It was time to start our journey back home. I checked Pumpkin's vitals and we got everything ready to roll. I stopped at the dump station and did just that. While there, we hooked up Coors, but ran into some difficulty with the lights. I think there may be a loose connection inside the plug that plugs into Pumpkin. I got it to working and it seemed to hold, so we'll try to get home with it as is. I'll just have to keep a check on it.
So, here is where we spent the last four days at Ellsworth AFB. A nice place for our headquarters.
Next stop was Minatare State Park near Scott's Bluff.
This was NOT one of Joyce's favorite spots. While Ditto and I were at the park office checking in, Joyce got stung by a yellow jacket in the meaty part of her upper arm. She had apparently trapped it there and it wanted out. It got out. Joyce was understandably a bit skidish the rest of our stay here.
But, we did get out for a Jeep ride out on "Lighthouse Point". Nice spot.
The only problem (besides the yellow jackets) was the lake level was very low. The lady at the office had explained the lake is filled by water off the Platte River, but only when floodgates are opened to do so. Whoever controls it had let the water level go way down for some reason. Then to add to it, the lake level had been way up over the summer, flooding much of the park. So, when it went back down, it left a lot of debris and trash that had yet to be cleaned up. I'd say on a more normal season this would be a very nice place to stay - if the yellow jackets move on.
This was one of my favorite days. We started out not knowing for sure where we wanted to go, but wanting to take some back roads. We did just that. We took a road along side the Mickelson Trail, which is a walking/biking/horse trail. While driving along a very dusty but smooth dirt road, we came across this little two rut lane leading across a bridge over the Mickelson Trail and on into the "interior". A sign said there was a dam 3 miles in.
Well, the dam wasn't much, but the drive was terrific.
Ditto got in a little bit of leash-free time here.
We piddled around and found this nice stream in a grassy valley.
And took in the sights of fall in the Black Hills.
As we drove slowly back out, we were greeted with this stand of birch that really caught our attention.
As we made our way back out on the dirt road to Mystic (small settlement) and on toward Rochford (another small settlement), we came across a group of camper/squatters down in a creek bed. Parked along side the road were two USDA Black Hills ranger trucks and a white SUV. The rangers and a guy with a gun on his hip were standing around nearby. I realized the "encampment" was that of some gold prospectors. They had the area pretty dug up and I wondered if that was the reason the "law" was there. But, we drove on.
Shortly, we were overtaken by a cloud of dust. It was the two ranger trucks and the white SUV. They went zooming on by as I pulled over and let them through.
We caught up with them again. They were parked alongside the road and were examining an area of excavation on a tree covered bank above the road. I could see a wheelbarrow up on top, laying on its side. Interestingly, there was a playground sliding board with no legs or frame on the side of the bank placed as though to slide stuff down to road level. One of the rangers, a woman, was standing in the road and I asked if someone was poaching gold. She was quite friendly and chatted a bit. She explained that in the National Forest, surface digging for gold was legal. What was not legal was using any mechanized equipment without a special permit. The site they were examining looked like someone had used a backhoe - according to the ranger. So, it wasn't gold poaching, it was illegal use of mechanical hands. (sorry)
We left the scene of the crime and headed out to Hill City. We stopped for a sub sandwich there which amazingly was cheaper than a Subway in Forsyth. We had a picnic at the city park and watched dogs poop by a noisy little creek flowing nearby, then took the Needles Highway into Custer State Park - pull in your elbows, ladies and gentlemen.
So Ditto wouldn't feel left out, we took the Wildlife Loop again so she could tell her new friends goodbye.
Then we headed back to camp - too pooped to pop again. Another very nice day - and our last one in the Black Hills.
Yes, we had another wonderful day. But, I'm too pooped to tell about it tonight. I'll catch you up tomorrow.
Oh, okay, here's a teaser...
Now, Where Were We?
Oh yes, Wednesday. Wednesday was another fine day Joyce got me into. We headed up for Lead and Deadwood. We went up Highway 385 to Lead then turned south on 85 down to Cheyenne Crossing. From there we took the Spearfish Canyon highway. A "purdier" sight not seen for some time...
The birch and aspen were turning colors right before our eyes.
Eventually, we wound up in Deadwood. The town has really gone commercial since we were there in 1970. We didn't do much but drive through. We did, however, drive up to the cemetery where Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane are buried. Wouldn't you know it? They now charge to get in - into a cemetery!
It was a long day, but we both enjoyed it very much. When we got back to the campground, though, it was not long before the bed started calling. Ditto and I hit the sack early.
We decided to hit Custer State Park again today. We wanted to take the wildlife road and also come down the Needles Highway in the reverse direction from what we did yesterday. One of the high points of the day was watching a guy in an RV about the size of Pumpkin negotiate one of the tiny tunnels. He made it!
We approached the park on Hwy 16A into Keystone then on down to the Game Lodge area and then onto the wildlife loop. First up on the wildlife loop was a dandy pronghorn. We saw several today, but this fellow seemed to pose for us. We took some of the gravel roads taking off the main loop. Pronghorn and ground squirrels were all we saw, but the trip was interesting.
