A few thoughts and a few more pictures.

I would have thought the girls would have liked to ride in the front seat (shot gun) and see the sights,  but they preferred to either sleep or be on their screens.

I forgot how much teenagers like to sleep, snack, watch TV (screens) and talk on their phones.

The Central States Fair – a bit more information and photos. Admission was only $3 and the parking is free.

Violet and Evie got henna tattoos at the Central States Fair. The dark ink you see falls off within an hour, the design stays a medium shade of brown for 1 to 2 weeks. The girls were very excited to get them. They are hoping the tattoos are visible when they go back to school.

 

Okay, I have never seen this at the Erie County Fair but, one building was just chickens!!! (If there is one I have not seen it and will definitely want to see it next time). There were the white chickens (the ones we think of when we picture chickens) but mostly there were very unusual chickens. They were beautiful chickens, big chickens, small chickens, roosters that made sure we knew they were there. Some were for sale and some just on exhibit. Here are a few. Tell me they are really cool looking chickens!!!

Just thought you’d like to see.

 

Our last day in town takes us to downtown Rapid City.  Population 74,048. Elevation 3,203 feet. 55.49 square miles. Mountain time zone. Located in the southwest corner of South Dakota. Gateway to Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills. Host of “City of Presidents”.

Started in 1876 by disappointed miners, John Richard Brennan, Samuel Scott and a few other miners originally named it “Hay Camp”. They started the city to promote it as the gateway to the Black Hills by selling supplies to the miners and pioneers.  A square mile of land was measured and the six blocks in the center were designated the business district. The town was renamed Rapid City after the rapid creek that ran through it. Tourism and Ellsworth Air Force base are what keep the city going and have helped the city continue to grow.

Rapid City hosts “City of Presidents”. Along Main Street for 5 or 6 city blocks the Presidents stand on each street corner.  All the presidents up to but not including Obama are currently on display. The Obama statue is suppose scheduled to arrive this fall.

John Adams is delighted to shake Mike’s hand!!

And here we are with President George H.W. Bush.

A Lakota Indian woman with child.

Lunch at the Firehouse Brewery. The food was very good. Their cheesy artichoke dip with garlic beer bread was AWESOME!!!! Thank you for the recommendation Joe B. :). (do you love the light from the window on my face??)

Here is Art Alley that runs for several blocks between the two one way streets through downtown.  Artists are allowed, by permit only, to paint graffiti on the walls and dumpsters.

Here is  “The Chapel in the Woods” which is an exact reproduction of Borgund Stavkirke Laerdl (Borgund Stave Church) of Norway. Built in1969, it is the home of the Lutheran Vespers radio ministry.  The other building is a Stabbur, which is an authentic grass-roofed store house built in Norway and reassembled on site. The grounds were very pretty. A wedding had just concluded at the chapel.

Since we were so close to the Rushmore Mall (well, close enough)……… just a quick stop at a few stores for the girls to pick out something from Rapid City. Fun for all (except Mike so he stayed in the car – which was probably fun for him – being alone). Evie and I shopped for groceries at Family Fare for the ride home.

We had a delicious dinner and played two games of spoons (Grandma one and Evie one) and a very close game of Sorry (Violet won).  Off to bed early (well, for Grandma and Grandpa) so we can hit the road early. The next two days will be long days on the road. (That’s why this post is so late).

Welcome to Deadwood!!!!  Miners named the town Deadwood after seeing and having to clear all the dead wood in town. Ummm it sounds too simple to be true but that’s what the tour bus drive told us so….. it must be true! Right?? The discovery of gold in the southern Black Hills in 1874 set off a gold rush. In 1876 miners moved into the northern Black Hills. That’s where they came across of gulch full of dead trees and a creek full of gold and Deadwood was born.

Saloon No. 10 is where Wild Bill Hickok was shot. He had only been in town for about a month when Jack McCall walked in the saloon, said “you killed my brother”, shot Wild Bill in the head and he died instantly.  The trial was held the next day and the jury found Jack McCall innocent. Story is because it was an unlawful town and he was seeking revenge for the killing of his brother. About a year later he was tried again because they found out McCall only had sisters and laws didn’t apply in Deadwood at the time of the first trial because it was Indian land. He was found guilty the second trial and hung.

It just happened that this weekend is Kool Deadwood Nites.  People bring their classic cars and show them off. And the tourists love walking around seeing them. There were hundreds of classic cars at several locations in town. Mike was glowing!!!!! And wondering how to keep the girls happy so he could check out as many as possible. They have free concerts every night – The Grass Roots, The Letterman, The Box Tops, The Turtles and many more. The stage was set up in the street and people could line up their chairs to save a space as early as 8 am. This picture isn’t even all of them. They look so funny!!!!

