Road Trip - Page 1
We normally pack coolers with lunch meat and cheese and picnic at a state or city park or at one of the stops along the way. We always were warned about poison ivy, not feeding the wildlife or staying way from rattle snakes. HOWEVER, on this trip we received booklets with some warning we'd not had before:
In Wyoming, Fort Laramie - "Prevent West Nile Virus"
In Nebraska, the Bad Lands - "A Quick Guide to Plague"
Maybe McDonalds is safer in the long run......
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Fort Laramie
Stopped for lunch at fort Laramie - found that West Nile was being carried by many mosquitoes in the area. None-the-less, the area was very pretty and the Fort was well worth visiting.
There were some old ruins, but for the most part, the fort has been rebuilt and refurbished. The furnishings of all the offices, the officer's rooms, the Doctors area, and particularly the barracks were as good as I've seen at any historical site.
We stopped down the road from the Fort and wondered why it was so important. Later, at the Fort, we found out that the river was a major impediment to westward expansion.
The Barracks
Old ruins
Old Bedlam - the bachelor officer's quarters
Old Bedlam porch
Some more old ruins ..........
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The Mammoth Site
We had heard of the Mammoth Site in Hot Springs SD, but Jackie and Billy were not particularly excited about a visit. We all found the place impressive - from the beautiful building, the young informative guide, and of course, the specimens themselves.
There are only two actual digs year. One by young people and one by a "older" set. The digs last only a month. The reason is that the place is so rich in specimens that it takes the rest of the year to clean, identify and save them.
Not only mammoths - the list of other ancient animals is quite long, and very surprising! They include prairie dogs, coyotes, and other modern deserts and high plains animals.
Mammoth feet left impacts in the ancient mud
Jackie in an Indian "tent" made of mammoth bones Billy & Jackie and a trained mammoth
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Wind Cave
When out son hear we were going to Mt. Rushmore he told us to be certain to find Wind Cave. We're glad he did as it was a marvelous surprise and well worth the stop . n one knows exactly how long the cave is. If I recall correctly, it is estimated to be over 50 miles long. After seeing other commercial caves and having done a bit of spelunking myself, this cave was an excellent adventure.
The original entrance -
There are three different tours. We took the intermediate one - only 350+ steps. No, we didn't go through the small opening, we took an elevator!
Beautiful area all around - but watch your head!
Shot of both the narrow passage, and my bald spot
These pictures were taken straight up through holes in the ceiling
These shots are of side passages - no one yet knows where many of them go
Intrepid cave explorers
The tour ender 200+ feet under the parking lot
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Custer Park
One of the finest state parks in the United States. It is famous for miles and miles of scenic roads, all kinds of wild life, and of course, the famous tunnel and "pigtail" or "over & under" bridges. One of the most photographed sites is the view of Mt. Rushmore through one of the hand cut tunnels. While the first picture below shows that tunnel, and if you squint really hard, you can see Mt. Rushmore, dont'cha know I didn't take a picture through the tunnel! Though, as a big dummy, I got pictures of both ends....
We must say, that the fist time we saw Mt. Rushmore was over 25 years ago. We drove through Custer Park, Iron Mountain Road, quite in error. It was a black night, we were dodging wild animals, the kids were tired and hungry - I had lost my temper (imagine that!) and we go around this curve, through a tunnel, and there was Mt. Rushmore in spotlights, framed by the tunnel and the pine trees, glowing - almost floating - before us.
One of the most astonishing sights in our lives.
Some of the views of Mt. Rushmore from the park.
The tunnels and magnificent road called the Iron Mountain road were part of an over-all vision of
Peter Norbeck, who carefully designed each access to the park.
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Mt. Rushmore
Well, we made it to Mt. Rushmore. First "Stop" on the Road Trip.
We've included few pictures from Mt. Rushmore. I mean, just how many pictures can you take of the four presidents? Everyone has seen much better pictures of this place than we could ever take, so we've kept our's to a minimum.
Jackie and I were struck by how much had changed since we were there last. We asked a Ranger about the "old stuff" and he pointed out where the older, rock built, viewing are was. Part of it still remains. The current viewing area, the amphitheater the hall of flags and visitor's area are magnificent.
We went to the night program. It was well done and inspirational. however, a the program went on the flog gathered and became more and more dense. At the end of the program, when the flood lights were to light the presidents, all we saw was the bright reflection of the fog. Sooo,
We went back early the next morning. The volunteer who sold us the parking tickets told us the cafeteria was a good place to eat, and "be sure to have breakfast there tomorrow." So we did. One of the high points of the trip was Uncle Billy serving breakfast in the cafeteria, and eating while seeing Mt. Rushmore through the large windows of the cafeteria.
Oh, if you go there, be certain to get one or more of their fresh, hot cinnamon rolls - easily the best we have ever had!
The walk of flags
Mt. Rushmore at breakfast
Yep, its cold & windy
the amphitheater
Mt. Rushmore
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Crazy Horse
Sculptor Korczak Ziollowski started carving the Crazy Horse monument in 1949. his wife and many of his ten children still manage the work. We'll let you Google Crazy Horse Monument to get all the details. Suffice it to say, although it appears little has been accomplished, carving a statue whose face is over 10 stories high, cannot be done quickly.
Look very carefully and you'll l see a group of engineers standing on the arm and two yellow Euclid type trucks - this gives you some idea of proportion.
Two attempts at an "artistic "picture
The large model in the visitor's center
Traveling companions
Crazy horse in the distance
