May 12, 2013 - Custer, SD

/// Broken Arrow Campground Custer, SD May 12, 2013 Low Temperature: 46 degrees High Temperature: 71 degrees HAPPY MOTHERS DAY......! I offered to take Nancy out to breakfast this morning but she declined and baked one of her delicious breakfast casseroles instead. By 10:00 AM we were packed up, hitched up and ready to hit the road. We departed Lusk, WY and headed north on US 18 through some wide open cattle country. We actually saw more pronghorn than cattle. Crossing the state line into South Dakota the scenery began to improve, not that...

May 11, 2013 - Devils Tower

This morning we got up and it was 36 outside. Thee wasn't a cloud in the sky and only a light breeze. We decided that we would go see Devils Tower today instead of on our way west so we wouldn't have the trailers behind us not knowing the terrain around there. Since we getting get started until around noon we stopped at the Bum Steer Steakhouse in Spearfish for lunch. The reviews were all good and they noted an exceptional salad and soup bar. The girls had the salad bar, John had the steak sandwich and I had the brisket sandwich with salad...

May 10, 2013 - Spearfish, Deadwood and Sturgis

Today we moved on down the road. Yesterday we stayed in the campground and got things rounded up. Cooked some BBQ country style ribs and a dump cake in the dutch oven. We did laundry and got things put away for the move Friday. We had been at TeePee Campground for the past 4 days. I think also we haven't got use to the altitude difference yet. We have been around 3000 ft in Rapid City. We have been slowly gaining in elevation as we head west. It will take a bit to get use to it. We headed to Spearfish and since it was only 60 miles, it...

May 8, 2013 - Bunnies, Crazy Horse, Custard State park and Buffalo!!!!

We started off this morning with the electricity being down from 6am to 8am. I had got up at 5:30 just so I could get my coffee made and turn our breakers off so that when the power came on and there was a surge then it wouldn't hurt anything. While we were waiting on the power to come back on we saw bunnies right beside us. They were the start of our wildlife viewing for the day. After the power came back on we all got things together and the girls made a picnic lunch. We took off to Crazy Horse memorial. They charge $27.00 a car load to...

May 7, 2013 - Mt Rushmore

Today we got up to a beautiful day. We walked to the back of the campground and crawled thru the fence out into an open pasture. The view is overlooking an open field with hills and valleys. We were told that part of the movie was filmed there for Dances with Wolves. Next door to our campground is Fort Hayes Wild West town and Dinner show. They advertise that they have the film set for the movie, Dances with Wolves. They aren't open for the season yet but they said we could walk thru the Old West Town. We might do that before we leave this...

May 6, 2013 - Rapid City, SD

We got on the road around 8:30 headed west. It was partly cloudy and cool. We stopped at Wall Drug in Wall, SD. It is something that I guess everyone needs to see at least once. It started back in 1931 when a Ted Hustead bought a drug store in Wall, SD. There were only a little over 200 people that lived in the town. Business was slow but he noticed that a new attraction called Mt Rushmore opened down the road. He would watch as the cars would drive by on the way to see the new monument. Hustead's wife suggested that he offered free ice...

May 5, 2013 - Onto Murdo, SD

We awoke this morning and it was still misting rain and 40 degrees. We pulled out and stopped by the dump station. After that we headed on our way towards Rapid City. Once we got on I90 we headed west and the farther we got the more the weather cleared. The country side started getting more hilly. It went from rolling hills and corn fields to ravines and gulleys. As we got to Mitchell we stopped at the Corn Palace. It is a building that they cover with corn. They use the different colors of corn to create murals on the exterior and...

May 4, 2013 - Stomsburg, NE and heading North to Lake Vermillion

We woke up this morning and it was clear and 37. They are saying a chance of rain but it seemed like it will stay East of us. So we decided to pull out and try to make it on to Yankton, SD. We stopped on the square and ate breakfast at the Corner Cafe. We then walked over to the square where there were tulips blooming and other flowers. They had a snow 2 days ago so the flowers looked a lit bit back. We then walked over to the Hometown Grocery Store on the square. After wondering around looking at the different things like "soup in a bag"...

May 3, 2013 - Custer State Park, Wind Cave and Jewel Cave

Custer State Park is a big beautiful park where animals roam freely - there are hundreds of buffalo that roam freely, but seem to like hanging around the road, even laying on it so you have to drive around them. Going 5 MPH with a buffalo as close as two to three feet is somewhat un-nerving. After seeing what a white tail deer can do to a car, I could not help to wonder what these fellows could do. (For those of you that do not know, these guys can out run a horse in a short run). Stephanie took numerous pictures of the buffalo’s along...

Apr 30, 2013 - Mt. Rushmore National Memorial

Everyone knows about Mt. Rushmore, but we are not sure you can really appreciate the majesty of this work until one sees it – the four Presidents chosen for this project really do represent the character of American. It is interesting to note that the miners became so adept at using dynamite, they carved the vast majority of the sculpture and only the final touches were done by hand. For those who have seen Stone Mountain in Atlanta, you should know that Gutzon Borglum, who designed and sculptured Mt Rushmore, also did it a few years...

Apr 29, 2013 - Crazy Horse Monument

This monument has become a focal point for most if not all of the native tribes of America reminding all Americans of their part and history in the development of the country. Although only partially completed it is an amazing transformation of rock to a monument of all Native Americans The Visitor’s Center is really beautiful; the Center and all the tools used were and are funded by private visits and donations. The sculptor , Korczak Ziolkowski, had been an apprentice of Gutzon Borglum who carved Mt. Rushmore. He lived in very difficult...

Apr 27, 2013 - Rapid City, SD, Badlands and Missile Silos

The weather turned nice as we headed to Rapid City, SD. and we made it without incident or snow! As you go from the eastern to western SD traveling 352 miles on I-90, the terrain goes from flat land to rolling prairies to the Badlands and the Black Hills. Each time I have driven in this part of the country I could only imagine how the pioneers and settlers faced this daunting task in horse draw wagons and seeing the Badlands’ wall for the first time only makes one wonder more how they made it Several days later, we drove the loop through...