Latest news

In this blog you can read a complete record of the visits we have made to The United States since march 2007.
Each of our trips has its own blog site Blog site. However we have now brought them all together onto our main Blog Page.
Our last trip, with a current name: Road Blog Spring 2013 is now complete.


Thursday, May 28, 2015

Driving test time and Weather Watch in old Pierre

Thursday
Pierre is the capital city of South Dakota, as it was nice and sunny we decided that we would see the capitol tomorrow and just hang out today, Oh! and renew our driving license/ID card.
The grand building that is The Driving License Office Of Pierre is wonderfully described as "Down the alley behind the Burger King", which indeed it was!
I had checked the place out last night and also got a driving test manual, which I had read from cover to cover, for twenty minutes this morning.
We arrived and spoke to a very nice young girl, who enthusiastically guided us through our application, which required a visa, two address bills, proof of residence for one night, affidavit to say we would not live here, a completed form (in black ink only) and a twenty dollar cheque for each of us. The I had to take the eye test, which was more or less read some letters the size of a barn door, then go answer 25 questions. When I had completed that , yes OK, so I got one wrong, the dear young girl gave me my driving license, which will be valid until the end of September, but never mind, it is two year more recent that the last one.
That took us about an hour, so we were definitely ready for a Coff/T, so called in at the only coffee house in town, conveniently called Pier 347 (?), before relaxing for an hour in Walmart.
Though the weather had started fine and sunny, you could tell that the cloud was going to increase until it hit thunderstorm proportions, it was just a case of whether they would hit us or not. One did at about 5.00, but several others passed North and South of us. I have enjoyed watching them on the Wunderground.com radar, along with the storm tracks that have set off tornados a couple of hundred miles south of here in Kansas. Very interesting. So we will see what the weather brings tomorrow.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

Checkback to week ago

Check the page out here
Today I have posted a blog onto the site dated Thursday 21st May, so it could have been missed.
It was a record of the snow storm we had in Custer and evening views of Stockade Lake
We get snow

The Badlands NP in South Dakota

Tuesday
At the entrance to the Badlands lies Wall, a town which has not raison d'etre for it's existence except for the famous drug store - Wall Drug, so of course we had to stop there to investigate it.
It is a very nice story. Back in 1929 a pharmacist and his wife felt it right to open a drug store in Wall, even though it was a dying community. They gave themselves five years to make a go of it. No chance. In the summer of their last year the wife put a notice out on the highway to offer free ice water. Tourists visiting the places to the West stopped off for the free water and the rest is history. Unfortunately, in the inimitable style of the Americans the place now resembles the Main Street of Disneyland - all just gift shops.
Anyway it had to be done!
The Famous Wall Drug in Wall
From there we drove into the Badlands NP. This, we realised, is the last of the 'Big Desert Parks' that we shall see as we move East, not knowing if we will ever get back West again. So we were determined to enjoy it, which we did.
It is about a 25 mile drive through the park, with lots of stops for the overviews, so we made quite slow progress, in fact it took us most of the day to arrive at the Cedar Lodge Campground, where we were surprised to find that there was a walk in site available,with lovely views of The Badlands.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.
In the evening I went for a run up into the rocky area, along Saddle and Castle Trail, which was fun. I got back in time to take a couple of sunset pics, though there wasn't a lot of sun in them.
The weather has now, finally, warmed up.

Wednesday
Although it is warm, the sun is still not shining through. I got up early to take some sunrise pics (5.30!), but it was mostly cloudy, still there were some bright spots.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

We planned to drive about 120 miles today to Pierre, however a lot of the road was on I90, with its speed limit of 80 m.p.h. so we took some time to visit the Fossil Trail, which, rather disappointingly was a boardwalk with just information about fossils, no actual fossils in the rocks there. Still it gave us a last look at The Badlands.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

I even managed to take a video of the drive from the Fossil Trail to the Campground, which, while not as boring as the train passing by at Fort Laramie, is probably only of interest if you want to see lots of rocks and hear our idle banter in the van.

