Although this was initially meant to be a 4th of July adventure, I think it would be better to call this my Prairie Dog trip as prairie dogs were popping up – literally and figuratively – just about everywhere.
Thursday
Wanting to leave work as soon as possible on Thursday, I
quickly printed my insurance cards after my last meeting, grabbed them off the
printer along with my preliminary itinerary, and swiftly made my way to the
car. I topped up with fuel, bought some
not-so-healthy (but quite yummy) yogurt covered pretzels for the drive, turned
on a Steve Miller CD, and hit the highway.
When there’s no snow to worry about, the I-70 drive toward
Denver is quite beautiful!! A little different from when Annie and I drove back from Denver just one month ago!
Traffic on
the other side of Denver was jammed up a bit with stragglers leaving work about
6:30 pm or taking their families and heading out of town for the holiday
weekend. Although due to impatience, it
felt like hours, the traffic jam only lasted about 30 minutes before the road
opened up again and there was even more beauty further north and east along the drive.
Then it rained for a little bit and there was a nice rainbow that followed me for a ways. :-)
Once I got well into Wyoming, there was nothing but fields of grass with the occasional hill as far as the eye can see, which were rather boring to drive through. Overall, I was quite proud of myself for maintaining reasonable speeds…most of the time. The urge to accelerate on the open highway, especially once the mountains of CO turned into long stretches of prairie fields in WY, was difficult to resist.
At least until the sun started going down. I enjoy watching the clouds change color as the sun sets.
Then it rained for a little bit and there was a nice rainbow that followed me for a ways. :-)
Once I got well into Wyoming, there was nothing but fields of grass with the occasional hill as far as the eye can see, which were rather boring to drive through. Overall, I was quite proud of myself for maintaining reasonable speeds…most of the time. The urge to accelerate on the open highway, especially once the mountains of CO turned into long stretches of prairie fields in WY, was difficult to resist.
At least until the sun started going down. I enjoy watching the clouds change color as the sun sets.
About 2200 as I exited the expressway and
headed toward Lusk, WY, my energy level drained and I was driving on “auto
pilot”, simply following the car in front of me for a good 10-15 miles, keeping
an eye out for deer, and hoping to find a motel to crash for the night.
No sooner had I gotten back on the highway, a young (and not very bright) deer decided to run out into the road and stop and stare at my car. Luckily, getting pulled over resulted in my being very awake and alert, and I was able to swerve and stop without hitting the poor thing. Though I did see at least 30 not-so-lucky deer lying along the side of the road over the next 3 days. By 2300 I was sound asleep in a little motel room getting the best night's sleep I'd get on the trip.
Friday
I was up by 0530 Friday morning, grabbed a quick shower, and
headed off toward Wind Cave National Park.
I was there by 0745, even though the first cave tour didn’t start until
0840.
Some genius at the park service decided they should
begin using a brand new type of credit card machine over the 4th of
July weekend without testing it first and learned that it either didn’t
function properly or they weren’t using it correctly. Regardless, I didn’t have to pay for my cave
tour. While
waiting, I drove around the park and encountered a couple of buffalo eating breakfast or just strolling along, a bunny rabbet exploring by the side of the road, and
hundreds of prairie dogs who’d pop back into their burrows at the sound of the
car door opening and then pop back up out of curiosity to study the strange
human holding a camera.
I lost track of time watching the prairie dogs and just
barely made it back in time for the 1st tour. The tour guide was great! Lots of energy. Unlike the east coast, we did not have to be screened for white nose syndrome, though it was mentioned in the brochure. And they did not ask at either this or Jewel cave if you'd been in the other cave with the clothes you're wearing, so the east coast bat problem doesn't appear to be a concern on the west side of the Mississippi River...
This was the original opening to the cave. It's called Wind Cave because the pressure outside the cave and inside cave can very, creating air to either be sucked into the cave or blown out of it (depending on which end had lower pressure). The person who discovered the cave put a hat over the opening and watched it blow into the air, thus discovering there was something down there. For many years, people (including women wearing those old fashioned dresses who went on cave tours) would use this tiny opening as the entrance, holding just a small lamp lit with a match for light.
I’ve been in many caves across the country over the past several years, but still get a bit anxious in caves, the same as I do in elevators, on airplanes, while scuba diving, being strapped into something, or being held down against my will. I guess this is my way of coming out of the closet to admit to a touch of claustrophobia… I do know that as long as I’m moving forward in the cave, I’m fine. It’s those long periods of standing still, 300+ ft underground with tons of rock overhead, that cause the chest to tighten and make it hard to breath, so… I volunteered to be the caboose and would walk back and forth taking pictures while the tour guide talked about popcorn, boxworks, and other such formations on the cave walls and ceilings.
Wind Cave is one of the longest and most complex caves in the world with over 137 miles of passageways that could get you lost in no time. It is known for boxwork formations, found on the ceiling and some of the cave walls. Boxwork is made from calcite. It gets its name by forming a bunch of small boxes where all the thin calcite sides meet. The cave is made of limestone, and geologists think the limestone cracked and calcite filled those cracks even before the cave itself formed. Over time, the limestone eroded or weathered away, but the calcite remained, exposing the thin veins giving it a box or honeycomb look.
Wind Cave is known as a dry cave, so you don't get the stalagmites or stalactites as you do in wet caves. Despite that, water does seep into the cave and make popcorn formations.
There was an interesting story told to us while on the tour from the early 1900s after the cave was discovered. Alvin McDonald was a 16 year whose dad was in charge of overseeing the mining in the cave. When they realized there was nothing of value in the cave, they decided to try and make some money by putting wooden ladders in the cave and bringing people down for tours.
Over the next couple of years, Alvin fell in love with the cave and spent all his spare time exploring it. He'd bring a lantern and a string to keep from getting lost. Sometimes the lantern would go out and he'd have to find his way back just following the string in the pitch black.
