Crazy Horse, and Devils Tower, Wyoming

 August 30, 2023

What a way to start the day!!!!!

Got my knuckle stuck between the truck and camper when we were putting it back on the truck!

Thought for a second I was going to end up like Marg, with a few less fingers, but thankfully, all my digits were intact!

On to Crazy Horse!  But first, one last Bison on the ROAD, RIGHT by our

First Look and First Thoughts......MASSIVE work of art

Work started in 1949

Took a bus tour to get closer and the driver told us a little about how this sculpture came to be!  Google it, it is amazing and awesome, all done without government funds!

Someday......

When ALL of us are gone....

This will be a reality!  MAYBE our grandchildren will witness it when they retire!

Devils Tower, Wyoming

It's a comin (Quinn and Easton will know the meaning of that)

It's a comin........

The site of Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  This definitely looks like something that belongs in outer space!

It goes without being said, pictures do not give this massive anomaly any justice!

If you look at the blue circle, you may or may not see someone climbing this badass rock!

Beautiful view from the trailhead of the valley below!

Stayed the night in the National campground, had a fire, then went to bed, where I proceeded to misplace my foot and fell off the stepstool to crash on the camper floor.  Knocked the wind out of me and although I didn't break anything, I'm a little sore today!  Started and ended the day with a little mishap!

OH.......

Morning View on the way out!

Heading for Grant Teton National Forest....not sure of cell signal the next few days, so bear with me!

Mount Rushmore

 August 29, 2023

Mount Rushmore .......... can't really put it into words, the amount of awe that you feel when seeing this mountain with the heads of our presidents carved in the granite!

Guzten Borglam was the mastermind behind this amazing work of art!  Fun fact, if you have seen National Treasure Book of Secrets, it was filmed near here.  I have watched that movie a dozen times and I thought they were saying Morglum not Borglum!  Maybe I need hearing aids?

                                                                      

There was a really nice trail where you got to see quite a few angles of the mountain  

Avenue of the Flags!  Ernie sitting by PA (2nd state in the Union)!

I really wanted to see the evening ceremony, we had a few hours to kill though, so we had some dinner and did some shopping at the gift shop.  Also, the museum is amazing!

The evening program starts at 8pm, followed by a 10 minute Ranger talk, a Freedom move, and toward the end of the move..................BAM, they light up the mountain and sing America the Beautiful!  Then we all stood and sang the National Anthem!  CHILLS, I tell you, CHILLS!

Needles Highway

 August 29, 2023

After Custer State Park, we were headed to Mount Rushmore by way of the Needles Highway!

This road is winding and there are 3 tunnels through the Black Hills.

There are height and width restrictions and although Ernie thought we could get through them with the camper, we decided to stay at Center Lake Campground at Custer State Park and take off the camper so there would be NO issues with getting stuck or scraped in the tunnels.

Our truck/camper is about 8'10" high and 7'9" wide

Ok, ready to roll!

First Up....Iron Creek Tunnel - 8' 9" wide x 10'10" tall

The Black Hills

Needles Eye Tunnel - (This is the reason we took the camper off the truck) 8' wide x 9'9" tall - Can't even imagine getting stuck in this tunnel!

More beautiful views of the Black Hills!

Hood Tunnel - LAST ONE!  8' 9" wide x 9'8" tall - Easy Peazy! Fun fact, if we would have come through the opposite way, we would have had a view of Mount Rushmore!  Oh well, that is where we are heading anyway!

Mount Rushmore....here we come!

Custer State Park

 Lots to see and do today!

Started with a great breakfast outside of Rapid City, SD at Beau's Cambell Street Diner!  Good homecooking!  AND food spicy enough for Ernie, which is an oddity!

Heading for Custer State Park and the Needles Highway!  Having HORRIBLE personal hotspot issues so will try to keep this updated as much as possible!

Custer State Park - August 29, 2023

Entrance and Visitors Center........

We took a drive on the Wildlife Loop hoping to find the Bison herd (and YES it is Bison in these parts, not Buffalo)!  At the Visitor center, a friendly guy told us about a dirt road off the Wildlife Loop they found and saw the herd.  They move everyday so you either get luck and see them or you don't!

WE GOT LUCKY!  At first we thought we weren't going to see anything because we were on the dirt road for quite a while.  All of a sudden...THERE THEY WERE!

We did see some antelope, but they were too far away for good pictures!  Also, some prairie dogs, but same deal because they are TINY and the same color as the ground!

Up next.........Needles Highway!!!!

Badlands National Park

 August 27, 2023 - Add On

And yes, there were lots more Corn and Soybeans, BUT added sunflowers to the view!

We had planned to stop near Chamberlain South Dakota a couple of hours short of the Badlands and Ernie decided to power through to make it same day (since we gained ANOTHER hour, we are now in Mountain Time)

We knew we were getting close with all the Wall Drug signs on the highway!

Almost there........

720 miles later.......

Camping on the EDGE!

Glad Ernie powered through because this was a VERY enjoyable evening, listing to the coyotes yipping, the cows mooing and sipping cold beverages!  By the way, the Edge is boondocking (FREE CAMPING) right at the edge of the Badlands!

August 28, 2023

Good Morning!

                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Exploring Badlands National Park......

Oh give me a home, where the Buffalo roam and the deer and the antelope play........

And a few prairie dogs too...there are thousands of prairie dog holes throughout the Badlands and these little guys are TOO cute!

AND Pronghorn Sheep!

 Yellow Rocks!

Can you see the sheep in the picture below?

Should I or shouldn't I........hmmmmm

Yep, I SHOULD!  I will admit, it was a little scary, but not scary enough to NOT do it!  Ernie snapped this from the other side of the picture above!

It was really beautiful, but REALLY HOT!!!!!!

On to the famous Wall Drug....

                                                                                     

 Ernie found a friend!  LOL

                                                                               

It was a cool place to see, but typical tourist trap kind of stuff!  Glad to have seen it though!

Now this is OUR kind of tourist trap........the view from our camper for the evening!  Back on the Edge!

Will take an evening walk and drink a few more cold beverages!

Hoping to get to Needles highway at Custer State Park, Crazy Horse and Mount Rushmore tomorrow!

More to come!

Night!

Couple more pics of our evening.........

NICE camping spot!

View from camper and 2nd picture is me standing in the distance (circled myself)!!

                                                                                  

Had a fire, but only had a couple little pieces of wood, improvised and used dried COW PIES.....Ernie says it has a pleasing scent!  It really didn't smell like cow poop at least!!!!!!