Wild Bill Cody

     

Sunday, August 7, Cody, WY

Cody is the halfway point between Custer and Yellowstone, so a good stopping over point. We found a nice little RV park, a spot right beside the laundry, and went into town to explore.

The William Cody Wild West Museum is a well designed, well landscaped facility of 7 buildings containing Russell western art, a rifle and firearms exhibit, and Native Culture exhibit. Many wonderful sculptures surround the buildings.

After a Chinese Buffet dinner (an oddity in a Western town!), I returned to the RV to relax in a lawn chair watching the bunny nibble on the garden while doing laundry and phoning my friends (except I forgot about the time zones…oops!). And Grandpa went back into town for more photos of local color and shopping for motorhomes.

Monday, Aug 8, East Entrance

The route from Cody to the eastern entrance to Yellowstone is the Wild Bill Cody Scenic Bypass. Teddy Roosevelt called it “the most beautiful 50 miles of roadway in America.” It runs through a deep, narrow canyon and provides some breathtaking scenery.

We found our spot in Fishing Bridge village RV park, inside Yellowstone,

 and after lunch and a rest, we started out on our days’ exploration. First we had to wait for a bison to walk across the main road of the campground! 

Our goal was to see the Tetons, so we took the southern route out of Yellowstone.

A familiar name in New York, eh?

The Tetons are the youngest of the Rocky Mountains, rising sharply from the valley floor, with no foothills. Named les Grand Tetons (the Big Breasts) by French trappers, they have been chiseled by glaciers which also dug out what are now Jenny and Jackson Lakes. The dramatic peaks of Grand Teton National Park are amongst the most photographed and painted in America.

Through Wyoming

Friday, Aug 5  Sibley Lake

The long ride to Sibley Lake, in the Bighorn National Forest, took us over some incredible landscapes. The mountain range rises out of the plains, a peak-crowned plateau with lakes, deep canyons, and twisting highways. We even got our first glimpse of snow-capped peaks (in August!!), which we would drive up in the morning.

In the evening we went out exploring the lake and surrounding area.

Sunrise at the campsite.

Sat., Aug 6  Medicine Wheel

On our journey to Sibley, my thoughts were filled with remembrances of our friend Roger, an Ojibawa medicine man and spiritual leader, who had taught us much about the Native ways. So we planned our days’ adventure with my thought that Roger’s spirit would meet us.

Highway 14A, the Medicine Wheel Scenic Byway, is a summer only road that has extreme gradients and sharp curves, leading to the Medicine Wheel Monument, a mysterious archaeological formation, still used by American Natives for ceremonies.

After trekking up a mile and a half incline to the top of a mountain, for which Senior Morning Mall Walking is not sufficient training, we came to the Medicine Wheel.

To our amazement, as we approached, a groundhog near the “gate” sat up and barked, then went into the circle, sat on one of the stations of rock, and watched while we walked around. I knew Roger was with us. There is a strong, compelling sense of Spirit strength in this place. The ribbons, feathers, leather pouches, stones and such on the fence are prayer tokens left by many visitors. In our private and moving few minutes, we shared the Native American Prayer that we’ve learned from our friends in Lewiston, and many other thoughts, before trekking back down. We were grateful we'd gotten there early enough to have the experience alone, before the crowds of tourists.

From there we drove to Custer’s Last Stand, now Little Big Horn National Memorial Cemetery. Round trip was 300 miles, over the Bighorn Mountain range twice in a day.

Custer State Park

August 3

Buffalo Bernie gets Stampeded!

We left the Badlands early Wed morning, and after stopping for supplies, arrived in Custer State Park, SD in time for lunch and a nap. Our plan was to take a late afternoon ride through the park to spot wildlife, but just as we started down the road, a severe thunderstorm struck, high winds and hail! So, back we went to the RV for dinner. After that terrifying driving experience, Grandma was content to sit with tea and novel, but Grandpa decided to go into town. Lucky fellow spotted some elk.

But after dark, coming back to camp, he found himself surrounded by buffalo! One bull bison must have been distracted by the headlights, and bashed headlong into the Saturn!! In the morning, we went to survey any damage and found gobs of buffalo snot on the grill….yuk!...and the Saturn is now sporting a permanent souvenir dent….we’ve decided to call it the BBB….Buffalo Bison Bruise!!!

Aug 4

200 Mile Loop

Thursday was an adventure all on its’ own. We began on the Wildlife Loop Road, and soon came upon bighorn sheep strolling along.

Next we saw a herd of about 300 bison, meandering across and along the road. As it is rutting (mating) season, things were pretty active! We watched as bulls competed and jockeyed for position among the cows, while youngster frolicked and played.

White tailed deer, not unlike those around WNY, are plentiful. This one, however, is a mule deer stag.