Alvin kept a detailed journal of his adventures and explorations and was determined to find the end of the cave. He also was the one who gave most of the guided tours in the cave.
One day during a tour, he noticed an opening to a passageway he had yet to explore. He told the people on the tour to hang tight and that he'd be back shortly. Being a teenage boy, he quickly forgot about the tour and spent hour after hour exploring. Then he left the cave and left the people in the tour behind.
During dinner that night, his dad asked him how the tour went and he realized he left the people in the cave. He decided it was too dark to get them that night and would do it in the morning.
The lights would have gone out well before evening, leaving all the tourists down in the cave without light, with no idea how to get out, and no idea if their guide was dead.
The next morning, Alvin went back into the cave and found the tourists where he had left them. Instead of being mad at him for forgetting about them, they all thanked him for coming back to get them and getting them out.
Here are some other pictures from inside the cave.
It was 1000 when the tour finished and I felt wonderful
again once I was back in the sunlight. I tucked the wild cave tour in my pocket and
headed toward Jewel Cave National Monument to see how that cave compared! The next scenic tour wasn’t until 2 pm, so I calculated how long other activities would take and took a chance
buying a ticket. Then I headed off to
Crazy Horse Mountain.
I had honestly never heard of Crazy Horse, and thought the
carved face was all it was about. This
was an educational experience as I learned how they carved Mount Rushmore and
Crazy Horse, how many years it would take to complete (probably another 100 at
least), and who Crazy Horse was.
"My lands are where my dead lie buried." - Crazy Horse
Here's what Crazy Horse would look like when complete:
I paid to take the bus tour down to the base,
and in addition to watching people work up at the top and enjoying the
different views (no blasting today), I saw a family of marmots come out to see
what was going on - the tour guide kept calling them "Mormons" rather than marmots.
Crazy Horse was born in the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1842. While in Nebraska, under a flag of truce, he was stabbed in the back by an American soldier and died in 1877 (about my age).
A treaty in 1868 signed by the US President said that as long as rivers run and grass grows and trees bear leaves, the Black Hills of Dakota will forever be the sacred land of the Sioux Indians. This treaty was broken. His leader was killed, our gov't didn't bring guarantees as they were supposed to per the treaty (such as clothing and tents), and his people's lives and way of life were being ravaged and destroyed. At that time, Crazy Horse defended his people in the only way he knew how.
They have been working on the mountain for 65 years. If completed, it will be the world's largest sculpture. When carving the mountain, most of the time is spent blasting the rock with dynamite in strategically placed locations. Once they get to the point of being able to carve out the features (such as the face), they fill in the rock and smooth it (like the rock below) to prevent it from eroding and breaking off.
Following the tour, I
checked out the museum. There is a lot of controversy with the sculpture, but the sculpture is a memorial to Crazy Horse and his people.
While getting ready to leave, I heard about the laser show, and got a free return pass
just in case… I had time to enjoy lunch at the Dakota Cowboy restaurant in Custer.
Then I
returned to Jewel National Monument in time for my guided tour. Scenery along the way was great.
Not a John Deere, but patriotic with the American flag. :-)
Made me want to go hiking...
Jewel Cave was MUCH more open than Wind Cave and was a lot more wet. The railings were slippery and you had to pay attention to avoid tripping or hitting your head on one of the low hanging rocks.
This is looking up at a passageway in the ceiling.
Although there's nothing valuable in the cave, many of the rocks look like jewels or crystals.
Some of the formations were the result of the water dripping in the cave over many thousands of years. Basically, water from the surface picks up CO2 from the plants and dirt creating carbonic acid.
When water enters the cave, the CO2 is emitted, leaving small particles of dissolved limestone behind, which builds up.
If water is dripping from the top of the cave, it creates stalactites from the ceiling (see the pointy things coming down from the ceiling in the picture below). If it keeps the CO2 in the water until it hits the ground, stalagmites are formed, which are pointy and come up from the ground rather than the ceiling. Over time, if 2 meet (a stalactite and stalagmite), you get little stalagy babies...just kidding. They just form a column.
The dripping water can create flowstone (which can look like loose stools to my untrained geological eyes)
Jewel Cave is the 3rd longest cave in the world, and they estimate only 3% has been explored (177 miles)! Each year, about 3 miles of new passageways are discovered. It's also the deepest cave in Black Hills at almost 670 ft deep!
Jewel Cave has only one natural entrance. Most of the known passageways didn't come from that entrance, but can only be found from the blasted elevator shaft entrance.
Once I finished the Jewel Cave tour, I drove to Custer State Park, which is one of the largest state parks in the US. I entered the park by the Gordon Stockade. In 1874, Custer had discovered gold in the Black Hills. Even though the land belonged to the Indians (from the Treaty mentioned earlier), word spread, and white settlers moved in. Gordon and his group built a log fortress by the creek to protect themselves from the Sioux Indians (also known as the Lakota). They were removed a few months later by the US Army, but people kept trickling in, and the following year, there were over 10,000 illegal white settlers looking for gold on the Indian land.
For the sheer beauty of it, I drove to Stockade Lake, taking time to hike around parts of it and watch the boats
power or drift by and the water sparkle in the sunlight at the rocks behind them.
I then drove to the Mount Coolidge Firetower and went to the Heddy Draw overlook. The road up to the top of Sheep Mountain where the historic fire tower is located is very narrow with sheer drop offs that climbs to over 6000 ft. At least this late in the day there weren't too many cars on the road. Normally, you can see Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Needles, and even the Badlands. However, it was very hazy/smoky, and I overheard some Canadians saying it's probably from all the fires they've had recently.
After a short tug of war, I opted against doing the 7 mile climb up Harney Peak. There were mountain lion signs - not great to do early evening during feeding time while hiking alone, especially after memories from a previous lion encounter a few years ago at Kings Canyon. So instead, I connected with the Wildlife Loop,
which was 18 miles of...nothing. I was highly disappointed. Of the 1300 bison the park claims, there were none by the buffalo corrals and only one seen along the way, though the road getting to the Wildlife Loop was scenic and full of fun twisties, so that was something!
