Friday, June 24, through Friday, July 1, 2011: On to Billings, Montana:
The first stop on our way to Billings was Spearfish, South Dakota. Spearfish is less than 100 miles from where we started, but we stretched out the trip by 25 miles so we could enter Wyoming


and immediately return to South Dakota (thus entitling us to add Wyoming to our posted map of places we've been in our trailer). Spearfish seems to be a nice, civilized town of 9,300 people---big enough for a Walmart Supercenter. It also houses a campus of Black Hills State University. We stayed at Chris' Campground, a nice place that has been owned by the same family for more than 40 years. It has been kept up-to-date very well.

Spearfish is near the adjacent towns of Deadwood and Lead (pronounced "Leed") which surrounded the Homestake Mine, one of the largest gold mines in the world. The mine operated continuously from 1876 until 1991, but its facility---including its 8,000-foot shafts---have now been converted into a geologic research facility. Also left behind for tourist viewing is the open pit where its surface (placer) mining operation took place. The pit is one-third of a mile wide, almost a mile long, and 1,000 feet deep---right in the middle of town.



Becky's great-grandfather worked at Homestake, and her grandmother was born in Lead. Lead has been allowed to remain quite deteriorated, but Deadwood has been revived (due to the return of gaming casinos, thanks to the state legislature) and restored to its old-time look, and is actually quite attractive.


The old courthouse is still in full operation (although the judge looks a little worn out).


On Saturday, we moved on, 215 miles, to Medora, North Dakota, a small, well-preserved/restored, mostly-western town, which was hosting its 34th annual car show this weekend. Quite an array of old and not-so-old classics.



I must admit I've never considered North Dakota (which I've never visited before) to be "the Old West" but I guess it's historically true.


General Custer billeted his men near here just before heading to Little Big Horn, where he planned to teach the Indians a thing or two. He didn't return.

Medora is named after Medora Hoffman, the daughter of a wealthy New York banker and wife of a French Marquis who established a meat packing plant here in the late 1800s.
Medora is the home of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, a 110 square mile park that we visited on Sunday.


It's marvelous. We drove a 35-mile loop through undulating hills, vast grasslands, some wild buffalo


and horses,


masses of prairie dogs, a few large plateau, and a gazillion buttes, large and small, with layers of multi-colored sedimentary rock that was heavily eroded,


all of it elevated above the Little Missouri River


that flows gently through the park. Beautiful.

We're staying in the Red Trail Campground, an old, crowded, but seemingly well-maintained park that has been in the same family for four generations.
The people at the registration desk maintain that the park is nothing special but that they are terrific. I can't disagree with them.

We broke up the 280-mile trip from Medora, North Dakota, to Billings, Montana, by spending one night (Monday) in Miles City, Montana, a nothing town with one RV park ("Meadows RV Park") that had received so much rain that the ground was soft.
We came very close to losing traction trying to get into the first site we were assigned, and ended up with mud six inches up the sidewalls of our tires. We celebrated my birthday by having an excellent dinner at the Rib & Chop House in Miles City. The leg to Billings on Tuesday was easy and uneventful. We are staying at cleverly-named "Trailer Village" on Billings Boulevard.
It's an old, not too big, OK place that has been owned by the same people for 37 years. We had some difficulty backing into our space, due to the "help" of one of the employees. Wednesday was the day set aside for our electrical repair. We dropped off the trailer at the repair shop, and immediately proceeded to the Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument, 60 miles to the south. The battlefield is a large, very open space, with no place to hide.

No wonder Custer---outmanned 10 to 1---got his clock cleaned. Two factoids: (i) Custer was a Major General (two-stars) at the end of the Civil War, but only a Lieutenant Colonel at the time of his battle here, the demotion being because his earlier promotions had been battlefield promotions that were automatically reversed at the end of the Civil War (but one always hears him referred to as General Custer, anyway); and (ii) fittingly, all of the Park Rangers at the battlefield are Indians.

