Crossing the Badlands

Custer to Badlands National Park - 250 miles traveled.

Today we headed out to Badlands National Park. We packed a picnic lunch and began our drive east.  It was a 2 ½ hour drive but it was well worth the trip.

On our way into Badlands, grasslands were all we could see and then strange cliffs and canyons came into view.  Our first stop was at Pinnacles.  As we made our way down to the overlook Blake noticed the sign, “Beware of rattlesnakes.”  We all laughed and said, “Hope we saw our last rattlesnake of the trip in Utah!” 

In order to get to the Visitor’s Center we had about a 26 mile drive.  The road took us around the rim, down into the canyon walls, and back out again.  The colors in the canyon were spectacular.  In one spot where we stopped, Yellow Mounds, the rock was all different shades against the green and yellow grass.  Frank Lloyd Wright once wrote, “I’ve been about the world a lot, and pretty much over our own country, but I was totally unprepared for that revelation called the Dakota Bad Lands … what I saw gave me an indescribable sense of mysterious elsewhere – a distant architecture, ethereal … an endless supernatural world more spiritual than earth but created out of it.”  I said, as we stood on top of a hill we climbed, “This makes The Painted Desert look like nothing.”

We picked a spot to pull over for lunch.  It turns out it is right where Big Foot and his tribe passed into the Badlands in December of 1890 to escape the U.S. 7^th Calvary.  They were on their way to Wounded Knee where the largest massacre of Native Americans took place December 29, 1890.

After enjoying lunch and taking pictures, we headed towards the Visitor’s Center but before we left I heard a guy say as he drove past our car, “Hey, there are some Mississippi State people.” (I have a Mississippi State Mom sticker on my car).  As I was driving out, I slowed down the car to see a guy with Mississippi State stickers on the back.  He was standing next to the car with a Bulldog tattoo on his calf.  I proceeded to embarrass both Al and Blake as I rolled down he window and said, “Hail State!”  He returned quickly with a “Hail State” with a smile!

A quick visit to the Visitor’s Center to watch a movie and check out the hiking trails.  The ranger at the desk recommended Notch Trail – a 2.4 mile round trip trail with a ladder to climb up to the top of the cliff. After climbing the ladder the trail leads to several “windows” to the grasslands and canyons.  Since we didn’t have a whole lot of time to hike, we decided to take on Notch Trail.

The weather was perfect today.  Temperatures were in the 80’s with a nice breeze.  The hike was nice.  It gave us an opportunity to walk and climb through the canyons and look out of several “windows.”  The climb up the ladder was not too bad but coming down was kind of scary.  I took it real slow and didn’t look at anything but the rungs and the cable as I descended down the wall.

After our hike we headed back 2 ½ hours to Custer.  We had to get everything packed up and ready to leave – our alarms were set for 3:15 AM – we have a very long day tomorrow – Custer to Omaha!

South Dakota - Home of Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, and Large Herds of Buffalo.... Right?

Side Trip from Custer - Mount Rushmore - Iron Mountain Highway - Custer State Park - Crazy Horse Memorial - 90 miles traveled.

We woke this morning to temps in the high 30's.  We were all ready to go out for a nice run in the chilly weather but just couldn't get motivated to crawl out from under our warm blankets.  Needless to say, we didn't get in a workout.  Instead, we got dressed and headed to the chuckwagon breakfast down at the clubhouse before heading out.  

We arrived at Mt Rushmore with several hundred other eager travelers.  On average, nearly three million visitors come to Mt. Rushmore on an annual basis.  We saw all different states represented in the parking lot (by the way, we are lacking only four states seen on our trip - Hawaii, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and believe it or not, Maryland).

Mt Rushmore highlights four presidents carved in stone on the side of a mountain in the Black Hills. The monument was sculpted and designed by an artist, Gutzon Borglum.  An interesting fact I learned from a family from Georgia, prior to sculpting Mount Rushmore, Borglum was responsible for sculpting Stone Mountain in Atlanta, Georgia.

Each one of these men were chosen by sculptor Gutzon Borglum for a part of American history. George Washington was the father of the new country and the foundation of American democracy. Because of his importance, Borglum chose Washington to be the most prominent figure on the mountain.  He represents the birth of the United States.

Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence.  He also was responsible for the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.  With this purchase, the United States doubled in size.  Borglum chose Jefferson to represent the growth of the United States.

Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States,  provided leadership when America experienced rapid economic growth upon entering the 20th century.  He negotiated the construction of the Panama Canal linking the east to the west.  Borglum chose Roosevelt to represent development of the United States.

Abraham Lincoln, the 16h President of the United States, held the United States together during its greatest trial, the Civil War.  Lincoln strongly believed his most sacred duty was to preserve the Union and he strongly believed that slavery should be abolished.  Borglum chose Lincoln to represent the preservation of the United States.  

