Summer 2005 Cheyenne and Beyond

Week 2 - July 18 - July 24

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Day 08 - Monday, July 18, 2005,  Minneapolis, Mn to Sioux Falls, SD, 325 miles driven

Today we were heading off to South Dakota but first had to stop at the St. Paul's Cathedral in Minneapolis. The Cathedral is huge and occupies the highest hill in Minneapolis. It's dome is higher in elevation than the dome of the state capitol and I guess the church was reminding everyone about who is really in charge. Our first scheduled stop was to get to Pipestone National Historic Monument. In choosing the route to get there "US 14" from Mankato we began to notice signs that indicated that we were on the Laura Ingalls Wilder National Historic Highway. Didn't pay much attention to that until mom noticed a town on the map - Walnut Grove. She immediately said that Walnut Grove is where Laura Wilder spent her early years. Sure enough, there was the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum which we stopped to visit. The museum was filled with memorabilia from the Ingalls family. Many of the stars of the "Little House on the Prairie" had visited Walnut Grove and left artifacts and pictures at the museum. It was an impressive museum. Funny how our paths have crossed with the Wilders so many times on our cross country trips.

From Walnut Grove we headed towards Pipestone and drove through some of the prettiest farm land we have ever seen. Huge corn fields, small towns and huge Co-op silos in each town. One of the towns we went thru was Florence, MN - Population 61. The biggest building in town was the "Florence Bar". In the Southwest corner of Minnesota we ran into an area that held a large concentration of wind powered electric generators. It was a particularly breezy day and all the propellers were spinning.

The Pipestone National Historic Monument is the Quarry used by the Native American Indians to acquire the red stone which is used to make ceremonial pipes and other stone artifacts used in religious ceremonies. The Pipestone Quarry is sacred land to the Native American Indians. According to information in the visitors center, the quarry was available to all tribes and no wars were ever fought in the quarry. To this day only the Native Americans have access to the stone in the quarry.  It is estimated that the quarry has been in use for over 400 years. The quarry at Pipestone is the source of the purest "Pipestone" in the US. The desired stone is in about an 18 inch layer which is covered by a thick layer of Soo quartzite, a stone harder than granite. To get to the desired stone there is evidence of large piles of chunks of quarzite next to the working quarry. The pipestone is removed by wedges and sledgehammers. Dynamite and power shovels would destroy the softer pipestone. At the visitors center there were a few pipestone craftspeople that were making pipes and other items. One of the workers was using a hacksaw to cut the material. He explained that in the traditional ways, the stone would have been shaped and cut by scraping with flint scrapers. The articles for sale in the gift shop were beautiful and I did buy a ceremonial pipe for "my room".

We arrived at Sioux Falls, SD at around 6:00 PM. Mom happened to find out that there were Falls on the Big Sioux River which were accessible at a city park. The falls were worth the visit.

Altar of St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Paul's Cathedral -Minneapolis

Laura Ingals Wilder poster

Sod House at the Wilder Museum

If this isn't Heaven it must be Minnesota

Wind Power Electric Generators - there were many

In the old days the Pipestone was cut with flint scrapers

Lake Hiawatha at the Pipestone NHS

Mom had fun on this stairway

Waterfall at Pipestone National Historic Monument

Waterfall on the Big Sioux River in Sioux Falls

Waterfall area from the observation tower.

 Day 09 - Tuesday, July 19, 2005, Sioux Falls, SD to Wall SD, 322 miles driven

Before leaving Sioux Falls we drove past the stockyards where a sign proclaimed that this is the place where the four major food groups "Meat, Meat, Meat and Meat -Meet" Our first stop today was in Mitchell, SD to see the Corn Palace. The history of the Palace goes back to the 1890's when two local businessmen/ farmers wanted to prove that Lewis and Clark were wrong in classifying this part of the country a dessert. They built a wooden structure and decorated the building with the crops as proof the the area could support agriculture. A few years later Mitchell build a bigger "Palace" as a way to show that Mitchell should be selected to be the capital of South Dakota. They lost but the tradition carries on. The corn for the palace is grown by one farmer which consumes about 18 acres of land. 275,000 ears of corn are needed for the decorations. Colors in the corn are not dies but are developed by withholding certain nutrients in the growing process to get the 7 or 8 colors needed for the process. Birds seem to know that the colored ears are lacking in nutrients and only attack the yellow and white ears which have all the nutrients. The outside of the palace is re-decorated every year. A theme is developed and sketched on tarpaper which is nailed to the plywood panels. As the guide said after the color scheme is laid out on the paper then it is rally like "coloring  with corn by the number". It has been known as the worlds largest bird feeder. The Corn Palace is decorated inside in the same fashion but not on an annual basis. One of the inside corn murals was about hunting the Chinese Ring Neck Pheasant. The guide explained that the Chinese Ring Neck is the state bird of South Dakota and that "Yes we hunt our state bird." There are 14 pheasants for every human in South Dakota.

