August 27, 2020

Wall, South Dakota

Sleepy Hollow Campground Wall, South Dakota

I woke up in the middle of the night when I heard the door to the RV close.  I then heard the pattering of rain.  We were so tired last evening when we got back from Mount Rushmore that we did not put the top back on the Jeep.  Tim heard the rain and got up.  It is a good thing that he did.  At about 5:30 in the morning we had a dousing thunderstorm complete with hail!

The morning was bright and sunny.  We were heading today toward Badlands National Park in Wall, South Dakota.  We had the choice of the expedient interstate highway route or the less traveled scenic route.  As we normally do (when we have time) we chose the pretty drive. 

As we drove on, our GPS rerouted us.  We looked and we were supposed to turn onto a gravel road.  We skipped the first one and then we were rerouted again to another gravel road.  This time we looked and could see that it was 43 miles on the paved road or a much shorter 23 miles if we followed GPS.  Of course here is where we had no phone service.  The road was initially fairly decent.  About 4 miles later it was gravel washboard.  Speeds reduced to 10 miles or less per hour.  We stopped for lunch and to consider our options.

We kept moving forward and the road took us through the national park for a short distance.  We passed a lone bison almost immediately and then lots of prairie dog towns.

We were relieved to finally meet pavement.

It was nice to rest, do some laundry, and work on the blog this afternoon.

I really wanted to go and see Wall Drug. It is the famous spot in town. I was hesitant though and in the end decided not to go…NO ONE wears masks here and it freaks me out more than a little bit…so we try to stay away from people as much as we can.

This evening we got carryout from 3 Amigos Cantina and took it with us to go and scope out ‘THE WALL”. Our good friend, Tom, told us all about this place. Here, is free dispersed camping with incredible views of the Badlands. We will move tomorrow morning.

August 26, 2020

Black Hills, Custer State Park, and Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore KOA Hill City, South Dakota

Another magnificent thunderstorm during the night, with spears of bold electricity stabbing the sky.  The strong winds were whipping across the prairie and buffeting the RV.  The image of Devils Tower was backlit by the blinding flashes of light.  Fat raindrops fell for about 20 minutes and then as quickly as it had come, it was gone. 

We took another scenic road today.  We drove today through the cowboy country of Wyoming with plentiful cattle, deer, and antelope.

We slipped back into South Dakota and into the Black Hills National Forest.  The Black Hills are named for the very dark green trees that grow on the slopes. 

We were fortunate to get a glimpse of the Crazy Horse Memorial. We had wanted to go there, but the museums are inside and you have to take a bus to see the carving from the base. In an abundance of caution, we elected to forego stopping there.

This morning when we left the campground at Devils Tower, Tim was talking to another man who suggested that we find the time to see Custer State Park.  He spoke of Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road.  We knew that we wanted to see Mount Rushmore and had planned to go later in the day to avoid the crowds.  We packed our dinner and drove to Custer Park.  What a wonderful surprise this turned out to be.  The Needles Highway was 14 miles of narrow winding road that threads its way through the rock formations.  It is an engineering marvel and the scenery is every bit as spectacular as any national park we have visited. 

Several guys had antique cars, muscle cars and old trucks and were driving here today…what a awesome way to enjoy this ride!

There are also several granite tunnels.  We took the top off of the Jeep so we could really enjoy the view!

The top of the tunnel through the roof of the Jeep.

We found a nice spot under this tree when a rain shower passed.

We didn’t have time to take the wildlife loop…maybe another time.  We saw lots of mule deer and white-tailed deer.  This is the closest we have ever been to a bison bull of this size. 

We found our picnic spot at Center Lake.

We took Iron Mountain Road all the way to Mount Rushmore.  This road has 314 curves, several of them hairpin turns.  It also had granite tunnels and pigtail bridges.  It was a beautiful ride.  The tunnels here are supposed to frame Mount Rushmore as you go through.  Today it was too smoky and the evening sun was at the wrong angle to truly see well…but what a cool thing!

Our first sight of Mount Rushmore National Memorial was impressive.  I stood awestruck.  This is another place where pictures cannot capture the reverence and enormity of the sculpture.

The sculptor. Gutzon Borglum, chose these four presidents for their contributions to the nation.  He chose Washington as the founding father, Jefferson for his vision of growth, Lincoln for his ideas of equality, and Roosevelt for his international work, his commitment to rights for citizens and conservation.

A very beautifully crafted stone fireplace in the exhibit.

