Wyoming still...and about Herschel

The last few days have been gray and chilly but not cold enough for the flannel jeans.  Between high winds, battery issues and now the prospect of snow in MT are travels have been slow. We are making progress though and seeing some wonderful land. As I drive and am aware of the towns and the mountain ranges I have flash backs to the books in my past both non-fiction and fiction that drew from these plains. I imagine the bad guys hiding down in the ravines, or the lost child that wandered off...or the seven head of cattle that the character was sent off to find, it all depends on which book. 

 We snuggled right back down in the Douglas city park and waited for Nan's second battery to arrive Thursday morning. This park may not have had electric but it had a hot shower. It doesn't take much to make us happy.
 

There was a bridge right above the city park and the sign below tells the tale of the early road construction that was made to accommodate the new car Mr. Ford came up with and the beautiful National Parks that were being designated out west.  Just think back to the Ken Burn's special regarding the history of the National Park system.  Again, I am thinking that replacing a few batteries is not such a big deal compared to the traveling hardships of those early years and early automobiles. 

Today as we drove north towards Sheridan we ran into and out of rain all day. The wind wasn't too bad but we got wet. When we weren't getting wet we could still enjoy the low clouds that blanketed the Big Horn Mountains and Big Horn National Forest on our left.

The mountains on the left and the plains on the right.

 Farther north we still had rain on the left and some open sky on the right. The country is big and the you can see the weather coming.

 

Now about the Herschel.  Herschel went into the vets two days before we left for his annual physical and shot update. Dr. Daphne found swollen lymph nodes and recommended a biopsy. She e-mailed the results to us last week while we were on the road. The Herschel does have lymphoma. He is a Golden Retriever and he is eleven so the results were not really so surprising. Dr. Daphne faxed a prescription into Walmart for him and we have him on Prednisone to slow the growth of the tumors and keep him comfortable.  

He had slowed down some this past year already and doesn't have the strength in his rear legs he used to but he can still get in and out of the bus. As previous blog posts can document he is still loving his swimming and wet sand rolling and walks with his new best friend Liz who saves him from walking with Stuart who usually manages to tangle a leash or two or three.  Given the choice to stand up or lie down he will choose to lie down unless there is a chance for a back rub.  

So...Herschel is traveling to Alaska...just as far as he can travel and still enjoy the journey.  He would not have let the bus leave without him.  

Herschel with his new best walking buddy....