Regardless of the pictures you see of Mount Rushmore, you can never compare them to the wonder of this sculpting masterpiece.  Being a daughter of an artist, I can appreciate all that went into the carving, blasting, and polishing of the granite on this mountain side.  

We walked around the President's Trail to get a closer look.  The details put into these four carvings are amazing.  The head of Washington is 60 feet tall with a nose that is 21 feet tall.  Roosevelt's head is slightly smaller and Lincoln's slightly taller.  Each of the eyes on Mount Rushmore are 11 feet wide and each mouth about 18 feet wide.  

Our second destination for the day was a drive down Iron Mountain Road.  This road is known for it's curvy roads, pigtail bridges, and several narrow one lane tunnels that take you through the mountain. Every once in a while, you can catch a glimpse of Mount Rushmore as you make your way around and through the mountainside.  

The first tunnel we came to the car in front of us stopped.  It then had to go in reverse, which meant, I too had to go into reverse.  This also made the motorcycles behind me have to roll backwards too.  All of a sudden, a greyhound tour bus came through the tunnel!  We have no idea how it made it through there or how it made it down the road - I'm just glad i wasn't in there as a passenger!

We kept following this route until we came to the entrance of Custer State Park.  We paid our $20 entry fee and headed into the park...our destination was the Wildlife Loop.  From everything I had read, I understood there was a herd of about 1,500 buffalo living inside the park plus lots of other animals.  

As we drove into the park, we saw one buffalo on the hill next to a fence.  We slowed down but neither Al or Blake could get a good picture of him. I have a mental note of this buffalo as I noted in my head his branding of #9 on his foreleg. Blake was concerned because they didn't have enough time to get a picture but I quickly responded, "Don't worry, we will have plenty of opportunities to get photos of buffalo on our drive." I would eat these words later in the day after our complete trip around the park without seeing another single buffalo!!!!

We did manage to see a welcoming burro that stood in the middle of the road and welcomed cars as they passed.  Al laughed and said the title of the photograph should be, "Mr. Ed welcomes visitors to Custer State Park."After meeting up with Mr. Ed, we did see one Prong Deer on the side of the road but that was it for wildlife on the Wildlife Loop.  

Surely we will see more wildlife on this loop

Blake laughing

Al kept laughing and saying that it must be "Fake News" that Custer State Park is home to 1,500 buffalo.  The funny thing is, just one day after we visited, my sorority sister from college happened to post the following picture of their trip through Custer State Park ... I quickly showed it to Al and Blake to show evidence of buffalo along Wildlife Loop.  We just happened not to be so lucky!

After leaving Custard State Park, we drove into Custer where we ate at a Mexican restaurant for "linner" (lunch/dinner) where the College World Series game (LSU vs Oregon State) was on the TV.  We watched LSU clinch their appearance into the championship game which we have tickets to next week!

Crazy Horse Memorial was the last destination on our agenda for the day.  We traveled about six miles up the road and turned into the Crazy Horse Memorial.  This is a memorial commemorating the history of the Native Americans.  The artist, Korczak Ziolowski, who was asked to sculpt Crazy Horse into the side of the mountain was actually an assistant to Borglum at Mount Rushmore.  The Native American tribes wanted a memorial to recognize their heroes and requested he take on this project. This project has been under construction for 70 years and there is a whole lot more to be done in order to complete it.  I honestly don't know if it will ever be completed in the future.  If it should be completed, it will be the largest monument in the world.  Even unfinished, it stands as the world's largest mountain carving in process.  

The completed carving of Crazy Horse Memorial

We returned to the campsite where we had ice cream for dinner and went to bed.  Tomorrow we plan to travel to Badlands National Park for hiking!

America the Beautiful

Cotopaxi, Colorado to Custer, South Dakota – 496 miles

We had a full day ahead of us but Al wasn’t ready to rush away too quickly from our little piece of heaven on the Arkansas River.  After a TRX/Interval workout and a little relaxation, we got on the road around 10:00 AM.  It was quite chilly upon our departure – so chilly I had to purchase a long sleeve shirt at one of our stops to stay warm.

Our route today took us through Colorado Springs, Denver, Fort Collins, Cheyenne, and whole lot of grasslands!  I have never traveled to South Dakota before so this was an adventure within itself.

Just outside of Cheyenne we turned off on a two-lane highway that led us through eastern Wyoming.  When looking out the window we could see for miles and miles.  I couldn’t help but sing, “America the Beautiful” while driving.  On this trip we have had the opportunity to experience the beauty of America up and close and personal.  We truly live in a beautiful country filled with a rich history and diverse terrain.  

