We left OK City and started the very long trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico. This trip took us through Texas. I have always heard all things are bigger in Texas and boy were they right. As we entered Texas we passed a giant rest area, not to be confused with the Welcome Center. This rest stop was unlike anything I had ever seen. It actually had an observation deck although, I am still not sure what we were observing. A little further down the road was a roadside cross...not just any roadside cross. This cross was taller and wider than most hotels I have stayed in. I believe they were trying to reach heaven with that cross. Again, all things bigger in Texas.
We didn't get to see any of the famous family of Texas...the Ewings but we did pass a few oil derricks. Too bad we didn't see a "gusher" because the further west we go the more expensive the gas prices get.
We stayed the night in Albuquerque just a few miles from "Old Towne". . We found a great little bar called High Noon Saloon and of course we went in for a cocktail. I mean how could you not have a drink at a place called High Noon Saloon?!? I was secretly hoping to see a dual from the old west.
Dave found this great little Mexican restaurant called Little Anita's and let me tell you I had the sixth food coma of this trip. The good was AMAZING! The salsa was so hot it caused me to have a little sweat beads on my face.
We walked around the shops and even went into a great old church that was beautiful. This was one of the first churches in the area and in my mind people from the Wild West took refuge in this church. You know people like Billy the Kid or Doc Holiday (insert over active imagination).
We headed back to the hotel to get some sleep since the next stop was Vegas. I may add this Southern Baptist girl was in for a very interesting next 48 hours.
Other news
We saw billboards for a 72 oz steak. I do believe anyone eating that would be in a food coma for life...or at least 24 hours.
We found the second last westward bound Chick-fil-a. Of course it was yummy!
Miles, miles, miles, miles of road construction.
Friday, October 19, 2012
Monday, October 15, 2012
OK City is OK
After the fun week in NOLA and Baton Rouge we loaded up the car and said "so long" to members of the wolf pack and cobra clan to head west...AGAIN!
The first stop on this trip was Oklahoma City which was a very long nine car ride. Note to self....driving nine hours in the car after acting like a 21 year college is not a wise decision. I swear that must have been the longest trip ever!
For the first time Dave and I rotated driving. He drove the first half and I think I was drooling on the seatbelt before we ever left Baton Rouge.
We finally made it to OK City. Dave had chosen the Hampton Inn in Bricktown which was great. There was a great little river walk next to the hotel that had fun little restaurants. We ended up eating at Toby Keith's Bar and Grill. I was totally taken with the saddle turned into a disco ball the bartender had to keep repeating himself.
After dinner we headed back to the hotel for my fix of Once Upon a Time and Jersey Housewives. Dave chose to read "The Odyssey" and fall asleep. I guess he doesn't appreciate good TV lol!
Other news-
Roxie and Gunner are doing great.
The entire blog about NOLA and Baton Rouge to follow with some exceptions. After all what happens in NOLA stays in NOLA!
The first stop on this trip was Oklahoma City which was a very long nine car ride. Note to self....driving nine hours in the car after acting like a 21 year college is not a wise decision. I swear that must have been the longest trip ever!
For the first time Dave and I rotated driving. He drove the first half and I think I was drooling on the seatbelt before we ever left Baton Rouge.
We finally made it to OK City. Dave had chosen the Hampton Inn in Bricktown which was great. There was a great little river walk next to the hotel that had fun little restaurants. We ended up eating at Toby Keith's Bar and Grill. I was totally taken with the saddle turned into a disco ball the bartender had to keep repeating himself.
After dinner we headed back to the hotel for my fix of Once Upon a Time and Jersey Housewives. Dave chose to read "The Odyssey" and fall asleep. I guess he doesn't appreciate good TV lol!
Other news-
Roxie and Gunner are doing great.
The entire blog about NOLA and Baton Rouge to follow with some exceptions. After all what happens in NOLA stays in NOLA!
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Never rains in Seattle (or whatever the song says)
Day 9....until Oct 9
We finally made it to Seattle. I will say that is one of the prettiest drives (well after we got passed the part of Washington that looks like Montana).
