Independence Day

7/9(4-5)/24

Oliver-

This post is going to expose how untimely I am at writing this blog. Oh well. 

It seems like most folks who work here go to West Yellowstone for the 4th of July. It’s the closest town and they have a parade and fireworks show. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you if it is any good because instead of West we went to a party in Norris (a small village in the park) hosted by some of my friends who work for the park service. Opal worked until nine so I rode up with a friend from Old Faithful. 

The truck we rode up in was a red Dodge Dakota with a camper shell and had seats for two, which was half as many people who were going to ride in it so two of us volunteered to ride in the bed. It was an hour-long drive and I noticed two things that made me slightly concerned for my safety. The first was that a good portion of the bed was filled with stuff that could become projectiles in the event of a crash, some stuff wouldn’t be so bad like a rugby ball but the hatchet next to my thigh and filet knife. The second and somehow more concerning thing was how the camper shell was attached to the truck. Somehow it was secured down by c-clamps, three on either side. I tried the one closest to me and it was completely loose. 

The party was fun. The hosts live in a massive house where you can hear the Gibbon River from. We had all the classic 4th of July foods which made up for the lack of fireworks. Afterward, we watched Independence Day in a living room larger than our entire cabin. 

It’s rare we stay up late enough to see stars so on the drive back (in Opal's car) we took advantage of being up and stopped at the Gibbon Falls parking lot. We laid out on a blanket as long as we could and saw what I think are some of the best stars I have ever seen. 

Opal-

The day after the fourth we went fishing, well Oliver went fishing I just watched. But we got to explore some of the rivers a little more which was nice. Oliver caught one trout in total but with a fly rod which he says is always confidence-boosting.