From Mitchell we headed to the Badlands National Park and Wall, SD. Halfway thru South Dakota we crossed into the Mountain Time Zone and thus gained another hour for sightseeing. Along the way we saw signs that read "South Dakota Doesn't Welcome Animal Activists" and others that advocated the wearing of furs. We planned to drive the Badlands Scenic Loop Byway which leads you from outside Cactus Flats into the North East Entrance and then out the Pinnacles Entrance just south of Wall. Before we entered the park we visited the "Prairie Homestead" museum which showed the way one would have lived in a sod house. The sod house on display was original to the site but has been partially restored. The homesteader had to put up $18.00 for 160 acres of land and have 5 plowed and planted acres within 6 months of the registration. He also had to stay 5 years to get clear title to the land. There was a sign in the museum that said that the government was betting their 160 acres against your $18.00 that you would go broke before 5 years. This site is also home of the only white prairie dog colony in the world. There were many white "rodents" out in the fields and the museum was offering them for sale as pets.

The Badlands have to be seen to be believed. The Badlands were originally the bottom of a sea which was drained after mountains pushed up. Over the millions of years, the softer soils eroded away exposing the harder sandstone and heavier clay substrates. Many fossil deposits have been discovered in the Badlands. There were signs indicating where one could witness active digs. It was 104 degrees today in the park.

At Wall we settled into the Days Inn and went to visit Wall Drug. South of the Border in South Carolina has nothing on this place. This is the granddaddy of them all. They started out as a way station for travelers with the gimmick of providing ice water for free. They still do this throughout the store which is absolutely huge. The town only has 800+ inhabitants and this store employs one third of them.

Corn Palace in Mitchell,SD

The Missouri River at Chamberlain, SD from Lewis and Clark Visitors Center

Relic at the Homestead Museum

Rose waiting to be carried across the threshhold

Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park

Badlands National Park

Wall Drug at Wall, SD

                             

Day 10- Wednesday, July 20, 2005, Wall, SD to Rapid City,SD, 198 miles driven

The plan for the day was to get out early before the burning sun and drive the Badlands Loop Road again in the other direction. The National Park Service has established a herd of buffalo in the park which are in an area away from the Loop Road. To get to the buffalo we head to endure about 6 miles of gravel washboard road which I was not too thrilled about but off we went. Sure enough, a large herd of buffalo was visible in the distance with a few individuals close to the road. We saw one wallowing in the dust with its four legs up in the air. We stopped at the Cedar Crest Lodge which provides cabin and motel accommodations in the park. We examined one of the cabins and found it to be very comfortable with AC. Good to know for the next time.

After we left the park we drove past the NPS Minuteman Missile Park facility. NPS runs two tours a day of a former Minuteman Missile site. They only take 6 people at a time on a reservation basis and we were kind of hoping someone had cancelled out. No such luck. As it was a park volunteer led us through the Minuteman Missile strategy. At one time there were over 1000 of these silo missiles in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana however on a treaty basis this number is now down to 500 or so. The Minuteman Missiles were placed in these states because a Minuteman Missile could be launched in under 5 minutes while an incoming missile would need 12 minutes to reach South Dakota. The Minuteman was the first US missile based on solid fuel while the previous liquid fuel missiles needed about 24 hours to get ready for launch. I asked the volunteer what kept the Missile Crews from dying of boredom and he noted that many studied and read on the job when they weren't running tests. One particular position the "communications" officer was required to sit in one of the surface buildings with nothing to do but look out the window. He explained that one of those individuals had read so much that he could do any cross word puzzle in under 10 minutes. Other ways of breaking the monotony was to take the base armored truck out on the prairie and shoot birds. Probably the Chinese Ring Neck Pheasant.