We decided to stay in downtown Seattle since the doggie spa was not going to be able to take Roxie and Gunner until the next day.
As we drove into Seattle imagine my surprise when it was not raining. I told Dave that I must have brought the sunshine we me from The Dirty Myrtle.
Since we were so early getting there we decided to take Roxie and Gunner to explore the new sights and smells of Seattle. One thing I was not aware of how many homeless people are in that city. They are everywhere. The city actually builds parks for them which happens to be where the off leash dog parks are located. Well needless to say Roxie thought she needed to greet every homeless person in Seattle with the exception of the high teenage couple.
After the parade through the parks we made our over to the Space Needle. We didn't go up this time perhaps next time.
We checked into the hotel and Roxie and Gunner proceeded to jump all over one of the hotel staff.
We made our way to Pike's Market. We saw the first Starbucks and of course there was a long line. I learned that Seattle's Best Coffee is also owned by Starbucks. I discovered that the guys at Pike's Fish Market will let you catch a fish. Don't think for one second that I will not be doing that several times over the next few years. Who knows that might be my new career! Stephanie the Fish Thrower?!!
Over the next few days we explored the area. We found a cute house to rent in Lacey which is about 30-45 minutes from Seattle depending on traffic and how fast you drive. We were able to chat with the people we are renting from and they gave us all sorts of useful information.
We went to REI Mother Ship as Dave calls it. I picked out a really cute/functional bike. Come to find out I needed an extra small bike frame. (I guess because I am four inches taller than a pigmy). That explains why I keep falling off the bikes I used to ride.
We flew back to SC for the wedding of Chris and Amy (I can now say it in public. That was the hardest secret to keep).
Tomorrow we start the trek west again. We will have company for half the trip as part of the wolf pack and cobra clan are set to invade NOLA and USC/LSU game and then we will head back to Lacey,WA. This time we are taking the southern route.
In other news:
Gunner and Roxie got to go to a birthday party at the doggie spa.
We finally made it to Seattle. I will say that is one of the prettiest drives (well after we got passed the part of Washington that looks like Montana).
We decided to stay in downtown Seattle since the doggie spa was not going to be able to take Roxie and Gunner until the next day.
As we drove into Seattle imagine my surprise when it was not raining. I told Dave that I must have brought the sunshine we me from The Dirty Myrtle.
Since we were so early getting there we decided to take Roxie and Gunner to explore the new sights and smells of Seattle. One thing I was not aware of how many homeless people are in that city. They are everywhere. The city actually builds parks for them which happens to be where the off leash dog parks are located. Well needless to say Roxie thought she needed to greet every homeless person in Seattle with the exception of the high teenage couple.
After the parade through the parks we made our over to the Space Needle. We didn't go up this time perhaps next time.
We checked into the hotel and Roxie and Gunner proceeded to jump all over one of the hotel staff.
We made our way to Pike's Market. We saw the first Starbucks and of course there was a long line. I learned that Seattle's Best Coffee is also owned by Starbucks. I discovered that the guys at Pike's Fish Market will let you catch a fish. Don't think for one second that I will not be doing that several times over the next few years. Who knows that might be my new career! Stephanie the Fish Thrower?!!
Over the next few days we explored the area. We found a cute house to rent in Lacey which is about 30-45 minutes from Seattle depending on traffic and how fast you drive. We were able to chat with the people we are renting from and they gave us all sorts of useful information.
We went to REI Mother Ship as Dave calls it. I picked out a really cute/functional bike. Come to find out I needed an extra small bike frame. (I guess because I am four inches taller than a pigmy). That explains why I keep falling off the bikes I used to ride.
We flew back to SC for the wedding of Chris and Amy (I can now say it in public. That was the hardest secret to keep).
Tomorrow we start the trek west again. We will have company for half the trip as part of the wolf pack and cobra clan are set to invade NOLA and USC/LSU game and then we will head back to Lacey,WA. This time we are taking the southern route.
In other news:
Gunner and Roxie got to go to a birthday party at the doggie spa.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Are we there yet...leaving Montana that is?!?