Here we are by some of the cars. The girls were less than thrilled but good sports about it. We are waiting to go on a bus tour around town to see the sites.

Our bus driver was funny!! He originally got a degree in social work but soon realized Deadwood didn’t have any need for social workers. So, he became a guidance counselor. He retired a few years ago and now drives the tourist bus. (we think he might be the owner). He was full of information. One of the sites we wanted to see was Mount Moriah cemetery where Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane are buried.

Wild Bill Hickok was one of the greatest gunfighters of the American West. He was also know for being a wagon master, spy, scout, soldier, gambler and showman. The bronze grave stone is an exact copy of the original which was deteriorating.

Calamity Jane was quite the character. Was tobacco-spitting, beer-guzzling, foul mouthed woman who preferred men’s clothing to dresses. Orphaned at 12 years old she learned and was willing to do most anything to support herself. Among many things she worked in Wild Bill’s show, was a cook and housekeeper at a brothel (rumor has it she was also a prostitute), and was well known for being a humanitarian in Deadwood nursing residents sick with small pox. Depends on who you talk to that she either loved Wild Bill or they were just friends. She was married several times, some legal some not and had a nine year old daughter when she died that she had enrolled in a boarding school so that she would be taken care of.

The first sheriff of Deadwood was Seth Bullock who built this hotel.

Two men in period costumes just walking down the street.

There are “women of the night” in the second floor windows.

A few “suspicious” characters.

And, of course, the town had a shoot out. That is “Calamity Jane”, in brown, shooting some miscreant down the street.

In the late 1800’s W. E. Adams and his wife lived in the town. He made his money selling goods to the miners.  After Mr. Adams died his wife just up and left and went to California. She didn’t take anything with her. The house stood vacant for over a century with all the furnishings in place – including cookies in the cookie jar. The house has since been restored and turned into a museum.

We were told what we thought was haze was actually smoke from the fires out west and in Canada. Which is probably what we saw yesterday at Devil’s Tower.

Mike was a big fan of the HBO series Deadwood and loved seeing the town. We love all the history. Another great day!!

 

The beautiful state of Wyoming welcomes us!!! Again, who wouldn’t!! We are on our way to see Devils Tower and Vore Buffalo Jump.

This is one of our first views of the tower.  It was named after military escort Col. Richard Dodge, who thought the Indians called it “Bad God’s Tower” which he modified to Devil’s Tower. The tower was not formed from a volcano. It is an igneous intrusion – which means it was formed underground from molten rock. Magma pushed it up through the surrounding sedimentary rock. There is cooled and hardened. And wala — Devil’s Tower was formed. And there is your science lesson for the day.

Here we are at the base of the tower. It stands 867 feet tall from base to summit. There is a trail around the base that is 1.3 miles long. Evie and I walked the tower trail. On the home stretch around we could see threatening skies and hear thunder. Uh oh!!! Walked faster we did!! We made it back in plenty of time. But, we were wondering about the climbers. There were about eight that we saw climbing and 2 or 3 on top. Hope they were safe. The climbers, who work in pairs,  use their hands and feet to climb. Periodically the first climber will place protective equipment in the rock, they no longer use pitons (metal pegs) and the second climber will remove it. They do not leave anything behind (but I wonder, does anyone check?). It takes about 4 – 6 hours to ascend the tower. The fastest climber, in the 1980’s, did it 18 minutes without ropes or protection. I know what you’re thinking!!!! I just won’t put it in writing.

You can see two climbers here. The person higher up is using their hands and feet to climb. Unbelievable. The top of the tower is about 1 1/2 acres. About the size of a football field.

Here is Grandma with her two beautiful granddaughters just before Evie and I walked around the base.

After all that hiking we were hungry. So, off to lunch we go. We got to talking to our waitress about living here. Her kids started school Monday. This year the school district voted to have school only 4 days a week with the school day being from 8 am to 4 pm. She lives on a ranch with her family.  She is so far from the school she has to drive her son to the bus stop, then he rides the bus for an hour and this is repeated for the return trip. So her son is gone from about 6:20 am to 5:20 pm four days a week. People are not sure what they think of this new schedule and how it will effect day care concerns for the little kids and sports for the older kids. They call snow days “weather” days.

After lunch we go to the Vore Buffalo Jump. It is a natural sink hole that was used by various Plains Indian tribes as a bison trap from around 1550 to 1800.