The weather took a hand again: Since sunrise we were watching a large rain cloud on the Wunderground.com radar, which was sitting to the East of us for several hours as we packed up left the campground, that was OK, except as we left it started to move North East, so as we hit the I90 and moved east it crossed us and we were in rain. We drove through and out the other side, just in time to turn North to Pierre and catch it as it continued North East. We drove through it again and reached the Farm Lake SP at Pierre, just in time for the rain cloud to catch up with us. So still not much luck with the weather, but at least it is now warm.
The campground here is very nice though and we are looking forward to better weather.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Overnight in Box Elder

Our mailbox is in Box Elder, so since we had to pass close we decided to pick up our mail direct. There being no suitable campground nearby we stayed in the car park of Celebas, a sports outfitters. This is the first time we have stayed on a car park. It was really quite easy and we felt quite safe. Dropping the trailer meant that we could pop out to Golden Corral for a meal and then spend some time in Walmart. Came out to pouring rain.
Tuesday morning we were up and away early to pick up our mail at Americas Mailbox, before driving on to The Badlands of South Dakota.
Forgot to put card in camera, so this is a street view cheat pic of Americas Mailbox

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Deadly Dreadwood

Sunday
Oh what a disappointment!
We approached Deadwood with visions of the Deadwood Stage and Calamity Jame, sunny skies and lots of happy dancing people.
It turns out that when when the mines closed down at the turn of the century Deadwood died. Around the eighties some astute person somehow got the State to legalise gambling in Deadwood, because that is what had made it famous, along with gold, drinking and prostitution, so like almost every other town west of Boston. This enabled Dreadwood to 'renovate' and 'restore'  its old buildings and turn them into casinos, so now the City Center looks like a disney theme area.
Arriving here yesterday we did not feel comfortable at all, though we did have a very nice steak in the Legends Restaurant in the newly re-opened Franklin Hotel. The theme park environment was extended by having Main street as a no parking area, almost a pedestrian precinct, which made the public car parks a nightmare.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.
Today was raining, all day, though we did go back to Dreadwood it was still very miserable with loads of small casinos and 'kiss me quick' establishments.
We made a detour up the hill to the cemetery where Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane are buried, however a combination of pouring rain and charging (albeit only a dollar) to go into the cemetery made Sally see red when, having taken our money, she could not actually access their graves. So by the time she had finished with the dear lady in the box office we were able to leave with our two dollars firmly back in our pocket.
So we spent this afternoon doing the laundry and watching the trickling stream that runs through the campsite turn into a raging torrent.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

Around Devil's Tower WY

Friday
We  rose at a leisurely pace today, knowing that the only thing we had to do all day was to go and take close look at the Devil's Tower. I guess we were savouring that for as long as possible. Once we were up and had breakfast we went out of the to the Trading Post to buy a coff/T, which was truly awful.
We drove up the roadway to Visitor Center, which runs quite close to the DT. Having sampled all the information available there we then took the path that goes right round the base of the DT. This was the highlight of the day, seeing the DT up close, looking up at those columns, picking out the climbers, so small against the mass of the DT. We took the opportunity to call the kids, we got through to JP on Facetime and we had an exciting Facetime conversation as we showed him and his family the wonderful view, almost from the spot where Richard Dreyfuss slipped back down the rock face, of the DT. The we Facetimed Andy, who was slightly more busy making tea for the kids. Unfortunately we couldn't get hold of Helen, so they must have been busy elsewhere.
We then continued round the base of the DT. The track is 1.2 miles long and has an asphalt surface, so Sally was able to tackle it in her power chair, though there were some speed bumps, which I think were to help with drainage. rather than to reduce speed.
We watched a number of climbers, we saw about a dozen altogether, though I think there were probably some we did not see.
We constantly marvelled at this amazing phenomena as we travelled round it's base. By the time we had watched climbers, taken pics and talked to various people on the way round it actually took us about two hours to circle the Tower, but is was so impressive.
We drove back down to the campground, from which we could see the tower very clearly and relaxed in its memory.
That left one more activity, in the evening we watched Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, which only enhanced the magic of the place, as only Spielberg can do. After this I went out for a quick wander, only to see lights way up on the top of the DT. Even though it was nearly nine o clock in the evening and dark there were still climbers up there. So I can at least say that I saw the lights in the sky over Devil's Tower.
Click to view on Ipad
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