The repair to the trailer went well (I accepted their advice and had a second battery installed, as well) and we returned the trailer to the RV park Wednesday afternoon. This time we zipped right into the same space without any aid. Wednesday night, Becky had a sushi craving, so we hit the local sushi bar. There's only one in Billings, and it is very nice ($$$$$). The proprietors are Chinese, with an interesting life story.
His family emigrated from the mainland to Taiwan in 1948, when the Communists took over. (His father was a high-ranking officer in the army, and was loyal to Chiang Kai-Shek.) The son served in the Taiwanese Air Force as a pilot for 20 years before retiring to Billings.


Thursday was an errand day and quiet evening. Friday we hit the local Costco to reload, and watched the original True Grit, which I found at a Red Box. It was better than the remake.

I was not impressed with Billings, which is the largest city in Montana (population 104,000). We saw no charming or interesting parts. It seems to be little more than industrial.

Friday, June 18, through Thursday, June 23, 2011: In the Black Hills:
The 220-mile trip into South Dakota was uneventful. This is the first time either of us has been to this state. What we have seen so far is gorgeous. The Black Hills, so named by the Indians, we are told, because the trunks of the Ponderosa Pines are black, are magnificent.


We are staying at the Hart Ranch Resort, which is a huge RV park, golf course, and real estate development. It is very nice. The first order of business was to head for Mount Rushmore before anything bad could happen with the weather. We were both blown away by the place.


The “faces” are more impressive than I had anticipated, and the accompanying buildings and viewing areas are quite well done. Congratulations, Park Service.

On Saturday, we headed for the KOA Kampground in nearby Hill City, where we will stay next week, to pick up our mail, and, as an afterthought, to visit Wind Cave National Park. (We didn’t even know it existed until we saw it on the map on the way to South Dakota on Friday.) It turns out to have been the 7th national park, established in 1903---even before the Grand Canyon park.


We understand from the film at the Visitor Center (we didn't go caving because I'm quite claustrophobic) that it has quite a remarkable series of caves with formations in the underground “rooms” that are quite different from, say, those at the Carlsbad Caverns.

Some of the visitors hanging around were big and ugly:


Sunday was a bad-weather day, as well as Father's Day, so we spent most of the day quietly. Quite a relief.

On Monday, with it drizzling all day, we attacked a recent problem with the trailer---the 12-volt system was acting up. It turned out that a neighbor is a mobile RV repairman. Dennis quickly diagnosed that our battery was low because the gizmo that converts 110-volt AC "shore" power into 12-volt DC to recharge the battery was simply not working. He bypassed the converter and attached his charger to the battery, and sent me off to Walmart to buy my own charger, which I will need to use until the converter is replaced. I contacted the manufacturer of the trailer and was amazed that the service rep was quite willing to schedule a replacement in Billings, Montana, the next big city we will come to---in a week or so. We had to set the appointment ahead since the new converter had to be sent from the factory. Dennis had warned me that no local servicemen carry these converters in stock.

Dennis and his wife, Collette, recently lost a Dalmatian, and were quite interested in spending some "spot time" with Daisy and Ramsey. They played with the dogs for about a half hour. They (all four of them) seemed to enjoy it immensely.


Tuesday, the weather threatened all morning, but no rain came, so we headed for Badlands National Park---about 80 miles away.


Interesting place, a lot like the parks in Utah with massive erosion carving the landscape. Because there was no sun, the various layers of sedimentary rock did not show off their respective colors very well. But the formations were beautiful, nevertheless.


The park is surrounded by the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. In fact, much of this part of South Dakota is grassland. (Most of what is not Grassland is in the Black Hills National Forest.) It's interesting to see great amounts of wild grass on top of the rock formations throughout the park.



On the way back, the rain started. It came down in buckets off and on for the rest of the day---interspersed with sunshine for a few minutes occasionally. It was strange. And the downpours interfered with our satellite reception periodically.