Day 8
We are still somewhere in Montana. That has to be the longest state in the country and there is nothing out there...not even a cell tower. Every so often when we went through a "town" I would get notification that I had a message but by the time I reacted we were well out of range. I think that if anyone wants to punish me all they would need to do was put me in the middle of Montana. So that morning I was more than happy to find out we were heading toward the final state on this journey.
Since I have lived in the "Dirty Myrtle" was aware of the homeless but I have never really seen hitcher hikers until we reached SD, WY, and of course Montana. I fully believe that people hitch hiking in Montana are trying their hardest to get up out of there. All of the hitch hikers had me asking many questions like "where are they going", "do their feet hurt", "how can they travel with so few bags" and "why are they hitch hiking in such a cold state". Durning this entire cross country trip, Dave and I never saw one hitch hiker get picked up until somewhere in Idaho. This car pulled over and picked up some dude on that side of the road that was heading west. He looked like a scrappy little fellow with dreads, hat backwards, ripped pants, and baggy shirt. I was surprised to see him actually get picked up. This of course led to many other questions. We went speeding past them and I wondered where they were going. In the mean time we stopped to let Roxie and Gunner out to potty, got gas, food and went to this very strange bathroom. So we basically wasted about 20 minutes. As we made our way up the mountain the car that picked up the hitch hiker came speeding pass us. It must have been going 90 miles and the scary thing...there was only one person in the car. So of course my over active imagination kicked into to full drive. Here is what I think happened, the hitch hiker killed the driver, dumped the body and is heading north to Canada. Of course all this all happened within 20 minutes.
We finally got to WA and stopped for the night in Spokane. It was a very pet friendly and running/walking friendly city. We arrived just in time to see the UGA game which made Dave very happy. One thing I learned, the games on the East Coast come on very early in WA and that is GREAT. This hotel room had more of a modern set up with oversized furniture so there was very little room for Dave's pacing that he does when UGA plays. Roxie found herself in the middle of Dave's pacing path so for her safety I made her get up on the bed along with Gunner. We all had sort of an island effect as to stay out of Dave's way. We didn't need any stepped on tails or ears. I think Roxie thinks that when Dave walking around she is going to get something to eat.
After the game we went to a really cute place to eat that happily played the USC game. I was getting very worried because the gamecocks were not playing very well. I said something and the bartender looked a me and said "don't worry Spurrier is awesome and he has this." It turns out that bartender was right and they won. WOO HOOO!!!
In other news:
We passed the place where they train smoke jumpers. Dave was excited because he has just tired Smoke Jumper beer.
There was a barber shop singing group that sung to every waitress that came bay their table. Come to find out there as a convention in town for these singing groups.
Dave saw some antlers that were strapped to the top of a van driving down the interstate.
I have found out that my ADHD is going to get me killed in WA. There are way to many things to stare at and too many bikes and skateboards running around.
Gunner is eating only with bacon gravy...who could blame him and Roxie now hates the car.
We are still somewhere in Montana. That has to be the longest state in the country and there is nothing out there...not even a cell tower. Every so often when we went through a "town" I would get notification that I had a message but by the time I reacted we were well out of range. I think that if anyone wants to punish me all they would need to do was put me in the middle of Montana. So that morning I was more than happy to find out we were heading toward the final state on this journey.
Since I have lived in the "Dirty Myrtle" was aware of the homeless but I have never really seen hitcher hikers until we reached SD, WY, and of course Montana. I fully believe that people hitch hiking in Montana are trying their hardest to get up out of there. All of the hitch hikers had me asking many questions like "where are they going", "do their feet hurt", "how can they travel with so few bags" and "why are they hitch hiking in such a cold state". Durning this entire cross country trip, Dave and I never saw one hitch hiker get picked up until somewhere in Idaho. This car pulled over and picked up some dude on that side of the road that was heading west. He looked like a scrappy little fellow with dreads, hat backwards, ripped pants, and baggy shirt. I was surprised to see him actually get picked up. This of course led to many other questions. We went speeding past them and I wondered where they were going. In the mean time we stopped to let Roxie and Gunner out to potty, got gas, food and went to this very strange bathroom. So we basically wasted about 20 minutes. As we made our way up the mountain the car that picked up the hitch hiker came speeding pass us. It must have been going 90 miles and the scary thing...there was only one person in the car. So of course my over active imagination kicked into to full drive. Here is what I think happened, the hitch hiker killed the driver, dumped the body and is heading north to Canada. Of course all this all happened within 20 minutes.