Friday, May 22, 2015

To The Devil's Tower, WY

Thursday
Well the weather has finally turned (for how long?), clear blue sky welcomed us as we packed up the trailer to move on to our most North Westerly location on this trip. Back into Wyoming, to the Devil's Tower, a huge lump of rock made famous in the film 'Close Encounters Of The Third Kind'. This has been one of the most looked forward to places for me, but is not a well known landmark to many.
We left Custer behind and set off West, passing through the Jewel Cave National Monument (tick that one off) and stopped for coff/T in a place called Newcastle, at Donna's Diner. Interesting but not outstanding. From there we travelled north across the foothills of the Black Hills until the Devil's Tower hove into sight. At first it does not seem too grand, but then it was about 15 miles away, as we approached we started to realize just how big it is.
We have decided to stay in the campground which is in the National Monument Park, called Belle Fourche, after the river that runs round the edge of the campground. This is the first time for a long time that we have felt confident enough of the weather to camp without electricity. The campground is beautiful, we have already seen Orieles, Northern Flicker, tree creepers, a family of hawks as well as the usual Robbins flying in and out of the Cottonwaood trees that are in the campground.
From our window we can see the Devil's Tower, towering over us. We plan to set out tomorrow to explore it. Tonight we will have a campfire and look for lights in the sky.
Click here to view pics with an Ipad
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Weather

Tuesday
Well today the expected snow arrived, it started as rain, but turned to snow in the afternoon, not before we had been to Bakers the Bakers, well known for its buns. The sign says to ask the waitress to show you her buns.
We stuck to donuts and sticky things with our Coff/T
We returned to the trailer and waited out the storm.
Wednesday
Today saw about three inches of snow lying around us when we woke up, however the sun was shining and the sky was blue, the temperature was climbing, so we knew that the snow would not last long. We got up had breakfast and then went for Coff/T at Bakers fairly early, on the way we took a ride round the local lake in the chevy to take some snowy pics, which were very nice.
By the afternoon the snow had just about gone and we were thinking about wearing shorts. It just shows how quickly the weather can change in this part of the world at this time of the year.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions

In the evening we again drove round the lake and saw a fairly gentle sunset and several of the deer that frequent the area.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions

Tomorrow we will be ready to move on to Devil's Tower.

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Mount Rushmore

Monday 18th May
So today is the day. Today we visited Mount Rushmore.
Here is a little test.
Taking no more than one minute, what are your top 10 iconic locations in USA? (I will give mine at the end of this page).
We had been advised that the best way to approach Mt Rushmore is via Route 16A, from the South, called the Iron Mountain Road, which we did. This road is another iconic (that is the word for today) road, more than just a scenic byway. So we set out, managed to get a few miles up the sleepy, but beautiful, valley before the first coffeeshop loomed ahead. We stopped of course, only to find that it would not open until the next day. The owners were just off to Rapid City for supplies, but they made us a drink and left us to relax on the patio! Met a couple of nice young ladies who were here for the horse riding, they had brought their horses from Kansas for a week.
Now we started the climb up to Iron Mountain. Iron Mountain is the next mountain over from Mt Rushmore. The road winds and twists its way up to the top, be fore descending to Mt Rushmore. The guy who designed it had the monument in mind when he designed it. As the road twists there are three tunnels to pass through. Each of them is lined up so that its entrance/exit frames the four presidents of the monument, very impressive. There is also a wonderful viewing point at the highest point of the road. So twisty is the road that there are a couple of 'pigtails', where the road actually loops back over itself, via a bridge. We really enjoyed this road.
This brought us to Mt Rushmore, where we paid our fee and parked in the multistory car park. The sun was still shining, but there was a very cold wind, so instead of eating our picnic lunch we went into the restaurant and sat where Cary Grant sat in the film North by Northwest, no actually I lied, the restaurant in the film has now been knocked down to make way for this much bigger and more efficient restaurant, shame really, but there you are. However eating there meant that we could sit and look at/discuss the monument in relative comfort while we ate, as our table had a great view of it.
After we had eaten we continued walking up the central avenue that took us to the closest viewing point, past the avenue of state flags, where we interestingly noted that the Hawaii flag actually has a Union Jack as part of the design.
We went to the auditorium and watched the short video about the monument's history and then went back upstairs to the outdoor viewing area to take a good long look at the four presidents, memorizing each one. From our left they are President George Washington, President Thomas Jefferson, President Theodore Roosevelt and President Abraham Lincoln.
Having enjoyed a good long look we strolled back to the car and then drove home, stopping briefly at Bakers Bakery for a Goody.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.
What was on your list?
Mine is (not in any order):
  1. Empire State Building, New York
  2. Twin Towers Site, New York
  3. Golden Gate Bridge, California
  4. Disneyland, California
  5. Niagara Falls, New York
  6. Mount Rushmore, South Dakota
  7. Las Vegas Strip, Nevada
  8. U.S.S. Arizona, Hawaii
  9. Grand Canyon, Arizona
  10. National Mall, Washington D.C.
I guess National Mall is a bit of a cheat as it contains Lincoln Mem,Wash. Monu., Smithsonian Museums and the Capitol - any of which would be on the top ten list.