The park boasts many other types of wildlife commonly seen along this route, but I must have come at the wrong time as there were no deer, no
antelope, nothing! That is, until you
get to the open fields, where cars littered both sides of the road to stare at the infamous prairie dogs who were either posing at tourists, popping up or
slinking back down into their burrows, or ignoring the people and eating
grass.
At the end of the loop, I cut
over to the Needle Eye scenic drive, which was gorgeous! The only downfall were all the cars driving
20 under the speed limit, but there were plenty of opportunities to give my car
some good exercise around some fun windy roads and just take in the views!
A great road for motorcycles.
The spires were gorgeous and one of my favorite things to see on this trip!
The tunnels were super narrow.
This is the needle eye formation.
I enjoyed it so much, I made a U-turn up by needle's eye and drove back through about 1/2 of that scenic road again. Then I connected with Iron Mountain - another very scenic drive through the Black Hills, which led to Mount Rushmore.
When I arrived at Mount Rushmore, there was a long line of cars waiting to get in. It was 7:30 pm, just in time for the 4th of July programs to begin. They don't charge an entrance fee for the monument, but they charge for parking. I was starting to feel like my $80 park pass was useless in South Dakota! The 2 caves (a national monument and park) both didn't have entrance fees, but required payment for the tours. Custer was a state park, requiring a fee that wasn't covered by my park pass. Crazy Horse was on Indian land and had a separate fee, and not this national monument wouldn't accept the park pass due to private parking. Oh well...
This was my first time at Mount Rushmore. It made me think of the movie Superman, when the bad guys wearing black changed the presidents' faces to their own. Anyway, seeing Mount Rushmore over this weekend felt very patriotic. There were flags all along the entrance and concrete posts listed when each state became part of the United States.
The sun was setting behind the monument, darkening the presidents' faces. Beneath them was a band playing patriotic songs such as "God Bless America".
There was also a flag folding ceremony and a reenactment of the presidents. Then as the sun went down, they lit up the monument and played the national anthem and the Lakota flag song.
It was about 8:30 pm when I left, and I drove back to Custer to get some dinner. On the way, I noticed place you could view the profile of George Washington, which was lit up.
I finished eating at about 9:30 pm and headed back to the Crazy Horse Memorial to view the 10:00 pm show. My phone camera/video didn't capture this well, but it was actually pretty cool and lasted about 30 minutes. Prior to the start of the show, they lit up the Crazy Horse mountain and had Indian music and drums playing. There were many different colors used.
They they had lasers shooting out from the mountain and used the
mountain as a screen to show a colorful lit up movie/presentation of the
history of Crazy Horse. I took several videos, but you can't see anything. I guess if you want to see it...you just have to go there. :-)
I had planned on camping Friday night, but there were no campsites available - I had been checking throughout the day at various places. I went in search of a motel, and ended up driving past Hot Springs before giving up and trying to lay out the blankets and pillows and sleep in my car. Of course, being long and having a compact car, I didn't quite fit. Not to mention, the small town didn't have anything open 24/7, so there was no where to use the bathroom at 2 am. So... I searched again and finally found something (quite expensive, but open due to a last minute vacancy) and I had a bed to sleep in for a few hours, a much needed bathroom, and a shower.
Saturday
If I had half a brain, I would have headed north to Rapid City, just 20 miles from Mount Rushmore, where they DO have 24/7 restaurants, gas stations, and many more motels/hotels to choose from. It also would have been a lot closer to what I was doing today and I could have either seen Mount Rushmore during sunrise or driven to the Badlands while it was still early, cool, and tourist free. Ah well, at least I hadn't accumulated another speeding ticket!
I took some coffee to go, and on the drive, saw some beautiful hot air balloons that played peek-a-boo with the trees and hills as I made my way back through Wind Cave National Park toward Mount Rushmore.
I had wanted to see Mount Rushmore in the morning and also decided to hike around the Presidential Trail, which had information along the way about each president.
They also had a sculpture studio showing what they used before the current technology to sculpt and blast the rock while making Mount Rushmore.
By 0800 I was on the road again headed toward Rapid City.
My first stop was with Luke in mind - Reptile Gardens - the world's largest reptile zoo! Alligators baking in the sun or lying there with their jaws open, motionless, hoping something makes its way into them.
This shot reminds me of living in Sanford, FL. Passing by the river on the way to work, you'd see the 2 lumps - head and body - and know you were looking at a gator relaxing in the water. It also reminds me of Luke. One of the last times I saw him we went canoeing in FL, watched the bumps from the gators disappear under the canoe, and then we managed to tip over the canoe when Luke jerked to the side to avoid a tree branch. Naturally, this was the one time I hadn't put anything in dry bags attached to the canoe, so we lost the keys, shoes, and other things, and then had to swim with the canoe through the gator-infested river until we could reach a side and right the canoe. Needless to say, it was a fun adventure and looking at the alligators made me miss my brother.
And... More prairie dogs!!
Prairie dogs observing the humans. Note that the entrance to their burrow looks like a mini-volcano. That's to keep it from flooding when it rains and to keep watch for predators. Owls, rodents, snakes, and rabbits sometimes make their homes in prairie dog burrows.
Some little known facts... Prairie dogs communicate through barking (Louis and Clark called them "barking squirrels") and they recognize each other by touching their front teeth together, which is also known as "kissing".
This one is keeping watch over the others.
This one is preparing for winter fasting apparently. Prairie dogs can run in short spurts up to 35 mph!!! (Though I sincerely doubt that chubby one below can!)
After watching the prairie dogs, I went to see the giant tortoises. You could ride them they are so big, and I was told they are 400-500 pounds, and can get up to 700 pounds and 4-5 ft tall!!
Well, we weren't allowed to ride them, but they did enjoy having their necks rubbed.
These are the medium-sized tortoises - a larger version of Shelly's old tortoise.