Our plan was to arrive at Rapid City and use that as a base for visiting Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Deadwood and Spearfish Canyon. We arrived at RC at around 1:30 and after checking into the Knights Inn we visited the South Dakota School of Mines Geology Museum and also the Stave Church called the Chapel in the Hills. The Geology Museum had one of the best collections of dinosaur skeletons as well as other pre-historic fossils. We spent about an hour in the museum. In the AAA book it is listed as a Gem attraction and what is unbelievable is that it is for free. The Stave Church Chapel is a copy of a Stave Church in Norway which is over 800 years old. During the summer months there is a Lutheran Vespers Service held there every evening. No regular congregation is associated with the church. It survives from donations, the gift shop and also fees charged for renting the church for weddings. It is a magnificent structure in a beautiful setting.

From the Stave Church we drove out to Mt. Rushmore for the evening lighting ceremony. We had plenty of time to explore all the gift shops and also eat dinner in the cafeteria. Things have changed at Mt. Rushmore since we last visited in the mid 90's. Back then access to Mt. Rushmore was free. According to the NPS that still holds true if you don't include the $8.00 fee for parking paid to the private concession running the parking lot. Semantics is what I call it. The evening program consists of "the Pledge of Allegiance followed by a Ranger warming up the audience with a quiz about Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln  and Roosevelt, a talk about the Presidents followed by a film dealing with the four presidents and also the sculpting of the mountain. While the audience sings the National anthem, the faces on the mountain are lit up. The program is very popular as not too many seats were empty in the large amphitheater.

My last shot of the Badlands

Buffalo preparing the wallow pit

South Dakota School of Mines skeletal display

SDSM - precursor of our pig

Rapid City - Stave Church

Interior of Stave Church

The four big guys at Mt. Rushmore

The big guys under the lights.

Day 11 - Wednesday, July 21, 2005,  Around the Black Hills, SD, 138 miles driven

Today was a sightseeing day around the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. We started out by returning to Mt. Rushmore to see the mountain in direct sunlight. Yesterday it was under clouds for a lot of the time and when the sun was out it was behind the mountain which made picture taking a task. Today it was in bright sunshine from the east and beautiful. Our $8.00 parking permit is good for a year so we didn't have to pay again. Looking at the presidential faces you could see people cleaning the faces. In  the woods next to the walkway was a mountain goat not paying any attention to the thousands of passersby while the passersby were very interested in the goat.

From Mt. Rushmore we headed to the Crazy Horse Monument outside of Custer. The Crazy Horse Monument is being sculpted by the Korzak Ziolkowski Family at the request of the Sioux Elders. It has been under construction for over 50 years and from the looks of it it might be another 50 before it is finished. It is a monumental task. The stone carving will dwarf the Mt. Rushmore work by multiples. We were here in 1995 and it was quite a change to the site. In 1995 the face of Crazy Horse was shaped but the lips and mouth were unfinished. Now the face has been finished and a lot of other overburden has been removed. The biggest change in in the Visitors Center. Two new theaters showing the history of the work in progress, a large Indian Artifact museum, and other public areas have been added to the site along with a brand new gift shop. All the new additions are first class in our opinion.

After lunch in Custer we drove the Needles Highway which mom calls a white knuckle flight. It is a series of switchbacks, curves, tunnels etc on the side of a mountain with hardly any guardrails. One of the tunnels looks impassable but a large tour bus came thru it just the same. Once mom saw that she wasn't too upset about me entering the hole. I would have stopped to take a picture but there was no room for parking before the tunnel. Besides traffic was busy. After the Needles Highway we headed back to Rapid City for the evening. Along the way home we spotted a group of big horn sheep next to the road and had a good opportunity to take some pictures. Further up the road some mountain goat kids ran across the road in front of us and scampered up the hill to safety. Quite a day of nature watching. Yesterday mom spotted a pronghorn antelope in the Badlands. Also this morning on the way to Crazy Horse a wild turkey ran across the road.