Crazy Horse and The Needles

Sunday
We were expecting reasonable weather today, but while it started sunny it was also quite cold, so we didn't want to walk around outside much.
Just a few miles north of Custer is Crazy Horse Mountain Sculpture. After stopping at the Bakery in Custer we drove up and entered the quite large park. It is a very ambitious project, several hundred acres of land, with plans for a university and medical college as well as a cultural center and museum. If that sounds ambitious then you should see the centrepiece, which is the Crazy Horse Mountain Sculpture. This was started in 1948 when the then chief of the Lakota (formally known as Sioux) tribe engaged sculptor  Korczak Ziolkowski to produce a monument to the Indian, similar to the monument at Mt Rushmore. However this monument would sculpt the whole mountain. Ending up with a statue several hundred feet high, depicting Crazy Horse on a horse pointing towards the hills, showing where his lands are. (Crazy Horse was a chief in the 1870's, stabbed to death by a soldier, with a bayonet, in Fort Robinson, NE in 1877). So far, after more than 50 years, half of the head and the top of the arm have been completed. So it is a work where the journey is as important as the destination. We toured the visitor center and stood and looked at this marvel in rock, which dwarf's it's counterpart of Mt Rushmore (which however is finished).
This mountain sculpture is not just a memorial to Crazy Horse, it is a rallying cry to the Indian Nations and though it is not said, it a monument to the wrongs that have been done to them, as Crazy Horse was the focal point of the Indian resistance to White America in the Nineteenth Century. We were quite impressed.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.

After visiting Crazy Horse we took advantage of the Custer SP Open Day to take a ride round the Northern section of the park, a section called The Needles.
This is a road which winds along the top of a series of granite mountain tops and bluffs, quite reminiscent of the Blue Ridge Mountain Highway in NC and Virginia. It is only a few miles long, but very dramatic, partly due to the views, partly due to the very narrow road and its tunnels, mostly due to the needle like formations of the the granite rock. These needles soar dramatically into the air sometimes over a hundred feet and are very impressive. The tunnels are very narrow, the first one is only about a foot wider than our Chevy, but didn't seem that wide at all.
After the needles the road twisted and turned downhill alongside a small mountain stream, which was a very pretty route to follow. The road eventually comes out near to the Legion Lake Lodge, giving us a short ride back home.
Another super day in the Black Hills.
If you don't want ads then click on the 'Start Slideshow' button, bottom left and then the 'Full Screen' button, bottom right. Then select 'Show Info', top right to see captions.
 
N.B. Wanting to give a picture intro to the slide show I cropped a pic from Street View, only to find that the Google Crew had been passing through during Sturgis Bike Week - I wonder if that caused chaos?