We stayed for the illumination ceremony and I am truly glad that we did.  We watched as a school teacher talked about the anniversary of women’s right to vote.  We watched as the veterans and active military were honored.  We watched as they retired the flag for the evening.  We watched the sculpture light up.  We sang the national anthem.  It was a very moving experience.  These are crazy difficult times for our country.  This was a reminder that we are very fortunate to live in the United States, to have opportunity and freedoms that most people around the world will never have.  Tim left with moist eyes and goosebumps and I left with a full heart.

August 24, 2020

Devils Tower Hiking

Devils Tower View Campground Devils Tower, Wyoming

Another short walk this morning.

Our goal today was to hike the 1.5-mile Joyner Ridge Trail at Devils Tower.  This was a great hike. 

We started on the ridge with wonderful views of the tower.

We descended the steep hill.

We walked through a cool ravine.

The last portion of the trail was through prairie.

We wanted to hike the Tower Trail as well.  This though was much more popular.  The parking lot was full and the trailhead was crowded.  We elected to try again later in the day.

After a brief rest in the RV, we headed to the town of Hulett, population 383.  We walked the streets of the town and stopped at the Corner Market to get a few groceries.

We had a good lunch at Red Rock Café.

The tower was shrouded in smoke much of the day.

We went back to the park after 5 to walk the Tower Trail. This is a paved 1.3 mile path around the base of the tower. I am really glad we went back to do this portion. We got an entirely different perspective of the imposing size of the formation.

Closeups of the columns – each is hundreds of feet tall and 10-20 feet wide.

Prayer cloths throughout the park.

Climbers!

Beyond the tower.

Changing light.

Wildlife in the park.

We had a picnic dinner and were entertained by a group of wild turkeys. This one was separated from the other 14 turkeys in her group…she was on the wrong side of the fence and trying to find her way back!

A couple of her friends on the other side…

Sunset as we left this evening.

August 24, 2020

Wyoming

Devils Tower View Campground Devils Tower, Wyoming

A short walk this morning.

Breakfast spot at City Hall in Amidon.

We spent most of our day on a long straight road through 200 miles of wide-open space, grassland and ranches.  We passed modern day cowboys herding cattle, using a pickup truck and two ATV’s…no cowboy hats and no horses.  There were of course corn fields and hay bales, and lots of antelope. 

We passed a convoy of trucks, three with enormous over-sized loads that took over most of the roadway.  The flagger in the lead car motioned for us to get over and out of the way, but we had to find a place to put our big self!  Of course, there was a narrow bridge!

We passed from North Dakota into South Dakota without any discernable difference in the landscape.  We made a turn at Belle Fourche and then entered Wyoming.  Almost immediately the terrain changed and became rockier, greener, with tall ponderosa pines. 

Our destination today was Devils Tower National Monument.  We got settled in our campsite and then wandered over to the park to get a map.  It was late in the afternoon and it was 96 degrees.  We decided to drive through and get information so that we could plan a hike for tomorrow. 

Devils Tower was the nation’s first monument.  It was dedicated in 1906 by Theodore Roosevelt.  This rock formation stands 1,200 feet above the Belle Fourche River Valley.  We could see the silhouette from more than 17 miles away.  It is composed of a rare igneous rock, phonolite porphyry.  The columns are a complex pattern of interlocking hexagons. No one is certain how this particular structure was formed but as you can imagine there are lots of opinions/theories. 

The Northern Plains Tribes have lived here for more than 10,000 years.  This place is a holy place and rituals and celebrations are still held here.  This is believed to be a place where the natural world and the spirit world come together.  Prayer cloths and bundles are left in the trees.

The Native American tribes in the area have sacred narratives about the formation of the tower…or as they had called it “Bears Lodge.” 

This evening we walked to the restaurant at the campground.  We had read reviews about the bison burgers.  We were going to take our food back to the RV but there was only one other party in the restaurant.  It felt really nice to sit down and eat and the burgers were delicious! It is the first time we have sat down in a restaurant in 5 months!

The canyon behind the campground.

Sunset.

August 23, 2020

Medora For 1 More Day

Red Trail Campground Medora, North Dakota Day 4

Another nice morning walk through town this time with Vicki as my walking companion.  Thanks for chatting with me, it makes walking so much more fun!

Today was just a genuinely lazy day…not much accomplished and nowhere we really wanted to go.  Tim did get to watch the NASCAR race and I washed clothes again while I had the opportunity. 

I had been trying to get pictures of the meadowlarks feeding on these coneflowers…but with no success.

An eastbound train loaded with coal.

This evening we took the grill and a cooler full of dinner into the park.  We found a shady picnic spot and grilled our chicken feta burgers and garlic chicken sausage.  We enjoyed some wine and our meal.

After eating, we drove along the scenic road watching the golden tangerine light as it bathed the landscape in color and as the shadows lengthened.

