Ants!

Friday, September 8...

Long travel day. Several moments when, if you asked me to describe Wyoming, the first word you’d probably hear is empty. Lunch at Hardee’s in Gillette. Then we passed through Buffalo, Sheridan, and Dayton before the climb to Lake Sibley (NPS) Campground - altitude 8347’.  Very nice. Also very quiet (which was fine) and very dusty. The dirt had the consistency of talcum - which is okay if folks drive really slowly, but even at 15mph (the limit is 10), a rig passing the campsite would leave a layer of powder on the M3. Eventually Greg set a box fan at the approach edge of our site; I was amazed at the difference it made. Scrabble after supper, and Greg won. (One or the other of us tends to get practically nothing but 1-point letters. Tonight was my turn. He played well.)

Empty may not be the best descriptor, but it s accurate.

Prune Creek, leaving the lake.

BlogThoughts… Once we’re settled into a site, there’s a routine of “unpacking” counter items and such. As I lifted the cutting board from the sink to remove smaller items nestled underneath, I saw half a dozen large ants scrambling around. Not good.  (Also not a total surprise – we’ve seen ants off and on, generally one at a time, for some time. We’ve sprayed, and never been able to figure out where they’re coming from, but the sightings were infrequent so we just lived with them. Today was different. I quickly disposed of the 6 in the sink. Then 3 showed up on the ceiling, close to one of the air vents. Aha – a nest under the roof! But Greg says no, that there’s 2-3” of Styrofoam stuffed between the ceiling and the roof. Greg sprays heavily. I have a fly swatter ready. Over the next hour or so I play mindless solitaire, checking for ants ever few minutes. Another 3 or 4 (each appearing alone) meet a timely demise.

It’s now been 4 days, and not a single ant has dared appear. Fingers crossed. (Honestly, though, I’d rather have these – which are about half an inch long – than the tiny ones that show up in scurrying swarms.)