Weather for following days sounds iffy--severe t'storms/tornadoes are forecast for where we plan to roost. We pass through Dodge City, dedicated to meat and cattle, of course, and get outta Dodge just hours before bad storms did hit there. For a few days we miss dangerous weather by only a day or less. We continue on, stay in a crummy RV park in Garden City, KS, treat ourselves to dinner at a Golden Corral.

May 21 (End of world day.) There have been more and more circumstances lately that leave us feeling bleak and disturbed. We are troubled by the goings-on in the mid-east, of course, and by the climate changes with floods and drought and fires (at this moment the Chiricahua Mts., our very favorite and sacred area in SE AZ is burning up). Then we come across this incredibly beautiful park in southern CO (Bonny Lake) that we learn is slated, among several others, (by Gov. Hickenlooper (Dem.), to close at season's end--in this case allegedly due to water rights issues. On the same day, we hear that High Plains NPR has made moves toward defunding its NPR, thanks to forceful legislators.

Foster Grove and Bonny Lake, the area we stay (alone!) is the smaller part of this divided park. It's a pretty unique place. Around us there are not only many large trees, but large fields of alfalfa. In these there are literally thousands of orioles--their heads popping up over the foliage. We see them also in the huge trees near us. Bullock's, Baltimore, and Orchard Orioles--all seasonally radiant. At one point, hundreds of orioles rose from the field like a huge shimmery cloud--maybe a test for migrating further soon. It's breath-taking, and we stand and watch in gratitude. Also to be noted: there are Blue Grosbeaks, Wild Turkeys, Horned Larks, Meadowlarks, Red-headed Woodpeckers, W. Tanagers, Robins, more.

By afternoon, we arrive in dryer weather at our destination --Wichita Mts. NWR--and choose, as Charlie says, "the best site here." We detach the CRV and drive 14 miles back to Lawton to retrieve Charlie's repaired camera at a UPS store at Ft. Sill. This is one huge post; we saw only the PX part of it. With the camera back, Charlie's first pic is of an Eastern Collared Lizard. We find where he lives and return several times later to admire the beauty of its turquoise and golden color (unique only to these Wichita Mts.)

This refuge is amazing, clean, beautiful, extensive (59,000 acres), well-planned. In the 1900's, buffalo, elk and longhorns were introduced into the park. Our delight is to drive to a new area each day and hike,watching for anything--from buffalo to lizards to colorful flies!

Our mh is plugged into an outlet in Clay's back yard and we're grateful for having heat. In the yard, too, are two horses, many chickens, three dogs, and a couple cats. The latter provide great entertainment with their innovative acrobatics. We take time to drive to Fremont Lake, up toward Elkhart Park, and to Soda Lake to see ducks. On "Home" day we are looking at two inches of snow descending and are unable to deal with mountain conditions.

We get a weather break, May 31, stay at Baker Hole Forest Service Pk. near West Yellowstone, enjoy fotering tiny flowers there and seeing a large herd of bison swim across the river one baby came close to being swept away.) The second night is at Harper's Lake Fishing Access near Seeley Lake, MT, where we park beside the rising Blackfoot River and do our usual scenic walk, snapping gorgeous flowers and mosses along the way. We are home the next day, June 2, by noon. So many hundreds of miles we have traveled safely, and we both are happy and thankful.

In most cases, we have the trails to ourselves. We stop and watch four MS Kites soar in the blue sky--they can dive like Peregrines, picking bugs from leaves as they go. We park and watch a herd of buffalo wander from one side of the road to the other and then back, we stop by to see how the prairie dogs are doing in their city of holes and hills. Sometimes a coyote looks on from a short distance. We nearly bump into the nest of a White-eyed Vireo that was hanging over the trail and picture the nest with its three eggs, and later with mama sitting on them. Just how fortunate can ya be?? See her head?

May 17: moving day. For most of the day we drive north to near the KS/OK border, over tedious ba-boom ba-boom ba-boom OK roads. The mh shakes and rattles everywhere. At Salt Plains SP we park a bit above the Salt River which is murky and whose level is very low compared to what it was last year. Nonetheless, there are many wading birds feeding in it, and in the AM there is a constant parade of hundreds/thousands of herons/egrets, shags, peeps flying by to wherever they all go--or migrate (we aren't sure). Across the river, there is a baby Great Horned Owl visible in an oval hole in the rock; we take out the scope and wait till after dusk to see when mom will come home, but see nothing. We take a trail at nearby Salt Plains NWR and it is truly amazing. We walk beside numerous ponds covered with duckweed, water flowers, critters popping up their heads. The woods are quite an assortment: of willow, cottonwood, live oak, elm, hackberry, mulberry, etc. Charlie finds a Prothonotary Warbler. Out in the wetlands, it is hard to determine the number of herons--the reeds seem packed with them. Large groups of birds rise together, flap around the marsh, one time after another. Altogether, we see around 70 species of birds.

May 22. At this point in the trip, good campsites are rare and far between. Though it will lengthen our day on the road, we decide to head for Curt Gowdy St. Pk. between Laramie and Cheyenne. Charlie is having to deal with severe headwinds the whole day: the mh noise is incredibly loud, and of course, we are eating up fuel quickly. Curt G is a spread-out park, with next to no signs to give one a clue. There are two lakes, and we settle by ourselves on the small arm of one (Canada Geese, a Ring-neck Duck, Mt. Bluebirds, and a couple of Spottys nearby). The wind is so strong it nearly knocks us down, and throughout the entire night it continues--up around 50 - 55 mph. A mighty noisy night as we rock back and forth. We remain here an extra day till the winds die down.

In the meantime, we do paperwork, organize stuff for colder weather, and take off to both explore more of this enormous park (it's Sunday, and despite all the continuing wind, there are many folks here fishing.) We also set out to drive around the U WY and see Hutton Lake, a small NWR. We forget the directions, miss the place completely--no signs. We eat lunch overlooking the prairie, watch the wind blow over fields.

May 23. To Pinedale, WY. We come here to visit with Charlie's family-- and we're proud to witness granddaughter Sami's high school graduation. She looks wonderful and wins a nice assortment of prizes, including Presidential congrats. She looks forward to attending UM. Go Griz! There is a family/friends cook-out party for Sami the following day--Clay prays for no rain for a change--and he half wins: gray day, cool temps, but no deluge!