Waiting Mode

Waiting mode: the moment when you find yourself unable to do anything of significance because you have something big planned later that day. A doctor’s appointment at 2:00 might mean you spend your morning trying to be productive, but not too productive that you lose track of time, but not so unproductive that you waste the morning. It’s a strange brain glitch. I struggle with it a lot, but thankfully, I have Tyler! He’s amazing at living each moment in the best ways possible. This was one of those times!

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Featured photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/i6NQHbFmZwbJEDFJA

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May 30th, 2023 - Grand Teton Day 4

We awoke under a crystalline Idaho sky in a retro camper named Daisy. Painted a creamy yellow, she was perched on the edge of a rushing river. It was a tiny camper, hardly bigger than the bed inside. The bathroom was a communal shower house nearby. It was adorable.

Our bed was immensely comfortable, and I was loathe to leave our comfy dwelling place. We had a plane to catch in Salt Lake City, though, and miles to drive before we got there. If I had been in charge, my waiting mode probably would have led us to the airport, way too early, but with nothing else planned until our plane’s departure. With my amazing husband in charge, however, we were getting McDonald’s caramel frappes and going for a quick adventure along Utah's Salt Lake instead. It was a much more exciting plan than anything I could think of!

The Antelope Island State Park is located within the Salt Lake itself, following a narrow land bridge lined with hordes of swirling black gnats. We’d later learn that the park is renowned for its bugs. There are so many along the shoreline, in fact, that there are signs declaring, “No entrance fee refunds for bugs or bad weather.” (If anyone is bored, they should look up the TripAdvisor reviews for the park. The bug complaints are quite funny!)

We stayed in the car at first, driving through the brown prairie scenery backed by the hazy blue lake. Bison and pronghorn are plentiful on the island, contentedly grazing the stubbly grass. There are signs posted about them too, warning guests not to approach the wildlife. Evidently bison incidents aren’t limited to Yellowstone! Responsible tourists, we stayed in the car to take some pictures. The scenery was quite striking: a sleeping bison mounded in the yellow grass, with a wall of blue lake and bluer sky rising up behind it. We followed the road to an overlook, where the wind was strong enough to chase the bugs away. A steep path climbed a boulder-strewn hill. We ascended it, startling a chukar partridge as it pecked for insects in the gravely soil. When we reached the peak, we scrambled to the top of a tall rock to soak in the 360-degree views of the Salt Lake and its sandy shoreline. It was beautifully blue. Deafening roars filled the air periodically, tailing fighter jets as they launched through the sky. Moving so fast, it was hard to spot them until we figured out how to look ahead of their soundbursts. There they were, grey darts whizzing through the clouds.

After watching the jets for a while, our gazes fell to the beach below. A grassy meadow stretched out beneath our perch. Ankle-deep in the grass, a lone pronghorn browsed its buffet. With the wind whipping around our ears, we began to scheme. It didn’t look too far to the shore, we theorized, and I had hoped to to stick my hands in the water. Rather than driving around to a parking lot, why couldn’t we just hike to the water? I tried to gauge the distance visually. Across the yellow expanse of grass stood more boulders, and beneath them was a dip down to the shore. It looked kind of steep. What would we do if we got to the dip and it turned out to be a cliff? And how long would it take us to get down there? We only had an hour before we needed to get to the airport.

Admittedly, we can be young and impulsive. Confident in our hiking abilities, we decided to try it. It wasn’t long before I started regretting our decision. It was hot that morning. The sun cooked through my hair and burned my hatless scalp. The wind pushed against us. The hill was steep and littered with rocks that wobbled underfoot. And don’t get me started on the grass! Utah has a particular kind of grass that’s absolutely terrible for hiking. Tyler and I have learned to hate the plant. It resembles very short wheat. It grows only ankle-high and has yellow grain heads. There are long spikes on the heads, perfect for burrowing into your socks and hitching a painful ride. In mere moments, our shoes and socks were full of the poky, bristly hitchhikers! Each step either rolled your ankle on a rock or pricked you with grass. It wasn't our best hike.

To top it off, it turns out that we vastly underestimated the distance we were trying to cover! The lake seemed miles away. The nearby pronghorn stared at us judgementally as we pulled to a stop after fifteen minutes. We needed to reevaluate. It was still a long ways to the lake. Our socks were full of grass and our return hike would be entirely uphill. Better to turn around. Lesson learned: stick to the trails, friends!

​ We drove around to the lake, where we still had to jaunt a quarter mile to the water’s edge. I did get to stick my hands in the Salt Lake. I tasted it too- it’s definitely salty! We didn’t linger long, however. The bugs were back, and they really liked that beach! Their buzzing clouds were incessant. Waving our arms wildly, we retreated back to the car.

Turns out it was a pretty entertaining day. Waiting mode is so much better when you have a lovely person to share it with. I’m so thankful to have Tyler. These spontaneous adventures just wouldn’t be the same without him!