Vacation 2008

homeward bound

2008-09-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

We woke up around 4 due to the noise, laid around until around 6 and gave it up to get anymore sleep. So we packed and left. Stopping at Denny's for breakfast and then we hit the road. The mountains are behind us. Not to be seen again until our next vacation. Its sad. The weather is rainy and deary. The road.... very long, boring and not a bathroom to be seen for miles. Our coffee was a mistake. Finally we saw a roadside stop. Rick stopped and as he walked to the outhouse a huge swarm of mosquitoes flew up in a cloud. Bad side. They landed on the windows and were huge. Gee maybe I don't have to go that bad after all. Rick returned looking pale. You don't want to use that restroom he gasped. It is the worse yet. You wouldn't be able to sit, or breath, or maybe even live through it. Hummmm, sounds grim. Off we go toward town looking for a McDonald's. Right outside of the town I see a park. With a new restroom. Would it be clean? We had been having terrible luck in Colorado with the rest stops. Was it a teenagers nationals past time to trash the pit stops? Kind of like tipping cows or Tee peeing houses in other towns? Still, I had had the endless pot of coffee at Denny's. Me with the bladder of a gnat. 100 miles ago. So we pulled in and I went in. Heaven. Clean, sparkling clean, smelled good. Working faucets. Toilets that flush. Paper towels. Yippy. It really is the little things in life, LOL. On our travels we hadn't seen many highway patrol. Maybe 3 in 3000 miles. No one drives the speed limit. That all changed when we hit Nebraska. All of a sudden about every 15 miles there was a highway patrolman with a speeder pulled over. We slowed down and stopped following the flow. What a bummer to end our trip with a ticket. So crawling along at 75 we worked our way home. The sun started peaking out and we were making good time. At this rate we should make it to town around 3:30 and could eat at our favorite restaurant before going home. I called my son to tell him the good news where he proceeded to remind me we were out of mountain time now and it was a hour later then we thought. Bummer. That meant we would be hitting Omaha at rush hour. Bigger Bummer. That would put it closer to 6 or 7 if we didn't get stuck in traffic behind a accident like happened to us last time. Why is it once you decide to go home you just want it to be over. Blink your eyes and be there. For the first time I was cramped in our van. Our tempers were short. And we did hit rush hour traffic from Lincoln Nebraska on. But no accidents. So we crept along and finally at 6:45 we pulled up at Sweet Fannies for supper and then home. Heaven. We got home and Zoey glued herself to us. We visited with our son and both talked at once about our trip. It had been wonderful. Expensive but wonderful. We put on a little over 4000 miles. 4000 miles of beautiful country. By the next day we are already planning the next trip. We can't wait.

2008-09-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

Leaving Vernal we hit HWY 40. It is a long straight road that the Halaburton oil trucks use. Littered along side the road on both sides are bottles, beer and water like they just drive and toss it out of the windows. There antelope on both side of the highway and it was just a lovely day to travel.   The speed limit seems to be whatever your comfortable driving in this state and everyone was over the speed limit. On the straights though it was fine. This is dinosaur country. We took pictures often. To Cache dey Poudre National Forest and Canyon. It was weird. So many of the tall trees are dying. In places more dead then living. Here is this beautiful forest with brown trees all over. I know in the black hills they say they have gotten a beatle that is killing the trees. I wonder if they are here also.

   This is another very very tall mountain where they seem to delight in letting cattle run loose. Going around a hairpin it isn't unusual to have a cow in the road.   We went to through high mountain aspen groves and saw deer all over. Again trout streams all over. We drove through Cameron Pass which was at 10,600 ft. Rick was checking out the altimeter on his watch like crazy all the way down. Next to the road runs a stream that is a favorite of fisherman. They were all over. Small water falls, rapids, it was just beautiful.   The deeper in the canyon you get the higher the wall around you. Winding road which one crazy woman tried to pass on the outside with a double yellow and almost gave us a heart attack. She made it back to her side. Why do people do that?
   We stopped in Steamboat Springs to use the park restroom. Getting out of the car we were struck by this rotten egg type smell. The park had a hot spring hole and it was steaming and smelling us a storm. Going to the restroom I found it had been totally trashed and was unusable. That seemed to be true most of the way through Colorado. Now a woman likes a nice clean spot to stop. Yellowstone was a dream come true. I travel with disinfectant wipes and gloves, hand sanitizer and my own tissue. But nothing could fix the filthy rest stops in Steamboat. Either the door didn't work, they were trashed or people had smeared the unmentionable on the walls. Why do people do that? I finally stopped a McDonalds. They always have clean restrooms.

   Steamboat springs would be a nice town if your under 30, have no body fat and like to do sports. It was very busy. We stopped and watch some children in their kayaking class. That was fun. After stretching for awhile we drove on.

    Past Walden we saw a huge bull moose crossing the road. I jumped out of the car to get pictures.   It was just huge. It stopped briefly in the middle of the road to look at me and then jumped the fence like it was nothing. It was my first bull moose and I was thrilled.

   Finally after driving through the canyon for hours and hours we drove to Ft. Collins Colorado.   Another college town. Very busy. After all the hours on lonely long highways I am anxious in crowded towns. We checked into a motel and went to Old Chicago for supper. I think it was the first meal and we were hungry.   Tomorrow we start home. The motel was OK. A large motel with lots of empty rooms they insisted on giving us a room next to someone who had a grill and cooler set outside his room. He was up the entire night talking outside the window with people who came and went. Drug dealers? Who knows but of all the rooms, why stick us there. We weren't as lucky with our motel rooms as we were getting tables at restaurants.