What would a 4th of July be like without a bald eagle?
Posing for the camera. :-)
There were beautiful gardens and an area known as "Tortuga Falls" with a pond full of colorful carp and small turtles.
This is a kookaburra named "Darwin". When I first came by him, he made noises like a monkey. It was actually pretty cool! As soon as I turned on my video, however, he was quiet and couldn't be coaxed back into "singing".
There were many different types of snakes - some large, some small, some venomous, some not. I happen to love snakes, so here are some pictures.
This is a saw scaled viper - very venomous!
Copperhead - venomous.
Mojave desert sidewinder.
Rattlesnake - venomous.
Radde's mountain viper - venomous.
Mexican black-tail rattlesnake - venomous.
Samar cobra (only the recently shed skin could be found; very venomous... I wonder if it found a way to escape??? :-)
An anaconda - non-venomous, but it is the largest, heaviest, and 2nd longest snake that can reach 300 lbs and grow to 22 ft long!!
The burmese python is non-venomous, but looks like it recently ate something large!
The black mamba - extremely venomous! (You might remember this snake from the movie Kill Bill.)
I've never seen the "Fierce Snake" before, but the name is very appropriate!
You can only see a little part of it. Luckily, this snake lives very far from you and I, but if you head to Australia...watch out!
I finished viewing the snake exhibits just in time to watch a snake show!! :-)
The guy holding the snakes wasn't bad looking either!
These are Cuban crocodiles.
Here's a beaded lizard.
The Komodo dragon lives in the Indonesian islands and is the largest lizard in the world!
The Fiji Island banded iguana is peaking out to see what everyone is doing.
This is a dyeing poison arrow frog.
The bumblebee walking toad lives near water, but not in it, and is just about the size of a large bumblebee!
Don't be fooled by how cute and tiny these little guys are! They are green and black poison arrow frogs. Indians would use their skin secretions to coat arrows. The toxins remain lethal for up to a year, and can kill 10 humans!!
And of course... A bullfrog!
This is a tiger salamander, which looks very slimy.
This is a pink-toe tarantula, which is mildly venomous.
And the most disgusting bug of all - the cockroach! These suckers can get up to 4 inches long!!
Here's a Mexican red-knee tarantula.
Like most, the flat rock scorpion will turn bright florescent green under a black light.
This is a giant red-headed centipede.
And last, but not least, a Chinese alligator.
After the Reptile Gardens, I stopped at the Air and Space Museum, also in Rapid City.
The early space missions of the 1960s showed the value of being able to see Earth from space. Changes to the landscape could be seen that couldn't otherwise. In 1966 there was plan to start a satellite program, using remote sensing instruments to study the Earth. Think of what we now rely on satellites for!
This is the international space station.
The first powered plane, built by the Wright brothers.
The aft crew station below simulates the offensive and defensive systems operator (radar navigation, weapons systems, and the electronic threat environment they are likely to encounter during a typical mission.
Reading about the stratosphere balloon journey was pretty cool! In 1935, Captains Anderson and Stevens ascended in the gondola of the Explorer II - the world's largest balloon - and reached 72,395 feet!!!
This is a statoscope, used for determining the departure from constant altitudes. The air pressure changes, causing bubbles to form in the tubes. The rate of movement and direction indicate whether or not the balloon is ascending or descending and how quickly.
This is a balloon gas leak detector. It replaced the old way (which is still used by many car mechanics to look for leaks in tires) of applying a soap solution over places to identify leaks.
This was a neat picture - patriotic!
Following the museum, I drove to the Badlands National Park. It was hot, but I still stopped to do some short hikes here and there. It was a little like the Bookcliffs and a smaller version of the grand canyon combined. Not bad if you haven't seen it, though I'd recommend coming early in the morning to avoid slow traffic and heat!
I love the colors on these rocks. Not as colorful as painters palette in Death Valley, but that's what it reminds me of.
This is a bighorn sheep feasting on grass.
And there were a lot of pronghorn antelope! (This should have been called the "Wildlife Loop"!)
By the time I finished this park, I realized it was not in fact a loop. I was not pleased because now I had to drive back through it again to get back to the Minuteman Missile sites - a stop that I though would complement the Air and Space Museum. Oh well, what's another 60 miles round trip out of the way? LOL And since there haven't been any prairie dog photos in a while... Look what I saw along the way!!
There were no more tours of the underground missile launch control center, but I was able to go to the spot where they had an underground missile launch (phone guided tour) and spent time at the historic site.
I bought a book on the Minuteman Missiles before leaving to learn more. In short, the Cold War left a bad taste in everyone's mouth and the fear of a possible nuclear war between the US and Soviet Union. The Minuteman Missiles were used as a nuclear deterrent and a way to keep peace. Foreign countries knew that if anyone launched a nuclear attack against the US and we retaliated with these babies, their civilization would be destroyed.
It was interesting to see their magazines to the public on what's needed for a bomb shelter and air raid protection.
We take for granted not having to worry about planes bombing us (and hopefully it will stay that way).
There was a timeline that listed what went on every year for > 50 years from a missile or nuclear standpoint. I didn't read everything, but there was some interesting and informative tidbits.
The missile site was active from the 1960s to 1990s.
Farms and small towns lived right next door to the missile sites, and many people driving by, never had a clue what was just a few hundred feet from the road. Since it's the 4th of July, this is a great site to visit, as it is one of the reasons were were able to maintain our freedom and keep safe from a nuclear attack.
D-9 is the old underground missile launch area. There was a big sign that said "Warning Restricted Area" like it's a military zone, but they were old because this was part of what the guy at the historic site said could be viewed and there were signs with the phone number to call and get the guided tour. Still... It was rather isolated and eerie, and I wondered if a drone shot me out of the sky how long it would take before someone realized I was missing. :-)
There are pictures in my book of what this looked like when it was operational. Luckily, we never had to launch one.
