THE BADLANDS - 9/5/14

The Badlands was 16 miles south of Wall, SD.  We arrived at the park entrance at 7AM in hopes to capture some of the sunrise lighting that helps bring out the color of the rock formations in this area. These striking geologic deposits contain one of the world's richest fossil beds.  Our first stop was at Pinnacles Overlook.  These are eroded remnants of layers of sediments which were deposited by rivers which flowed from the west some 30 million years ago.

At every turn, there were more spectacular formations, gorges, cliffs, mixed in with vast open areas of grasslands.

The park's 244,000 acres protect an expanse of mixed-grass prairie where bison, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets live today.  We saw some sheep during our drive through the park.

Much of the park looked as if we were driving on the moon instead of earth.

Near the end of the drive through the park, there was a row of formations that are called "castles".  We stopped and let the dogs walk around at in the parking area.

Once we left the Badlands, we drove about 600 miles to St. Joseph, MO that day. It seemed the closer we got to home, the more determined we were to get there as fast as we could.  On 9/6/14, we drove to Clarksville, TN and visited with our daughter and son-in-law that evening.  On 9/7/14, we arrived home at 12:30 PM.  

We drove a total of 9500 miles and traveled 1800 miles by sea.  It was an adventure of a lifetime.  We want to re-visit some areas again someday, especially Wyoming.  One thing we will never do again is the Alaska Highway.  

Four days after arriving home, snow was reported to have fallen in many of the places we had just recently visited.  We are glad to be home and are thankful we didn't have any major mechanical or health issues during this 7 week journey.  I hope you enjoyed following us on our trip by way of this blog.  

Joy

DEVILS TOWER AND WALL DRUGS - 9/4/14

Devil's Tower was one of the most spectacular places we visited on our entire trip.  This geologic feature suddenly appears among the rolling prarie that surround the Black Hills.  It is a striking monolith of uncommon igneous rock.  Igneous rocks are formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava.  At Devil's Tower, this magma cooled creating this tower that was buried under layers of silt and dirt that through the years eroded and washed away leaving this rock formation behine.  Truly, a natural wonder.

You don't realize how big this wonder is until you find yourself on the trail at the base and see that the trail is 1 1/2 miles in length.  Other trails that take you to the red rock formations are of longer length.

The tower consists of hundred of parallel cracks making it one of the finest traditional crack climbing areas in North America.  We had a good laugh at the visitors center when a tourist asked if you need to be an experienced climber to scale the tower.  The park ranger replied, "It helps."  We counted 8 climbers on the tower the morning we visited.

The Lakota Indians and over 20 other native tribes connected to this area consider this site sacred.  When they come to pray they tie a piece of colorful fabric to tree branches as part of their ritual.  Some of the tribes still perform tribal dances at the base of the tower.

The oldest rocks visible in Devils Tower National Monument were laid down in a shallow inland sea.  This sea covered much of the central and western United States from 225-195 million years ago.  The dark red sandstone and maroon siltstone, interbedded with shale, can be seen along the Belle Fourche River.  Oxidation of iron rich minerals causes the redness of the rocks.  This rock layer is known as the Spearfish Formation. (Info obtained from NPS.gov website)

When entering and exiting the park, you drive by a very entertaining community of prarie dogs.  Our dogs wanted to get out and explore every prairie dog hole in the field.  Shiloh (our hound dog) mournfully cried and moaned when she realized we weren't letting her out of the car.  The prarie dog community was delightful to watch as they popped in and out of their burrows.

On our way to Wall, SD (just outside the Badlands) we kept seeing these signs along I-90.  The campground where we were staying just happened to be 2 blocks from Wall Drug.  After seeing 90 miles worth of signage, it peaks your curiosity.

This "Drug Store" had everything from drugs, camping gear, arcade games, dining facilities, to a chapel.  This place was more like a museum with 75 years of newpaper clippings, photos, western art work, and much more.

Visiting Wall Drug is the ultimate tourist trap, but one everyone who is driving I-90, east or west, must stop in and enjoy their "free ice water" and nickel cup of coffee.

At this point in the trip, we were getting anxious to get home.  The Truck Camper space was getting a bit cramped for the 2 of us and the dogs.  We decided we would make one more stop to see the Badlands and then start heading home.

BIG HORN MOUNTAINS 9/3/14

When you travel east from Yellowstone, you have the privilege of driving through the Shoshone National Forest.  This is another beautiful, peaceful place to drive through.

Unusual rock formations are frequently seen on hillsides as you turn each corner or top each hill on the drive.

We passed by a lake created by Buffalo Bill Dam which was build completed in 1910.  This dam has no reinforced steel in the structure, but was placed in a narrow junction between two mountains.  The energy produced by this dam is less than what is produced by West Point Lake Dam in Georgia.

The road next to the dam cut through the mountains by 2 tunnels.  It's rare you see this type of road construction.

Approaching Bighorn Mountains allowed you to have a glimpse of what was to come as we got closer.

We took 14 Alt through the Bighorn Mountains, climbing over 9500 ft at a 10% grade for 45 minutes.  Joe was afraid he was going to run out of gears to downshift to so we could continue to climb.  Fortunately, we were able to make it over the mountain without any problem.  This is not a road you would want to take a trailer, large motorhome, or 5th wheel trailer.  The views from above were breathtaking...well worth the trip.

When we got to the top of the Bighorn Mountain range it leveled out into grassy plains. There was an observatory on the top of Bighorn Mountain with a gravel road that led up to it for the more adventurous travelers.

Going down Bighorn Mountain on the east we noticed there was more trees and greenery than coming up from the west side.  On the way down we saw a Moose.  The dogs went nuts in the car whenever we say any wildlife along the way.

The Bighorn Mountains were very impressive.  Seeing what God created is awe inspiring and humbling to see such beauty.