9/06/08

2008-09-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

   I slept great again, thank goodness for sleeping pills.   We went to the Teton Steak house for breakfast. They had a breakfast buffet which was good, great service and dark coffee. Yummy and the price was great. Then off to the Tetons for more pictures. They are just stunning. Neither camera, actually photographer could do them justice.

See the glacier on the mountain.

We drove to the lakes and passed streams were people were fly fishing again.

I stopped to get pictures and sat on this old bridge to get a better shot. Well it turned out to be a dirty bridge and I got grease all over my pants.   But it was worth it as I think the shot looks pretty.

   We did some hiking but not much as we still had a long way to go. The every present warning about grizzle bears makes you nervous also but it must not make the regulars nervous as there were many people backpacking. I wish we had more times.

Then we started on for the next part of our day. We always like traveling by the old highways instead of interstate.

We chose wisely today. We decided to take the old Flaming Gorge highway.   HWY 43, 44 and then 191. Climbing up and down mountains. We saw numerous deer. Very pretty country. Cattle on steep mountain corners. Rick has this man thing of checking his watches altimeter at every mountain top. Finally he gets to use this function on this watch. Here we are going around 15 steep hairpin turns on the tops of mountains with 7800 ft drops and he's checking his watch to see if it the same as on the sign. Yikes. Keep your eyes on the road I grip. Who cares how far we have to fall if you drive off the edge. It still scares me on those turns. One steep hill was a 8.5 downhill grade with hairpin turns. 2 semi' cautiously making their way behind us. One the signs along side the road it says, only 6 more left, only 5 more left.... Ears popping every few thousand feet.

But what a beautiful road. Flaming Gorge with its red canyon walls and sapphire blue water.   At the top of a mountain we stopped at the lookout to get a couple of pictures.

Rick is as happy as a lark standing at the edge of the world.

Have I mentioned before this is a beautiful country?

    Tonight we only made it to Vernal, Utah Those mountain roads take forever to drive. The downtown is lovely with large baskets of petunia lining the entire main street. We got a so so room and had a so so meal and then hit the hay. We had hoped to make Steamboat Springs but were about 150 miles short. Still it was such a lovely day it didn't matter. We are slowly working our way back to home.

9/05/08

2008-09-24T11:46:00.000-07:00

    We didn't get the free breakfast after all as we decided to go back to Grannies. It was very good. Our timing was once again perfect. We got seated right before the pack filled the place up and from there on there was a waiting list. Now back to Yellowstone.

Today the weather was sunny and just beautiful. The pictures should turn out better.

Driving in we saw a female moose and her calf eating along side the road.

Then on to the park.

   You really need at least 4 days to do the park and more to hike and see it all. Even with so much of it burned it is beautiful.

The fire area's are even interesting as you see how a forest recovers from a fire throughout the years. The first one from 10 years ago has new growth taller then me and the ones from this week just look sad. Wildflowers all over. There is a controlled burn going on so occasionally you get a whiff of smoke. Which smells much better then the mud pots by the way.

      Today we saw sandhill cranes which are migrating through the park right now.

We saw mud flats, steam vents, waterfalls, lakes and mountains.

I gave Rick the Soni and I took the canon so we both have shots and Rick got some great ones. The colors are just beautiful also.

    We did some backtracking to see things we didn't getto see the day before and then drove on through the park to the Grand Tetons. Coming around a corner 8 hours later, framed in a V in the road with trees on each side was our first view of the Tetons.

I have always wanted to see them and they were just as impressive and breathtaking as I had hoped. I snapped away as we drove by them but it was now dark and misty and we didn't stop

Years before my in laws had taken a trip for the summer and visited all the parks with my sons. My FIL kept saying, another beautiful panoramic view. We teased him but now I now why. Each corner brings a new wonder to view. These are the most impressive mountains I have ever seen. Snow capped and dark rugged peaks. We drive by a large lake with them on the other side for miles. We didn't get to linger long as we wanted to get to Jackson Hole before dark and we will be coming back tomorrow so we drove on.

     Finally we made it to Jackson Hole and got a room at the Flat Creek inn. Very overpriced room just like one we had gotten for half that price in every other town. Jackson Hole is a rich persons tourist trap type place with lots of extremely overpriced items for sell and very very busy. People walking all over and right out in front of you if you weren't careful. The decor is neat, all log buildings.   Lots of Eddie Bauer type clothing here. People are dressed like rich hunters or rich fly fisherman. College kids all over. Not my type of town. I like Cody better but still a pretty town and truthfully we weren't there long enough to know.

     We went to Snake River Brewing to eat and when we first walked in I was dismayed to see how busy and noisy it was. I was tired and just wanted a beer and meal and then sleep in that order. However. The beer was tasty, the foodwas great and I relaxed once we were seated. Once again getting the last table in the room. Rick had the Green Chili Burritoand I had this great spiced chicken on linguine. It was just yummy. Huge portion again and my diet is definitely shot.

9/4/08

2008-09-23T11:36:00.000-07:00

I slept great and am enjoying a cup of coffee in the room. We only found out today that the mountains we drove through, and the forest were the Big Horn National Forest.   This is trout fishing country.   We saw so many beautiful streams and many of them had people fishing. I would love to learn how.

   We decided to stay another day so I called the front desk to see if we could get the room for another night. They said this one was rented but they had another they could give us for the same rate. OK, cool. They said that room was already ready so we drove to the front desk and got the key and paid. Went back to the room and opened the door, nope not ready. Turns out it is right across from where we were staying. Strange. Why didn't they just clean this one and give it to the people who were coming and keep us in the same room? I talked to the housekeeping manager who said it didn't make sense either but admitted the people at the desk didn't always know what was going on in the cabins in the back. They would clean the room and get it ready for us. So.

