pocatello, idaho

My favorite Swift truck driver.

 This sure has been a travel day to remember, beginning with about an inch of snow covering everything in sight as we pulled out of Cheyenne, Wyoming. It was very pretty until we got on I-80 and headed towards Idaho. Then we hit the white-out of all white-outs. The Swift truck in the picture was my only scenery for about the first thirty-five miles. That truck was a game-saver for us, though, because the driver of that rig was going at a safe speed and leading the way through the white-out. I think the white-out was probably a mix of sixty percent snow and forty percent fog. It was, however, difficult to see anything other than the truck ahead. I’d like to meet that truck driver just to say “Thank you for making the drive a bit more comfortable and probably a whole lot safer for us.”

While I was loading the bikes at the Holiday Inn Express in Cheyenne, I started talking with a man who was outside having his smoke. He said, “I’ve already had my breakfast so I needed to get out here and have my smoke.” While we were talking, a talk that took longer than expected, I found out that Terry was seventy-four, the oldest of ten children, and was from Chicago. (You could tell by the accent.) He was headed to California. He was a veteran and had been stationed at Ft. Stewart and Ft. Benning in Georgia, and Ft. Brag in North Carolina. All of those bases were training bases for Terry who was assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade, a.k.a, Sky Soldiers. His Illinois license plate sports a purple heart awarded for a wound he received from an AK-47 in Vietnam. He was shot in the stomach at close range and said that the only thing that saved his live was the 45 he had in his right hand. He told me the enemy shooter was not quite as lucky as he was.

Terry started working on the railroad as an eighteen-year-old. After his time in the Army he went back to work with the railroad where he retired as an engineer with Amtrac. I have found that when we find people like Terry, it’s best just to listen, Today, it seems like whenever anyone is speaking, we really aren’t listening, we’re thinking about what we’ll say next. Listen! There is a whole lot of laughter, stories, adventure, and history locked up in people. We only need to find the people, sit down, and listen. Thank you, Terry, for serving our country and sharing your stories. 

I did fail to mention that Terry who must have been around 5’ 7” was not only 173rd Airborne but a U.S. Army Ranger as well. He was already in Airborne when his younger brother went to Ranger school, so Terry went as well. He said, “I wasn’t gonna let my little brother show me up.” Sure am glad he was on our side.

OK, let me get back to the journey of this day. The temperature has fluctuated between twenty-seven and fifty-two degrees. We’ve been in sunshine, snow, sleet, rain, and wind that attempted to blow us sideways off of the road. We’ve driven anywhere from 40 to 80 mph and have had little traffic most of the time. Right now I’m seeing snow-capped mountains and rolling hills. We are in beautiful territory. Our plans were to go to Boise, Idaho this evening but that changed when the snow covered roads lowered our speed. Now we’re in Pocatello, Idaho.

Along the way, we made a stop at Little America, Wyoming. I’m not sure how to describe Little America but maybe if I give you a few other tourist spots in America, you’ll get the drift. How about The Big Texan in Amarillo, Texas . . . or South of the Border in  South Carolina. Like I said, I’m not sure what this place is but what drew me was the 75 cent ic cream cone. (Kind of like the 72 oz. steak at The Big Texan.) It was fun, I did get a cone of chocolate and vanilla mixed, and I did get some travel stickers!

Of course we had to visit Fossil Butte National Monument somewhere between two places far away from each other. I’m looking at a sign that indicates 550 Million Years Ago. I’m not sure what that is referring to but I’m sure it must be the age of the fossils. (I told Margaret if this place was called Fossil Butt National Monument instead of Fossil Butte, there would be a much higher rate of attendance, especially by middle school boys! And, I bought more stickers. Oh, Margaret got another stamp in her National Parks Passport Book. (That’s what the whole trip is really about! Right?)

Idaho welcomed us with an incredible display of mountain grandeur. Instantly! No waiting required! Idaho simply and loudly proclaimed, “Here we are! Check it out! Enjoy!”

Makes me think of, “In the beginning, God created . . . “