We finally got to WA and stopped for the night in Spokane. It was a very pet friendly and running/walking friendly city. We arrived just in time to see the UGA game which made Dave very happy. One thing I learned, the games on the East Coast come on very early in WA and that is GREAT. This hotel room had more of a modern set up with oversized furniture so there was very little room for Dave's pacing that he does when UGA plays. Roxie found herself in the middle of Dave's pacing path so for her safety I made her get up on the bed along with Gunner. We all had sort of an island effect as to stay out of Dave's way. We didn't need any stepped on tails or ears. I think Roxie thinks that when Dave walking around she is going to get something to eat.
After the game we went to a really cute place to eat that happily played the USC game. I was getting very worried because the gamecocks were not playing very well. I said something and the bartender looked a me and said "don't worry Spurrier is awesome and he has this." It turns out that bartender was right and they won. WOO HOOO!!!
In other news:
We passed the place where they train smoke jumpers. Dave was excited because he has just tired Smoke Jumper beer.
There was a barber shop singing group that sung to every waitress that came bay their table. Come to find out there as a convention in town for these singing groups.
Dave saw some antlers that were strapped to the top of a van driving down the interstate.
I have found out that my ADHD is going to get me killed in WA. There are way to many things to stare at and too many bikes and skateboards running around.
Gunner is eating only with bacon gravy...who could blame him and Roxie now hates the car.
Friday, October 5, 2012
Bringing Yogi his picnic basket
Day 7-
Still in Montana! I am not sure who has ever been to Montana but I believe there are two reasons there are little towns all over this state. One- people just got tired and didnt want to go on or 2- they thought they had left the state.
It was time to peace out of Billings and continue to head west. On the list for today was Yellowstone. On our way there we drove through some pretty landscape oh and scary! The GPS was having a "schitzo" moment and tookus through some scenic by-pass which added about two hours to our drive to Yellowstone. The scenic by-pass was beautiful for sure and completely undeveloped. By undeveloped I mean toilets (more on that later).
We were so high up in the mountains there was still ice and snow from last winter. No worries though as there was none in the ground. Dodge a bullet on that one. If you ever drive through this area bring motion sickness pills. The roads were never ending "S" turns. They were so sharp they were for sure capitol "s"! On one of the turns some really "smart" guys were riding a skateboard down the actual road. I guess that is Darwin's theory at its finest. I was able to get one text when we reached the top of the mountain. Dave spotted several mountain goats. Did I mention we were high up?!?
Somewhere in that trip nature called. I was completely unsure as to what I was going to do. I was hoping I would not have to follow Roxie and Gunner's lead. Like a vision in the desert came a little camp thing. It consisted of a general store, tents, grills, grizzly country sign and and outhouse. Yes, I said grizzly crossing and outhouse in the same sentence. I am not sure if I have ever seen something like that in my life. Let's just say it looked like the grizzly went into the outhouse. I will never complain about the potties at The Cup!
We finally got to Yellowstone. The park ranger handed us a piece of paper (to paraphrase) "it's sexy time in the park, please stay away from the animals!" About 10 minutes into the park we saw a giant heard of buffalo. Of course there were a ton of people out of their cars taking pictures. Dave said that is what a zoom lens and sunroofs are for so if we wanted a picture he would stick his head out of the sunroof and snap the photo. We tried to move forward but got stuck in another traffic jam. This time it was buffalo.
After lunch we were driving to see Old Faithful and saw a bull elk in the woods. Well this time we got out. Of course I get yelled at by the park ranger even though he was allowing people to take pictures. I mean do I look like I want to have FaceTime with bull elk?!? We just missed the explosion of Old Faithful because of a buffalo standing in the middle of the street. We didn't see Yogi this time but we did leave his picnic basket!