The buffalo roundup was just finished yesterday. Annually, the park buffalo are rounded up and culled out. They keep about 1300 for the park and auction off the rest for breeding stock and meat. The corrals where the buffalo are contained during the process is at about the halfway mark along the wildlife loop. The roundup was over and the culling complete, so those unlucky buffalo that were selected for auction were being held in a large fenced field, awaiting the auction in November.
On the way out of the wildlife loop, the ever present bums accosted us. Yes, those laughable lovable once tame now wild donkeys. This old gray one came up to beg and get his head scratched only to get an earful from Ditto. Ditto was going crazy, but the donkey just stood there and took it.
As we finished up the day's tour, we came across a couple of the lucky buffalo - apparently part of the chosen 1300.
We made it back to the base in time to get through the Patriot Gate (back gate) - just before 6 pm. It was a long day, but a wonderful tour. Tomorrow, we head for Deadwood and Lead. It will be interesting to see what changes have occurred in 40 years.
We left the Badlands looking back. We both had tumbled the idea around in our minds of staying another day. But, onward and upward. It took a 2 hour leisurely drive to get to Ellsworth AFB, home of the B1B bomber. We found the FamCamp easily and got settled in quickly. It's a nice clean secure campground. We're in site #6 just inside the entrance and backed up to the doggie walk. Handy. These are full service sites with water, electricity and sewer. Just across the circle is the shower house and laundry. Since we plan on staying here 4 nights, the laundry might come in handy. The shower...for sure.
We were settled and ready to do something by 2 pm. We did not waste the day. Off we went, not sure just where to. We wound up in Custer State Park and heading up the Needles Highway, where else?
One of Joyce's items on her "must see" list came true in the first mile or so past the Game Lodge. Laying in the trees were several big horn sheep - big horns and all. We managed a shot through the trees.
Continuing on up the highway, the aspen and birch had begun to shift to fall colors.
The photo doesn't quite do it justice. Neither does Ditto's ear.
We stopped to enjoy Sylvan Lake. It's a beautiful place.
Unfortunately, we were now racing the sunset and kept peddling. We ran up by the Crazy Horse monument then past Mt. Rushmore. Only Crazy Horse looked different from our last visit 41 years ago. Crazy Horse now has a recognizable face. Other than that, George and the boys haven't aged a bit - not even grayer hair.
We headed back to Rapid City for a bite to eat. It got dark on us about then so we had to go back to the base in the dark. We found the way we had come in earlier today. Rats! That gate was closed. It was then we noticed the sign that read 6 am - 6 pm Monday thru Friday. We had to go to the main gate, but the only other gate we'd seen marked was called the "Commercial" gate. As the name implies, it wasn't the main gate and was also closed. After some circling and fighting off the urge to stop and ask someone, we finally found it. Now we're "home" and thinking about bed. We have 3 more days so maybe we'll get back to Custer and snap a picture or two of those fantastic tunnels. But, there is so much to see, so much to do around here. Let's see what happens tomorrow.
We started the day taking the hwy 240 loop road across the Badlands. Hwy 240 is the main "tourist" road everybody takes through here. It has several pull-outs with informational signs and a few boardwalks out to strategic overlooks. It is beautiful. But, we wanted more. So, we took the Sage Creek road which skirts the western edge of the park. It's a gravel road, but in good shape - except for some real teeth rattling washboards once in a while. Just before we headed down the Sage Creek road, though, we were treated with a good photo shot.
Several big horn sheep (no rams unfortunately) were obviously not camera shy and posed beside the road. After we started down Sage Creek road, we came across this bunch of hams.
We stopped to eat lunch in the Sage Creek campground which was dotted with buffalo chips and prairie dog holes. Ditto took a special interest at this stage.
We saw a sprinkling of buffalo along the way, but they were all too far off for my little camera. We did see a beautiful view of the Badlands we had not seen before. We decided it ought to be a jigsaw puzzle picture. It would be a tough one to work.
We dropped out of the southern end on the Badlands and headed on into the Pine Ridge Indian reservation - of Wounded Knee fame. We drove on down to the Wounded Knee site. We has passed through there yesterday and on one side of the road were several souvenir peddlers, on the other side was the Wounded Knee museum. We didn't stop yesterday and today, being Sunday I guess, the peddlers were gone. There was a large informational sign describing the scene and happenings at Wounded knee in 1890. The sign had so much information on it, it was continued on the back side. So, we had to get out of the Jeep and walk around behind. While viewing the back side, a young Indian kid came literally running up to us and began telling us the story. He was quite learned on the subject. As we talked with the youngster, we found out he was in the 8th grade. He did his job well and convinced us to visit the museum. He ran the several hundred feet over to the museum while we drove the Jeep over. He told Joyce about the souvenirs his family makes and she sent him off to get one. He ran about 1/8 mile down a hill to an old blue mobile home. Soon he was back with his wares and Joyce bought one. There were several Native Americans standing around outside the museum and we chatted with them for a while.
