Today we drove the Needles Highway in Custer State Park. There were a lot of people out and since it is Labor Day weekend, it was not a surprise. We saw the evidence of at least two weddings. The scenery was very beautiful on every road we took.
We also saw Crazy Horse although we did not go into the attraction. They have been working on this for many years. It is a whole mountain that is being sculpted not just the face.
Allan had to stop at the Bobkat's Ice Cream and Pie Shop for a sample of their strawberry rhubarb pie that they are famous for. There was a line waiting to be served the whole time we were there. After I drug him out, we drove through the rest of the town of Custer.
The shortest route home was back through Custer State Park which was a good choice as we ran into a herd of bighorn sheep. We stopped at Walmart and as we were walking out a big storm had arrived bringing wind, rain and lots of lightning. The storm passed rather quickly, but later we were sitting in the MH and the wind started rocking us. The news tonight said we had 60 mph winds.
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Friday, August 29, 2014
BEAR TOOTH HIGHWAY
After leaving Wisconsin we traveled to Montana to visit my favorite place which is Bear Tooth Highway. At the top, the elevation is just shy of 11,000 feet. Half way to the top there is a fair size parking area with restrooms and a beautiful view for picture taking. There are resident, begging chipmunks and ground squirrels. They are not afraid of people. At the top the road takes you into Wyoming. Both sides of the mountain look different probably due to the amount of rainfall and temperature. There is a pond/lake that I have been trying to walk down to. We hiked the farthest we have ever gone before, but were stopped due too much mud. All the snow was in melt mode. I was not able to make a snow angel either, but we did bring our chairs. We set up in the parking lot and just took in the cool, clean air and the sounds and sights. The temperature was between 42 and 52 on the mountain, depending on how much cloud cover there was. We had a thunder storm while on top. That was neat to watch it come in and leave very quickly. We also ran into a group who were back country riding on horseback with several pack horses. We learned this was one of Ken McNabb's week long schooling trips. What a wonderful trip this was! God is good.
Monday, August 25, 2014
WILD HORSE SANCTUARY AND WIND CAVE
Today found me touring the Wild Horse Sanctuary near Hot Springs, S.D. The story behind this place is amazing. The gift shop and the café are the first stops before the actual tour. We loaded the bus with 6 people plus our tour guide. There are about 11,000 acres for the 600+ horses to roam. We were driven to the top of a cliff for a breathtaking view of the visitor center and home of Dayton Hyde, the founder and horse facilities.
We were able to see two bands of horses from above grazing in the valley near the Cheyenne River. Our group was met by several friendly bands of horses throughout our stops. I was so surprised when quite a number of horses came very near us. We were able to touch a few. Remember these are wild horses.
Most of these horses are BLM rejects that did not sell. We were entertained by several bands of horses running nearby.
The little girl that was in our party was chosen by one of the horses to stay with her. The horse did not leave until we all had to board the bus for our next stop.
How about the white mascara and eye shadow on this horse?
We were told these were Spanish mustangs.
This land was the home to many Indians in the distant past. One of our stops included a rock wall of petroglyphs.
After my adventure, we drove to Wind Cave National Park for Allan's adventure. I don't do caves. Wind Cave has 142 miles of twisting passageways and reside under only 1.2 square miles of surface area, creating a maze of tunnels deep under the rolling hills of the park. It does not have stalactites and stalagmites that other caves have. It does have thin calcite fins known as boxwork and other formations referred to as popcorn. It also does not have bats because the natural opening is so small. The tour that Allan took lasted 1 1/2 hours and covered 1/2 mile and over 300 steps down. Fortunately, they got to take the elevator back up. At times there was low clearance and he had to duck his head and other times he had to turn sideways to get through the tight walls. There are other tours that go to different areas and one you have to crawl.
On our return home we drove through part of Custer State Park. We had several animal sightings.
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
After my adventure, we drove to Wind Cave National Park for Allan's adventure. I don't do caves. Wind Cave has 142 miles of twisting passageways and reside under only 1.2 square miles of surface area, creating a maze of tunnels deep under the rolling hills of the park. It does not have stalactites and stalagmites that other caves have. It does have thin calcite fins known as boxwork and other formations referred to as popcorn. It also does not have bats because the natural opening is so small. The tour that Allan took lasted 1 1/2 hours and covered 1/2 mile and over 300 steps down. Fortunately, they got to take the elevator back up. At times there was low clearance and he had to duck his head and other times he had to turn sideways to get through the tight walls. There are other tours that go to different areas and one you have to crawl.
