Block 5 Post 2

Week 1: by Olivia Hammond

We decided to stay close to home our first week/weekend and explore what Wind River Reservation has to offer!

 

We visited Sacajewea’s gravesite after rotations. The site is a short drive from the house and the view is incredible.

 



 

Other Fun Facts: 

-       17 mile road, longer than 17 miles

-       Several ways to get to clinic from house (watch the speed limits because it does change frequently)

  

The first day of our rotation, we waited to buy groceries until after work, so we went to The Breadboard for lunch in Riverton—what quickly became a Monday tradition for us. 

 

First snow of the year on Tues (Oct 12th)—Make friends with the other students. One of the other students with us, Tyler, went to Wyoming University, so he was our chauffeur to work the second day, as we were not comfortable driving in the snow yet.








-       Friday we traveled off site for the day and went to the local highschool to administer vaccines (COVID boosters and flu shots) to employees.

 

 

-       Cowfish—Ada’s Mom took us out for a fancy dinner the first night!

 

-       Gym—The gym has great accommodations including free weights, Peloton bikes and treadmills, and all the gear you need for a great workout!

 

-       Cooking at home—Tomato soup and grilled cheese! Cooking at home is really the best way save money for fun weekend adventures. There are grocery stores in Riverton, Lander, and a quick stop shop just down the road from the house.

      


 


Friday:

-       On Friday, we decided to drive straight to Riverton after getting off, where we explored local shops and had some great Mexican cuisine at the Depot. (We highly recommend the Verde Chicken Chimmeys and bean dip)

 

Saturday:

-       On Saturday, we took the opportunity to sleep in.

-       Then we headed to Lander Bar to watch the Auburn game (Auburn beat Arkansas! Woohoo!).—We recommend any and all food at Lander Bar/Gannett Grill but especially love their pizza!

-       We then hiked to Popo Agie, but accidentally skipped the sinks (right off the road).




-       After our hike, we headed back to Lander bar (the food was THAT good).

 

Sunday:

-       On Sunday, we headed to Dubois for a day full of hiking but first we grabbed coffee and bear spray. It is definitely important to have bear spray with you as you hike through any area of Wyoming. However, we were told that Dubois has a large Grizzly population (although we never saw any), so we prepared accordingly.

-       In Dubois, we hiked to Lake Louise. All Trails is a helpful app to help guide you to the trailhead and to stay on the path. This was a longer hike but well worth the treck; just bring summit snacks!





 

 

Week 2:

 

-       For our second week, we decided to be a little more adventurous and go on some hikes during the week after work. Most days of the week we worked 8:00AM - 3:00PM, so you have plenty of time to still do some fun things in the evening!

-       We went back to the sinks to actually see where it sinks and the rise!






-       Ada’s birthday was this week so we went to Lander bakery for some sweet treats before.

-       This week was the first time we had the opportunity to go to the Ethete clinic. This was also our opportunity to try the big Texas pretzel across the street! Everyone at the clinic raves about this pretzel and it is HUGE. You must get it fried with butter; it’s delicious!

-       Sadly our fellow roomie, Tyler left and headed out for his next rotation this week.

-       This weekend was our first of many weekends in Jackson.  Our preceptor, Katherine, was very flexible with our working schedule, so we had plenty of time to explore each weekend.

Jackson: Friday - Sunday:

Thursday: 

-       On Thursday, we left after clinic and headed straight to Jackson. The drive from the Arapahoe practice site was only about two hours and goes conveniently through DuBois where we stopped for gas and coffee. It is quite scenic and beautiful especially as you approach the Teton National Forest, but be careful driving through windy turns!

-       For this weekend, Nina’s boyfriend, Joey, flew into Jackson airport which is conveniently right outside of the city of Jackson and easy to pick up visitors.

-       Me and Ada stayed at the Mountain Modern Motel and the others stayed in Cowboy Village. Both lodging sites were near each other and within perfect walking distance of downtown Jackson.

-       Watch for wildlife as you drive into Jackson. We saw bison as we entered the first day!

-       The first night we went to Silver Dollar Bar and had dinner and drinks with live music and two-step dancing

Friday:

-       On Friday, we woke up and went to the Bunnery for breakfast. We highly recommend the huckleberry pancakes!

-       We shopped around town—Made is a very cute shop we loved with lots of gift items for souvenirs or in our case we bought many Christmas gifts.

-       For lunch, we went to Roadhouse Brewery for a bite to eat.

-       After that we split up for the evening, Nina and Joey went to dinner at Gun and Barrel (a little more fancy for date night) where they tried different types of wild game, while Ada and I went to a Moose hockey game in town. We just happened to hear about the game from a local the night before.

-       The hockey game was at the Snow King Sports and Events Center just a short walk from downtown Jackson and not very expensive for admission. We definitely recommend trying to catch a game if you’re going to be visiting Jackson during hockey season!

-       We ended the night listening to live music at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar!

Saturday:

-       Saturday, we woke up and grabbed breakfast to go to Pearl Street Bagels and headed out for hiking at Jenny Lake and Yellowstone.

-       Always be on the lookout for wildlife! We spotted moose in the Snake River this morning!

-       Nina dropped Ada and I off at Jenny lake then, she and Joey headed for a day out in Yellowstone.

-       If you go to Jenny Lake, we really enjoyed hiking to Inspiration Point and the Hidden Falls.

-       Nina and Joey went to Yellowstone and hiked to West Thumb. Driving in Yellowstone, they saw hydrothermals, geysers, and even a Grizzly bear (from the safety of their car).

-       After our hikes, we were very hungry, so we went to Pinky Gs for pizza. It is famously featured on The Food Network’s “Diners, Dine-inns, and Dives”

-       Then, we went back to the room to rest and shed our hiking gear, and got ready for the evening.

-       We ended up having another evening out at the Silver Dollar Bar and Cowboy Bar listening to live music and, this time, playing fun card games!

Sunday:

-       Sunday morning, Nina took Joey back to the airport, and we met up for coffee and breakfast at Cowboy Coffee. One of many stops we had at Cowboy Coffee on our trip.

-       We spent the rest of the morning shopping around town and then headed back to Ft. Washakie to get ready for the next week.

 

-Nina, Olivia, and Ada

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