As it turned out, one woman was visiting her mother on the reservation. She did not live there, but was moving back soon. She was very pleasant and talkative, yet very militant in her description of how the U.S. government had treated the Indians over the years. She, and others standing around, then spoke about how crooked the tribal council was and how the council took some of their land by decree. If Joyce or I had spoken Sioux, I'm sure we would have heard some very colorful language concerning the tribal council (Bureau of Indian Affairs - BIA). There was about as little love loss there as there was for the broken treaties and the U.S. government. We toured the museum which was mostly militant descriptions of the history of the Lakota Sioux and the U.S. government. But, much of the stories told seem to play out as true. A sad state of affairs. We bought another souvenir at the museum - a dream catcher representing the home and water. We got it for a friend back at Cedarcreek who is taking care of Oxford (the cat) and Joyce's chickens. Then one of the Indians told us about the pow-wow going on at the Porcupine school a few miles away. So, after we left the museum, we drove to Porcupine. It was worth the trip. Unfortunately, my camera person didn't get as many photos of the goings-on, but we did get a couple. Inside the gymnasium they were holding a dance contest. No, not the two-stop or polka, but Native American dance.
We didn't get there in time to get pictures of the dances, but here's a shot of some prizes being given for their efforts. When we first walked in, a dance had just completed and an older fella in costume came huffing and puffing to a row of lawn chairs along the gym wall near us. He was red in the face (no pun intended) and we weren't real sure he was going to make it. But, his wife (squaw) was there with a big bottle of water and after downing it and resting a while he looked much better - and became quite talkative and helpful in describing what was going on. All-in-all, it was a neat show for the white eyes. As we left, I ran into some real Native American beauties who graciously allowed me to photograph them. I promised not to keep their spirits locked up in my camera. Notice their moccasins.
It was a really good day that ended well.
Tomorrow we head for Ellsworth AFB and the Rapid City area. We are looking forward to more days like today.
Yesterday started out beautiful. The weather was great. We doddled around pulling up stakes to make our day's run. I decided it was time to check the tires and found one rear tire quite low. As I messed with it, I could hear air escaping sometimes. The sound was directly related to movement of the air valve extender, a braided steel extension added to make airing up easier - actually, possible. After messing with it a while, I checked the pressure again and it checked about normal. So, I decided the problem was the extension and it was not opening the valve enough to give a good pressure test. I checked on-line for the closest tire shop, but didn't really find anything - not surprising, considering where we were. I decided we'd better head back to Broken Bow and get it checked out. But, as it turned out, there was a tire shop/gas station/feed store back at the highway only a few miles. The fella there was nice and helped us out immediately. He jacked it up and jerked the wheel off (actually, two things good did happen that day - the convenient tire shop and the bad tire was on the outside). My diagnosis of the problem was correct. The butt hole that I had replace all my valve stems and re-balance the tires for $162 has used a replacement valve that didn't fit right. He had obviously had trouble with it a had damaged it. So, the extender could not thread down on it well. As for the leak, the extender itself was cracked. Whether the tire guy at Forsyth damaged it or not, I'll never know. But, the tire guy at Anselmo, NE replaced the valve stem and added another type extender - all for $12.50.
We got back on the road thanking our lucky stars for the tire shop. It was stressful and before long I was getting tired. Joyce took over the driving - it was a straight road with little traffic. She can't possibly get into trouble. And, she didn't.
Just a few miles out of Alliance, NE, we switched back. I hadn't driven more than a few miles when "whoosh", something seemed to have blown off the roof. We both thought it was one of the vent covers and I pulled to a stop alongside the road. I climbed the rear ladder and checked the roof. Roof amiss up there. I climbed down and walked along the passenger side. Nothing. I walked around the front to the driver's side and there it was. The first 2-3 feet of the siding on the cab-over bunk had blown off, leaving a jagged tear at the start of the side window and exposing raw plywood underneath. Crap!
I walked back down the highway looking for the piece and as I was approaching it, a Highway Patrolman pulled up to it and threw it in his car then drove up to me. He gave me and the piece of siding a ride back to Pumpkin and after verifying I was still mobile, he headed on his way. Nice guy.
Our next campsite was to be Walgen Lake, but we had earlier decided to change it to Chadron State Park. It wasn't far away, so we made our way there - slowly.
Once we got settled at the campground, I drove to the town of Chadron and bought some "supplies". I got some 4" wide Gorilla tape, some silicon caulk and caulking gun and some spray paint. When I got back to camp, I taped the area all up and sealed the edges.
Then this morning, after it warmed up some, I spray painted it so it wouldn't look too terrible.
Now, where were we?
Oh yes. Now I remember. We drove up to the Badlands. We're camped there now.
There's more to the trip from Chadron to the Badlands, but this post is long enough. I'll fill you in tomorrow.