It was about 2:30 pm when I left, and I decided to head out to Devils Tower on the way back home - short detour... Along the way, I saw one of Luke's friends! :-) (This is in Wall Drug, so we may see more pictures from Angie if she goes there on her journey.)
I had seen these pre-World War II cars at the Badlands, and passed them on the way.
It was a long drive, and I stopped for lunch/dinner along the way. Finally, I saw the little bump sticking out of the horizon and thought... Yeah! I'm almost there!!
I'm sure this is will surprise you, but guess what I saw at the entrance to Devils Tower??? That's right! More prairie dogs!
There's a trail that takes you around the entire monument.
About 1/2 way around, I ran into a family with a mom and two adorable boys, who were completing something for the ranger. The Visitor's Center closed at 7 and the mom was worried. I ended up hiking the rest of the way with them and learned a lot about their adventures!
My friend Ron thinks there is a way to mountaineer up this baby. I am posting pictures from all angles as I'm not sure how that would be possible.
People have free climbed it before (rock climbing without the safety of ropes), but I would not try that!
The Lakota Indians call this monument "Bear Lodge" and other Indian tribes call it "Bear Rock" or "Bear Mountain" and there's a legend about how the tower got all those cracks. Two boys were taking a walk and got themselves lost on the great Wyoming prairies. They ate berries and wandered for 3 days trying to find their way home, but just getting more and more lost. On the 4th day, they noticed they were being followed by a giant bear, so large, the boys were like the size of mice to a normal bear. The ground trembled when it walked. The boys ran, looking for a place to hide. They tripped and fell, and the giant grizzly was almost on top of them showing his teeth. The boys prayed and the Earth shook. All of a sudden, this giant rock came up from out of the ground with the boys on top of it. It continued to rise over 1000 ft up. The grizzly was so big it could almost reach the top, and its claws scratched the sides of the rock trying to reach the boys, leaving the large grooves or rock climbing cracks in the rock. A large eagle then swooped down by the boys, let them hold on, and carried them back to their village.
If you look close, you can see a lot of birds circling around the left side of the picture below. Probably a dead animal in the rocks below. I wonder if a mountain lion was lurking around waiting for the people to leave so he could feast on it...
Tribal people consider this as a sacred site and hang these clothes on the trees and bushes.
There were deer and squirrels, and the boys and I spent a lot of time watching them.
Do you see the 2 rock climbers? We ran into several more climbers getting ready to climb up the cracks. It was almost 7 pm, but they wanted to see the fireworks from the top and then would rappel down in the dark. Made me wish I had my climbing gear, though I'm not really in climbing "shape" at this time.
After leaving Devils Tower, I decided to drive a few hours back toward the Rockies, and ended up in Douglas, WY for the night, just in time to watch the fireworks from their town after a pretty sunset, and several other nearby towns, before grabbing a motel and catching some shut-eye.
So, I'll share with you some of the useless thoughts that crossed my mind while watching the cows. But first I will tell you that I actually saw a cow running! This may very well be the first time I saw a cow
run, and they can run at a decent pace considering their large bulk.
Wow! Most of the cows out here are black, but you have occasional brown
ones and some white ones. Kind of like humans - black, brown, and
white. With all the racial stuff going on around us in the media, I
find myself wishing we could behave a little more like the cows. Can
you imagine how silly it would look if we were watching cows and saw a
herd of brown cows turn their backs on a black cow or not let a spotted
white one graze with them? I've been driving far too long and have seen
too many animals on this trip, because now I'm thinking... When we look at animals, we
don't usually point to the larger ones and make fun of them for being
heavier than the others or have odd spots on their skin or their hair is too long or their ears to large. We think it's cute and often we will buy them or spend more time watching those that are a little different from the rest. It's amazing how wonderfully we can view
animals, while at the same time be so judgmental around other humans. So, the lesson
from the cows on this rather boring drive? We need to be more like them and the other animals.
Getting back to the drive, once I got close to Colorado, all of a sudden it becomes a great drive, especially when you can see the mountains forming a wall on the west side of the drive off in the distance.
The first stop was Estes Park, which is a beautiful little town, and gave me the chance to stretch my legs, have a large banana nut muffin, get some water, and fill up the tank.
The drive up was magnificent!
I've climbed a number of 13 and 14'ers, but the scenery will never get old to me!!
You can see part of the winding road below. This is about 9000 ft.
At 12,000 ft, there was a short hike (about 1 mile total) with a couple hundred feet of elevation gain to reach about 12,300 ft. On this hike, there were such beautiful views of the mountains, colorful wildflowers, and a mix of grass and snow. It made me think of my mountaineering partner (and friend) Ron, who was heading to WA to climb Mount Rainier while I went on this trip. The picture below reminds me of all the beauty we have seen together.
These are views from the top.
So, while up here, I was thinking about what is so appealing about nature? Water and rocks are so simple and found everywhere (well, except very few rocks in FL). But even by themselves, they are pretty - you see a lake, you go fishing or swimming in it. You see rocks, you climb them touch them. But when you see the two together, they form something truly beautiful. A lot of the things I love most in nature come from both rock and water. A lake with a mountain in the background, a river with rocks in it creating rapids or rocks above and flanking it forming a canyon. Waterfalls, water going over the rocks. Look at the coast of CA, WA, and OR, and how the waves crash up against the rocks or the cliffs rising high above the ocean. Water and rock. They just make a beautiful pair.
If water and rock wasn't good enough, now you add in plants - trees provide shade on hikes and add color and texture to the views. The fields, valleys, colorful wildflowers in the fields or popping out of the rocks. Flowers and plants around the lakes and streams. It adds a little extra and makes me think of an artist painting a portrait. And finally, add in the white snow and wispy clouds to make the picture complete - maybe throwing in the occasional animal, as well with the fresh mountain air. I can think of almost nothing that could compare to that.
And speaking of animals... On the descent toward the Visitor's Center, there were 2 black bear loping along. Many cars were stopped to take photos (none of mine turned out unfortunately), but they were fun to see before exiting the park.
