Day 7

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States: Colorado, Wyoming
Miles driven: 382
Miles hiked: 0
Slept: My tent in Sink’s Canyon State Park, Lander, WY.
10 words or less: Wyoming roadkill is no joke; decapitated cow head. Lovely Lander!

Wyoming road kill is no joke!

In the early afternoon I set off for Lander, Wyoming and another long, boring drive of wind farms and scattered road kill. A favorite Edward Abbey quote of mine goes “‎If my decomposing carcass helps nourish the roots of a juniper tree or the wings of a vulture–that is immortality enough for me.” It seems Wyoming motorists are all about nourishing the vultures. Today in my travel journal I simply wrote “Wyoming road kill is no joke!”, speaking of the decapitated cow head I whizzed past. Later in the trip this would be outdone by New Mexico, where I saw a human leg. I’m pretty sure it was a prosthetic, though I wasn’t about to check.

Close to sunset, I arrived in Sink’s Canyon state park after driving through town where two separate mule deer decided they owned the road and would just walk right out in front of my car. Lander is truly a beautiful area. Deep rich red canyons spread out like a red carpet ahead of the gold and gray granite walls that rolled one into the next. I set up camp near the Popo Agie (poe-poe-zsa) river and called it a night. It wasn’t a very restful night though. For most of it, something was rustling in the bushes beside my tent. Too tired and too scared to look, I did my best to sleep through it.