    We parked the van and walked around Cody.   Such a pretty town.   They have painted bear like we have painted prairie dogs here. I made Rick pose by a couple.

We did some shopping and I got a job offer. Now wouldn't that be nice. Then we stopped at the coffee shop, the Beta and got strong coffee with espresso.

Now that picked me right up. Then we walked to Grannies for a skillet brunch and then went back to see if the cabin was ready.

Nope. The manager was very very nice and we talked to him about how to get to Yellowstone and how long it would take. He told us the best way to do it. See some today, and then in the morning go back and turn so we could get to the Tetons. We were getting a much later start then we wanted so wouldn't be able to see it all. And it let me into the cabin so I could go to the bathroom. Now we were ready.

      It was a long drive and we got todrive through a long tunnel.

. We stopped at the Buffalo Bill damn for pictures and then went to Yellowstone. The weather was overcast and spitting rain. We passed a fresh forest fire at the Shoshone national forest. The foot and a half of snow they had on the 1st is what put it out. I was a long drive to get there. Nice drive though.

    It was a nice drive and we had a wonderful rock filled trout stream running along side the road most of the way.

    There are reminders along side the stream that humans are not the only ones who enjoy fishing at the stream and we saw fresh bear scat and tracks. I kept my eyes open.

    We hadn't quite realized it was as far as it was to Yellowstone from Cody. It was a beautiful drive though and occasionally the sun peaked out.

There is evidence all over of the huge fires in Yellowstone. At first you wonder if any trees left in yellowstone.

The weather was overcast and spitting rain. Cold cold cold. It was 2:30 by the time we got to the park.

Most of my pictures were terrible due to the rain.

   We saw moose, elk, buffalo again. In fact we got stalled by the buffalo. I was happy the roads in Yellowstone, while windy and steep were wider then some of the mountain roads we had been on.   Coming out of rocks all along the drive were waterfalls from the recent snow melt.

Flowers everywhere.

It is just beautiful. On one large lake along side of the road steam rises from underground hot springs.

This is repeated allover the park. It reminds you that we are on a large active volcano. I suppose as long as it is letting off steam we are fine.

     I kept stopping to take pictures which didn't turn out for the most part and that turned out to be our downfall. We finally got to old faithful just in time to see it ending. We then had to wait 90 minutes for it to go off again. It was cold, in the 30's and spitting rain. We walked around and looked at the others and then waited. Tell the truth, it was not worth the hypothermia. We sat in the wrong place so we only saw steam coming at us and I was so cold I was just happy it was time to leave.

Burrrr. I was happy to see it though. Now I know why they have medic's in the park. To treat the frozen guests. The lodge was very cool though. Rick touched the water in the streams that run away from the geyser and it was cool.

   In the parking lot we saw a truck that was so awesome. It was from South Africa. The windows were all barred and on the side was a world map with a red line showing where all they had been. It was the kind of truck that would go through streams and rivers, over deserts and mountains alike.

In the van I was so happy for the heated seats. I was not dressed for 37 degree weather.

     Now we had the joy of driving 100miles back to Cody. It didn't seem like we had driven that far to get here but it sured seemed like that going home. Now we had to drive down the mountain.   And it was foggy, rain mixed with snow and the temps were dropping. We were praying it wouldn't ice up and remembered that just 3 days ago they had had a foot and a half of snow here. Sure didn't want any of that on this steep winding road. We were lucky to be almost the only ones on the road. The parkis empty at this time of night with most people staying at lodges or cabins or campers and not leaving like us.

We saw buffalo on the road. It is hard to get them to move to the side. They are so big and not real friendly so you let them walk where they want. Beautiful fox along side the road and a great horned elk trotting through a meadow. I took pictures again at the lake.

   The temp only got down to 35 so no freezing and we finally got back to town at 9:30.   How nice to get back to our little cabin which was now ready and welcoming for us. They had put a silk rose, 2 free breakfast passes and a note of appology for the mix up of this morning. We were amused to see the cabin we had had to vacate this morning still sitting empty. It was too late to go anywhere to eat so we were glad we had a late brunch. Dinner tonight, sausage, cheese and crackers and bed.   Tomorrow....free breakfast, back to Yellowstone and thenthe Grand Tetons.

9/3/08

2008-09-23T08:27:00.000-07:00

Off to Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument . We listening to the rangers talk which was very interesting. The weather was trying to rain at times and breezing. Then we walked around and looked over the site. It is so sad. Each side fighting for its own way of life and not budging in the least. The graves look so sad on the hillsides.

Then back on the road again. I love Montana.   Open ranges, no government fences, beautiful. Each state is beautiful in its own way. You see lots of 4 X 4 trucks in this state.   Long lonely roads. After driving for miles we entered Wyoming.

   Again another beautiful state. In the distance we could see these big beautiful mountains. How cool.

When your from Iowa mountains just impress the heck out of you. There was snow on the tops and low laying clouds. These are the Big horn Mountains.   Check out this photo galary on line. Great pictures. Now the temps have dropped to the 40's. 106 two days ago, 40's today. What a temperature change.

    I didn't realize we were going to be driving up these very big mountains. And down.   Wow. Just beautiful. We drove through clouds and then above them. Up high enough the tops were bare. Above the tree lines.     My pictures just can't do it justice. We saw the medicine wheel at the top. And Snow!

Then down. I was shaking in my crocs at the steep descent.

