Monday June 29, 2020 Pack, Swim and The Hanger

Happy one month of traveling to us!!!!!  The time has gone by so fast. We have had so many adventures already. I am excited for the next 13 months!!!!                  Today was a chill day.  We cleaned, shopped and packed.  Tomorrow is a travel day.  At one point we took a break to swim.  The kids are really starting to work like a team.  Packing is a breeze because they all know their jobs and they can do them really well.                                                                                    

                                                                            Asher and his set up.  He has his TV, his food and his blankets.  He chills here all the time.  He cracks me up.                                                                                         

Bar Nunn is a really cool little city.  It is about 5 minutes from Casper.  It used to be an Air Force Base.  All the original buildings from the base are still standing and are being used by the city for various things.  Our campsite is in walking distance from what was used as the hanger. It is now being used as a restaurant called The Hanger. We had to check it out.  So tonight we went over and had dinner there.  It was seriously cool.  The food was super yummy and the experience was memorable.  

Now we need to sleep because we have a long drive to South Dakota tomorrow!!!!

Sunday June 28, 2020 Independence Rock, Martins Cove and Devils Gate

 Today was super spiritual for us.  Our Sacrament Meeting and our Come Follow Me were really good.  The kids were actually reverent.  Then after our meetings, we packed up food and drove an hour to Independence Rock.   I hadn't heard about Independence Rock before but we learned so much.  This rock was a resting stop along the Oregon Trail.  It was the half way point for the people who migrated from Iowa to the Pacific Ocean since the 1800's.   When the people camped there, they carved their names into the rock. Some added dates.  I even found one that added U.S.A.  Some of them had amazing hand writing. I asked Scotty how on earth did they carve their names in the rock so beautifully.  He just thought I was weird.  There are literally thousands of names on that rock.    Some names have started to disappear  and some have completely disappeared.     We walked around the whole perimeter of the rock finding as many names as we could.     It was very touching to me to see first hand all the people who helped to build the west.  These people and their stories apply to all of us.  They paved the way to our western society and they loved the United States of America!!!                                                                                 

Did I mention how bad the mosquitoes were??  Well, they were so bad.  I was glad that I was prepared with our OFF wipes.  

                                                                                                                

This dude was in a cavalry.  How cool is that!!!!!

Asher found Taj a snake skin.  Pepper was a little freaked out by it:)))

Here is my U.S.A. friend.  This brought tears to my eyes.  

Our version of Abby Road

This little area is where they put plaques on the rock to honor certain leaders who brought people through the Oregon Trail.  One plaque is dedicated to Brigham Young. He helped bring many pioneers through here.  I loved talking to my kids about the fact that they were standing on the ground that Brigham Young did and many of the pioneers.  They felt the spirit of the land there.  

After we soaked in the spirit of Independence Rock, We drove a short way to Martins Cove.  All the buildings and tours were closed due to Covid.  We were still able to explore and get a good idea of what Martins Cove was and its importance.  This is what we learned:                                                             In the year of 1856 many Americans were migrating to the west for one reason or another.  Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints were seeking relief from religious persecution.  Five hand cart companies migrated from Iowa to the Salt Lake Valley that year.  Three of these companies left early in the year and arrived in Salt Lake City without incident.  The last company left in July, which was way too late in the season for their travels.  The fifth company was called The Edward Martin Handcart Company because Edward Marin lead them.  The company mainly consisted of about 600 emigrants from England.  During their journey they encountered many snow and ice storms.   They suffered exhaustion, lack of food, illness, hypothermia, inadequate clothing, poor equipment and bad weather. After the handcart company passed through Devils Gate they walked 2 miles to Martins Cove  and stayed there for many days while they waited for a bad storm to pass.  They didn't make it to Salt Lake City until November 30th.  135 to 150 lives were lost during that journey.                                                    Our family was able to walk about 5 miles of what they walked. It was sobering.  We sat and talked about the sacrifices that they made for us so we can worship in the ways that we choose today.  Then we talked about what our responsibilities are as members of the church.  I might have made my kids sing, "Pioneer children sang and they walked and walked and walked and walked"  hahahahhaha.                                                                                                                                                We all left with a lot more gratitude in our hearts for the pioneers.  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

We turned around at one point looking for Taj and there he was with a weed in his mouth.  We all died laughing.  Farmer Taj!!!!

Taj turns everything into a gun

Devils Gate and millions of mosquitoes.