Denise Goldberg's blog

Friday, August 17, 2012

flying high

Starting a wander is always good, and this one has started. I wish there was a fast way to jump from home to my destination for the day. There isn't, and I am on my first flight of two. I'm sitting on a plane flying above a layer of white clouds, bouncing a bit as the wind currents toss us around.

The plane pushed back from the terminal exactly on time; I imagine we're headed to the southwest since this flight takes me from Boston to Dallas. Two hours will elapse there before I board plane number two for a flight to Jackson, Wyoming. It will be a bit of a long travel day before I step into my wandering spot for the next week.

It's funny, I'm flying on an airline with assigned seats and the gate area and boarding process was less pleasant than that on Southwest flights with no assigned seating. Southwest wasn't an option since they don't fly into Jackson, and the closest major airport that jumped out at me was Salt Lake City. I ruled that out since it looked to be about a 5-hour drive from there to Jackson; next time I might consider the drive instead of two airplanes. I don't know if Southwest flies there, but I do know that I can get a nonstop flight from Boston. Maybe next time... What? Of course there will be a next time. You know me, a single visit to a beautiful place doesn't usually work for me. I haven't even arrived and yet I'm sure this will not be my last visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton.

The weather forecast for both parks shows smoke for today and I think tomorrow, then blue skies with clouds and a chance of thunderstorms. Given that there are fires in the area I imagine the smoke forecast will move forward into the week. The evenings and early mornings may be a bit of a shock to my system since the temperatures drop into the 30s and 40s depending on which park I am in. I have layers of clothes, and yes, I did bring a fleece hat and gloves with me. Many thanks to Rover for reminding me!

...posted from the air somewhere between Boston & Dallas, currently at an altitude of 35058 feet
in flight, map