Wydaho Report, Part II, Illustrated

[silvercamaro]

On Wednesday morning, Adventure Boy and I headed east from Driggs. We crossed the Snake River, filled over its banks and running fast, then stopped in Jackson to visit an outdoor store where AB bought a one-day Wyoming fishing license and some particular flies. He wanted to drop me off, then go fly-fishing in the Green River that afternoon. The home of the friend who hosted us is near the source waters of the Green. Of the hours he spent in his waders in a torrent of melted snow, AB would say later, “I know I bought the right lures. The real flies were floating on the river, and no fish seemed to be bothering any of them, either.”

From Jackson, we drove south along the Hoback River, parallel to the Wind River Range, until we reached an unremarkable road that offered a shortcut to my friend’s house. If you look for Cora on a map of Wyoming, you might find it, but that’s only because Wyoming maps have lots of room to indicate any sign of civilization. The actual visible “town” of Cora consists of a single log building -- the post office, built in the 1890s; the house of the postmistress, who lives next door; a stable, and some kind of abandoned log structure, previous purpose uncertain. According to the 2000 census, the population was 76, but those people are in houses and ranches spread widely apart. We were headed 15 -20 miles north of the post office. http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/wy/cora.html

The house is built close to the summit of a steep hill -- it would be called a mountain in most other places, but there’s lots of competition here -- near the end of the Wind River Range. The front faces the Gros Ventre Range, including Sawtooth Mountain --
http://www.mountainmancountry.com/photo_gallery/album/3 --
and overlooks a valley filled with green grass, cattle, horses and other creatures we heard but didn’t see, including coyotes and sand hill cranes. My friends were waiting on the deck. We hugged, we talked, we drank, we ate well. Understatements, every one.

I promptly found out I’d wandered into the middle of a Water War. A natural spring provides the water for the hill, with a pumping system built by the residents of the dozen or so homes spread far apart on twisting roads. Individual meters were installed last November, shortly after the newest resident arrived. While the monthly usage for each of the homes was rarely over 5,000 gallons per month (including dishwashers, washing machines, and showers for multiple residents, although no lawn watering or swimming pools are permitted,) the new arrival used over a million gallons in her first six months. The most probable explanation is that she has broken underground pipes, which need immediate and probably costly repair. The response of the newcomer, who had bought her property without an inspection, was denial and accusations toward my friend, who heads the homeowner’s association. Lawyers already were involved, and the deputy sheriff drove up at 1 p.m. on the Fourth of July.

Is that a cliffhanger? Why, yes. Yes, it is.

[Ritterskoop]

The actual visible “town” of Cora consists of a single log building -- the post office, built in the 1890s; the house of the postmistress, who lives next door; a stable, and some kind of abandoned log structure, previous purpose uncertain.

That was Joe's Bar, Grill and Hospital.

[cindy.wellman]

clap clap clap! I love cliffhangers!

Sheesh, the water thing/war is VERY serious, wouldn't you say? I suspect it is the same in many other parts of the country, but this is the first area where I've been introduced to it. Perhaps it was because we were always on 'city water' in Albuquerque, and I didn't pay as much attention to my father when I was growing up and he was talking about the aquifer in Albuquerque. He worked for the Geological Survey in the water resources division up until last year, (for over 45 years!!) so you think I would have been a little more aware of stuff like this.

I especially liked your comment in the previous entry about "your money isn't good here" That truly is a heart-warming sentiment/statement.

[silvercamaro]

That was Joe's Bar, Grill and Hospital.

You may be closer than you know. I always suspected it was the former saloon, largely because the building reminded me of the Jersey Lil, the bar and courtroom of Judge Roy Bean of Langtry, Texas.

[silvercamaro]

Sheesh, the water thing/war is VERY serious, wouldn't you say? I suspect it is the same in many other parts of the country, but this is the first area where I've been introduced to it. Perhaps it was because we were always on 'city water' in Albuquerque, and I didn't pay as much attention to my father when I was growing up and he was talking about the aquifer in Albuquerque. He worked for the Geological Survey in the water resources division up until last year, (for over 45 years!!) so you think I would have been a little more aware of stuff like this.

Yes, it is serious, but it seems to be taken most seriously in the western states where the water supply comes primarily at the whim of Mother Nature, who decides how much snow to dump in the mountains and when it will melt to run into the streams. (And possibly in Oklahoma, which probably still has a population only because of the Army Corps of Engineers [salute to HoltDad and Ear] and the lakes the Corps created out of scrub land.)

After his retirement, my dad served on the Water Board for Arapahoe County, Colo. He helped get one big reservoir built (Chatham), but he persevered on the losing side of a battle to build another, larger one, because he was convinced there would be need for it before it could be finished. The unabated growth of the suburbs south of Denver has proven him right.

[peacock2121]

Maybe she is bottling it and selling it to people in Nevada.

Better than a meth lab, I suppose.

[MarleysGh0st]

A million gallons in six months!?

I don't feel so bad about my drippy faucet, now.