We saw wild turkeys.

We saw bison along the road.

We saw a band of wild horses. 

Farewell to this place.

August 22, 2020

Elkhorn Ranch

Red Trail Campground Medora, North Dakota Day 3

I took my morning walk across the railroad tracks and into town.  I dropped some postcards at the post office and then walked along the river on a paved path.  No pictures today because I was able to talk with Kyle while I was walking. 

We drove through Golden Valley County.

Our destination today was Elkhorn Ranch.  Theodore Roosevelt spent time here in North Dakota long before he was president.  He had been on a bison hunting expedition in 1883.  When his wife and mother both tragically died on the same day, February 14, 1884, Roosevelt made plans to return to North Dakota to grieve.  Roosevelt called the Badlands a “land of vast, silent spaces.”  He fell in love with the cowboy persona and invested in Elkhorn Ranch.  “It was here that the romance of my life began.”  Roosevelt also said that “I would not have been president had it not been for my experience in North Dakota.”  Roosevelt was president from 1901-1909.  He became a champion of the preservation of public lands.  He is known as one of the founding fathers of conservation in the United States and during his presidency he was responsible for the protection of more than 230 million acres.  This National Park was dedicated in his memory in 1947. 

We had to hike ¾ mile to the ranch.  At the site, there are stones to mark the corners of the ranch house.  But is isn’t the house that we were there to see.  It was the place where a great man lived and walked and wrote and healed.  I know that it is sentimental and probably a little bit nerdy but, I think that there is great reverence and power in walking in the footsteps of those who have come before us. 

A 4-foot Western Hog-nosed snake crossed our path.  It was too quick for a picture but I found a likeness on the internet. 

We took the Jeep on a dirt road as far as we could.

We went to Elkhorn Camp and found a shady spot for lunch.  This butterfly was really enjoying the thistledown. 

We stopped to take pictures of these petrified logs laying by the roadside. 

This ranch…Western Skies Ranch…just one of many.                         

We have spent more than a week now exploring this park.  The landscape is so varied and the wildlife so diverse that we have absolutely enjoyed being here.

Tomorrow we were going to move on. We really are not sure where we are going next. We thought about going to Montana to see Glacier National Park. All of the National Parks are only partially open with very limited visitor services and almost no camping. The parts that are open are said to be extremely crowded now until Labor Day. We don’t want to drive across Montana and then only get to see a small portion of the park. We were going to drop down into South Dakota, there are places we would like to see there. The weather forecast shows smoke in Rapids City secondary to wildfires and the temperatures are in the upper 90’s and are set to reach 100 degrees 2 out of the next four days. Tim was threatening to throw a dart at the map! By the end of the day, we had decided to stay here one more night. No decision has to be made tonight!

We have used Roosevelt’s quotes everyday this week.  Today we close with a quote we have posted before, but it is one of Tim’s favorites!

August 21, 2020

Bison In The Park

Red Trail Campground Medora, North Dakota Day 2

My morning walk.

Today we explored the South Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park.  The bison were magnificent.  At one point, our car was surrounded by bison crossing in front of the car and behind us.  We were not able to continue until they decided to lumber on their way…it was so COOL!!  The size of these bigger bulls is very intimidating!  We also enjoyed watching a huge herd from far away.  We watched bison rolling in and kicking up the dust.  We saw young calves nursing.  We watched bulls roam through the herd, never once taking their eyes off of us. 

This first video shows the scope of the herd.

If you can, turn up the sound and listen to the bison growling and grunting!!

We also saw hundreds of prairie dogs.  These little critters bark and chirp and jump up and down like popcorn.  They are really fun to watch.

Prairie dog video…too cute!

The scenery along the 24-mile route was gorgeous.

Bucks Hill is the second highest place in the park.

We also saw wild horses, mule deer, and antelope.

Because we could, we drove out of the north entrance of the park onto a red gravel road that ran parallel to the Little Missouri.  The ranch on the ridge has a very sweet view.

We took wine and drove back into the park to watch the sunset.

Theodore Roosevelt’s first cabin here in Medora.

August 20, 2020

Medora

Red Trail Campground Medora, North Dakota

It was time to leave the wilderness and return to a campground with full services.  On our way, we stopped at the Painted Canyon Visitor Center.  I have to say that I am very spoiled.  After living in the Grasslands and Jeeping in the Badlands, it was hard to be at an overlook with a throng of people.  The view though was still breathtaking!

We traveled the short distance to the town of Medora.  We had some time before we could check in and so we walked the streets of the town.  Roosevelt spent time here.