Wouldn't you hate to be a truck driving and have to use the run a way ramp? They should have a changing room at the top because I would definitely have to change my pants.

When we got to the bottom we drove on a bridge that went right through a big lake. The water was down but it was still pretty. It was called Big Horn Lake.

Our next stop? Cody Wyoming.

   We rented this charming little wood cabin located behind the Holiday inn. Buffalo Bill Village Cabins. They drive you back there in a golf cart to check out the room. They are clean and cute and each room has a stuffed buffalo to cuddle up with. I was charmed.

We cleaned up and went out to eat at Bubba's rib shack.

    We have been so lucky with eating out. We will go to a place that is packed and still get seated right away at the last table. No wait at all. Ton's of people behind us waiting as tables get empty. It was this way the entire trip. anyway at Bubba's once again more foodthen I could possibly eat but Rick shared my meal. The food is great and I recommend it if you go there.

    I really liked the town and there is so much to see I wanted to stay another day. The rooms are pricey so we shall see. We walked around and I got some knives for our sons. Then back to the room to sleep. Another great day.

9/2/08

2008-09-22T09:38:00.000-07:00

   We got started early but sure didn't get very far. We stopped at Fort Buford. First we went to the visitors center and then to the fort. The visitor center is where the Yellowstone river meets the Missouri. The fort is where Sitting Bull surrendered thus ending the Indian Wars. We stood in the very room. I have read some books on the Indian wars so I found this very interesting. The guide giving the talk was amazing. We also walked through the graveyard and I got some pictures. Most people had died of disease, very few from actual fights with the Indians. There are indian scouts and soldiers as well as civilians.

We were the only visitors and Rick asked so many questions that it was late by the time we got back on the road. So on we went to Montana, the big sky country.

   We hit mountain time again so all of a sudden it wasn't so late, back an hour. Cool. We drove the longest loneliest road. Highway 200 which turns into 16 and then interstate 94. It took us hours and it was late enough we didn't try to make Billings. So here we are at Econolodge in Miles City, Montana. Now to find a place to eat. We had eaten breakfast at Dakota Farms in Williston this morning but it is almost 7.

We were told about a restaurant we decided to try and were very pleased with. We ate at the Cattle-ac. Wonderful Mexican food.   I had the best chicken and was stuffed. The servings are way to large here and I am not exercising enough to be eating like this. But it is wonderful. Then back to the motel to rest. Another just wonderful day.

Sept 1st

2008-09-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

    After we slept on it we decide to go back to the Northern Rim of Theodore Roosevelt park. First however we needed to do laundry. There was one close so we stopped. The woman working there acted like her face would break if she smiled. All the young oil rig workers were in doing there laundry. Since it is a holiday they probably don't have to work. They all seemed friendly. The weather is cold and rainy.   From 106 yesterday to mid 50's today. What a change. We got the clothes started and then walked over to the coffee shop for good dark roast coffee. Nothing like a good cup of dark roast to warm you up.

     The badlands look completely different in rain. Very pretty. The northern part of the park isn't visited as much. I don't know why. It is just lovely. It took us about 3 to 4 hours to drive through the park. We saw sheep, buffalo and prairie dogs.

        Canon ball rock formations....aren't they just so cool!

The hill formations are very unique and we stopped to ask the ranger about the rock formations. It really is worth seeing.

      After driving in rain we ended up in Williston North Dakota. We got a nice room with much better rates. Still can't get the laptop to work. These motels all advertise internet service but I have yet to get my laptop to work and the people working the desk are no help. Might be my old laptop though it works at home. We went to Applebee's to work and then back to room. I am sitting here sipping a Youngs Double Chocolate Stout and typing my days entry. Another great day. Montana tomorrow. Afirst for us. It still may rain and snow. We shall see.

A side note. Today is my anniversary of quitting smoking. 4 years.

8/31/08

2008-09-22T08:03:00.000-07:00

Off we go. Tired but happy. It is always good to travel.

   Rick had heard about a place that hundreds of years ago lightening had hit it and it was still burning underground called the Burning Coal Vein.

We decided to see that.   It meant leaving the pavement and going on this wonderful long red gravel road.   It was just beautiful.

The weather was clear with bright blue sky. The area reminded us of the badlands. Hills streaked with red black, yellow, and white. The contrast with the red rock is beautiful.

Along the way we saw mule deer, rattlesnakes, turkeys and antelope. Every corner I was telling Rick to stop so I could get pictures. It was just that beautiful for miles and miles.

North Dakota has huge ranches and is very unpopulated. The have recently turned more to oil so you see the occasional oil rig

but mostly just unspoiled beauty. No Cell Phone towers, no government fences. No phone. We pulled into the park and saw hunters set up and on tent had a carcass of some sort hung so they could skin it.   Most everyone drives trucks and ride horses. We took the Hamann road to Burning Coal Field and too the east river road to Medora. That was the best off the beaten track road I have ever traveled and I highly recommend it.

   Medora is a pretty little touristy town. Lots of pretty and expensive things to buy. Very cowboy orientated. Boots and hats, western wear and horns. This is horse country and they have saddle shops on every downtown here. We went to the Missouri Dining room & Saloon and ate. It was our first meal since last night and we were hungry. Rick had a buffalo burger and I had the patty melt. We both got pie for dessert. Yummy, it was the best lemon meringue pie.

     After walking around we went to Theodore Roosevelt park. This is the other badlands.   Theodore Roosevelt had ranches around here.

This is very beautiful country. The badlands here have more trees and more water. They aren't as deep as the badlands in South Dakota but I actually liked them better.

