Days 14-16: Too good to be true

We left West Yellowstone and started cycling through Yellowstone national Park. Yellowstone is certainly a national treasure and the team took their time to go through the park and enjoy the scenery and wildlife. I took some great pictures, and once I get a camera cord, I’m going to upload them all. We saw a wolf, bald eagles, bison, elk, and old faithful erupt. It was pretty amazing, and I was glad to be on the Trans America team and cycling through Yellowstone with such a great group of guys. Cycling was definitely the best way to see Yellowstone, and we crossed the continental divide three times on our bike. At night we had dinner at a pasta buffet on Lake Yellowstone and we stayed at a hotel in the park.

Although we did not have a friendship visit we spread more awareness about people with disabilities than all the other days of the trip combined. It was great to talk to people about the Journey of Hope from all around the country and the world. We even had an alumni from the delta chapter at Furman randomly come up at one of our crew stops. He emptied out his wallet and donated it to Push America. It was pretty awesome.

The next day we woke up and racked through some construction until the exit of Yellowstone. The southern exit of Yellowstone borders Grand Teton National Park, and it was truly amazing. I could not believe how amazing the Teton mountain range was, and I truly considered myself lucky to have the ability to cycle there. We cruised the entire day to Jackson WY, where we had an arrival in the city square.

The arrival was really special because we had a special Olympic athlete with sever autism cycle into the park with us. At the park the mayor of Jackson made a proclamation and thanked us for what we were doing. We then rode about a mile to a ski resort where we did alpine sliding with a group of kids with disabilities. It was a lot of fun.

After that our day got even better. We racked our bikes and drove to Twin Creeks Ranch. Twin Creeks Ranch is pretty much the most amazing place I’ve ever been. One of Eta Gamma chapter’s alumni, Peter Cushman, invited us to his family ranch, and we were treated like kings. The art in some of the house was worth more than most houses, and it was quite a site to see.

The next day we woke up and ate an amazing breakfast prepared by some Eta Gamma chapter alumni, and then we had “activities.” I went horseback riding and golfing. It was insane, and I think the pictures will do it well once I can post them. It was nice to have my own bed to sleep in too. Hopefully I’ll be well rested for the century tomorrow