?" but is it really necessary. The climbers I know are all cool and laid back and they let their accomplishments speak for themselves. The people at that ranch were eager to spread the word to others by shouting their conversations:
Dude 1: "None of the climbing around here really interests me any more (as he gestures to the Tetons)."
Dude 2: "Yeah, that's cuz you've already climbed everything!"
Greg thinks to himself, "THEN WHY THE HECK ARE YOU HERE? MAYBE YOU SHOULD GO HOME!"
Back to Day 10
As I walked out of the cabin in the morning I was greeted by a black bear sow and cub about 100 yards up the hill from the cabin! It was my first bear sighting of the trip and it's always a rush to see a bear. I shot some video with my iphone, we'll see how it turns out.
I was happy to hitch a ride with two cabin mates to a pancake breakfast at Dornan's in Moose. Later I rode away from the ranch feeling relieved to do so. The short miles came easy today on a relatively flat course. I rode for awhile with a racer from New Zealand who was eager to discuss the logistics of touring.
After I parted ways with the racer, I came upon a huge traffic jam as I approached Jackson Lake. People were running out of their cars and their were rangers with walkie talkies everywhere. I knew instantly there were bears afoot. I darted between the parked cars and kept moving forward. My logic was simple, if the bear got angry, everyone on the scene would jump back into their car, that is if they had a car!
As I hit the middle of the jam I saw three black bear cubs playfully running along the road, triplets! I could not see mom so I dropped the hammer and got out of there. Five bears in two hours, not bad!
I arrived at Colter Bay Village after a couple of hours of riding. Since I am still way ahead of schedule I decide to cut the day short and make the most of the area. I set up camp and decided to rent a kayak. Great call!
While out on the water for a two hour paddle I hooked up with a family of otters who were happy to have me along. They were amazing to watch and the kayak went just the right speed to make it happen. At the end of the paddle I got buzzed by a bald eagle!
The rest of the day was spent relaxing, eating, and reading. In the nighttime, the temperatures got much colder than they had before. I was prepared for the cold but lets just say I was wearing most of my travel wardrobe in the sleeping bag that night.
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