MONDAY, JULY 27th - Mount Rushmore to Mitchell, SD.

Hello friends & family,
We spent the night at the Holy Smoke Campground. I rinsed the motorhome off and then we left for Keystone to do some shopping before we went to Mount Rushmore.

While in Keystone we went to the Borglum Museum to learn more about Mount Rushmore and the sculptor dedicated to this magnificent monument. Pictures were forbidden in most of the museum so we just enjoyed the self guided audio tour.
This was well worth going to see!

We left the museum (a little smarter than when we went in) and hit some of the jewelry shops along the street looking for some Black Hills Gold jewelry and anything else that sparks an interest. Sharon is a good shopper so I never worry about how much she will spend.

After we were tired of seeing the same things in different stores we left for Mount Rushmore and then on to the Crazy Horse Memorial. The parking lot was full with people just driving around trying to find some place to park at Crazy Horse. The rain & lightning moved in and it looked like it was there to stay for the day so we went on to Wind Cave NP. The temperature had dropped to around 60 degrees and the rain became intermittent as we traveled south to Wind Cave.
This is where we saw a big herd of Buffalo. We took a lot of pictures even though they never were really close to us.

While traveling across the lower western half of South Dakota we ran across many farms. Corn and soy beans seems to be the mainstay crops. There were miles of land which was void of any trees. Building houses during the mid to late 1800's must have been made from mud & grass due to the absence of trees. The land is still covered with grass as far as you can see. Another sight along the way was seeing a Casino when there wasn't a house, barn, or mobile home anywhere in sight for many miles. We were on a state highway, too.

Anyhow enjoy the pictures and comments, too.

I wasn't kidding about the name of the campground and that wouldn't be my way of describing it either. (Just the price)








Welcome to Mount Rushmore sign comes up on you really fast. To go to the Visitor Center you need to stay in the right lane. If you don't, the traffic backs up at the entrance, and you can't get back in the lane.





As soon as you see the monument and the size of it all, it is just breathtaking. How does one stay focused on the end result of a sculpture that will take many years to complete?






Here is another good view and a little closer.








This is an excellent view of the front of Mount Rushmore.







Here is a view from the side as we started around the mountain.









AND here is a view from the back side! (haha - just kidding)








There were many of these rock formations along the road as we left Mount Rushmore and drove to Crazy Horse's Memorial.







When the sculpture for Crazy Horse is complete it should look something like this sign at the entrance.






After several years the face is nearly complete.









As you can tell the rain has been coming down so we left without seeing everything.







At Wind Cave National Park, we spotted this herd of Buffalo off at a distance. With 2 trips into Yellowstone we only saw one buffalo. I guess they like the grass better in South Dakota.






This large bull must have weighed over a 1000 pounds.








The terrain across southwestern SD was pretty bland. Not much to look at but it is what we came to see regardless.







The rain stayed with us most of the day.








Sharon posing in front of this old farm car which gets driven annually in some kind of parade that they have in this area.

We had dinner at the diner close by.




When we finally reached I-90 we went to a diner before getting on the interstate.
Dinner was steak, potato, & a salad. Yum Yum!

We drove east on I -90 until we found a Rest Area where we spent the night.
It was a long day and we lost an hour when we crossed the Central Time Zone - sleep will come fast tonight!
Until the next adventure - stay tuned and HAPPY TRAILS!

SUNDAY, JULY 26th - Sheridan, Wy to Mount Rushmore NP, SD

Hi everyone,
We spent a restful night in the parking lot of Wal-mart in Sheridan, Wyoming. This is just across the border from Montana. Sharon replenished the grocery supply from Wal-mart last night and we just finished eating breakfast at McDonalds which was located inside the Wal-mart store.

It's 8:30 and our goals for today is to find a truck wash to get "Dusty" all pretty again, visit the Devils Tower Nat'l. Park and drive to Keystone, SD to spend the night. Let's see how this day unfolds!

Here's some info on Sheridan, Wyoming.
The town was platted in 1882 and named after the famous Civil War general Phillip Sheridan. The arrival of the railroad in 1892 cemented Sheridan's permanence as a thriving business center. The town's population exploded from a mere 280 in 1890 to 5000 in 1907. Sheridan became a center for trade, commerce, government, and politics. Today only a few wooden buildings remain on the historic Main Street with most structures dating to the prosperous times of the early 20th Century.

Enjoy the pictures and comments as you join us on today's adventure.


The terrain, rugged and beautiful, as we traveled through northeastern Wyoming to Devil's Tower National Park.








Sharon spotted a huge herd of antelope as we crest a hill. We found a place to turn Dusty around and went back for some viewing pleasures. We were not disappointed!






We spotted an additional herd on the next hill beside the first. There must have been at least 70+ antelope just hanging around by the fence.






We were getting close to the Devil's Tower. This part of Wyoming is different than the western part but both are beautiful.






Wow! Devil's Tower! What a rock.
Dusty is outflanked by the towering beauty in the background.






Even though it is miles away I zoomed the camera in for a better view. This is incredible and no other big rocks nearby.

DEVIL'S TOWER is a striking and unique geologic formation that has attracted people and captured their imagination since prehistoric times. President Theodore Roosevelt designated it a National Monument in 1906.



