A Good Time in South Dakota

We got up in Rapid City and the kids just couldn’t leave the pool with the cool three-story water slide.  Bob was anxious to get on the road but my mom’s intuition told me to let the kids play.  I told Bob, the minute the kids are miserable, we will be too.  They had been so great to this point we better let them play.  And play they did. 

Finally at 10:30 am we told them we had to hit the road.  We had things to do, places to go, things to see….  The plan for the day was Wall Drug (you can’t have a trip across the mid-west with out seeing Wall Drug), the Badlands, a missile silo and …..well you will just have to wait for the last one.  We didn’t even know we were going there yet. 

Wall Drug is only about 30-40 minutes outside of Rapid City.  We counted 60 Wall Drug signs and billboards in that short distance.  They REALLY want you to stop there.  It’s a funny place with about 4 square blocks of kitsch.   The kids wanted to see every corner and Bob and I tried to steer them on a swift path.  There are jackalopes, dinosaurs that move and make noise, every kind of “gift” from their gift shops and so much more.  We spent about an hour and half there and picked up lunch.  Coulter needed pizza and was about to freak out if he didn’t get some. 

Then off to the Badlands, it was only ten miles away.  The Badlands are amazing with each colored layer telling it’s own story.  The layers tell of an arid landscape four million years ago but a humid jungle like area 200 million years ago.  The colors and topography are like nowhere else.  The greyish layer doesn’t grow anything but the red one is flush with plants.  There are fossils from 250 million years ago and 250 years ago.  It is rough, beautiful and fully different than other landscapes we had seen as yet. 

After we passed through the Badlands we went to a missile silo.  It’s a strange little place with a portable outbuilding that is the above ground portion of that silo.  A silo that at one point could have been the beginning of the end.  It’s a humbling thought.  There was a film about the silo and how it ran from day to day.  There were people there running drills and practicing for years for a 20 second job, a terrifying job.  I think we can all agree, thank God it never came to pass.  We wanted to go on a tour but it was full.  It happens….and onto the next thing.

We hopped back in the car and headed for Sioux Falls.   We only had about 300 more milers to go.  About 200 miles in I started seeing signs for an 1880’s town.  WHAT?  What’s that?  After miles of these signs, at the last moment I got off the interstate.  We pulled up to a gift shop, walked in and it didn’t look like much.  When I asked about the “town” they guy said, “Well, it’s a whole town.  You have to see it.”  For whatever reason, I thought he was right.  I paid $35.00 and we went in.  The first part was an homage to “Dances with Wolves,” Big deal….  Then we stepped out the back.  No kidding, it was a full town with about 30 buildings.  They had been moved there from various parts of the state and turned into a town.  We walked through about 8 of the buildings and then Bob, the boys and I went into the saloon.  Sophia went to keep the horses company. 

The Saloon was a fully functioning building and it looked just like a saloon you’d see in any western movie.  It had a stage, a bar, barkeep, a few cowboys about, a mistress and a second level with a great baluster that would be perfect to throw someone through in a bar fight.  It was picture perfect.  In the back of the saloon was a costume shoppe.  It was $5.00 to dress up and go about town in period costume.  The boys wanted to do it but I thought we’d only be there for a short while.  After a few minutes I thought, “This is so perfect I have to let them.  They will only want to dress up for a little while longer. “   I said, “Boys, let’s do it.”  They were thrilled.

The boys got the usual; pants, shirts, boots, bandanas, hats and of course a holster with a gun.  It took them all of about 3 minutes to start shooting up everything.  They robbed every establishment in town; the bank, the train depot, the train, the mayor’s office, the salon, the photo shop, the blacksmith but they saved the best for last….the saloon. 

They put their heads together and came up with a plan.  I went inside so I could document their misdeed.  I told one the cowboys about it and he went out to talk to the boys.  After their chat he held open the heavy door so they could bust through the swinging doors.  Coulter, aka Wyatt, went for the table with the barkeep and the deputy.  Kees, aka Hubertus, went behind the bar.  Coulter had the barkeep get up and go get the booty.  Kees was ushered out of there and then the barkeep grabbed the bag of gold and handed it to Coulter.  Coulter turned and ran out firing his gun on the way out.  The barkeep yelled, “Go on, get outta here.  And don’t you come back!”  It was classic! 

It was hard to leave because the boys could have robbed everyone a second time and had a great time doing it but it was time to press on. 

We finally got back on the road and got to our hotel at almost 10pm.  It was late but totally worth it.  I wouldn’t have missed that experience for the world.  I am almost a week behind on my blog and still, it is my favorite part and it was totally accidental.

Next up….La Crosse!

Mt Rushmore and Rapid City

Oh my goodness, I am behind.  We have wasted all our time having fun and not blogging.  Hahahaha…

We departed Cody and parted ways with mom and Ed and our beloved dog, Iva.  She was a crying mess when we were around.  It was better to make a clean break so we said goodbye to mom and Ed and didn’t get to say good-bye to Iva. 