Even the buffalo seem wilder here. They have wild horses and going around the corner we saw one lone horse walking right down the road. Of course I got a picture.

       They had a peak that you could climb to get pictures. Very high and steep. My lungs are still messed up but I was not going to let that stop me. So up we climbed. It was really high. I told some German men that were up there that I was afraid of heights but I wanted the picture, so here I was. They laughed as the one taking pictures was the same way. We all agreed the view was worth it. Rick stood out on the point but I couldn't. It was really windy and I was worried he would blow away. He got pictures with the Soni, I with the canon. You can see the top where we climbed in the picture below.

Leaving the park we drove to Dickinson to get a room for the night. For reasons known only to Rick he had always wanted to go to Dickinson. So off we went leaving pretty little Medora behind with all their empty pretty little motel rooms to the great unknown.   And wow, we got to Dickinson and were shocked. Tiny old style motel rooms that were rented by the week or closed completely. Closed stores block after block because it was Sunday. We usually don't eat alot when we travel but we were hungry and no open restaurants. How depressing. So we decided to drive back to Medora. It was a little before 6, we could make it by 7. So we turned down a different road and started back through the other side of town. And wow. Motels, open nice motels. Open restaurants. Yippy. So we stayed anyway. Still can't get my laptop to work. The room was great. Smelled great,looks great, clean but pricey. Our bikes and van were covered with thick red dirt.

We were covered in thick red dirt. To the showers and then off to eat. Dinner was at Sanfords Pub and Grill to eat cajen food in a place with a weird eclectic decor.   Happy happy joy joy. Widmers on tap. Great food. Food we didn't have to cook. We had cooked all our meals at the cabin so this was a treat.

   So here we are on Sunday. Not sure where we are going. It is suppose to snow in Yellowstone. So maybe it wouldn't be wise to go. It is raining outside right now. Time to think of our next step. After we slept. Which I did. I slept great. Rick slept terrible. I told him to take a sleeping pill.

August 30.

2008-09-19T08:54:00.000-07:00

We got up early and packed and cleaned the cabin. I made leftovers for breakfast so we could get rid of them. I took the last of the pork chop, sliced it thin, added the rest of the bella mushrooms thinly sliced, chopped green onion and our last 2 eggs I scrambled. I put the scrambled eggs on a bagel, topped it with the meat and mushroom mixture, cheese and nuked it. We drank the last of the OJ and sat on the deck for the last time. It was a great and filling breakfast. Since we didn't know where we would be tonight or where or what we would eat we wanted the breakfast to be hearty and it was.

   We finally got packed and on the road at 12:30. We are not good at early starts. Goodbye little cabin. It was great.

     We drove through Deadwood and was surprised to see the casino we usually stopped at was turned into something else. We didn't gamble there but the restrooms were always clean and it was a great place to stop before going through Spearfish canyon I love Spearfish canyon. It is just beautiful. I didn't stop for pictures though as there aren't many places to stop. We did stop in Spearfish though at the Booth Fish hatchery and I fed the huge trout. I really like fish hatcheries. It was hot hot hot today. We now have a destination.   Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. They say it is the other badlands, just not as bad, LOL. But it is a long ways. We stopped in Bowman NS at the Budget Host for the night. It was a good price, $55.00 but I was not very happy with the room. It reeked of smoke and there were stains and burns on the carpet. The bed and bathroom were clean though so I will live with it. Wore my slippers and socks though the entire time. We turned on the air to clean the smell out and went in search of a place to eat. This is a small town, not much for choices but we found ourself at a place called Wendy's Bar and Grill. We went in the back to the large bar area and ordered chicken. It was great chicken also. They had some awesome music on the overhead, and a big pool table. The beer was fair so we played pool and ate. We stayed a few hours relaxing and playing pool. The place was full of hunters and ranchers. North Dakota is the home of huge ranches. They are also getting rich off oil so there are oil rigs popping up all over. Most of the vehicles are pickup trucks.

    Returning to the room we turned on TV and watched the news. We had not seen or heard any news for a week since we couldn't get anything at the cabin. Learned about the hurricane heading for New Orleans.   Couldn't get my laptop to work. Nothing else to watch on the TV so to bed early. turned out to be a good thing as we both slept like crap and were up at 5 am.

August 29.

2008-09-19T08:33:00.000-07:00

After yesterday I wanted a quiet relaxing day so we drove out to the wildlife loop again. I still had carrots and bread for the begging donkeys which we hadn't seen the day before. It was another beautiful day. There was another off road we wanted to take since the first one had been so pretty. It is called 4 Mile draw road. This goes though a area of the park that has been burned a few years back. It was interesting to see the new growth. It was another narrow road and I was glad no traffic as trying to turn around would have been difficult. To get to the lookout we did some hiking. My lungs feel damaged today but I wanted pictures. I still keep getting these coughing spells and my chest is very sore today.

When we got home Rick grilled another steak. I made red potatoes again and asparagus. We had sour dough bread. We ate on the deck and discussed what we would do after this. This was our last night in the cabin. I had 2 weeks off left. Where should we go next?

August 28, another ride and a near death experience

2008-09-19T08:16:00.000-07:00

   I had forgotten that wine really messes up my sleep. I was up at 4 and couldn't get back to sleep. From the hiking I was having charlie horses right and left every time I moved. Rick didn't sleep well either. So it took us a while to get started for our ride. Personally I would have been happy to skip it entirely but after my poor showing the other day and disappointing Rick so bad I was not backing out. Plus I wanted to see those darn tunnels from a bike.