We stayed in Butte, MO. Yeah we were still in that state. Dave found a great little micro brew. We ended up going there and I was overwhelmed with questions. It turns out the bar was a miner bar. Yep a for real miner bar. They had great beer and a better atmosphere. The down side you ask...the menu consisted of popcorn and "brats" which were actually hot dogs. It was so fun though. In order to get a brat, we had to promise we would be back for October fest next year. Lol! We finally found a place to eat...it was a garage turned into a restaurant.
Other news-
Yippee...hunger strike over! Bad news Roxie has started to shake getting into the car.
Still in Montana! I am not sure who has ever been to Montana but I believe there are two reasons there are little towns all over this state. One- people just got tired and didnt want to go on or 2- they thought they had left the state.
It was time to peace out of Billings and continue to head west. On the list for today was Yellowstone. On our way there we drove through some pretty landscape oh and scary! The GPS was having a "schitzo" moment and tookus through some scenic by-pass which added about two hours to our drive to Yellowstone. The scenic by-pass was beautiful for sure and completely undeveloped. By undeveloped I mean toilets (more on that later).
We were so high up in the mountains there was still ice and snow from last winter. No worries though as there was none in the ground. Dodge a bullet on that one. If you ever drive through this area bring motion sickness pills. The roads were never ending "S" turns. They were so sharp they were for sure capitol "s"! On one of the turns some really "smart" guys were riding a skateboard down the actual road. I guess that is Darwin's theory at its finest. I was able to get one text when we reached the top of the mountain. Dave spotted several mountain goats. Did I mention we were high up?!?
Somewhere in that trip nature called. I was completely unsure as to what I was going to do. I was hoping I would not have to follow Roxie and Gunner's lead. Like a vision in the desert came a little camp thing. It consisted of a general store, tents, grills, grizzly country sign and and outhouse. Yes, I said grizzly crossing and outhouse in the same sentence. I am not sure if I have ever seen something like that in my life. Let's just say it looked like the grizzly went into the outhouse. I will never complain about the potties at The Cup!
We finally got to Yellowstone. The park ranger handed us a piece of paper (to paraphrase) "it's sexy time in the park, please stay away from the animals!" About 10 minutes into the park we saw a giant heard of buffalo. Of course there were a ton of people out of their cars taking pictures. Dave said that is what a zoom lens and sunroofs are for so if we wanted a picture he would stick his head out of the sunroof and snap the photo. We tried to move forward but got stuck in another traffic jam. This time it was buffalo.
After lunch we were driving to see Old Faithful and saw a bull elk in the woods. Well this time we got out. Of course I get yelled at by the park ranger even though he was allowing people to take pictures. I mean do I look like I want to have FaceTime with bull elk?!? We just missed the explosion of Old Faithful because of a buffalo standing in the middle of the street. We didn't see Yogi this time but we did leave his picnic basket!
We stayed in Butte, MO. Yeah we were still in that state. Dave found a great little micro brew. We ended up going there and I was overwhelmed with questions. It turns out the bar was a miner bar. Yep a for real miner bar. They had great beer and a better atmosphere. The down side you ask...the menu consisted of popcorn and "brats" which were actually hot dogs. It was so fun though. In order to get a brat, we had to promise we would be back for October fest next year. Lol! We finally found a place to eat...it was a garage turned into a restaurant.
Other news-
Yippee...hunger strike over! Bad news Roxie has started to shake getting into the car.
'Merica...it has some pretty cool places!
Day 6- leaving SD and heading to UGH Montana.
If you are asking if you had too much "happy" at happy hour and missed day 5. You didn't and yes I know 5 comes before 6 but I am still working on that day....so you know it's going to be good. LOL! Now on to day 6.
So our day in Rapids City started full of adventure. Let me start off by saying...WE WERE NOT STAYING IN THE GHETTO! It was a nice Holiday Inn in Rapids City with a lovely breakfast nook and wonderful breakfast buffet.
