Restoman's Western Adventure, Part 2
DAY 3
I crossed the rest of South Dakota in scorching sun and 100+ degree temps and arrived at Badlands National Park at 6:00 pm, ...it was still over 100 degrees! I had a Buffalo burger and fries at a restaurant in the park, and then started exploring the place with the goal of heading toward a free camping area (with no running water) at Sage Creek.
The badlands are an incredibly beautiful, magical, unearthly place, home to; Buffalo, Bighorn Sheep, Coyotes and Prairie Dogs, ....and filled with the most bizarre landscapes. I was enthralled with the place!!!
It is difficult to get a sense of scale in the badlands. Photos seem to make the landscape features look larger than they really are. Note the 2 people on the right side of this shot.
Evening was the perfect time to see the badlands. The shadows from the low angle of the sun accentuated the landscape, and the golden light of late afternoon gave more richness to the colors of the clay bluffs and pinnacles.
The sun set, and I drove the last few miles into Sage Creek in twilight. As I set up the air mattress and sleeping bag in the back of my pick-up truck, I heard Coyotes howling. I went to sleep under the stars and a nearly-full moon.
DAY 4
I awoke at sunrise, and left the camp at 6:00am. The Badlands had a different look in the early morning light, but were still beautiful.
The colors of the bluffs are spectacular with shades of gray, pink, red, and yellow.
The early morning turned out to be the best time for seeing the local inhabitants:
This male Buffalo (correctly called a Bison) seemed to enjoy surveying his domain.
The adult Bighorn Sheep here was wearing the latest fashion in electronic tracking devices.
This Buffalo didn't seem to care that I was just a few feet away from him.
The Prairie Dogs were very amusing to watch as they scuttled around and made squeaking noises.
I stopped at the tiny town of Interior, S.D. (population: 67) to mail post cards, and then headed out to the Black Hills area. I hadn't originally planned to see Mount Rushmore. I prefer to stay away from touristy places, but I drove by it out of curiosity anyway.
Here, Washington and Jefferson discretely turn away as Roosevelt and Lincoln share an intimate moment. *snicker*
Just George.
I crossed into Wyoming, mid-afternoon, and made a detour north to see the Devil's Tower.
Didn't meet any aliens though. :-(
It was almost 8:00 pm when I arrived in Montana in a heavy thunderstorm.
I was running low on gas, and decided to stop at the first town to fill up. But the only gas station there was closed for the night. I drove on to the next 3 exits, none of which had gas stations. Finally, there was a gas station still open in Broadus, Montana. It was still raining, but I could see the sun setting over the distant mountains. There was a strong smell of smoke at Broadus, probably from the forest fire west of Billings that I saw headlined in the local paper. Very tired, I pulled into Billings, Montana at 11:00 pm and looked for a place to stay. My impression of Billings was of an endless string of gambling places and sleazy-looking hotels. I didn't like the look of the place, and headed a little farther on to Laurel, Montana where I found a RV/Truck stop which offered a few camping sites. I slept under the stars again, this time in a much less pleasant place.
DAY 5
I had a hot shower, which I desperately needed, and left Laurel at 7:30 am.
Montana mountains.
I stopped in Bozeman around 10:00, to get more gas and some food. The plan was to stop and see my good friend, Mark (pitamakan), on my return trip through Montana, but as long as I was in town anyway, I decided to see where he lived . I easily found his house from the Google map that I had printed out back home. I was not expecting him to be home at 10:00 on a weekday, but noticed that there was a car in the driveway. Excited at the prospect of meeting Mark for the first time, I rang the doorbell. Mark was not expecting to see me for another week yet, and I definitely caught him by surprise. He was very gracious about that, and I really enjoyed getting to know my LJ friend of 3 years in real life. Mark and I had lunch at a little restaurant named "The Garage" where the menu covers are made from old license plates. Mark introduced me to 3 of his local LJ friends, and we said our "goodbyes". I was planning to get to Spokane, Washington and my sister's house that evening. As I left Bozeman, I stopped at a tourist info center to get a map of Montana. When I got back in the truck, it wouldn't start. I assumed that the engine was just flooded and tried it again a little later, ....but still nothing. I called Mark and AAA. A very cute blond guy towed my truck to a mechanic's shop in Bozeman, and Mark picked me up from there. I hated to impose on Mark again, but he was very nice about it, and graciously let me stay in his guest room for the night. He even treated me to dinner at a Chinese buffet. I was pleased to have the opportunity to spend more time with Mark anyway.
DAY 6
Mark dropped me off at the mechanic's shop on his way to work in Butte, and I waited there until they finished replacing the fuel pump and filter around noon. I headed west, making good time on the Montana highways. The speed limit on most of the western highways is 75 miles per hour. With my "lead foot" I had no trouble adjusting to the higher speeds. ;-)
I crossed into Idaho at 4:00 pm, and 10 minutes later got pulled over for speeding (75 in a 60mph zone). The cops had pulled over at least 10 other vehicles in the same area. The ticket would cost me $62.00. I drove more conservatively the rest of the way, and entered Washington at 5:30. I made it to my Sister's house just before 6:00, and just relaxed on the front porch enjoying the lush gardens for 20 minutes until Linnell and Bruce got home.