The town is a tourist destination directly outside the South Unit of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park.  It is a mid-western town that is preserving its heritage. In ordinary years, this place is very busy.  This year, many of the shops and restaurants were closed and there were few people walking around. 

The remainder of our day was spent doing normal stuff…laundry, cleaning, and catching up on the blog.  We drove 37 miles to Dickinson to get our groceries. 

We took a short drive this evening to get gas in the Jeep and to look around.  We ended up in Chimney Park.  The town’s founder had a slaughterhouse on the site…an interesting place for a park!  People here are very practical!

August 19, 2020

Little Missouri To Cross OR Not To Cross

Magpie Camp Little Missouri National Grasslands, North Dakota Day 2

The daytime temperatures are sweltering but last night temperatures dropped to the 60’s. It was cool for my morning walk.

Family of wild turkeys.

We loaded the cooler into the Jeep and headed out for today’s adventure.  It was our intention to take the Little Missouri River vehicle crossing and travel through the backcountry to Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch.  The ride started along a ridge.

We had spoken to a ranger who told us that the river is normally passable.  He encouraged us though to be 150% sure before we attempted a crossing.  He reminded us not to base our decision on what the river was like yesterday…the river is constantly changing and rain upriver several days ago can quickly change the depth and current of the water.  We stopped to assess and evaluate and deliberate.  Tim walked across in his flip flops.  The bottom was rocky, not muddy, and this was good news.  As he crossed though, the water became a little deeper, about 24 inches at the deepest point.  The water was silty and like chocolate milk and the current was steady.  Tim was unsure.  He really wanted to go!  I trust him implicitly and waited as he weighed the evidence.  He likes to be adventurous…not foolish and he always makes a careful, thoughtful decision.  We decided to wait for a while to see if anyone else passed through to cross.  After an hour, we turned back.  We will approach Elkhorn Ranch another day, from the south, along an easier route.

We found other roads to explore and I got to drive today.  We took another road less traveled through the bottom. 

Our picnic spot.

Bighorn sheep.

These are the North Dakota Badlands. Native American peoples first called these bad lands because they were worthless, difficult to farm and to travel. The Lakota called this place “mako sica.” There is evidence of human existence here for thousands of years, but not much. This area was used primarily for hunting and therefore not much was left behind. This area is ideal for sheep, elk, deer, wild horses, and bison…hoofed, sure-footed grazers. Hay, oil and cattle are other sources of commerce. The land is now owned by a mishmash of oil production companies, ranchers, and the government.

The thermometer hovered at 100 degrees.  We went back to the campground and sat in the shade.  It didn’t feel as hot and oppressive today as it did yesterday…there was even a tiny breeze (real tiny).  Even so, the heat chased us inside where we were happy to sit in air conditioning. 

Evening walk.

August 18, 2020

The Backroad to Devils Pass

Magpie Camp Little Missouri National Grasslands, North Dakota

Another move today, 15 miles down the highway and then 15 miles into the grasslands to Magpie Camp. 

This area is so pleasing to me.  I love the openness, the red gravel roads, the muted colors, the remoteness, the softly rolling hills, round hay bales, rocky buttes and outcroppings, the stillness, the cattle ranches, and the big blue sky.  We saw prairie dogs and pronghorn antelope.

We went out this afternoon to explore Devils Pass.  The Mahh Daah Hey Trail runs over this pass. We were told that if we took the Goat Pass Road we could travel most of the way in our Jeep. Otherwise, it was a 3-mile hike there and another 3 miles back…and it was hot today!  The car thermometer read 101 for most of the day but rose to 106 degrees in the bottom of the valley.   It’s a dry, stifling heat, like oven air.  The humidity was 17%.   

We wound our way up to Devils Pass.  This is a natural ledge or ridge connecting two hills.  The path across is about 12-foot-wide with steep 150-foot drop-offs on either side.  Hikers and cyclists are warned not to hike when this pass is wet, the dusty later on top is a fine clay (bentonite) and mixed with water, it becomes a slippery slurry. 

The view was outstanding.  We tried to capture a sense of perspective and scale, so look for Tim in the pictures. 

We took a gravel and dirt road further and drove along the border of Elkhorn Ranch and then the Badlands Scenic Area.  I loved this part of the day because we were in the bottom and I really felt like I was in the Badlands and not just looking at it!  I didn’t take very many pictures…I was enjoying the ride!

The more we travel deeper into the middle of the grasslands, the more oil rigs and other evidence of oil industry we see.  It mars the landscape, detracts from it.  The disturbance is the price we pay for the way we live, the need for energy to fuel our modern society.

Every place has a story.

We were hot and tired and the RV was 99 degrees inside, so we turned on the generator and ran the air conditioning this evening. 

I took an evening walk.