Chimney Rock Pioneer Crossing Campground Bayard, Nebraska
Last night we were still in a quandary about where we were headed. We thought about staying out west and even thought about going to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. As we have discovered, the national parks are not fully functional. Rocky Mountain is no exception. Their solution to the Coronavirus regulations is a timed entry system where advanced tickets are required. We have decided to come back when things are less complicated. So, we have decided to slowly head east. We crossed back into Nebraska and found a campground at Chimney Rock. We had full hookups here so I was able to do laundry.
Chimney Rock was another landmark on the Oregon Trail. The peak used to be taller according to sketches done by early settlers. It has been diminished by both erosion and lightning strikes.
Here is another resting place for both pioneers and more recent local residents.
The owner of the campground, Joe, recommended a dirt road into the valley.
We had to pull over for the hay truck.
We had passed a sugar beet processing plant on our way here. We stopped to watch the sugar beets being harvested. Sugar beets grow well here in this temperate climate. They thrive in the dusty sandy soil. The warm days and cooler nights make for sweeter beets with a higher sugar content.
Black Canyon Point Campground Guernsey, Wyoming Day 2
My early walk.
Later in the morning we drove to the end of the park and took a hike on a fire road. There was a steep incline up to the plateau and then lots of prairie. We found a footpath the took us to the rim where we could see the lake below and the rocky cliffs on the other side of the water.
A memorial on the high point.
This afternoon we went to Register Cliff. The first people to mark this rock were Native Americans. Eons ago, pictographs and petroglyphs were painted and etched here. They have long since faded and been erased by the people who traveled in the many years since. Fur traders carved their names in this stone face in the 1830’s. This was a stopping place on the Oregon Trail and it became a rite of passage to write your name in the sandstone. It became a register of the emigrants on their trip along the North Platte River. In more recent time, travelers and tourists of all sorts have added their names, writing over the records and words of those before them.
The oldest etchings are protected by the chain-link fence.
The cemetery here holds the graves of those whose journeys were cut short. The river crossings were particularly dangerous.
Cliff swallow nests.
The Pony Express also used this route.
This was a place, alive with history. Perhaps, there are families in Utah and Oregon whose ancestors’ names are here in this cliff. These names represent real people in their quest for a brighter future. I remember as a young child being enchanted with the stories of the pioneers of the west…I am enchanted still. The challenges they faced, the courage that it took, the harsh living conditions…all for a better life for their children. To take that journey and know wholeheartedly that you are never going back to your old life or your family. It is inspiring. The very sad part of this story is what happened to the Native Americans as white men made their way west. This part of the story cannot be changed but it can be remembered and honored. We chose tonight’s quote from Sitting Bull.
The weather forecast here for the next several days…crazy fluctuations in temperature…and snowflakes!!
The sun went to bed in a beautiful but less dramatic fashion this evening.
We moved to another site with grandiose views of the lake and the cliffs. We sat outside, enjoying the peace and stillness.
We drove into the town of Guernsey and followed signs to the Oregon Trail Ruts Historic Site. The journey westward for most people started in the Missouri plains and as the Conestoga wagons crossed into Wyoming, the terrain became rougher and more difficult to navigate. The journey west took four to six months. These wagon ruts are permanently etched into the earth. The 2,000 mile trail is one of the longest emigration routes in the world.
We wanted to get a carryout lunch but the Mexican restaurant we had seen on our way through town was closed. There were not other places to choose from. We went to the grocery and got summer sausage, cheddar, snap peas, guacamole, and grapes and took our impromptu picnic to the community park. I worked on the blog here as well.
We stopped to see the CCC museum in Guernsey Park. The building is a work of art with stone arches and timbers. The displays are well done and worthwhile and tell the history of the area including, Native American culture, pioneers, mining, the Oregon Trail, and the building of the dam. We napped and read in the late afternoon and then enjoyed a simple dinner of eggs and toast.
Our new campsite was a wonderful place to watch the sunset.
We watched as the colors faded and the stars began to pop out. We were consumed by darkness. We went back outside later to see the full moon, the corn moon. The moonlight was so bright it lit the cliffs and the lake water and it cast long shadows on the ground. It was pretty special.
Later in the morning, we took a hike on the Lakeview Trail with great views of the lake. The air was a little chilly and the sunshine was warm…perfect hiking weather!
This is our campsite for tomorrow night from across the water.
We stopped at the railroad bridge to watch the coal train come through. There are several mines north of here. This coal is bound for power plants in the Midwest and along the east coast. Loaded coal cars as far as the eye can see. Each car holds 100 tons of coal.
We packed our lunch and drove to the dam. The water in the spillway was so powerful that it made my heart pound.
We spent the afternoon resting and doing chores.
