Friday, May 26, 2017

The Ranch pt. 5 leaving the ranch

Leaving the ranch.

young Will finds a truck under the snow.
My friend Derek is a beast. He is only 35 but he is a beast. Truly a man's man. We woke up Thursday morning under a foot of snow, and no electrical power. Since he was not going to have our group freeze to death he announced that we were going to Laramie Wyoming [30 miles] for a generator. So Derek, me, and young Will set out in the snow for Laramie.

The first six miles were scary but we made good progress.  Trees on either side of the road helped you see where the road was.  Derek said it was kind of fun to plow thru the snow.

Then we got out on the county road. 7 miles of dirt road that was covered with blowing snow. You literally could not tell where the road was at. We were off the road and into the ditch at least 15 times as we slowly made our way to Colorado 287. Twice we hit a culvert. Once it was hard enough that we all went flying. Derek knew that we could not stop. We had to keep moving or we would be stuck.

 I'll be honest- I was scared. Finally we made it  to the town of Tie Siding, Wyoming [population 7] and the pavement. One mile down 287 the barricades were down and the highway was closed for anyone wanting to go back the way that we came.
A harrowing experience that I will not soon forget.

We take so much for granted. Fear has a way of making one appreciate the times when life is an easy Sunday drive.

Since we could not get back to the ranch because the roads were closed, we got a hotel room in Laramie.  An additional foot of snow was falling that day.  We ate Mexican food for dinner. 3 guys in a hotel room after Mexican food can be another kind of harrowing experience.

 The next morning I flew from Laramie to Denver. I spent the night in Denver and then Saturday flew home to Vero Beach.

Derek and young Will made their way back into the ranch.  Even though a plow had made a pass on the roads, what should have been a 40 minute drive, took 5 hours.  24" of snow and two days later, the generator was delivered.

We all face adverse conditions in this life. Some know how to take the wheel and overcome the obstacles. I give thanks for people like my friend Derek.

It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

oh my lands and to think this was in May? Thank Goodness for travel mercies Remember (also) you felt priveled to make this trip Glad u r safe happy n he again

Anonymous said...

This stuff is downright exciting...especially since it was happening to you and not me. Yikes. Thanks for sharing what is like a book full of drama.