It seemed to take forever to cross into South Dakota where the National Grasslands were to our right.  We crossed the Cheyenne River at Edmonton, South Dakota.  The Cheyenne River is a tributary to the Missouri River and the main water source running adjacent to the Black Hills of South Dakota as well as the Badlands.  There is a whole lot of history in this place; it is where the Sioux Indians fought the Union Troops, resisted being put on reservations.  The largest Indian massacre, Wounded Knee, took place on December 29, 1890.  Today, one of the poorest Indian Reservations, the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation sits at this very spot.  We learned a little about this reservation from my brother, Mike, who did his thesis on Buffalo.  Traveling to South Dakota and speaking to the Indian Chiefs of several tribes gathered much of his information.  We anticipate seeing lots of buffalo on this part of our trip.

We rolled into Custer, South Dakota at approximately 8:30 PM.  It was freezing!  We bundled up, made pasta for dinner with a Greek salad and hit the sack.  Tomorrow we will explore Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park, and Crazy Horse Memorial.  

Crossing the Gorge

Side Trip to Royal Gorge Bridge Park – 56 miles round-trip

I just couldn’t get myself up and going this morning so I chose to sleep in.  Al, on the other hand, went out for a 4 ½ mile run.  It was nice to sleep in to 8:00AM – I needed it!

After getting up, we hung out on our patio overlooking the Arkansas River waiting to see the rafters pass by.  It was relaxing listening to the river, watching the birds, and drinking tea. 

There were two doves busy working to build a nest in the tree right in front of us.  They worked nonstop picking up things and flying them to the nest.  Finally, between 10:00 – 10:30 we saw the morning rafters come by.  We even saw Blake, our guide from yesterday float by.  We yelled hello to him and he yelled back at us. 

Our plans today included The Royal Gorge Bridge Park.  The Royal Gorge Bridge is the highest suspension bridge in North America.  Yesterday we rode the train underneath, today we are going to the top!

Before heading to the bridge, we stopped at Five Points rapid to watch rafters come through.  Blake and Abby told us about this spot on the river yesterday.  It is common to see casualties as rafters come through the rapid.   Regularly a Class III rapid, Five Points is a high Class IV if not a Class V due to the current river level.

We saw three kayakers come through – two made it through unscathed and one flipped over in the rapid but quickly turned back over and got to shore.  Before we left we saw five rafts come through without a single casualty. 

Onto the bridge … When we arrived to the bridge the gondola was closed due to the high winds.  The wind was humping up there today.  The sky was pretty hazy as well.  What a difference from yesterday!  There is a wildfire burning in Bryan Head, Utah which caused the skies to be smoky today.  The wildfire has gotten pretty large and many people have had to be evacuated from the area because of it .  We actually saw it at its beginning on the day we were driving from Bryce Canyon to Zion. 

The Royal Gorge is known as the Grand Canyon of Colorado.  The width at the bottom of the Gorge is only 40 – 50 feet across with a depth of 1000 feet.  The Arkansas River has carved the canyon over the years.  In 1929 a gentleman from Texas came up with an idea to build a suspension bridge to connect the two sides of the Gorge.  It was a crazy idea but he made it happen.  Today, the suspension bridge stands 956 feet above the Arkansas River.  The bridge started out as a $300,000 bridge and became a $25 million wonder.

On June 11, 2013, a wildfire started just west of the Royal Gorge Bridge.  The flames jumped the Gorge and 90% of the park was destroyed.  Amazingly enough, the bridge remained intact except for a little over 100 scorched boards.  Since that drastic devastation, the park has been rebuilt and the damaged boards replaced.  Today the bridge and its park stand proud and welcome guests from across the world every day!  As a matter of fact, over 26 million guests have visited the bridge during its 85 years of existence.  I guess the crazy idea of building a bridge across the Gorge was not so crazy after all.  It, along with the revitalization of the railroad, has brought visitors and dollars to a remote area of Colorado.

We enjoyed our time at the park – we walked across the bridge, found the North Carolina flag, walked to the gondola, which was now reopened, and rode it back across.  Even Tilley enjoyed our trip across the Gorge by bridge and gondola. 

Because I skipped my workout this morning, I decided to get in the pool and do a water aerobic class routine when we returned to the campground.  The water felt great and I did a routine I teach back at home at the YMCA.  It made me think of my 8:00 AM class on Tuesday and Thursday.  I hope they are all still working hard and coming to class while I am gone!

When Blake and I finished at the pool Al got the fire started so we could cook hobo dinners.  We always enjoy having hobo dinners when out on RV Trips – you just cut up whatever you want to eat, put it in a aluminum pan, cover with aluminum  foil and cook in the campfire. 

The grand finale for the evening was a session of star gazing under the big, clear skies of Colorado.  It gets so dark outside here so you can see millions of stars.  We even saw a few shooting stars tonight.  Tomorrow we head to South Dakota, a state I have never visited!