As dawn happened upon the City of Rapids Gunner and Roxie get up at 6 am for their morning potty. This is where it all started. I took the pups downstairs and they of course said hello to everyone. Dave's task was to load the car. I saw some dude sitting on the side of the flower bed holding his head. I just thought to myself "hmm he had a rough night" but Roxie and Gunner needed to go bad so I didn't have time to stare. Let me add that if staring was an olympic sport I would win a gold medal. So the pups finished their "business" and the three of us headed toward Dave that was packing the car. He said to me "did you see the homeless guy sitting on the flower bed?" I said "hmm I thought that guy was just having a hard morning after." Dave told me that was an understatement. He informed me that the guy's head was busted open and he was bleeding everywhere. Of course my first thought/statement was damn I miss everything. At that very moment the cops followed by EMT came screaming into the parking lot. Being my nosy self I NEEDED to get inside.(thank you Holiday Inn for a breakfast coupon)! As we walked inside, Dave said careful there is blood on the handle. Yeah the homeless dude made his way into the lobby of the hotel and guess what PASSED OUT in the middle of the lobby!!!! WTF?!? So we sort of walking around him. Well Dave had to guide me since I am now lost to all things but the dude passed out in the lobby. Being the nosy person I am, I picked the table with the best view of the lobby. Needless to say the Creasmans didn't have a rousing breakfast conversation. I have tried to find out what happened but nothing...no news of any kind on line.
After all an already eventful morning we headed up and moved out. Custer State Park was our first stop. As we stopped at the gate the guard stopped us for payment. Dave asked for the military rate and this started one very interesting conversation. The guy started talking about his brother being in the big one and that later he joined the military. He started taking about his job and he proceeds to tell us he used to load atomic bombs on B52 bomber. Of course Dave finds this fascinating and I had lots of questions. None of which got answered because there were people behind us.
As we headed into the park we saw some random buffalo. There is a big heard that lives in the park so it was strange that we saw one of them alone. We turned and moved though the park I saw some really beautiful sights. We got stopped by a heard of donkey standing in the road. One of the donkeys tried to get into the guys car in front of us. The guy kept swatting at him. It was so funny until that donkey tried to get into ours. Gunner and Roxie freaked out. Picture spinning, whining, drooling and barking all while in the kennel and you are with us in that moment. Thank goodness for my window being rolled up.
We finally got out of the donkey traffic jam and found out that we just missed the buffalo round up by two days. We were lucky enough to see the entire heard in one spot. We were able to get out of the car to take pictures (thank you fence). I guess a mama buffalo didnt take kindly to being photographed. She snorted, stomped the ground and charged. Again, thank you fence! We decided it was time to go.
We made our way to Mt. Rushmore. It was very cool. I thought I saw a bald eagle flying over the mountain turns out it was just a big ass black bird. We met a very interesting man in the gift shop. Him and his wife basically goes from national park to national park working. They were heading south in about two weeks. I wanted to ask so many questions but damn another line was forming so we moved on.
Our next stop was Battle of Little Big Horn, where Custer made his last stand. It was very cool and really kept the way it was back in the day. Word of warning...always stay in the walk way. I said to Dave...I hear rattling...I looked to my left and there was a 3 foot rattle snake slithering away.
In other news:
Dave is trying to catch up with Gunner. Somewhere in SD he hit a bird. Yep that little creep flew into the windshield which further enhanced my "love" of birds.
We saw another guy being taken away in an ambulance in Billings. That us two in one day.
We went to Deadwood, SD to see where Wild Bill Hickock was killed. They were charging a $1 to get into the cemetery. We just looked at the Gaye. I mean $1 is almost a diet coke.
Billings, MO made me cry. The very second we drove into that town the tears flowed like the mighty Mississippi!! Thank God we left the next morning!
The drive from SD to MO was the worst! No cell service, no places to pee, no food....no nothing!
If you are asking if you had too much "happy" at happy hour and missed day 5. You didn't and yes I know 5 comes before 6 but I am still working on that day....so you know it's going to be good. LOL! Now on to day 6.
