Escape the Heat? Part 3

Tuesday, 8/17
In the morning as 10 am (check-out time) came and went, I mentioned to Sid we should probably get going. He looks at me incredulously and says, “There is no one else here. This is the only room they have to clean all day!” I shrugged and pointed out the signs; he just laughed. 

At 10:45, I had gathered our things by the door, and suddenly a car was driving in the parking lot and hit the brakes enough to skid. Next thing there was a sharp knock on our door, “Housekeeping!”
I opened the door to a lady (the owner) standing there literally pointing to her watch.
Lady: (in a shrill tone) “Check-out time is 10 o’clock!”
Me: (pointing to our things by the door, cheerfully) “We are just loading up.”
Lady: “I know you got in late last night, but still check-out time is 10 o’clock!”
Me: “Got it!”

What’s incredible about this is that the same lady was most gracious, sympathetic, and talkative over the phone when I called to make the reservation in June. The property is really lovely and convenient to the lake, so no other guests was a bit of a mystery to us the night before. As we drove away, we noticed a commercial “For Sale” sign near the road. I think we now know why.

It was another warm day and I think Sid was discouraged about not getting any fish. We found an open café in Manila and had “brunch” and discussed plans for the day. Sid was not excited to be out on the water in the heat with almost no wind, so proposed we go tour the dam. So we drove around the south bend of the lake on the way to the dam. We stopped often at the overlooks. First was Sheep Creek Overlook.

 

We stopped at the Swett Ranch overlook.

 

We visited the Dam Visitor Center. There are no tours, currently, due to COVID-19, but you could look around the lobby of the center including a cool 3-D topographical map and you could walk across a pedestrian bridge which led up and over the road to view the other side of the dam. I find dams of that era quite extraordinary feats and the site is fairly dazzling.

There was a BBQ food truck in a far corner of the parking lot so we got sandwiches. Sid had asked about whether there was access to the river on the discharge side of the dam. The answer was, “yes,” so he wanted to go explore, particularly once he heard that it is typically cooler temps because it is so far below the dam and the water coming from the dam is cool as well. We found the boat launch area and had a picnic there. It was cooler and the breeze off the river was cool—delightful! One guide boat launched while we were there which was a moment of fun.

On the way back to the marina, we also stopped at the Red Canyon overlook. At the dam, we learned about an app that will tell you things of interest about the surroundings as you drive. Due to my poor cell service, it didn’t work as well as hoped but it was fun and it said the road to the Red Canyon was the best place to see Bighorn sheep. Since it was near dusk, we decided to do it. Didn’t see any wildlife, but the canyon is spectacular. Unfortunately, its beauty tempted Sid to want to sail there. By the time we got back to the marina, it was again 90 degrees, dark, and the squalls were blowing. Perhaps a foreshadowing of our final day at Flaming Gorge?

Guard your children? 😂😂😂

Oh! Now I see why 😲