Our destination, Rapid City, SD.  We took the “scenic route.” This included lots of two lane roads, dirt roads and construction.  We passed through the Black Hills and due to our pace, took in quite a bit of the sights and dust.  Again, lots of beauty and wholly different than other scenery so far.  We headed up into the mountains and over a pass that was at 9500 feet.  It was cold and there was snow on the ground.  This picture was taken fairly close to the top. 

And this one is of some really large granite blocks.  Hard to see but they were huge and very impressive. 

The only thing we scheduled to see this day was Mount Rushmore.  We passed a few really interesting things but we were gunning for the end goal; hotel and pool.  The only thing that I am sorry we didn’t get to stop for was the Jewel Cave National Monument.  We were right there and just drove by…it was almost painful.  If the roads would have been better perhaps we could have worked it in but the trade off was all part of the trip. 

We got to Mount Rushmore around four.  It has changed a lot since I was there last.  There is a huge parking structure (that costs $11.00 to park in and you don’t have a choice). There are also about four new structures with an amphitheater in back.  The museum is quite good but the movie, made in 1988, made us all giggle.  It’s amazing what technology has done over the past 30ish years.  It looked really old.  The kids learned all about how the mountain was carved and at the end Kees got another pin.   We left about six.

Another half an hour and we arrived in Rapid City.  It’s quite a cute town.  The kids were dying to eat out so we settled on TGIFridays.  Not a good choice and sad since we had been going on the cheep and having sandwiches and the like.  Such a waste of our “big night out.”  On to more important things….the hotel.

The kids were very excited when we got to the hotel; it had a three-story water slide!  They went as fast as they could to get their suits on and then back to the pool where they slid for an hour and wore themselves out. 

First thing in the morning they were back at it.  We had spent quite a bit of time on the road and they needed to get some energy out Bob was anxious to get on the road and I told him that this is where we needed to let the kids take the lead.  If they are not happy the trip gets to be miserable.  He acquiesced.  We let the kids swim until 10:30 and then we hit the road. 

Thursday, July 3^rd – next up? Sioux Falls SD. 

Cody Wyoming

On Tuesday the first, we drove to Cody WY.  Mind you our engine was still giving us lots of trouble and I was preparing for the worst.  As we headed toward the East Entrance of Yellowstone we passed LOTS of bison.   While ordinarily this wouldn’t present a problem, with our engine in it’s poor condition I got nervous every time we had to slow down.  The slower we got, the more the car would shake, the RPMs would bob up and down and the engine would sputter.  And the looky-loos were rubber necking at every chance.  It was nerve racking.  At one point the bison were totally messing with us and standing right in the road in front of us.  Pretty rude if you ask me and they didn’t seem to care at all that I was worried.  Bison….what cha gunna do?  Once we got past the pesky bison it was (fairly) smooth sailing.  When the car was faster and running more smoothly it was easier to appreciate Wyoming and it’s beauty.  It is so very different from Oregon.  What a country we live in.

We finally made it to Cody at about 1:30.  I dropped Bob and the kids off at the Wild Bill Cody Museum.  Mind you I joined the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco because it was one of the places that had reciprocal benefits.  I was looking forward to going but I had bigger fish to fry.  Mom went with the pack, Ed went to a bar to watch the USA World Cup game and I went….wait for it…..to the Dodge Dealership.  I was grateful that Cody had a Dodge Dealership! 

I rolled in unannounced.  Mind you, I had asked Bob to call ahead and he wouldn’t/didn’t do it.  When I walked up to the service desk and pleaded my case the two women looked at each other and code talked, “Well we just got that thing and Jesse is going to check for Joey.  Then we need to lift that other thing.”  That kind of jargon.  One went back and confirmed that Joey could take a look.  Whew, that was too close. “Thank you so much.”  Iva and I went to the waiting room.

As I went toward the waiting room I stepped outside to give Iva a break.  As I walked around the grounds I was eyeing the new cars and trying to figure out if I wanted another van or something different.  If the news wasn’t good I’d be getting a new car in an hour or so.  We finally made it to the waiting room.

The waiting room had five men and one other woman.  The men all appeared to be working farmers and by the conversation, a few were vets.  Fox “News” was on the TV and the conversation followed the reporting.  Their take on things was, to be polite, “right” wing.   I don’t / didn’t agree with them but I like to listen to try and figure out why people think what they do.   When they eyed me, we talked about Iva and what a great dog she is.  I think congress could use a few dogs, they bring us all together. 

Forty five minutes in Joey reported to Julie and Julie reported to me.   The sixth cylinder was misfiring and I needed a new ignition wire, it would be $200.  What?  That is AWESOME!  I couldn’t have been happier.  They asked for permission to fix it and I was all, “Yeah, do it!”

Another hour later and it was done and ended up being only $129.  Even better!  I tried to tip them but they wouldn’t have it.  I ended up writing a really nice review and thanked them for their honest, quick and friendly service.  If you are going to break down with a Dodge, do it in Cody. 

I hopped in my smoothly running car and picked up the gang.  We checked into the hotel, had a bite to eat and went straight to a gunfight.  Yup, a gunfight.  It was really fun.

