Happy 80th blog post to me! Okay, moving on!
Waking up in a tent for the 2nd time on the trip proved to be less painful this time around. For one thing, the air mattress was blown to full capacity and sealed right, giving much better cushion. Also, I had not partaken in major caffeine beforehand. I still woke up at 6:30, but better rested. It was a beautiful morning in Spearfish, South Dakota.
After getting our gear stowed away, we decided to eat breakfast right away. Our dinner of Taco Bell was not sufficient the previous night. Down the road was Perkin's,a Coco's-like eatery, which pretty much means snobby Denny's. While eating, I texted Vickie's Uncle Dan and Aunt Kim, who had recently moved from the Vegas area to Spearfish. They joined us for a little bit later. Their kids also live in Spearfish. Interesting migration patterns! Foreshadowing for us?
After breakfast, we high-tailed the 40 miles on I-90 to Rapid City so that we could meet up with Vickie's Aunt Leanna. She gave us a package with some of Vickie's grandfather's things to give to Vickie's mom, then slipped Natalie a $20 bill for souvenirs. It was a quick visit in a parking lot, but she had to get to a golf game.
From Rapid City, we headed east on U.S. 16 toward Keystone and Mount Rushmore. This uphill drive has a little something for everyone. There are shops, an in-car trail called Bear Country, which has much more than just bears! There is also Reptile Gardens, a magnificent place to walk around and see all sorts of animals, and they are not just reptiles.
Also in this area is an establishment known as the cowboy supper. We've done this Nazi torture twice. First, you get a so-so meal of dry beef or dry chicken, a roll, apple sauce, and some sort of veggie and lemonade. After the "banquet", you sit and watch a corny live version of Hee Haw. For this you pay $30 per head. We vowed not to do this on the trip for strictly budgetary and mental health reasons.
A few miles down, 16 splits into 16 and 16a. We took 16a into the town of Keystone, which is a frontier version of Estes Park, with shops and eateries all around. Pretty fun, really. There is also an area where you can zip-line, go down an Alpine slide, and head up an aerial tram to a viewpoint to see Rushmore. I had assumed the tram was like a small train car cube entirely enclosed. Au contraire, you stand still while the car comes at you from behind. You have to sit quickly and pull a safety bar down and let your legs hang. Natalie was not all that fond of the ride. Once it starts, though, it is actually pretty fun.
At the top, we took a few shots of Mount Rushmore, though one of the faces was hard to see. Most people think that the faces are huge, while they are fairly small. It is a place I recommend to all citizens, though. After photos, we grabbed a snack at the snack stand. I opted for a hot dug, not realizing it was a big fat beef dog. For those who do not know, I suffer form occasional gout bouts, and beef dogs are a major trigger.
Afterward, we headed down. It was the same ritual getting on the car, except that my wallet fell out! Luckily, one of the employees grabbed it and headed down the Alpine slide. She got to the bottom before we did. Whew! We looked in a few shops, got our baubles (including a nice Sean Connery fake ID for me to screw with people) and Natalie got a tee shirt from another shop.
From Keystone, I decided to take a scenic route and continue on 16a. This proved to be a bad idea, as the road has lots of hairpin turns and elevation changes for over 30 miles. Also, we were stuck behind many slower vehicles from further east. We were relieved to return to 16 in Custer.
Heading back to Rapid City, we stopped at a Christmas decorations store where Vickie showed remarkable restraint spending-wise. After that, we headed back into Rapid and then back on 90 west. We stopped in Sturgis to visit with her Uncle Pat and his girlfriend at her house for a few minutes, then continued back to Spearfish.
Once there, we went to the Dairy Queen where cousin Lizzie works. She was happy to see us and she and Natalie have been close buds since Natalie was very little. Afterward, we found a motel room as it was getting too stormy for camping. Dinner was Applebee's. A little pricy, but we needed something familiar. Afterward, we returned to the motel room and retired for the night.
I love western South Dakota. It is rich with history, though much of the history is not pretty. The scenery is downright gorgeous! Up next, Devil's Tower!
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