Sunday, May 15, 2016

A few things we saw near Green River (the town and the river)

Green River, WY is a wonderful town with an amazing river, and Expedition Island, which was the starting point for two expeditions down the Green and Colorado rivers directed by John Wesley Powell in 1869 and 1871. On these journeys, Powell and crew completed the exploration of the last, large unknown land area in the continental United States, including the Grand Canyon.

At Expedition Island Park, the City has created easy access for floating and swimming, as well as rapids for kayaking. The Whitewater Park and North Channel Tubing projects were completed in the summers of 2008 and 2009. While this project may have made the river more versitile for users, it's created a few erosion and flooding problems. Ah, the challenges of making money vs. the environment!

Me trying to understand the mind of an engineer.....

Why the Green River has its name: algae. It's harmless, but it sure is slimy....
River lobster!

The beautiful sage of Wyoming.


It doesn't rain often in the Red Desert, but when it does....
Erosion. I'll mention this again.

Wyoming has some of the best and most famous fossils in the world.


Doing the things that I need to do in order to get back out to the field....

Friday, May 13, 2016

The scenic geology of Southwest Wyoming:

You have to get off the main roads. Maik does it all the time. The county road system is the best for finding amazing sites, but you need a vehicle with good ground clearance, as some of the roads are a bit rough. Don't be afraid to get lost, just make sure you have a full tank of gas and water. Take a map - smartphones don't work so well in the wilds of Wyoming.







Don't ever feel like you've made a wasted trip if you don't get to where you thought you wanted to go, that's really missing the point of Wyoming.