Grand Lake greeted me at the other side of the park, and had a lot of sail boats (and other boats) on it.
More great views with the mountains in the background!
I decided to take the scenic dirt roads back and took Highway 1 and Trough Road.
This was not a fast drive back, but a lot of valleys, hills, passes over small mountains, windy roads, and rivers below.
The storm clouds got darker during the drive and you could tell it was just itching to open up and start raining.
Luckily, it didn't start raining until right after getting off of the dirt road and onto 131 towards I-70. Here were some rafters enjoying the scenery from below.
I actually didn't mind the rain that much, except for the standing water through Glenwood Canyon.
And a couple hours later, I made it home and shared with the kids some of the many souvenirs I brought with me. Highlights include a book on none other than the famous prairie dogs for Luke and a baby book on pronghorn antelope for Maribelle.
Maribelle was playing with her rainbow colored python and Luke's coral snake, while Luke started reading his new reptile book, which went nicely (I thought) with all of his dinosaur books.
The P-51D Mustang went with the missile book (which is MJ's), and the rest were a little of this and a little of that - things picked up just about everywhere I went that serve as little reminders of the trip. :-)
A great road for motorcycles.
The spires were gorgeous and one of my favorite things to see on this trip!
The tunnels were super narrow.
This is the needle eye formation.
I enjoyed it so much, I made a U-turn up by needle's eye and drove back through about 1/2 of that scenic road again. Then I connected with Iron Mountain - another very scenic drive through the Black Hills, which led to Mount Rushmore.
This was my first time at Mount Rushmore. It made me think of the movie Superman, when the bad guys wearing black changed the presidents' faces to their own. Anyway, seeing Mount Rushmore over this weekend felt very patriotic. There were flags all along the entrance and concrete posts listed when each state became part of the United States.
The sun was setting behind the monument, darkening the presidents' faces. Beneath them was a band playing patriotic songs such as "God Bless America".
I finished eating at about 9:30 pm and headed back to the Crazy Horse Memorial to view the 10:00 pm show. My phone camera/video didn't capture this well, but it was actually pretty cool and lasted about 30 minutes. Prior to the start of the show, they lit up the Crazy Horse mountain and had Indian music and drums playing. There were many different colors used.
I had planned on camping Friday night, but there were no campsites available - I had been checking throughout the day at various places. I went in search of a motel, and ended up driving past Hot Springs before giving up and trying to lay out the blankets and pillows and sleep in my car. Of course, being long and having a compact car, I didn't quite fit. Not to mention, the small town didn't have anything open 24/7, so there was no where to use the bathroom at 2 am. So... I searched again and finally found something (quite expensive, but open due to a last minute vacancy) and I had a bed to sleep in for a few hours, a much needed bathroom, and a shower.
Saturday
If I had half a brain, I would have headed north to Rapid City, just 20 miles from Mount Rushmore, where they DO have 24/7 restaurants, gas stations, and many more motels/hotels to choose from. It also would have been a lot closer to what I was doing today and I could have either seen Mount Rushmore during sunrise or driven to the Badlands while it was still early, cool, and tourist free. Ah well, at least I hadn't accumulated another speeding ticket!
I took some coffee to go, and on the drive, saw some beautiful hot air balloons that played peek-a-boo with the trees and hills as I made my way back through Wind Cave National Park toward Mount Rushmore.
I had wanted to see Mount Rushmore in the morning and also decided to hike around the Presidential Trail, which had information along the way about each president.
They also had a sculpture studio showing what they used before the current technology to sculpt and blast the rock while making Mount Rushmore.
By 0800 I was on the road again headed toward Rapid City.
This shot reminds me of living in Sanford, FL. Passing by the river on the way to work, you'd see the 2 lumps - head and body - and know you were looking at a gator relaxing in the water. It also reminds me of Luke. One of the last times I saw him we went canoeing in FL, watched the bumps from the gators disappear under the canoe, and then we managed to tip over the canoe when Luke jerked to the side to avoid a tree branch. Naturally, this was the one time I hadn't put anything in dry bags attached to the canoe, so we lost the keys, shoes, and other things, and then had to swim with the canoe through the gator-infested river until we could reach a side and right the canoe. Needless to say, it was a fun adventure and looking at the alligators made me miss my brother.
And... More prairie dogs!!
Prairie dogs observing the humans. Note that the entrance to their burrow looks like a mini-volcano. That's to keep it from flooding when it rains and to keep watch for predators. Owls, rodents, snakes, and rabbits sometimes make their homes in prairie dog burrows.
This one is keeping watch over the others.
This one is preparing for winter fasting apparently. Prairie dogs can run in short spurts up to 35 mph!!! (Though I sincerely doubt that chubby one below can!)
After watching the prairie dogs, I went to see the giant tortoises. You could ride them they are so big, and I was told they are 400-500 pounds, and can get up to 700 pounds and 4-5 ft tall!!
Well, we weren't allowed to ride them, but they did enjoy having their necks rubbed.
What would a 4th of July be like without a bald eagle?
Posing for the camera. :-)
There were beautiful gardens and an area known as "Tortuga Falls" with a pond full of colorful carp and small turtles.
This is a kookaburra named "Darwin". When I first came by him, he made noises like a monkey. It was actually pretty cool! As soon as I turned on my video, however, he was quiet and couldn't be coaxed back into "singing".
There were many different types of snakes - some large, some small, some venomous, some not. I happen to love snakes, so here are some pictures.
This is a saw scaled viper - very venomous!
Copperhead - venomous.
Mojave desert sidewinder.
Rattlesnake - venomous.
Radde's mountain viper - venomous.
And now for some of the larger ones... Jungle carpet python - non-venomous.
Mexican black-tail rattlesnake - venomous.
Samar cobra (only the recently shed skin could be found; very venomous... I wonder if it found a way to escape??? :-)
An anaconda - non-venomous, but it is the largest, heaviest, and 2nd longest snake that can reach 300 lbs and grow to 22 ft long!!