Wednesday was the day we set aside to visit nearby Custer State Park. It is absolutely lovely; and huge---71,000 acres. The trees, the rolling hills, the grasslands, and the local animals are terrific.


One local burro came a little close:


On Thursday, we made the 30-mile transfer to the Mt. Rushmore KOA. It's a huge, nice, and very busy park. We came here because we originally could not get a reservation at the Hart Ranch Resort for the entire time in the area, so we made a reservation at KOA for the missing days. Slowly, we were able to extend the stay at Hart and shrink the stay at KOA. Ultimately, we had to move to the KOA park for one day, because there is a rigid rule at KOA that you can't cancel an entire reservation---no matter what the reason---without paying a stupid fee. Once at KOA, we returned to Custer State Park for a second look. We visited Sylvan Lake (site of one of the four lodges in the park) and the Eye Of The Needle (one of a series of fascinating granite formations), among other sites. It is a magnificent park. This is our last day in the area. It's been a very worthwhile stay. Tomorrow we head for Wyoming and North Dakota.

Wednesday and Thursday, June 15 and 16, 2011: On To Mt. Rushmore:
We broke the trip to Mt. Rushmore into two one-day stays, one in Ogallala, Nebraska, and one in Gering, Nebraska. This is the first time either of us has been in Nebraska. I can’t say we’ve seen the best it has to offer. Ogallala is a small agricultural community located in the middle of nowhere, 240 miles from Denver, and Gering is a slightly larger community 145 miles further toward Mt. Rushmore, near Scottsbluff, which is where the Scotts Bluff National Monument is.
The Country View Campground in Ogallala was old and simple but very nice, and the people were terrific. The weather was not. We had serious thunder and lightning storms during the night---making the dogs very nervous. We had quite a time calming them down. The Robidoux RV Park in Gering is owned by the city, is attached to a large park, and is magnificent.
The nice lady who checked us in is a retired trust officer, so she and Becky had much in common. Before we could get serious about what sightseeing was available in Gering, the weather turned sour, and we experienced a major rain, wind, and hail storm. It was suggested that we monitor the storm’s progress on a local FM station, which we did for a few minutes---until the station inexplicably went off the air. My mind supplied a few ominous possibilities. Tomorrow, weather permitting, we will finish the trek to Mt. Rushmore.

Monday, June 6, through Tuesday, June 14, 2011: In Denver:
The 148-mile trip to Denver was supposed to be a piece of cake, and for the most part it was. Then we started climbing about 5,000 feet on I-70 from Silverthorn toward Denver. At mile 6 (of 8), bells started ringing. The dashboard message said that we were overheating. Seconds later, steam started pouring from under the hood, and coolant started dripping from under the truck. I immediately pulled off the highway and stopped. A passing tow truck driver stopped and suggested we let it cool for at least an hour, and then refill the coolant. We immediately called an emergency service we have, and asked for some coolant. (Who carries coolant as a matter of course?)

After a bizarre 20-minute conversation with the receptionist, wherein she could not get anything right, and an ensuing 30-minute wait (which was less than predicted), a very nice guy showed up and delivered the needed coolant---and we were on our way without further problems with the truck.

Then we arrived at the RV park we had booked---the Golden Terrace South RV Park in Golden, Colorado. What a dump.
We need to tell the booking service about this place. It was totally unacceptable. Surprisingly, they gave me back our deposit, even though that’s against the rules of all RV parks. We decided instead to stay across the street, at the Dakota Ridge RV Park. It is much nicer, and far more expensive, of course.
As nice as they were, they first assigned us to a site that was already occupied, and then took more than a half hour to find another site for us. Oh well.

Tuesday morning, I decided to have the truck brakes checked, due to some very intermittent vibration that has recently occurred. The brake person diagnosed the vibration as being due to some hairline cracks in the rotors, which he agreed was minor, and not a safety risk. He did, though, recommend a number of things, but finally agreed that there was really no reason to do anything for the time being. I was very relieved. He also confirmed that the brake pads had thousands of miles left on them. (They are original, and have already gone 170,000 miles. I have no idea why they have lasted so long.)

