Free at Last

We took the advice of another Airstreamer and took the scenic roads out of Colorado rather than I-25 out of Denver. We were so glad we did. We headed up Highway 9 stopping in Kremmling to eat lunch at a cute diner/bakery called My Family Restaurant. The glazed donut I had was so good that I made Robert buy a whole apple pie for later. I have this notion that on this trip I will uncover the place that bakes the best apple pie. (However, we discovered later that MFR may have the worst.)

From Highway 9 we headed north toward Steamboat Springs, a town we'd visited years ago when Ryan had a baseball tournament there. I remember Robert declaring then he was going to find a stuffed buffalo head to bring home as a souvenir and we joked about where we'd hang it. Then he discovered how pricey they were and from then on we were eyeing every buffalo head in every restaurant wondering if it could be had for less. We are still on the lookout for "the deal."


Anyway, we skipped Steamboat and took more back roads to get to Laramie, Wyoming. In Laramie, we were given excellent directions by an employee outside an auto parts store for the best route to Custer, South Dakota. In wonderful Wyoming vernacular he said: I will forewarn you that 32 starts out all nice and straight but turns real twisty-like, but I believe it is the faster route." Once again we took someone's advice to forgo the Interstate and we were glad we did. If his recommended route was indeed quicker it wouldn't have mattered to us anyway--so beautiful was this road. We were alone for most portions and surrounded by 360 views of landscape and sky so stretching and vast that but for the highway and some utility lines the year could have been 1807 , not 2007. Beautiful, beautiful Wyoming!

We arrived in Custer after dark pulling into Big Pine Campgrounds where the manager had tacked our campsite info to the bulletin board outside the closed office. Robert managed to get us parked and hooked up before falling into bed. Allison and I stayed up watch Born Free on the DVD player. I think I was 10 when I first saw this movie and in my memory it was a glorious, touching tale of fuzzy lion cubs. Watching it with my daughter I was struck with how stiff and sappy and sexist it was-- the woman always resorting to near-hysterics to make a point and her husband always bossing her around, telling her to "Go to bed!" Forget the cubs woman--free yourself! Let Andy Williams and his Academy-award-winning song be the soundtrack for your escape. Run or toughen up!

30+ years later I finally get it: This film was propaganda for the feminist movement. Aha! I see now. What subversiveness! Born Free was not really about the lion cubs, but the cry against domination and manipulation in marriage. But of course, the message was lost on my young self. What else did I miss?