The black mamba - extremely venomous! (You might remember this snake from the movie Kill Bill.)
I've never seen the "Fierce Snake" before, but the name is very appropriate!
You can only see a little part of it. Luckily, this snake lives very far from you and I, but if you head to Australia...watch out!
The guy holding the snakes wasn't bad looking either!
This is a slender snout crocodile.
These are Cuban crocodiles.
The American crocodile is smiling! Must be having a good dream. :-)
Here's a beaded lizard.
The Komodo dragon lives in the Indonesian islands and is the largest lizard in the world!
The Fiji Island banded iguana is peaking out to see what everyone is doing.
This is a dyeing poison arrow frog.
The bumblebee walking toad lives near water, but not in it, and is just about the size of a large bumblebee!
Don't be fooled by how cute and tiny these little guys are! They are green and black poison arrow frogs. Indians would use their skin secretions to coat arrows. The toxins remain lethal for up to a year, and can kill 10 humans!!
And of course... A bullfrog!
This is a tiger salamander, which looks very slimy.
This is a pink-toe tarantula, which is mildly venomous.
And the most disgusting bug of all - the cockroach! These suckers can get up to 4 inches long!!
Here's a Mexican red-knee tarantula.
Like most, the flat rock scorpion will turn bright florescent green under a black light.
This is a giant red-headed centipede.
And last, but not least, a Chinese alligator.
After the Reptile Gardens, I stopped at the Air and Space Museum, also in Rapid City.
The early space missions of the 1960s showed the value of being able to see Earth from space. Changes to the landscape could be seen that couldn't otherwise. In 1966 there was plan to start a satellite program, using remote sensing instruments to study the Earth. Think of what we now rely on satellites for!
This is the international space station.
The first powered plane, built by the Wright brothers.
The aft crew station below simulates the offensive and defensive systems operator (radar navigation, weapons systems, and the electronic threat environment they are likely to encounter during a typical mission.
Reading about the stratosphere balloon journey was pretty cool! In 1935, Captains Anderson and Stevens ascended in the gondola of the Explorer II - the world's largest balloon - and reached 72,395 feet!!!
This is a statoscope, used for determining the departure from constant altitudes. The air pressure changes, causing bubbles to form in the tubes. The rate of movement and direction indicate whether or not the balloon is ascending or descending and how quickly.
This is a balloon gas leak detector. It replaced the old way (which is still used by many car mechanics to look for leaks in tires) of applying a soap solution over places to identify leaks.
This was a neat picture - patriotic!
Following the museum, I drove to the Badlands National Park. It was hot, but I still stopped to do some short hikes here and there. It was a little like the Bookcliffs and a smaller version of the grand canyon combined. Not bad if you haven't seen it, though I'd recommend coming early in the morning to avoid slow traffic and heat!
I love the colors on these rocks. Not as colorful as painters palette in Death Valley, but that's what it reminds me of.
And there were a lot of pronghorn antelope! (This should have been called the "Wildlife Loop"!)
By the time I finished this park, I realized it was not in fact a loop. I was not pleased because now I had to drive back through it again to get back to the Minuteman Missile sites - a stop that I though would complement the Air and Space Museum. Oh well, what's another 60 miles round trip out of the way? LOL And since there haven't been any prairie dog photos in a while... Look what I saw along the way!!
There were no more tours of the underground missile launch control center, but I was able to go to the spot where they had an underground missile launch (phone guided tour) and spent time at the historic site.
I bought a book on the Minuteman Missiles before leaving to learn more. In short, the Cold War left a bad taste in everyone's mouth and the fear of a possible nuclear war between the US and Soviet Union. The Minuteman Missiles were used as a nuclear deterrent and a way to keep peace. Foreign countries knew that if anyone launched a nuclear attack against the US and we retaliated with these babies, their civilization would be destroyed.
It was interesting to see their magazines to the public on what's needed for a bomb shelter and air raid protection.
We take for granted not having to worry about planes bombing us (and hopefully it will stay that way).
There was a timeline that listed what went on every year for > 50 years from a missile or nuclear standpoint. I didn't read everything, but there was some interesting and informative tidbits.
The missile site was active from the 1960s to 1990s.
Farms and small towns lived right next door to the missile sites, and many people driving by, never had a clue what was just a few hundred feet from the road. Since it's the 4th of July, this is a great site to visit, as it is one of the reasons were were able to maintain our freedom and keep safe from a nuclear attack.
D-9 is the old underground missile launch area. There was a big sign that said "Warning Restricted Area" like it's a military zone, but they were old because this was part of what the guy at the historic site said could be viewed and there were signs with the phone number to call and get the guided tour. Still... It was rather isolated and eerie, and I wondered if a drone shot me out of the sky how long it would take before someone realized I was missing. :-)
There are pictures in my book of what this looked like when it was operational. Luckily, we never had to launch one.
It was about 2:30 pm when I left, and I decided to head out to Devils Tower on the way back home - short detour... Along the way, I saw one of Luke's friends! :-) (This is in Wall Drug, so we may see more pictures from Angie if she goes there on her journey.)
I had seen these pre-World War II cars at the Badlands, and passed them on the way.
It was a long drive, and I stopped for lunch/dinner along the way. Finally, I saw the little bump sticking out of the horizon and thought... Yeah! I'm almost there!!
I'm sure this is will surprise you, but guess what I saw at the entrance to Devils Tower??? That's right! More prairie dogs!
There's a trail that takes you around the entire monument.
About 1/2 way around, I ran into a family with a mom and two adorable boys, who were completing something for the ranger. The Visitor's Center closed at 7 and the mom was worried. I ended up hiking the rest of the way with them and learned a lot about their adventures!
My friend Ron thinks there is a way to mountaineer up this baby. I am posting pictures from all angles as I'm not sure how that would be possible.