   We started in Hill City around noon.   Leaving from Hill city is uphill again. Actually it is 8 miles until you reach the peak. Not steep but don't let anyone tell you it doesn't get to you. You have to pedal the entire time and it does wear you out.   It was another beautiful day and the scenery was so pretty. There must be a million wildflowers. We passed small ponds with ducks in them and saw one pond with a snake. Of course the mountains on one side and the smell of pine and sage was heavenly.

   There were lots of people on the trail. None were climbing the hill, they were all going downhill. Passing us with big smiles on their faces, enjoying the ride. Cheerfully saying hi. I couldn't reply as I was grimly puffing on uphill.   Lots of people take the shuttle up to the peak and just ride down the hill. Rick would never agree to that though. Believe me I tried to talk him into it, LOL. What would a bike ride be without suffering and pain, right? But the higher we climbed the more and more trouble I was having with my breathing. I was resting more and more often but it got so I could never get a good full breath of air. I should have been taking my asthma pill before I did this ride but since I hadn't had trouble with my asthma for so long didn't think I would need it. Weird thing is my legs feel strong. Pedaling isn't hard, no cramping, just this darn breathing.

   We finally got to the peak. I was ticked to find there was no restroom. I thought there would be one. You drink all this fluid to stay hydrated but as usual there is no place for a woman to take a nature break. Curses to the man who planned this trail! Also reaching the peak you would think would make me happy. Downhill to the tunnels. Thing about riding a bike is downhill always means turning around and coming back up it if I wanted to get back to the van. The grade from the peak to Mystic was also much steeper. Great to fly down but just the pits to pedal up. But I was not going to be the one to call it quits. And of course Rick wouldn't. He could go on and on forever.

        So down we went. Finally I found some good tree cover and relieved my full bladder with Rick keeping look out for other bikers. No one else was doing this part though. Miles and miles we rode. Where was that damn tunnel. I thought it was suppose to be soon. We did get to go over the neat bridge I wanted to ride across but no tunnel. And I was still having breathing issues even though I was no longer pedaling. I was wheezing audibly and couldn't get a full breath. It was starting to worry me. After 4 and a half miles we finally, thank God, got to a tunnel. Wasn't as thrilling as I thought it would be. I rode through it, took pictures and called it quits. I had to admit I wasn't going to make it.   I didn't want to go down even further and then ride up. I tried to talk Rick into finishing the ride while I waited. I don't think it was much further. He did start to and I started back. I knew he would catch up easily. Riding back through the tunnel my bikes chain slipped. Oh great. Now my bike was screwed. I hollered for Rick, no answer and I started to walk back up the way we came down. My bike shoes are great for riding but suck for hiking.   Rick is also the one who does any bike repairs on my bike. I should have paid more attention.

    After about a mile the chain slipped back on from the tires turning. Good. Pop on the bike and start riding. Rick catches up and then finally what had been coming for awhile came full blown on.   I started coughing and sputtering. My throat got tighter and tighter and then started to close up. I couldn't breath. Making this high pitched squeak was all I could do. Strider, oh great. As a nurse I know full well what a airway obstruction sounds like. My chest was hurting. I stumbled in my bag for my inhaler. Thing is I couldn't even take in a breath. So I squirted it in my mouth and prayed. tears were running down my face from the effort to get some air in. I was in a panic. Here we were in the middle of a trial, no cell phone service, Help miles away dying from a asthma attack. What a bummer.

        The medicine must have done some good because my throat started to relax and I was able to use the inhaler again to get a good full breath in. What a wonderful feeling. My chest was hurting like hell from struggling to breath and if I took a full breath I would start coughing but i was getting air in. I wasn't going to die after all. Happy Happy joy joy. Now I will never take my asthma for granted again. Seriously scary stuff.

    Still having a steep climb ahead we started off. I rode when I could and walked for a few miles. At a rate of 2.9 miles pushing my bike it took forever and I got a blister from the darn shoes. I got a charlie horse in my later knee muscles and was just a partner from hell for Rick on this ride. He walked grimly beside me and wondered what to do if I tried to die again. And of course he looked wonderful. He even smelled great. I told him to feel free to marry some fit little non-asthmatic bike rider if I died. I would understand. Can you tell I was feeling pretty sorry for myself and more then a little ashamed of the shape I was in?

    Finally the peak. I hopped on the bike and soared down. The gravel is deep in places and some areas have sharp gray rock so you couldn't go wide open but we were doing around 13 to 14 MPH most of the time. No wonder the people we had passed earlier looked so darn happy. I even passed some suffering bike rider climbing and cheerly called hello to him. At times we rode over 16 MPH and it was heavenly. But seriously, I was just trying to get to the van. I was still feeling on the verge of another attack. I wanted to be close to a hospital if I needed it. I wanted phone service. I wanted off this darn bike. 27 miles later we finally got to the van and I collapsed. Man oh man am I in terrible shape.

   Back in the cabin I collapsed while Rick made supper. My chest was killing me from working so hard trying to breath. I had a beer and tried to relax. Rick made the best hamburgers. He sauted baby bella mushrooms with green onion, grilled the burgers then topped them with swiss and Tillamook cheddar cheese which he melted on top and the mushrooms. I made twice baked potatoes. Now that was a great meal.   Shortly after we ate I went to bed. I took a pain pill and a sleeping pill and hit the hay. This fat ole lady was done in. We had rode and walked for a total of 6 hours. I was done in. My lungs were shot. I was shot.