************************************
Stay tuned for part 3!!!
I crossed the rest of South Dakota in scorching sun and 100+ degree temps and arrived at Badlands National Park at 6:00 pm, ...it was still over 100 degrees! I had a Buffalo burger and fries at a restaurant in the park, and then started exploring the place with the goal of heading toward a free camping area (with no running water) at Sage Creek.
The badlands are an incredibly beautiful, magical, unearthly place, home to; Buffalo, Bighorn Sheep, Coyotes and Prairie Dogs, ....and filled with the most bizarre landscapes. I was enthralled with the place!!!
It is difficult to get a sense of scale in the badlands. Photos seem to make the landscape features look larger than they really are. Note the 2 people on the right side of this shot.
Evening was the perfect time to see the badlands. The shadows from the low angle of the sun accentuated the landscape, and the golden light of late afternoon gave more richness to the colors of the clay bluffs and pinnacles.
The sun set, and I drove the last few miles into Sage Creek in twilight. As I set up the air mattress and sleeping bag in the back of my pick-up truck, I heard Coyotes howling. I went to sleep under the stars and a nearly-full moon.
DAY 4
I awoke at sunrise, and left the camp at 6:00am. The Badlands had a different look in the early morning light, but were still beautiful.
The colors of the bluffs are spectacular with shades of gray, pink, red, and yellow.
The early morning turned out to be the best time for seeing the local inhabitants:
This male Buffalo (correctly called a Bison) seemed to enjoy surveying his domain.
The adult Bighorn Sheep here was wearing the latest fashion in electronic tracking devices.
This Buffalo didn't seem to care that I was just a few feet away from him.
The Prairie Dogs were very amusing to watch as they scuttled around and made squeaking noises.
I stopped at the tiny town of Interior, S.D. (population: 67) to mail post cards, and then headed out to the Black Hills area. I hadn't originally planned to see Mount Rushmore. I prefer to stay away from touristy places, but I drove by it out of curiosity anyway.
Here, Washington and Jefferson discretely turn away as Roosevelt and Lincoln share an intimate moment. *snicker*
Just George.
I crossed into Wyoming, mid-afternoon, and made a detour north to see the Devil's Tower.
Didn't meet any aliens though. :-(
It was almost 8:00 pm when I arrived in Montana in a heavy thunderstorm.
I was running low on gas, and decided to stop at the first town to fill up. But the only gas station there was closed for the night. I drove on to the next 3 exits, none of which had gas stations. Finally, there was a gas station still open in Broadus, Montana. It was still raining, but I could see the sun setting over the distant mountains. There was a strong smell of smoke at Broadus, probably from the forest fire west of Billings that I saw headlined in the local paper. Very tired, I pulled into Billings, Montana at 11:00 pm and looked for a place to stay. My impression of Billings was of an endless string of gambling places and sleazy-looking hotels. I didn't like the look of the place, and headed a little farther on to Laurel, Montana where I found a RV/Truck stop which offered a few camping sites. I slept under the stars again, this time in a much less pleasant place.
DAY 5
I had a hot shower, which I desperately needed, and left Laurel at 7:30 am.
Montana mountains.
I stopped in Bozeman around 10:00, to get more gas and some food. The plan was to stop and see my good friend, Mark (pitamakan), on my return trip through Montana, but as long as I was in town anyway, I decided to see where he lived . I easily found his house from the Google map that I had printed out back home. I was not expecting him to be home at 10:00 on a weekday, but noticed that there was a car in the driveway. Excited at the prospect of meeting Mark for the first time, I rang the doorbell. Mark was not expecting to see me for another week yet, and I definitely caught him by surprise. He was very gracious about that, and I really enjoyed getting to know my LJ friend of 3 years in real life. Mark and I had lunch at a little restaurant named "The Garage" where the menu covers are made from old license plates. Mark introduced me to 3 of his local LJ friends, and we said our "goodbyes". I was planning to get to Spokane, Washington and my sister's house that evening. As I left Bozeman, I stopped at a tourist info center to get a map of Montana. When I got back in the truck, it wouldn't start. I assumed that the engine was just flooded and tried it again a little later, ....but still nothing. I called Mark and AAA. A very cute blond guy towed my truck to a mechanic's shop in Bozeman, and Mark picked me up from there. I hated to impose on Mark again, but he was very nice about it, and graciously let me stay in his guest room for the night. He even treated me to dinner at a Chinese buffet. I was pleased to have the opportunity to spend more time with Mark anyway.
DAY 6
Mark dropped me off at the mechanic's shop on his way to work in Butte, and I waited there until they finished replacing the fuel pump and filter around noon. I headed west, making good time on the Montana highways. The speed limit on most of the western highways is 75 miles per hour. With my "lead foot" I had no trouble adjusting to the higher speeds. ;-)
I crossed into Idaho at 4:00 pm, and 10 minutes later got pulled over for speeding (75 in a 60mph zone). The cops had pulled over at least 10 other vehicles in the same area. The ticket would cost me $62.00. I drove more conservatively the rest of the way, and entered Washington at 5:30. I made it to my Sister's house just before 6:00, and just relaxed on the front porch enjoying the lush gardens for 20 minutes until Linnell and Bruce got home.
************************************
Stay tuned for part 3!!!