So our day in Rapids City started full of adventure. Let me start off by saying...WE WERE NOT STAYING IN THE GHETTO! It was a nice Holiday Inn in Rapids City with a lovely breakfast nook and wonderful breakfast buffet.
As dawn happened upon the City of Rapids Gunner and Roxie get up at 6 am for their morning potty. This is where it all started. I took the pups downstairs and they of course said hello to everyone. Dave's task was to load the car. I saw some dude sitting on the side of the flower bed holding his head. I just thought to myself "hmm he had a rough night" but Roxie and Gunner needed to go bad so I didn't have time to stare. Let me add that if staring was an olympic sport I would win a gold medal. So the pups finished their "business" and the three of us headed toward Dave that was packing the car. He said to me "did you see the homeless guy sitting on the flower bed?" I said "hmm I thought that guy was just having a hard morning after." Dave told me that was an understatement. He informed me that the guy's head was busted open and he was bleeding everywhere. Of course my first thought/statement was damn I miss everything. At that very moment the cops followed by EMT came screaming into the parking lot. Being my nosy self I NEEDED to get inside.(thank you Holiday Inn for a breakfast coupon)! As we walked inside, Dave said careful there is blood on the handle. Yeah the homeless dude made his way into the lobby of the hotel and guess what PASSED OUT in the middle of the lobby!!!! WTF?!? So we sort of walking around him. Well Dave had to guide me since I am now lost to all things but the dude passed out in the lobby. Being the nosy person I am, I picked the table with the best view of the lobby. Needless to say the Creasmans didn't have a rousing breakfast conversation. I have tried to find out what happened but nothing...no news of any kind on line.
After all an already eventful morning we headed up and moved out. Custer State Park was our first stop. As we stopped at the gate the guard stopped us for payment. Dave asked for the military rate and this started one very interesting conversation. The guy started talking about his brother being in the big one and that later he joined the military. He started taking about his job and he proceeds to tell us he used to load atomic bombs on B52 bomber. Of course Dave finds this fascinating and I had lots of questions. None of which got answered because there were people behind us.
As we headed into the park we saw some random buffalo. There is a big heard that lives in the park so it was strange that we saw one of them alone. We turned and moved though the park I saw some really beautiful sights. We got stopped by a heard of donkey standing in the road. One of the donkeys tried to get into the guys car in front of us. The guy kept swatting at him. It was so funny until that donkey tried to get into ours. Gunner and Roxie freaked out. Picture spinning, whining, drooling and barking all while in the kennel and you are with us in that moment. Thank goodness for my window being rolled up.
We finally got out of the donkey traffic jam and found out that we just missed the buffalo round up by two days. We were lucky enough to see the entire heard in one spot. We were able to get out of the car to take pictures (thank you fence). I guess a mama buffalo didnt take kindly to being photographed. She snorted, stomped the ground and charged. Again, thank you fence! We decided it was time to go.
We made our way to Mt. Rushmore. It was very cool. I thought I saw a bald eagle flying over the mountain turns out it was just a big ass black bird. We met a very interesting man in the gift shop. Him and his wife basically goes from national park to national park working. They were heading south in about two weeks. I wanted to ask so many questions but damn another line was forming so we moved on.
Our next stop was Battle of Little Big Horn, where Custer made his last stand. It was very cool and really kept the way it was back in the day. Word of warning...always stay in the walk way. I said to Dave...I hear rattling...I looked to my left and there was a 3 foot rattle snake slithering away.
In other news:
Dave is trying to catch up with Gunner. Somewhere in SD he hit a bird. Yep that little creep flew into the windshield which further enhanced my "love" of birds.
We saw another guy being taken away in an ambulance in Billings. That us two in one day.
We went to Deadwood, SD to see where Wild Bill Hickock was killed. They were charging a $1 to get into the cemetery. We just looked at the Gaye. I mean $1 is almost a diet coke.
Billings, MO made me cry. The very second we drove into that town the tears flowed like the mighty Mississippi!! Thank God we left the next morning!
The drive from SD to MO was the worst! No cell service, no places to pee, no food....no nothing!
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