So today is a rest day in Moab Utah.
Last post, I was headed South from Yellowstone to find fish fossils in Kemmerer Wyoming.
Wyoming was a large and rolling place with almost no trees and almost all sage-brush. As far as I could tell there were places where I'm sure there was not a single tree for 50 miles in any direction (quite like the Australian Nulabor - only colder)... Turns out that trees are smarter than I am since they chose not to live up there where the wind is strong and the air is cold. I was fighting head and cross winds of about 50Kmh all the way down to Kemmerer.When I got there I asked around and someone made a call for me and I was set to go meet the fossil guy the next morning at 9am.
After camping on the "plains" I showed up and we spent the morning at his quarry whacking rocks (the only trick to it is knowing which rocks to whack!). There is a layer of limestone in the area known as the 18" layer where all the fossils are and you just have to know where to find it. Anyway I whacked a few rocks and found a few fossils and then we sawed the bits of rock I wanted to keep into rectangles and now I'm carrying an extra few Kg of weight on my bike.
I would have stayed a bit longer there but a storm was coming in and it was already -5 or -10 degC overnight, so I scooted off South to Moab.
Before I left town though, I had my second bike accident of the trip! - While I was in a cafe having breakfast, a pretty little blond local girl who must have been about 22yo reversed into my bike and knocked it over.
So, now I have a matched set of broken signal lights!
After that I headed off South at about noon and stopped in the town of Dinosaur to look at - you guessed it - more fossils. The ride was again into a (worse) cross-wind and the winds were getting stronger! Again I camped and checked out the museums and self guided tours while I was there.
Then South again to Moab... But the storm was right on my heels and the winds were again terrible (I'm sure they were 80Kmh or more and gusty as well - Hell to deal with if you are on narrow twisty roads and the wind comes from the side.) although the air was finally getting warm. So I made it with no accidents and now I'm having a rest day in Moab :)) Its a beautiful place and I plan to spend a week or more hear climbing and doing off road trails on my bike or hiking etc.