For dinner this evening, we went to the Castle. This picnic shelter was built in the 1930’s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. This was a program that Franklin Delano Roosevelt instituted to help people go back to work during the Depression. This was by far the neatest picnic shelter I have ever seen. I knew when I saw it yesterday, that I wanted to make dinner here. We took mushrooms and asparagus and filets and watermelon and enjoyed our date night, a feast, and the scenery from the arches and the vantage point on top of the castle.
We watched a coal train pass through the tunnel…130 empty cars ready to be refilled. The volume of the operation is seriously impressive.
A historic site and our breakfast spot. Over 8,000 Native Americans gathered at this place to sign a treaty allowing pioneers to pass peacefully along the Oregon Trail on their way across the country.
One of the best things about traveling without a plan and without reservations, is that you can go anywhere you want to go. Looking at the map, Tim noticed that just over the Nebraska border, in Wyoming, there was a state park on a reservoir and the North Platte River. They had plenty of open camping spots so we crossed back into Wyoming. I am ‘so glad we did.
Our campsite.
We spent the afternoon exploring. We took all the gravel roads on the south side of the water. We found some great overlooks.
This was a wooden pedestrian bridge built by the CCC in the 1930’s. It was destroyed by fire. Now there are stone steps that take you down into the canyon and back out.
This is Brimmer Point.
We watched this military plane practicing maneuvers.
We grilled burgers and corn for our dinner and then for my evening entertainment, I watched a wake of buzzards catching wind. There had to be about a hundred. They sailed with their wings outstretched and hung suspended like kites. I was fascinated. I know that buzzards are supposed to be ugly birds…but this dance in the clouds was graceful and beautiful to watch. I am so easy to amuse!
We are going to stay here in this campsite for two nights and then we found another great site on the north side where we will stay for another two nights. I am grateful to have a short break. We have been moving and exploring at a steady pace so it is nice to slow it down a little!
I went out at sunset to try and post the blog…not much success there but a beautiful sunset and a herd of mule deer as well.
…and a hawk flying in the trees catching a drought of air.
We traveled through Nebraska.
In the small town of Alliance, Tim spotted a Safeway store. He asked if I wanted to stop and I jumped at the chance…I even had a list ready! It is really nice to find a grocery store with the things we like from home!
The Robidoux RV Park sits at the base of Scotts Bluff National Monument. Scotts Bluff is a group of rock formations that was used as a geological marker on the Oregon Trail. After days of walking and riding across the plains, and pioneers would see this bluff. We took the Summit Trail to the top. It was an awesome view.
These covered wagons are replicas of the wagons used by settlers following the Oregon Trail westward. We walked along the same path. This route had actually been used for 10,000 years by American Indians. The river was a water source for bison and these were hunting grounds. Thousands of years later, from 1841-1869, 350,000 people made their way across the plains to find new life and opportunity in the western United States. The hardships these travelers faced included scorching summer temperatures, severe storms, harsh winter weather, buffalo stampedes, and illness.
Walgren Lake State Recreation Area Hay Springs, Nebraska
My morning walk with the Badlands as my backdrop and inspiration.
Today we drove to through Southern South Dakota into Nebraska. In order to get from point A to point B, we had to pass through Native American Tribal Land. Much to our surprise, there was a COVID checkpoint as we reached the boundary. We were so impressed by this. There is an ordinance that requires all travelers to stop and answer questions about where you have been and where you are going. I am glad to see that there are people out here who take precautions…most people do not. The Lakota are working very hard to take care of their own people.
Our scenery today.
We entered Nebraska at around noon. Close your eyes and imagine what Nebraska might look like! So far, it’s lots of growing wheat, corn, soy beans, and sunflowers. In addition. there are lots of cattle ranches and hay bales.
We found Walgren Lake State Recreation Area. This lake is rumored to have had a Walgren lake monster, but no sign of it today! We have the campground and the lake to ourselves. We were sitting in the shade of the cottonwood trees. It was really windy.
We sat outside most of the afternoon and evening. We grilled sweet potatoes and ribs. It was so pleasant and pretty.
Sometimes you just need to make a new plan. We had been really excited about staying at THE WALL. During the night we had terrific storms again. It rained and hailed. We knew that the RV would not fare well on the slippery clay road. When the wind began to howl, we knew that staying on the cliff was not going to happen. We found a small campground in the town of Interior right outside the park. As we were leaving town, we met a guy at the gas station that was trying to repair his slideout covers. One cover was ripped off and he had used zip ties to hold it on. The wind was gusting so strongly as they drove through the Badlands this morning that he advised us not to drive that way. We revised our route and took the highway.
We stopped to take a hike at the Door Trail. This was a great walk because we were walking among the rock formations.
This afternoon, we took a 4WD trail.
Then a gravel road.
Then we did the scenic loop in the park.
Bison of the day.
Some bighorns.
We had our picnic dinner at a scenic overlook. It was another beautiful day!!
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.
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.