We came across a lone pronghorn. Later in the evening we saw a few more.

Next, we met the wild burros. These were originally pack animals taking tourists up the mountains, but were abandoned in the park when that business closed. They were so friendly that we had up close and personal encounters.

Now we proceeded to Mt Rushmore, by way of a winding mountain route with majestic scenery all around us. We met a nice couple traveling from CA to Niagara Falls, while we are going in the opposite direction! They took this great photo of us and the sculptured mountain, through the third tunnel on the route up.

From MT Rushmore, we took the next loop to another sculpted mountain, Crazy Horse. This sculpture is incomplete, and it will be interesting to see it in another 50 to 100 years when it’s done.

Seeing so many bikers, we decided to expand the loop to include Deadwood and Sturgis. In Deadwood, blocks of restored Victorian buildings on Main St have earned it a place on the National Register of Historic Places. Kevin Costner, of Dances with Wolves, owns a Casino there, but we didn’t see him in town.

Grandpa describes Stugis, during this time when the 500,000 or so bikes and riders rally there, as what Quartzite AZ is to RVer’s….a vendor’s paradise.

After arguing with Miss Righteous, our GPS, we finally found the route back to camp the Granma wanted, through Needles. After squeezing through the Needle’s Eye, we wound down and around more mountains and through more tunnels back to camp, where Grandma collapsed in exhaustion for driving 8 hours! But, true to our spirit of “let’s see it all while we can” after a light dinner Grandpa took the wheel and we explored back roads of the park to find pronghorns, bison, mountain goats and mule deer. 

How Bad are the Badlands?

Badlands, August 2nd

Badlands National Park wasn’t originally on our itinerary, but we’re glad we decided to venture into this 31 mile Loop to see “eerily sparse yet breathtakingly beautiful landscape.” Frank Lloyd Wright once described it as an “endless supernatural world more spiritual than earth but created out of it.” The Park also contains the world’s richest fossil beds.

Many motorcylists enjoy riding through the Badlands, and we saw why as we maneuvered around curves and switchbacks, through passes and over prairies atop buttes. We drove through at sunset and sunrise, and these are just a few of the best photos Grandpa B captured. 

A Long Drive to a Unique Palace

August 1

Today we pushed a bit....8 hours of driving, about 400 miles. All across southern Minnesota, flat roads along miles and miles of corn and soy bean fields, with an occasional herd of cows.

What was interesting to see were the motorcycles! Nearly a half million bikes and riders from all over North America are expected to rally in Sturgis, SD next weekend and many are getting a head start. Here's an unusual one we saw in town:

When we reached Mitchell, we had reserved a pull through site with 50 amp electricity. At 102 degrees and high humidity, we were eager to turn on our AC units! After cooling off and a quick dip in the warm pool, we headed into town to "shop" at Cabela's (think ProBass) and find the local attractions.

In the middle of the downtown district, we found the Corn Palace, a one of a kind tourist attraction.

The murals inside and outside are all done in corn cobs and husks, and redesigned each year, unless there is a crop shortage. Really unique and pretty corny (smile).

Our Grand Adventure (Checking our Bucket List)

The Adventure Begins

July 29, 2011

Our Grand Adventure began on Friday, departing about noon. We started out on I-90 along the Lake Erie shore, under the threat of severe thunderstorms, but had little rain. Most of the first day was Grandma learning to use all the electronic gadgets to plan routes, find the cheapest gas stations, and the next Super Wal-Mart to camp at for the night. We made it slightly more than halfway to Chicago, IL.

July 30, 2011

We got an early start and reached our destination near Chicago just after lunch time. We had a very nice visit with my brother and sister-in-law, who took us to the Shriner’s club for an excellent steak dinner. This accomplished one of my goals, to visit my brother in Chicago on our way. After dark, we were treated to a grand fireworks display, courtesy of the ball park nearby.

July 31, 2011

This morning began with a gorgeous sunrise, followed by a long drive through Illinois and Wisconsin. We gladly pulled into a county park along the Mississippi River at LaCrosse, where we could plug in and enjoy our air conditioner!! After dinner we took a stroll along the shore, hot, humid and hazy…along the lazy river.

Campin’ along Ole Man River

Fortunately, we have a bigger campsite for the RV !

And sunrise as we depart the next morning:

Making Lemonade

WHEN LIFE HANDS YOU LEMONS....MAKE LEMONADE

    On returning to WNY, Grandma Su found herself joining the ranks of the unemployed! That was quite a basket of lemons to be handed. As we began to explore the economic impact and the new freedom of schedule, Grandpa B came home with Maps, Tour Books and daydreams! This is how we will make Lemonade! 

     As one door closed, another opened. With a new RV and time on our hands, the door opened for more adventures. So stay tuned!