There wasn’t much to see at the hole as the University of Wyoming constructed a building that covered the base of the hole where the layers of bones and artifacts were.

Next stop – Best Buy – to buy the connector for the Blu-ray player to the TV so we could watch Harry Potter. 🙂 :).

Last stop  –  home sweet home!!!!

 

 

 

Our first stop of the day is horseback riding (Evie’s pick) in Hill City. It was quite chilly so we are all bundled up to keep warm on the trails. While listening to our riding instructions it started to rain (oh please no!!). The lady said we would get wet and kept on with the instructions. Just in the nick of time, her boss (?) came over and said we would be delayed for about 20 minutes for the shower to pass. YAY!! Showers pass and we are assigned our horses. Violet road Dunnit (sp?), Evie rode RJ and I rode Grover (I take this as a good sign as he was my favorite muppet on Sesame Street).

Truth be told, I am scared. The horse moved just after I got on. That was not in the instructions!!!  It startled me, so there I am with my hand on my handlers head. Apparently I am not the first to do that as he wasn’t surprised. My mantra was – I can do this, I can do this. It’s only been about 46 years or so.

The three of us are ready to go. Yes, my handler is showing me the ropes :).

And we are off with our guide Becca in the lead. She was very sweet and made everyone feel comfortable. She just graduated from University of Cinncinati with an equine business degree. She would like to have her own stables someday. Oh, and I know what you are all thinking, that is it no coincidence that I am the first behind her. (the old lady with no horseback riding experience – yep you can say – it’s exactly what I was thinking!). Our trail takes us through the Black Hills National Park. It’s very pretty. We saw a few deer on our ride. If I wasn’t so nervous I would have taken a picture.

And the next picture shows us coming back to the stables. I now know why cowboys are bowlegged. It really was very nice but don’t think I will be doing it again any time soon. The girls really had a good time. We have lunch (Violet and I share a buffalo burger, it was yummy!) and back on the road to Crazy Horse Memorial.

The Crazy Horse Memorial was started in 1948. Only the face has been completed as the foundation only uses privately raised monies. They wish to keep complete control of the project so they have not accepted any government monies. When (if) completed the head will be 87 1/2 feet tall, arm (the horizontal part of rock in front of face) will be 263 feet long and the horse ( below his arm) will be 219 feet tall. And it will be the world’s largest carving. Next stop Custer State Park.

We were told when entering Custer State Park there were buffalo sightings along the road. Ummm…. they were on the road. The one on the left, we think is the father, came right up to the car in front of us. We were wondering if it was going to ram it. We think it was just protecting the mother and her baby. You can see all three in the picture below. We were very excited to see them up close and personal. They were so close when we passed them we could have touched them. One buffalo was totally blocking a pickup truck going the other direction. He had no choice but to wait for the buffalo to move.

 

 

Down the road we see 3 pronghorns. They were not fazed by the cars at all. Just beautiful!!

And last but not least we see about a dozen burros. They are very bold and walk right up to the car. The above picture is Violet feeding this one chex mix. She said it tickled when they ate from her hand. And the next picture is Evie feeding it chex mix. The girls were laughing like crazy.

Couldn’t resist a picture of a baby burro.

Off to Mount Rushmore. To get there we have to drive on a 15 mile very windy road. More hairpin turns than I could count.  On which there are 3 single lane tunnels. Pretty crazy.

Violet and Evie outside Mount Rushmore National Memorial. We arrive in time to view the monument and watch the evening lighting ceremony.

The ceremony starts with a park ranger explaining that it was an idea by historian Doane Robinson to have it built to promote tourism in South Dakota, he persuaded sculptor Gutzon Borglum to do the work. It took 14 years to complete. They chose George Washington as he is our founding father, Thomas Jefferson as he is the father of the Declaration of Independence, Abraham Lincoln for his love of our country and his commitment to keeping our country together during such a difficult time and Teddy Roosevelt for his dedication to conservation. Mount Rushmore is named after a lawyer investigating mining claims in the Black Hills in 1885. It is the top tourist attraction in South Dakota. After the ranger spoke we watched a movie and then the mountain was lit. The final part of the evening was the retiring of the American flag.

Here are all the veterans on the stage. Mike is the 2nd from the end on the right side of the stage. It was very moving and people were very respectful. The ranger asked 6 veterans to assist in folding the flag. It was very solemn. People applauded the veterans several times. Totally awesome!! Very patriotic 🙂 !!!

DAY 7 – WEDNESDAY AUGUST 22, 2018        RAPID CITY

Today was a day to sleep in, have Mike cook us breakfast, clean the motorhome and do the laundry.