Mt. Rushmore in the sun

You can see the workers cleaning the faces

Meanwhile in the woods - Billy Goat Gruff

Mt. Rushmore profile of GW

Crazy Horse Monument

Crazy Horse Monument

Model versus the work so far

Not a model versus the work so far

Needles Highway - one of the larger tunnels

Along the Needles Highway - so there are guardrails

Along the Needles Highway

Big Horn Sheep in Custer State Park

  

Day 12 - Friday, July 22, 2005,  Rapid City, SD to Spearfish, SD, 108 miles driven

Today we headed off to see the Lead, Deadwood and Spearfish area of the Black Hills. It was going to be our last day in the Black Hills before moving on to Wyoming and Southeast Montana. On arriving in the Black Hills area we heard people talking about the Homestake Mining operations being shut down in Lead and Deadwood. In 95 we had visited both and were fascinated by the +1200 foot open pit mine in the middle of Lead. We wanted to see how it was without the mine in operation. It was quiet. Where once we had seen two story high trucks lumbering up the sides of the pit there was absolute stillness. We signed up for a surface tour of the Homestake Mining Co. at 1:00 PM and went roaming around by ourselves. At a former Homestake Site now turned into an interpretative park, I learned that Homestake had been found by two prospectors who after extracting $5000 worth of gold from the site sold it for $70,000 to a George Hearst who in turn parlayed it into the largest gold mine operation in the Western Hemisphere. After George died, his widow ran the operation until her death when it passed on to their son - William Randolph Hearst. W. R. Hearst sold the company to develop his own publishing company. The open pit operation over the years caused the need to move houses and other buildings. Either thru the need to enlarge the mining operation or natural disasters such as slides and settling of the mine. The brick church that George Hearst belonged to had been moved to make room for the company store which needed to be moved due to mine operations. Easy thing to do when the company owned all the land in Lead. To this day the company retains mineral rights to everything more than six inches unerground.

The tour consisted of a trolley ride around town which included a pass of the George Hearst mansion which had until recently been owned by Kevin Costner. We also entered the miners changing room  and took a walk to the point where the miners entered the cars to descend into the mine, which at it's deepest was 8000+ feet deep. We go to see the shaft gantry and the equipment that transported the miners and also the ore to the surface. The ore was transported by a separate adjacent cars at a faster rate because men can get sick on an elevator but the ore doesn't. Up until the mines closing, the Homestake Company paid for all the water used in town as well as painting all the houses and also snow removal. When the company shut down all that burden went to the town and citizens. At the present the Homestake Mine is in the running for a research grant on Neutrino's(sub-atomic particles)  which can only be done underground. If this opportunity comes thru then the town will gain about 1000 jobs. Tourism can't do it all but we do our share.

After Lead (pronounced as Leed) we drove the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway to Spearfish. Not a white knuckle flight but beautiful just the same. At one spot there was a large pool of water behind a small damn which was filled with large trout. I talked to one of the fishermen and he advised that this pool gets so much pressure from fishing that the fish have gotten very particular and crafty in avoiding getting caught. With a dip net I could have proved him wrong.

After arriving at Spearfish and checking into a motel we drove the under 20 miles to Deadwood. The whole town of Deadwood is on the National Historic Register due to its historic if not sordid past as a gold town. We came to see the re-enactment of the shooting of Wild Bill Hickock in the historic Saloon #10 and also the trial of Jack McCall the assassin. Prior to the show we walked thru one of the gazilion casino's in town and put a dollar each into two adjacent 1cent machines. We were betting 5c per spin and I walked away with $12.00 while mom broke even. To bet $2.00 and walk away with $13.00 is not too shabby - especially on penny machines. We then wandered over to the Saloon #10 for the show. Saloon #10 is a working bar which the re-enactors like to call a museum. The back room of the saloon filled up with spectators including kids and it began with the re-enactor playing McCall addressing the audience with some jokes. He asked some Canadians if they were down here avoiding the draft. The character playing Hickock asked the kids it they knew what they were doing there and most said no. He explained that they were in here so their parents could drink booze and so that the kids could witness a man getting shot in the back of the head. He called it family entertainment as opposed to the current HBO program. After the shooting in the bar, the crowd got to witness the capture of McCall in the street and then we all marched up to the Masonic Hall where a trial was held for McCall. The jury and some of the witnesses were selected from the audience and they were given scripts to read on the witness chair. It was a light an funny show. As in reality McCall was found to be not guilty. However when one of Hickock's friends showed up in Deadwood, McCall split for Cheyenne and Laramie. Away from his pursuers he started to brag about his deeds and was arrested, re-tried and hung. A classic example of someone who didn't know to keep his mouth shut.