August 27

2008-09-19T07:27:00.000-07:00

We didn't ride today after all. We had a good reason. The cabin is on the boarder of the national forest so we hiked behind the cabin for miles. Again all uphill but for some reason I can hike without problems, its just riding the bike that gives me fits. The ground is rocky and covered with quartz. White, pink, red and yellow. Very pretty. There are wildflowers all over. The air was cool and fresh and everything smells so great. I think we walked about 5 to 6 miles and headed back. Since we had been up at 6 am we both took a nap. Getting old I guess. Then around 1 pm we got going again.

We went to the wildlife loop. Didn't see much wildlife but it was a beautiful day for a drive. Rick turned onto a gravel road that went to the backroads of the park. It was called Fisherman Flats road and that was the best thing. Now we saw lots of wildlife.

Pronghorn Antelope, buffalo, deer. So pretty.

The road was narrow and windy. I highly recommend getting off the beaten track. We only saw 2 vehicles on the road in maybe 10 miles. The smell was to die for. You can't buy that scent. Wildflowers

, pine, fresh grass, sage, even buffalo chips. Pretty mountain streams and lush meadows. We ended up at a lake taking pictures. Rick used the Soni and I used the Canon. He is getting into taking pictures. Its gets in your blood.

Arriving late back to the cabin we grilled steak and shrimp kabobs, I made some baby red potatoes in butter and parsley and we had fresh Brussel sprouts sauted in roasted pecans and a very nice dark red Zinandel called Rancho Zabaco Zinfandel. For dessert we had Strawberry Rhubarb pie. Can you tell I didn't think of my diet once on the trip. Sitting on the deck sipping the wine and listening to jazz, a million stars twinkling overhead. Simply heaven.

Badlands, August 26th

2008-09-19T07:07:00.000-07:00

Today is the 26th, Tuesday. We are going to the Badlands. First breakfast of leftover steak, potatoes and eggs. Topped off with some great OJ we were good to go. I have been sleeping like a dream in the bed and felt great. Rick never sleeps good so felt tired as usual. Poor man.

    I think we left around 10:15. We had forgotten how far away the badlands is from Custer. Once again we drove through Custer State Park and saw a huge herd of buffalo making their way through the campgrounds. I don't know how often it happens but they were knocking down fences and the rangers were warning people to stay back from them. One massive buffalo walked right at our car. There was a car stopped in front and one in the back. We were trapped if it decided to get testy with the van. They like to rub on things and can do alot of damage to your vehicle. It walked behind us and found a large tree to rub on. From the looks of the missing bark I could tell it had used it before.

      The badlands is beautiful. I must have taken 200 pictures. The battery died on my new canon so I used the Soni. I like that I can zoom with it better. Note to self...get good zoom lens for the Canon. A million times I wish I had one. The light was not really good and there were storms building. In one cloud we saw a funnel come down to connect to another cloud. Fortunately it didn't become a tornado and touch down. I got a couple of shots of it.

   It takes hours to drive through the winding roads and then a couple of hours to get back to the cabin. The meal we had planned was out of the question so we picked up a frozen pizza and ate that. We were both tired. Why does driving for hours take so much out of you. And I was burnt to a crisp from the riding. Seems it is really easy to get burnt up in the mountains. Closer to the sun I guess. So anyway we sat on the deck and had a beer and then turned in early. Tomorrow another ride...Oh goody!

August 25, the first ride

2008-09-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

Today was the first bike ride.   My lack of training for the biking really showed up. It was a beautiful day. Not too hot and not much of a breeze. Starting in Custer we planned to ride to Hill City. It was a pretty ride. It was a completely uphill ride also.

Riding up old train beds the grade isn't steep but it is relentless. Up Up Up. Your pedaling the entire time. Now my legs felt fairly strong but I sure wish I had never smoked. I was puffing like the old steam trains that used to climb this grade.

    We stopped often so I could get pictures and rest.

The mountains are just beautiful and we drove over many wooden bridges and meadows.

Small pretty streams it was a beautiful ride through tall pines and the smell. Just heavenly. Rick, who wasn't looking anything but strong rode behind me giving me encouragement. " Almost to the peak, Take your time", your doing great! No Hurry! After about 4 miles I was ready to jump off my bike and kill him. Why doesn't he sweat and why is he is such great shape when he eats more then me. And here I was suffering and wheezing and wishing I had never suggested the stupid ride.   My asthma was acting up and the joy of the scenery was rapidly losing its charm. Poor Rick. We are so mismatched.

    Finally we reached the peak and I saw Crazy Horse. It was a great view. It doesn't look like much more has been done since I was there 10 years ago. Will they ever finish it?

However. I decided then and there that was as far as I was going.   Hill City was downhill, but then we would have to climb right back up to here again before we started the decent to Custer. I told Rick I would wait for him while he finished the ride and we could ride back to Custer together but he didn't want to. I felt terrible as I know I ruined the ride for him. He was quiet the rest of the ride. What a awful partner I am.

    Riding down however was heavenly. I was now really able to enjoy the sights and took more pictures.

   It was quiet and beautiful. Quiet because Rick wouldn't talk to me but still the birds were happily singing. We saw a baby rattlesnake on the road so I was careful where I stopped and walked.

Surprisenly the ride only took us a little over a hour. We decided to take the scenic way home and stopped in Keystone so I could get another necklace I wanted. Spoiled me. Then we drove to Rapid City for groceries and back for a pork chops, rice and a cold beer. As always sitting on deck listening to jazz.

We managed to get the radio to work and that is all it would pick up. Happy for us.