After all the work was done we went into Rapid City for the Central States Fair. We wanted to see what their fair was like. It was hard not to compare it to our Erie County Fair but we did. It was about 1/4 of the size. It was fun to walk around and see their exhibits. They had a whole building of just chickens. I had only seen white ones so I was totally amazed at the different types there were. Quite beautiful birds. And there was a building of bunnies. The girls wanted me to buy them one to take home. When I said “no” they started scheming how they could pool their money together to buy one. And when we said it couldn’t come in the motorhome, they stopped scheming. I know, we are total meanies. But, I think I hear a big sigh of relief from their parents right now. The bunnies were super cute. But, aren’t they always when they are someone else’s????

Til tomorrow – Love, Dona

 

 

MONDAY AUGUST 20, 2018     OUR TRIP TO THE BADLANDS NATIONAL PARK

On the way to the Badlands National Park we surprised the girls with a stop to see the “world’s largest prairie dog” and feed some real prairie dogs (that just happen to live next to the store that sold a bag of 10 peanuts for $1 – that’s not too much is it? Or was the store built here to stop us silly tourists who were will to buy a bag of 10 peanuts for $1???) . Here are the girls with the “world’s largest prairie dog”, who was quite willing to pose for the picture. And we thanked him. The girls LOVED feeding them. They each seemed to have their “own hole”. They would sit up and squawk if another prairie dog came too close to their hole. Protecting the home front!!! The girls got the biggest kick of one in particular that clearly had eaten many peanuts and ummm how do I say this ….. had a hard time moving around and seemed pretty content to just sit by his hole.  And in the end, each bag of 10 peanuts for $1 was well worth the money.

And off we are to the Badlands National Park. We were hardly in the park and we could not believe how beautiful it was. The sculpted spires are one of the most beautiful views in the park. We stopped at the visitors center and then to the restaurant for some lunch before we drove through the park. For some reason, the girls passed up the opportunity to have a buffalo burger for lunch, go figure.

We followed the Badlands Loop Road, which is the main road going through the park, until we reached Sage Creek Road.  Here we are at our first stop. Typical of beautiful scenery, the picture doesn’t do it justice. But it does show a proud Grandpa with his two granddaughters. 🙂

The sculpted spires.

Our “dare devil” granddaughter Evie wanted to walk on the top of one of the spires and have her picture taken. Violet wasn’t so adventurous so she stayed back. So here is Evie with Mike about as far as you could go on the path. I only went part way. Hey, someone had to take their picture. And then Mike took mine. And I don’t even look scared!!

From the Loop Road we take Sage Creek Road which is where we are supposed to see buffalo. And lo and behold there is a sign warning us of such. Violet saw one, or possibly two, buffalo off to the side in the fields. Unfortunately we lost them as we were getting closer. We think they were moving. Oh, well. The girls were thrilled to have seen the one (or two). And Violet was quite proud to be the one to find it.

Down the road a bit was Roberts Prairie Dog Town. Which translates to “a small parking area for tourists to stop and see the prairie dogs in the fields”.  Originally we thought the people were pulled over to see the herd of buffalo (next picture) but they were interested in the prairie dogs. They probably had not stopped to see the “world’s largest” on the way into the park. You could walk all over the fields where their holes were. They are cute little critters. It was really cute to see the little kids see them and get excited.

Next, and last stop, was Wall Drug. Part of it was like Vidler’s in East Aurora, many sections of the store with each having it’s own theme. There was also a “mall” part where there were other stores. We were told we should stop and check it out. So, on our list it was. Driving in South Dakota on I-90, for over 200 miles, we saw signs advertising Wall Drug. Actually there were signs in Minnesota. We counted 85 signs. And since it was down pouring we are pretty sure we did not see them all. The girls opinion is “it is overhyped”. Umm I think Mike and I agree. We almost bought a pair of cowboy boots for Violet but the didn’t have her size in the pair she liked. Very sad!!! But the girls did get pop sockets for their phones and a cigarette charger for the car (they were getting nervous as their phones were almost dead!!!! AAAAAAHHHHH, we can’t have that!!)

Back to the motorhome. And yes, another game of Kwixx. And yes, I am bragging, I won again!!! Woohoo, go Grandma!!!

Violet keeps saying she will help with the post “tomorrow”. Hopefully one of these posts I’ll get her to post.

Till tomorrow!! And for a teaser, tomorrow we go horse back riding!!! Wish us luck!!!