Open Pit in middle of town at Lead, SD

Episcopal Church used by The Hearsts

Yeats Shaft Hoist House

The little red potty car used deep in the mines

Along the Spearfish Canyon road

Street actors in Deadwood

Street scene in Deadwood

The shooting of Wild Bill.

Day 13 - Saturday, July 23, 2005, Spearfish, SD to Buffalo,Wy, 218 miles driven

Today was going to have to be a laundry day so the traveling would have to be ended earlier than normal. Thus we started out later than normal for us 10:00 AM. Spearfish is close to the Wyoming border so in no time we were into wild and wonderful WY. To me there is no other state with such open expanse of beautiful country. Only a few miles into Wyoming we spotted a sign Historical site - "Ranch A". The ranch turned out to be the summer home of the founder of the Annenberg publishing empire and was now in the hands of the state. The lodge was not open to visitors but was available for lease for special functions. It was a nice two story log structure but too rich for our blood for a one night stay. Back on the highway we headed to exit at Sundance to pick up the road to Devils Tower. I was off the interstate only a few minutes when I had a car with flashing lights inviting me to pull over to the side. I didn't notice that the speed limit was 30 and the officer pulled me over for going 38. He checked me out and was kind enough to let it go at a verbal warning. That really would have put a damper on for a couple of days. After the officer was finished with me I asked him if i could ask him something. His answer was yes as long as it wasn't geographical.

Along the way to Devils Tower we came across a sign in front of a small restaurant - "Eat here so we both don't go hungry" We would have stopped but it wasn't lunch time yet. We had been to Devils Tower in 1995 but it is an impressive site so while in the area it was a good stop. The temperature was getting into the upper 90's when we parked the car in the busy visitors lot. Of to the side in a shaded area mom spotted a group of people sitting in chairs. We found out that it was David Wolf Robe a Native American giving a talk about the making of traditional native flutes as well as contemporary flutes and also demonstrating the playing of them. We got there just as he was finishing his session but another session was scheduled for 1:00 PM. We spent some time talking with the artist and I left mom at the visitors center while I took the 1+ mile hike around the base of Devil's Tower. A pleasant stroll in the woods on a paved path. Mom took the walk in 1995 but opted out this time. I was back at the visitors center in time for the 1:00 PM show and enjoyed the playing and talk about the manufacture of the flutes. David Wolf Robe is an accomplished maker of flutes. He explained that in the native tradition it was only the men that could play or handle a flute. If a woman was caught handling a flute then she could have a few fingers cut off. They don't do that anymore and the flutist that won all the big awards for Native American Music was a woman flute player -Mary Youngblood.

We arrived in Buffalo around 4:30 PM and settled in to do the laundry. Who knows where we are tomorrow? 

Ranch A originally built by the Aanenbergs

Devils Tower Description provided by Wyoming

Devils Tower National Monument

Devils Tower National Monument

David Wolf Robes playing a non traditional flute.