People have free climbed it before (rock climbing without the safety of ropes), but I would not try that!
The Lakota Indians call this monument "Bear Lodge" and other Indian tribes call it "Bear Rock" or "Bear Mountain" and there's a legend about how the tower got all those cracks. Two boys were taking a walk and got themselves lost on the great Wyoming prairies. They ate berries and wandered for 3 days trying to find their way home, but just getting more and more lost. On the 4th day, they noticed they were being followed by a giant bear, so large, the boys were like the size of mice to a normal bear. The ground trembled when it walked. The boys ran, looking for a place to hide. They tripped and fell, and the giant grizzly was almost on top of them showing his teeth. The boys prayed and the Earth shook. All of a sudden, this giant rock came up from out of the ground with the boys on top of it. It continued to rise over 1000 ft up. The grizzly was so big it could almost reach the top, and its claws scratched the sides of the rock trying to reach the boys, leaving the large grooves or rock climbing cracks in the rock. A large eagle then swooped down by the boys, let them hold on, and carried them back to their village.
If you look close, you can see a lot of birds circling around the left side of the picture below. Probably a dead animal in the rocks below. I wonder if a mountain lion was lurking around waiting for the people to leave so he could feast on it...
There were deer and squirrels, and the boys and I spent a lot of time watching them.
Do you see the 2 rock climbers? We ran into several more climbers getting ready to climb up the cracks. It was almost 7 pm, but they wanted to see the fireworks from the top and then would rappel down in the dark. Made me wish I had my climbing gear, though I'm not really in climbing "shape" at this time.
I slept in Sunday morning until 0630 and then took off, heading to Rocky Mountain National Park. The first part of the drive is incredibly boring. It's all about cows and never ending fields.
So, I'll share with you some of the useless thoughts that crossed my mind while watching the cows. But first I will tell you that I actually saw a cow running! This may very well be the first time I saw a cow
run, and they can run at a decent pace considering their large bulk.
Wow! Most of the cows out here are black, but you have occasional brown
ones and some white ones. Kind of like humans - black, brown, and
white. With all the racial stuff going on around us in the media, I
find myself wishing we could behave a little more like the cows. Can
you imagine how silly it would look if we were watching cows and saw a
herd of brown cows turn their backs on a black cow or not let a spotted
white one graze with them? I've been driving far too long and have seen
too many animals on this trip, because now I'm thinking... When we look at animals, we
don't usually point to the larger ones and make fun of them for being
heavier than the others or have odd spots on their skin or their hair is too long or their ears to large. We think it's cute and often we will buy them or spend more time watching those that are a little different from the rest. It's amazing how wonderfully we can view
animals, while at the same time be so judgmental around other humans. So, the lesson
from the cows on this rather boring drive? We need to be more like them and the other animals.Getting back to the drive, once I got close to Colorado, all of a sudden it becomes a great drive, especially when you can see the mountains forming a wall on the west side of the drive off in the distance.
The first stop was Estes Park, which is a beautiful little town, and gave me the chance to stretch my legs, have a large banana nut muffin, get some water, and fill up the tank.
The drive up was magnificent!
I've climbed a number of 13 and 14'ers, but the scenery will never get old to me!!
You can see part of the winding road below. This is about 9000 ft.
At 12,000 ft, there was a short hike (about 1 mile total) with a couple hundred feet of elevation gain to reach about 12,300 ft. On this hike, there were such beautiful views of the mountains, colorful wildflowers, and a mix of grass and snow. It made me think of my mountaineering partner (and friend) Ron, who was heading to WA to climb Mount Rainier while I went on this trip. The picture below reminds me of all the beauty we have seen together.
These are views from the top.
So, while up here, I was thinking about what is so appealing about nature? Water and rocks are so simple and found everywhere (well, except very few rocks in FL). But even by themselves, they are pretty - you see a lake, you go fishing or swimming in it. You see rocks, you climb them touch them. But when you see the two together, they form something truly beautiful. A lot of the things I love most in nature come from both rock and water. A lake with a mountain in the background, a river with rocks in it creating rapids or rocks above and flanking it forming a canyon. Waterfalls, water going over the rocks. Look at the coast of CA, WA, and OR, and how the waves crash up against the rocks or the cliffs rising high above the ocean. Water and rock. They just make a beautiful pair.
If water and rock wasn't good enough, now you add in plants - trees provide shade on hikes and add color and texture to the views. The fields, valleys, colorful wildflowers in the fields or popping out of the rocks. Flowers and plants around the lakes and streams. It adds a little extra and makes me think of an artist painting a portrait. And finally, add in the white snow and wispy clouds to make the picture complete - maybe throwing in the occasional animal, as well with the fresh mountain air. I can think of almost nothing that could compare to that.
And speaking of animals... On the descent toward the Visitor's Center, there were 2 black bear loping along. Many cars were stopped to take photos (none of mine turned out unfortunately), but they were fun to see before exiting the park.
Grand Lake greeted me at the other side of the park, and had a lot of sail boats (and other boats) on it.
More great views with the mountains in the background!
I decided to take the scenic dirt roads back and took Highway 1 and Trough Road.
This was not a fast drive back, but a lot of valleys, hills, passes over small mountains, windy roads, and rivers below.
The storm clouds got darker during the drive and you could tell it was just itching to open up and start raining.
Luckily, it didn't start raining until right after getting off of the dirt road and onto 131 towards I-70. Here were some rafters enjoying the scenery from below.
And a couple hours later, I made it home and shared with the kids some of the many souvenirs I brought with me. Highlights include a book on none other than the famous prairie dogs for Luke and a baby book on pronghorn antelope for Maribelle.
Maribelle was playing with her rainbow colored python and Luke's coral snake, while Luke started reading his new reptile book, which went nicely (I thought) with all of his dinosaur books.
The P-51D Mustang went with the missile book (which is MJ's), and the rest were a little of this and a little of that - things picked up just about everywhere I went that serve as little reminders of the trip. :-)
