FreakinFantastic. The van is being towed into town. En route to Grand Teton, on Highway 191, the tire caught fire. No phone service. I flagged down a car. A nice, newly retired couple was able to call AAA. Triple A seems to hire people who do not look at maps to determine your location despite your very specific instructions ["approximately 25 miles south of Rock Springs, WY on Highway 191...NO, for the third time, I did not see any mile markers!!"] complete with Longitude and Latitude coordinates. After a second phone call and multiple transfers, someone finally figured out that I wasn't anywhere near Laramie and it wouldn't take 4 hours for someone to get to me. Said nice couple, Barb and Al from Northern California, shared their Wyoming chardonnay with me in plastic cups while we waited out the rain in their car for the tow truck [30 minutes away]. They refused to leave before the tow truck came, and while I felt sure I'd be fine had they been on their way, I was secretly relieved they insisted on staying. It made the small catastrophe so much more manageable.
Another plus: I learned how to use a fire extinguisher.
Riding shot gun in the tow truck!
A few hours prior to the van fire, I had stopped in Flaming Gorge Reservoir....here's some pretty pics to end on a better note:
Happy Friday the 13th!!