Day 14 - Sunday, July 24, 2005, Buffalo, Wy to Sheridan, Wy, 196 miles driven

After church we decided to explore the Big Horn Mountains which in our opinion are the best kept secret in the West. The Big Horn Mountains are crossed by three major routes. We have been across all three in 1995 and found each to be an exiting crossing. The first is Route 16 thru Buffalo and Ten Sleeps Canyon and the Powder River Pass to Worland, Wy. The other two crossings lead out of Ranchester, Wy to Burgess Junction where Route 14 takes you thru Shell Canyon to Greybull, Wy. Route 14a splits to the north at Burgess Junction and takes you past the Medicine Wheel Mountain to Lovell, Wy. The height of Medicine Wheel Mountain is 9962 feet. Our objective for the day was to get to the Medicine Wheel which is about 2.5  miles off of Route 14a. The Medicine Wheel is an ancient Native American sacred site where stones have been laid out in a large circle with 28 stone spokes leading from the axle like ring in the center to the outer ring. The site is under the protection of the Forest Service. Prior to 1993 the site was primarily unprotected and had started to deteriorate due to vandalism and cattle access to the site. For a while a chain link fence was put up but that proved to be dangerous at 9962 feet because of lightning strikes. Now a low fence of massive wooden posts bound by plastic covered cable protects the immediate wheel site. To control human access, the forest service has installed a small parking lot and a gate that is staffed by  Forest Service employees. Anyone can walk to the site which is a mile up from the parking lot. Cars with handicap stickers are allowed to drive up the narrow road and park at the wheel. Other vehicles are allowed to drive past the wheel if they are on their way further into the wilderness for recreation purposes but the rangers at the wheel only allow handicap cars to park at the wheel.

We drove from Buffalo to Ranchester, Wy after picking up water and other refreshments for the day in the mountains. At Ranchester we picked up Route 14 and headed to Dayton, Wy which is at around 3500 feet above sea level. After Dayton the road starts its switchback course to get you up to Burgess Junction which is at around 9000 feet. Granted that the climb is accomplished in 30+ miles but the first 10 miles do most of the climbing. There are numerous pull-outs for rest and picture taking. At Burgess Junction there is a visitors center that even provides free coffee (donation are accepted). Route 14a took us to the cut off for Medicine Wheel Mountain. After parking the vehicle at the gate I took out my GPS at the Ranger Station and found that the elevation there was 9664 feet.

We started up the smooth road to the Medicine Wheel which is about a mile from the parking lot. At first there was a slight downslope which was easy. Very soon however it turned into a fairly steep incline. Mom was having some trouble getting used to the walking at 9600+ altitude and we stopped at a bench about 3/4 of the way up this incline. We started out again and a pick-up truck with a handicap sticker stopped and they asked if we wanted a ride up to the top. At first I declined but they insisted that Mom would not make it to the top wearing the knee brace she had on. Mom jumped into the back seat of the truck before I could say no again and I jumped into the back of the truck with the nice gentleman that gave mom the seat inside. When we got around the bend we were so grateful for the lift. Around this bend there was a fairly steep descent and then a very tortuous incline to the parking area at the wheel. The lady in the truck was right Mom would not have made the trip up walking. These kind folks were from Missouri and had been to the Medicine Wheel many times. They knew what they were talking about. Along the way the driver of the pick-up stopped and picked up other people who happened to be in their party but opted now to take a lift. When we arrived at the wheel the Rangerette there asked if all the people were in the same party and we replied -oh yes we are all together. Obviously the practice of picking up stragglers is frowned on by the Forest Service.

The Ranger explained that the Wheel has been the site of up to three prayer ceremonies per day in the summer months. None occurred while we were there. The outside of the ring was decorated with numerous prayer bundles.Other spiritual articles had been deposited within the spokes. Mom heard the Ranger explain that the Native Americans do not enter the ring because it is so sacred. They hold their ceremonies off to the side of the ring. Walking on any ground other than the walkway around the ring is frowned upon by the rangers. After spending about 30 minutes at the ring, Mom accepted a ride back to the parking lot from the kind Missouri people. I decided to walk back to see how hard it really was. Going down was real easy but on the ascents getting winded was very easy. The bench stops were welcomed. I told the Missouri Folks back at the parking lot that I would never say any bad words about Missouri anymore.

We returned to Ranchester via the same route except that this time we got the pleasure of coasting down 10 miles of highway without touching the gas. I wish I could say the same for the brakes. We arrived in Sheridan at around 5:00 PM after a great day in the beautiful Big Horn's.



Route 14A winding up the Big Horns

Along Route 14A

Up, Up Continuously up for at least 10 miles

Sibley Lake on Rt 14A

Playing in the snow on July 24

Along Rt. 14A

We got to the top of this on way up

Thanks to the Missouri bunch we didn't walk this on way up

Medicine Wheel

Prayer Bundles at Medicine Wheel

Medicine Wheel

Potty at 9700 feet

Looking over the Big Horn Mountains

At one point there was one on the road in front of us

Steamboat Rock on Rt. 14A - heading east.

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