Flaming Gorge – Week 2 – Time Paradox

How is it time flies either like a supersonic jet or a ruptured duck? Case in point: When we applied for the positions at Flaming Gorge a year ago our wait until we got here was definitely of the ruptured duck variety. Now, having been here a week in which the time has flown well past the sound barrier, the day we submitted our applications seems like a decade ago.

Okay, I'll admit last week was chaotic what with our training, uniform issue and getting settled but I'm still feeling like I just put the jacks down and turned off the engine.

Another example is it seems like it was only yesterday Chris and I met but as I write this blog entry we are celebrating 36 years of marriage with a visit to the Dinosaur National Monument topped with dinner at Red Canyon Lodge. The way this time distortion thing is going I figure we'll have about 5 seconds to accomplish it all.

Enough time stuff; it fosters confusion, wreaks havoc on our memories and most importantly, usually makes us late for dinner.

From talking to our visitors, Flaming Gorge seems to be one of the least known attractions in the U.S. With the exception of the locals and those that have been here before, our visitors have been those who simply stopped by on the way to somewhere else or were foreign visitors who wanted to avoid the crowds of the Grand Canyon and heard about the place from friends. A good example is for the past week we've had between 70 and 90 visitors per day and on this holiday weekend our maximum has been slightly over 300. That's for the entire day! Unlike Yellowstone or Grand Canyon where those numbers would be the low estimates for each hour.

Side note: Must mention the surprise of the day when a former co-worker, Denise King stopped by. About floored me as she hasn't changed a bit from 10 years ago when we began at RiverCom (sorry we were so busy we couldn't chat more). Also, long lost relative DeAnna Bumgarner who brought some much sought after cinnamon bears and a cake for Chris' birthday (we've since given her directions and she's told us where to go).

You've already seen the gorge from our 'office' but there is so much more. The dam creating the reservoir and shaped like the Hoover, the Green river, the mountains and trees. Let's face it, pretty close to paradise with pine trees.

Green River

I wonder if the commute keeps people away. Seems like every day last week we were stuck in foot traffic on the way to the visitor's center.

What I can't get over are the colors in the rock formations. Perhaps my photographer friends can give us a couple of hints on how to enhance our photos as they simply do not do justice to the richness we see.

As I mentioned, we visited the Dinosaur National Monument. When we got back, one of our co-workers informed us we had actually only visited a small portion of the area and gave us directions to another section that we'll hit up later in the week. For now, here are a very few photos of the quarry wall and the surrounding area,

That about sums up our week. It only took five minutes to experience and then the 14 hours to write this short missive.

Paradox? Naw, I'll take the nurse.