As we drove closer the Devil's Tower you could see how gigantic she was!







While driving on up to the Visitors Center, we stopped to watch the Prairie Dogs.







Some of them watched us, also.








Sharon and the Devils Tower in the background.

You know there are things in nature that engender an awful quiet in the heart of man - Devil's Tower is one of them.








We wanted to get closer so we decided to tackled some big rocks.

The Tower, once seen so singular and unique, that it can never be forgotten.









Sharon standing on a big rock so I could get the Devil's Tower in the background.










The answer is NO! I wasn't born under a rock - I was merely climbing out from this one.







Notice the folks on the left side of the picture. They are doing what everyone did as they approach the Tower. Staring in amazement!






This is the extent of my rock climbing today!











What a background shot for the KOA Campground!








We had lunch in the restaurant attached to the KOA building. It took an hour to get to salads for lunch. While we waited we watched the folks coming in, some sat down, waited for while, and then gave it up and left.

We were amazed at the Cow mount on the wall. Is that a trophy or some cowboy's pet????



There were plenty of cattle ranches in this part of the country, too.






We finally made it to South Dakota and passed right through Sturgis on the way to Keystone. Sturgis is well known for their famous Bike Week which starts next weekend. Glad we missed it - we would not have been able to drive through town or any towns nearby because of the motorcycle traffic.



We arrived at our campground named "Holy Smoke" in Keystone. When we get up in the morning we plan to visit Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse National Monument.
By the way "Dusty" is still dirty and the owner of the campground said "No washing" of the RV in the park. I will still rinse some of he dirt off in the morning before we leave.
Until then - drive safe - play safe and HAPPY TRAILS!

SATURDAY, JULY 25th - Cody, Wy. to Billings, Montana

Hi Folks,
We spent the night in Cody, Wyoming waking up to a nice 66 degrees this morning. The sun is already up and bright and right after breakfast we plan on visiting the Buffalo Bill's historical Center.

We drove "Dusty" over to the RV parking area and received our morning exercise by hiking to the front of the Museum. They definitely need a rear entrance since that is where most of the parking areas are located.

This is a big museum and we started with 3 short films documenting some cowboy heroes since this was National Cowboy Day. Pictures were forbidden in many areas of the museum so all we could take away from there were nice memories.

After we visited the museum we went back to the MH for lunch before starting our trip north to Montana to visit "Little Big Horn" battlefield and memorial.
Enjoy the pictures and comments!

Entrance to the Historical Center. Cody, Wyoming

William Cody earned his nickname "Buffalo Bill" by his skill as a hunter. In 1868 he earned $500 per month supplying meat to the workers on the Kansas-Pacific Railway. His style was to ride to the front of the herd and kill the leader with a .50 cal single shot rifle. He could then turn the herd in to a milling circle and get the days supply of meat one by one.

The taxidermists who is responsible for the following full size mounts are true artists as you will see in the following pictures.

This buffalo family is just incredibly life like.






U S Mail stage coach beautifully restored.









This caribou full body mount is so realistic.








A white-tailed deer ready to jump.








How about this full mount of a young bull moose?








Early Yellowstone NP transportation wagons for the tourists.








A real chuck wagon cooking in front of the Museum made me hungry!

We went to the parking lot and had lunch in the MH before taking off to Montana.



North Central Wyoming on the way to Montana is gorgeous.








This country is rugged but still beautiful.








We made it - Montana. Now we will continue north to Billings and then east to Little Big Horn.






Little Big Horn National Monument. (Little Big Horn is a river)
Here you will find a memorial with about 220 soldiers, scouts, & civilians buried around the base. The marble tombstones scattered around (see picture below) the battlefield denotes where the slain soldiers were found and originally buried. In 1881 they were re-interred into a single grave on this site. The officers remains were removed in 1877 to various cemeteries throughout the country. General Custer was buried at West Point.


This is the monument with the names of the 220 people engraved on it.

There is also a monument dedicated to the horses that fell during this battle.




Tombstones located where all the troopers remains were originally found.








This is another memorial to the famous Indians who were killed during the battle of Little Big Horn.





Here's a view of one of the cattle ranches dotting the landscape in Montana. We are now on our way to northeast Wyoming.







We traveled to Sheridan, Wyoming and found a nice, big Wal-mart Campground. The parking lot to the north of the store was our campsite for the night and we shared it with 9 RVs, 5 semis, & 4 travel trailers. It was quiet & secure enabling us to sleep very well.
When we find a Wal-mart that we are allowed to stay overnight in the parking lot, then we do our shopping at the store. This is our way of paying back for their kindness & support of the RV travelers.

NOTE: We hope you are enjoying the "Tales from the road" as we continue our journey across America. This country is massive but seems small when you go from point to point in an airplane. Each place that we stopped, we are reminded of the pioneers that walked, rode wagons & horses to travel this great land. Their adventures were death defying every mile of the way. Fortunately, ours is just trying to avoid some bad drivers on the highway every now & then.
As you can tell, I love American history and have a great respect for the places now being preserved for all future generations to enjoy.
Thanks for joining us again on this wonderful adventure! Until the next update, HAPPY TRAILS!!!