Love to all. Dona

 

 

SATURDAY AUGUST 18, 2018

Walcott, Iowa – World’s Largest Truck stop.

Of course, they are glad we are here!!! Who wouldn’t be?!?

The truck stop started as Bill Moon’s idea of a truck stop for truckers driving between the east and west coast along interstate 80. It was just recently remodeled to where some of the services they offer the truckers are: theater, barber, dentist, chiropractor, dogomat ( to service your dog), laundry, library, workout room, custom shop to customize anything you would like and any part you would possibly want to add to your tractor trailer. Mike was like a kid in a candy store. Oh, and since it also serves as a rest stop it has a convenience store – snacks, clothing, toys, shoes, etc. etc. And there are several restaurants. Violet had a mini blizzard at Dairy Queen and Evie got a bagel at Einstein bagels. The girls were totally amazed also. I think they were expecting the “normal” rest stop.

Here we are outside with old gas pumps. Violet was quite happy to stand on the concrete so she could be as tall as us 🙂 is a truck museum.

A short walk across the parking lot is trucking museum. There were trucks from the early 1900’s to present day. Mike was glowing!! He took a picture of every truck. I spared all of you from them. You’re welcome! :):). This was Mike’s pick for the trip.

Here is one row of the trucks. And, yes, that would be his lovely wife.

Here are the Awkward Airplane Sculptures at the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. They are sculptures that are supposed to represent abstract seagulls in flight but they resemble airplanes crashing. They were very interesting.

 

We were hungry for lunch. So where else should we go but non other than the Flying Wienie hot dog stand. Complete with a single engine plane on the roof. How could we resist. Mike had the spicy Italian sausage (homemade by the owner), Violet had the bacon and cheese hot dog and I had the Chicago hot dog (which is a hot dog with lots of condiments on it). Evie ate our fries as she had a late breakfast and wasn’t very hungry. Everyone was pleased with their lunch.

Next stop – Buddy Holly’s crash site. It has been kept like it was in 1959 – a lonely spot in a giant Iowa field. Buddy Holly’s trademark glasses mark the access point at the road to the path in the corn field to the crash site.

Here is the crash site. A very small but thoughtful memorial made up from items that people have left. In 1988 a music fan added the guitar and records with the names of the three rockers that lost their lives in the crash – Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper”. And in 2009 he added the memorial for the pilot. The farmer that owns the field not only sacrifices the space for the memorial but he keeps the path open for visitors.

SUNDAY AUGUST 19, 2018

Mitchell South Dakota – The Corn Palace.

This is the world’s ONLY corn palace. It was built for a place to celebrate the harvest season. This is actually the 3rd location. The building itself is not made of corn but the murals on the outside are. Each year there is a different theme for the murals. The theme changes in the fall with harvesting of the corn. Last year the theme was Iowa weather and this year the theme is a tribute to the military. They are in transition right now so we were able to see some from last year and some from this coming year. If you look at the large mural on the left it shows a lightning storm and the mural on the right is a picture of a tornado but the wording for both is for the USS South Dakota. Clearly a mix of last year and this year. The murals are very detailed and very interesting. Some interesting facts: for the borders they use 20,000 bundles of sour dock (?), 20,000 brooms of rye, and 500,000 staples. For the corn murals they use 325,000 ears of corn which are cut in half length wise so they have a flat back which makes it easier to nail to the building. One farmer grows 12 different colors of corn. The corn is not painted or dyed. 1.5 million nails are used in the decorating process. There were no new murals put up during the “dust bowl”, during WWII as the corn was used for the war effort and 2006 due to the extreme drought. Yes the birds eat the corn, but they don’t care as they redecorate each year. They consider it the “World’s largest bird feeder” 🙂

There is a large auditorium/basketball arena inside the building that is used for dances, shows, banquets, proms, graduations the high school and university and basketball games.

Violet and Evie with Cornelius the Corn Palace mascot.

This display was inside the corn palace. It shows what is used and is a close up of how the corn is used.

The first three days the weather was very nice. Today, not so much. Shortly after we left Mitchell it poured like crazy for about the next 8 hours and was very windy which made driving difficult for Mike. We made one more stop after the corn palace at the Pioneer Auto Museum. Mike had seen it on American Pickers. The girls didn’t want to go in so they stayed in the motorhome while Mike and I went in. Between the short walk to and from the front door and a little in between some of the buildings for the museum we were soaked. It wasn’t that interesting. Mike only took one picture.

Good night all. Sleep well, we are!!

PS…. Violet was tired tonight so I did the post. I will get her to do at least one before the trip is over.