We also had one of Becky's boots fixed at a local shoe repair shop on Tuesday, dropped her camera off at a camera shop to be repaired (the zoom feature no longer works), bought a duplicate camera to use while the first one is in the shop and then to keep as a backup, bought a new toaster (one that does not, by itself, use up the entire 15-amp circuit that serves the kitchen and living room, thereby hoping to prevent constant circuit breaker throws), went to Camping World to buy some goodies for our trailer, dropped off our comforter at a local laundry to get some of my blood removed (somehow I bled all over it last night from a teensy cut in my left elbow, which I did not even discover until noon), got Becky a new pair of reading glasses at Lenscrafters (I got my eyes checked but did not get new glasses because my prescription had not changed sufficiently), filled up the truck with diesel fuel, and, finally, hit two nearby Walmarts to reload groceries and get other stuff. Altogether, it was quite a productive day.

On Wednesday, we visited Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Estes Park is one of the most beautiful spots we have ever seen. We had a terrific lunch at the historic Stanley Hotel (the site of “The Shining”). It remains a fabulous place.
Rocky Mountain National Park (the eastern entrance is right next to Estes Park) is a beautiful place, as well. Much of it is still emerging from a very snowy winter.


On Thursday, we had a nice lunch at Mimi’s Cafe in Golden with Bert and Karen Cook, whom we met on our last South American trip two years ago. They alternate between homes in Florida and Colorado. It was fun seeing them again.


Friday was our night for dinner with Dennis and Jackie Dexter. We hadn’t seen them since 2000. Dennis was a fraternity brother of mine at UCLA. The Dexters have a very nice home in the Country Club section of Denver (so named because the area's south boundary is on Speer Boulevard/1st Avenue, which forms the north boundary of the Denver Country Club). As usual, Jackie put on quite a spread. She is an excellent and creative cook. We had a wonderful time with them.


On Saturday, we had dinner with Patra Attig at Luca D’Italia, on Grant Street in Denver. Patra is an interior decorator who worked with us when we moved to Denver in 1998, and again in 2000, when we moved to Pasadena. She’s a delight. The restaurant was very chi chi, and expensive, and more than a bit pretentious, but the food was delicious. I'm glad we went.


On Sunday, we went to Boulder to spend the day with Ed and Connie Clancy. Connie went to high school with Becky.
We took the dogs and our bikes. (My bike was not working properly---an out-of-true rear wheel---and I had to get an emergency fix Saturday afternoon afer Connie announced that we would be riding on Sunday.) We pedaled into and around central Boulder and fought the crowd on the Pearl Street pedestrian mall. We also visited the Bike Park in Valmont Park that just opened this week. It’s huge, and well-done, and will be a Mecca for all kinds of bicyclists.
Becky had a flat tire and a front brake problem along the way, barely 50feet from a bicycle repair facility that abuts the bike trail. Very lucky. We had lunch and dinner at Connie and Ed’s, and played a number of table games (Mexican Train, Farkle, and Don't Peek, Ethel) with them. It was a great day. Daisy and Ramsey were good troupers all day, and were exhausted when we got home.

On Monday, we finally got to Le Central, our old favorite French restaurant. (We used to go there at least once a week when we lived in Denver.) As usual, we each had a huge bucket of Mussels and a never-empty plate of French fries. And, of course, a bottle of Chardonnay. Absolutely delicious.


We finished our Denver feeding frenzy by meeting Barbara and Clark Gates for dinner on Tuesday at Cucina Colore, an Italian restaurant in the Cherry Creek North shopping area. The food was delicious and attractively presented. Becky worked with Clark at Union Bank. We last saw Barbara and Clark many months ago at their Massachusetts home. (They alternate between Massachusetts and Colorado.) They are a lot of fun to be with.


Tomorrow, we start on diets.