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
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| From Wild Horse Sanct & Wind Cave |
Sunday, August 24, 2014
BADLANDS
This morning we went to church. The Sunday School lesson was on end times which was very interesting.
After lunch we drove to the Badlands since it was a much cooler day. It was about 70 miles from Rapid City. We traveled the Loop Road which took us through hills and valleys which were eroded by wind and rain over the years causing various shape formations. We were expecting it to be all barren, but were surprised to find green vegetation in areas along the road. You could see for many miles in the distance. In one location we observed two herds of bighorn sheep. One herd was crossing the road near the cars and grazing in the fields. The other herd was scattered over the steep slopes of the Badlands terrain. You could not help but notice all the different colors in the soil of the area. My allergies (started coughing) kicked in while in the park. The wind had picked up and must have stirred up something in the air. I stayed in the car with the A/C running most of the time.
Allan spied a sign that said pies at Wall Drug so we had to make a stop for PIE on the way back.
While traveling to the Badlands on the interstate we saw a doe and two fawns in the median. We couldn't imagine anything good about that situation. But on our return to Rapid City we did not see any signs of the three, dead or alive. I was so relieved.
After lunch we drove to the Badlands since it was a much cooler day. It was about 70 miles from Rapid City. We traveled the Loop Road which took us through hills and valleys which were eroded by wind and rain over the years causing various shape formations. We were expecting it to be all barren, but were surprised to find green vegetation in areas along the road. You could see for many miles in the distance. In one location we observed two herds of bighorn sheep. One herd was crossing the road near the cars and grazing in the fields. The other herd was scattered over the steep slopes of the Badlands terrain. You could not help but notice all the different colors in the soil of the area. My allergies (started coughing) kicked in while in the park. The wind had picked up and must have stirred up something in the air. I stayed in the car with the A/C running most of the time.
Allan spied a sign that said pies at Wall Drug so we had to make a stop for PIE on the way back.
While traveling to the Badlands on the interstate we saw a doe and two fawns in the median. We couldn't imagine anything good about that situation. But on our return to Rapid City we did not see any signs of the three, dead or alive. I was so relieved.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
LEAVING WISCONSIN
How long has it been? April since we last posted. I have been without a computer for over two months and the hard drive died. That is not the bad news. I lost all my genealogy, financials and pictures. I thought I had backed up some of my things on an external hard drive, but it appears someone didn't know what they were doing. ME. I have been hoping I would find some CD's, thumb drives or whatever that will have some of my information backed up. When we knew I was having trouble with my computer, we did not delete any pictures on Allan's camera. This weekend I put these pictures (1100) on Picasa. Also, when I was looking for something in our closet, I found a number of CD's that are labeled as pictures and financials for 2010 and 2011. Not sure what I will find on these, but I am happy. I may have to start from scratch on the genealogy.
We have been in Richland Center, Wi. since the first of June working on a church project. This is my first time in Wisconsin and I have been pleasantly surprised how nice the weather has been and how beautiful it is. We have been so blessed while here. We have had five RV's for the majority of the summer. Some couples have stayed a few weeks, but another couple would take their place. All the workers were new to us except for one. Now we have lots of new friends that we hope to see down the road.
Once again, we had the privilege to lead a Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class. This gives people a financial plan for their lives and helps them get out of debt using Christian principles.
Today is a sad day as this is our departure day. When I stay a while in one place I start growing roots and it hurts to pull them up. The day was overcast which made it much cooler. We did encounter a few short, light showers, but nothing to complain about and it looks like they needed rain all along our travels.
We have been in Richland Center, Wi. since the first of June working on a church project. This is my first time in Wisconsin and I have been pleasantly surprised how nice the weather has been and how beautiful it is. We have been so blessed while here. We have had five RV's for the majority of the summer. Some couples have stayed a few weeks, but another couple would take their place. All the workers were new to us except for one. Now we have lots of new friends that we hope to see down the road.
Once again, we had the privilege to lead a Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class. This gives people a financial plan for their lives and helps them get out of debt using Christian principles.
Today is a sad day as this is our departure day. When I stay a while in one place I start growing roots and it hurts to pull them up. The day was overcast which made it much cooler. We did encounter a few short, light showers, but nothing to complain about and it looks like they needed rain all along our travels.