Day 3

2008-09-12T14:25:00.000-07:00

The bed was heavenly soft and we slept wonderfully. The cabin had electric floor board heaters and we were worried as they didn't work and it was suppose to be in the 40's but it was cozy and warm in the cabin. All that thick wood. We both went to bed really early and got up at 6. Sitting on the dock sipping our coffee we watched the sun come up. Then breakfast. Eggs, bacon, potatoes and OJ. Then while Rick fixed things in the cabin I relaxed on the deck and smelled the wonderful fresh smells and views.

A small squirrel made a big noise chattering at me.

    Later in the day we drove to the Custer bike trail head and then to Hill City to see where it came out. We saw the road often along side the road and I could see what was in store for me.   Lots of uphill and lots of pedaling. I wish I had trained more. I can't talk Rick into starting on top and just enjoying a downhill trip.

   I had been wanted a new leather purse so we drove into KeyStone and shopped. Very touristy town. Since the big Sturgis bike thing was over everything was on sale and I got a great leather purse, a leather wallet, 2 silver necklaces and a necklace. Oh and a really neat battery crystal spinning thing. So pretty.

   After leaving Keystone we went up the scary mountains roads to see the views. I have a terrible fear of heights but it seems to be worse these days. I actually get sick to my stomach when I try to get close to the edge and dizzy.   I went way over to the edge to get this one picture and just froze in place.   My heart pounding and hyperventilating I was mad at myself for this reaction.   My feet were firmly planted on the ground. What did I think was going to happen? Rick helped me over the rail and broke the spell.

We then drove through Custer State Park. It is so pretty there. No telephone lines, in fact no lines, no fences, no touristy stuff.   Just soft rolling hills reminding you of Dances with wolfs. Prairie dogs, red rock.

   The prairie dogs have some sort of plaque in the black hills right now so we stayed away from them. I found out some interesting facts about them. Did you know they don't drink water. They get all the moisture they need from what they eat. So when tourists feed them food that isn't on their diets it can give them more salt then they need and they get dehydrated and can die. There is a good reason they don't want you to feed them but it doesn't stop alot of the tourists. Sad.

      Back to the cabin Rick grilled steaks and I made sweet potatoes and broccoli plus we heated some great bread. We sat out on the deck and ate and shared wine.   We had a good jazz CD on. Life was good. We saw a mother deer and her 3 babies. Some turkeys. A good day.

Fish Hatchery and Reptile Gardens

2008-09-09T18:21:00.000-07:00

    We had time to kill before we could check into the cabin so decided to go to the fish hatchery in Rapid City. It is free and I love to feed the fish. I saw the biggest brown and rainbow trout and loved to watch them jump to eat. The man that worked there and we talked too was very knowledgeable and we learned a great deal about how they raise them and stock the streams. The place they raise the small trout is all indoors. Before they did that they use to lose a lot of the fish to ducks and eagles. Plus the ducks would hang all day and eat the free food. Now indoors they can control it better. They don't actually hatch any eggs here, just raise the fingerings and stock the streams. Rick talked to him quite a bit while I fed fish. Lots of fun but it took me the rest of the day to get the smell off my hands.

       Even the scenery around the hatchery is beautiful.

       Next we went to Reptile Gardens.   I love that place. The orchids are splendid and I love the snakes. They have the biggest scariest snake and a massive croc named Maniac. Rick posed with the tortoise and we saw some mating.

   Hey there big boy.

        Rick and I both acted silly.

       I just loved all the vivid colored and beautiful flowers and animals. It cost 27 to get in but I try to think about how much it must take to keep it going and grit my teeth.

    After there we went grocery shopping for the cabin. Another $116 for supplies. Then off to the cabin. We arrived around 6 pm. It is so cute and looks as new as it is. The air smells great. Bad thing, no closets for our clothes and no laundry but it had everything else we could need. It had said it had DVD so we had brought some tapes but it was only VCR. We had none but they would lend us some if we needed. You couldn't get any local TV and no phone except for by the road. Fine with us. We settled in.

    The bed was just like floating in clouds. The most comfortable bed the entire trip.

    The first night we just heated a frozen pizza we doctored and sat on the deck having a beer and watching the deer and turkeys. Just like home only the trees smell better. We turned in at 2030.

Day 1, August 22

2008-09-09T09:22:00.000-07:00

   Finally on the road we had a beautiful day for traveling. Time is 0915 Black Hills here we come.   First stop was Mitchell SD to see the corn palace and went the Cabella's. Of course today they were having a fair and we couldn't get a good shot. But still it was interesting. All made of corn it is completely redone every year. Sioux City had the first one but when ours burnt it was never replaced.

       We stopped at this rest stop that had a great view overlooking the river and bridges. There was a sign to watch for snakes. Believe you me, I did.

    Our first stop was Rapid City. We arrived around 6. We had hit a head wind the entire time and got terrible gas mileage. We found a motel for the night. It was suppose to be a no smoking room but it wasn't it and it just reeked. I never realized how much it smelled until I became a non-smoker. However it was clean and close to the Firehouse Brewery where we were eating tonight. We don't go to the cabin until tomorrow. And tomorrow we are going to Reptile Gardens. I love the snakes and orchids. Such a tourist. And just a note. It is really slow up here. I have never been here when it was so quiet. Maybe because school has started but this is usually when we come here. So the gas prices are affecting things.

     I had a great meal of the brisket which I shared with Rick and he had fish taco's and some tasty beers at the brewery. The alarm in the motel went off at 4 am and we both had a terrible time getting back to sleep. Drag and I had a headache from the beers. Apparently 3 is too many. So at 7 we went to breakfast at the restaurant across the parking lot. It was the Colonial House Restaurant and Bar.   They had super great strong coffee the food was very tasty and reasonably priced.