Next up RODEO!  As luck would have it, the big professional rodeo was in town and we got to see it.  It may have been wasted on us but we had a lot of fun and this in not something you see everyday in Portland.  And certainly not with that crowd in an open-air arena.  I don’t think this was their first rodeo….hahahahaha.  It WAS my first rodeo.   The bucking broncos and bull riding were my favorites, well that and the clown.  He looked like Eric Stonestreet and had a great sense of humor.  One of his lines, “Whoa, that looked like it hurt.  You know the great thing about landing on your face?  No danger of a broken ankle.” True. 

We were home around 11 and crashed.  What a day!  From a campground in Yellowstone at 9 am to a rodeo in Cody WY at 8 pm.   We packed it in.  Our little cowboys and cowgirl were tuckered out and slept like logs.  It was a great day and we didn’t even need a new car!  That’s a good day.

Yellowstone

I haven’t written because we had no service in Yellowstone and have been busy, going hard and we each fall into bed at night with new experiences under our belts.  

On Sunday we woke up in Idaho Falls.  First things first, the boys had to relearn the etiquette of the free breakfast room.  No shirt, no shoes, no service.   And for mom’s satisfaction, no pajamas.  The Leeks have standards!

Our first stop was Shoshone Falls just east of Twin Falls.  It’s called the Niagara of the West and is beautiful.  The water was flowing well and it gave an impressive performance.  As we were leaving an entire bus full of Japanese tourists unloaded.  Perfect timing on our parts, we left.  Now, onward to Yellowstone. 

 The trip to Yellowstone was fairly uneventful until…..  Just inside the gate, at the least convenient spot, the “check engine” light came on and the engine shook anytime we got below 30 mph.  Pretty disconcerting.  Our van has over 110,000 miles on it.  Before we left, Bob and I agreed that if it went belly up mid trip we’d just get a new one and press on.   While the timing was horrid, having a back up plan was reassuring. 

We arrived at the campsite, set up camp and then headed to Old Faithful, the Yellowstone Lodge and the first set of paint pots.  The plan all along had been to all ride in the RV with mom and Ed while in Yellowstone. With the van on the fritz, this was even a better plan.  What made it even more desirable was the fact that Iva (our dog) was with us.  The RV stays much cooler than the van when they are not moving.  While dogs are welcome in the park, they are not welcome on ANY of the paths.  They are also not supposed to be left in cars.  This makes having a dog with you a true pain.  We decided to leave her in the RV at most stops and hope for the best.  She barked like mad every time but it was the only way we could all see the sights. 

Old Faithful did it’s thing after we waited for 30 minutes or so.  There were about 2000 people and hey, our Japanese buddies from Shoshone Falls were there too.  And they brought three more buses full with them, hooray!

We went through the lodge and as always, it is beautiful.  The rough-hewn logs and natural bend of branches prevail in the structure.  The stone fire-place is central and it’s chimney reaches up four stories and out the roof.  It is a marvel and a national treasure.  We went to the gift shop and Kees got a pin and Coulter bought a Yellowstone mug as a gift for my mom. The pin Kees got started a collection.

On the route back to camp we went to the paint pots.  The paint pots consist of colorful pools, bubbling mud pots and steam vents that can reach 300+ degrees.  They are not shy about sharing the fact that many people have died or been badly burned over the years.  The most gruesome story being of an eight year old boy that fell in a boiling pool and was recovered a day later.  All that was left was eight pounds of bone, flesh and clothing.  It made a real impact on the boys. 

Back at the campsite we started a fire and nibbled on whatever was available for dinner.  Hey, this is camping, just eat what you have.  At 9:30 there was a ranger talk that explained the colors of the pools, the eco-systems and their fragility, where the heat comes from and many more aspects of the park.

10:15 and it was lights out….  For a very cold night.   The boys were in the RV with mom and Ed, Sophia was with Bob and I in the tent.  It was cold but didn’t snow, like it did the week before when our friends were there.  Yikes! Waking up early is easy when you are cold. 

In the morning we had a quick snack, gave mom a couple cards and gifts (it was her birthday), headed north and then counter clock wise around the North Loop.  There were lots of bison sightings, steam vents, elk, vistas, paint pots and so on.  And hooray, our Japanese friends found us.  Quick, to the RV to get ahead!  At the furthest point of the day was Mammoth.  There are amazing falls there that emit calcium carbonate to the tune of a ton a day.  It looks like ice.   Beautiful. 

We made our way back to camp, had some food and went to bed.  Again, exhausted.  We bolstered our sleeping quarters with extra blankets and all slept much better.  Being warm is underrated. 

Again we were up early and broke down our camp-site by 8:30.  It was Tuesday and that meant we were headed to Cody, WY.  We exited the park via the east entrance.   This was the first time we drove the van since the “check engine” light came on, it was still on and running like crap.  It made me a bit nervous but once we were above 40 mph it seemed to run fine.  Every time we slowed down the shaking would start again.  If we made it to Cody we’d get it checked out or buy a new van.   Buying a new van would put a dent in the vacation budget!  So it goes and off we went….  Look out Cody, here we come.