The Martins' Grand Adventure II: Days 47-49 – Bad Lands NP & Hill City, SD

On our way from Chamberlain to Hill City, we stopped at Badlands NP and did a short hike, as well as driving the scenic loop. This was made more interesting since we were hauling the trailer for this visit! The geology of this area is very diverse compared with the surrounding area. It was very breathtaking. The highlight of this stop, however, was the appearance of two big horn sheep at one of the overlooks. They walked alongside the road and then crossed over to our side, next to the overlook. They seemed unfazed by the cars and motorcycles in the area. We watched them graze the grass and then climb to one of the peeks of the overlook. They seemed perfectly happy to stand and then lie down on the outcropping. I wonder how long they outlasted the spectators after we left!!
After Badlands, we stopped at Wall Drug. This is definitely a roadside attraction that has morphed larger and larger over the years. The boys had their first try at a shooting gallery, we walked through the stores, we watched the dinosaur come to life and of course, we had an ice cream. It was a bit hokey but fun nonetheless.

We arrived at the Rafter J Bar campground in the late afternoon and I have to say this is one of the most beautiful campgrounds we’ve ever stayed at. There were hundreds of sites but they were split up into “camps” with a huge grassy area in the center. The camps were generously shaded with trees and each site had plenty of space… truly beautiful! After setting up camp, we hopped on our bikes to tour the campground. Then the boys and I hit the pool. Well, actually, they hit the pool and I read my kindle. We had dinner and then went to Mount Rushmore for the evening lighting ceremony. It was an interesting experience going to Rushmore, having never been there before, and looking at a dark mountain, knowing it was going to be amazing, but not being able to see it yet. There was a ranger talk, followed by a recording of each of the 4 President’s accomplishments, Good Bless America and then the National Anthem, before the mountain was illuminated. Definitely worth the wait. On our way back, we saw George Washington’s profile all lit up… very special.

The next day, we headed to Crazy Horse… I had never heard of this monument until this trip. Wow is all I can say. Its gigantic proportions are hard to comprehend. Plus I have never seen so much Native American history and artifacts in one place. It was overwhelming to try and take it all in. This sculpture was started around the same time at Rushmore was completed and it won’t be finished for another 75 years. It’s going to be a true marvel once everything is completed. I spoke to a Lakota man who weaves jewelry out of horse hair (I bought a bracelet) and I was honored to be able to speak to him about his craft. Amazing tradition.

After Crazy Horse, we had lunch in Custer. We were visiting around the same time as a national motorcycle rally in Sturgis so there were tons of bikes around. It was fun people watching for sure! After lunch, we drove the wildlife loop of Custer State Park. On the way, we stopped at Coolidge lookout. When we got to the top, we saw a couple of lightning strikes on the next peak, which was a little too close for comfort. The funny thing is we saw deer and pronghorn sheep prior to the loop but we did not see any animals on the wildlife loop until we came upon a herd of buffalo toward the end. We enjoyed the buffalo antics 7 years ago at Yellowstone so we were familiar with their afternoon habit of crossing the road, making all of the car/motorcycle traffic waitJ

We returned to camp to check on Faithy and Rio and then decided to ride our bikes into Hill City for dinner. The bike trail was beautiful but unfortunately Greg got a flat so that slowed us down a little. My engineer husband was well prepared so we were back on our way in about 10 minutes. We had marginal Mexican food and then walked around town for a bit. We stayed too long though, because it got dark quickly so we had to ride back in the dark. This did not sit well with me, since I don’t have very good night vision. To make matters more stressful, there was a thunderstorm in the distance that we could see on our way home. Essentially we were racing it. Fortunately we got back in one piece and before the rain! We sat outside watching the light show for a while. Jim took a number of photos and was rewarded with a couple of really nice lightning shots. Jim was concerned that it was coming our way, so he took in the awning and we watched from inside. The store never actually “hit” us but there was consistent lightening and we eventually got rained on.

Jewel Cave National Monument was on our agenda for the next day so after a somewhat leisurely morning, we headed over. Unfortunately, the tours were full until about 1 so we rode into Newcastle (oops, we went into WY… lol) to kill time. We then headed back to Jewel for our tour. Now, mind you, I was expecting this “tour” to be like Carlsbad Caverns. They are large and open and there are many formations to look at. Not Jewel. It’s a cave with no light and very tight spaces. I was somewhat dismayed when the group voted to take the route that would require us to be bent at the waist half the time. This tour was not about seeing the cave so much as challenging us to climb and descend, and duck and keep our footing, etc. I had to force myself not to dwell on the fact that I was underground in a very tight, dark space. It goes without saying that Jim and the boys LOVED it.

After Jewel, we headed back to Rushmore to see it in the daylight. To get to Rushmore from Jewel required us to drive back through Custer State Park. During this drive, we were following a motorhome, towing a car, and Jim commented that this guy was too big to fit through the 3 tunnels on the road. He pulled over so Jim thought that the guy must have realized his predicament. Not true. We stopped at a lookout and then got back on the road, only to be caught behind a line of cars waiting for the motorhome to get through the tunnel. The motorcycle guys were wonderful in trying to help this guy navigate the tunnel so everything seemed to work out. Jim is extremely careful to make sure we don’t get the monstrosity trailer on a road that is difficult to navigate so we couldn’t believe the motorhome guy didn’t do his homework.

Back to Rushmore, we were just as awed by the mountain in daylight and happy to be able to see the exhibits. We wished we had more time to do the short hike but time was short. We headed for a drive through Keystone after this, and then went back to camp for dinner. Of course, another set of storms were coming through but Jim seemed to think they were going to miss us. WRONG! At around 2:30 our weather radio went off and the fun began. We got hit by 3 separate storms for about 2 hours. I have never seen lightening like this before. It was like being on the set of a movie with crazy special effects. At one point, the trailer was shaking from the thunder. Faith, Rio and Connor were awake, while Jim and Greg mostly slept through it. Go figure!

The next morning we broke camp. Jim was worried about the front legs on the trailer. He thinks we have a broken tooth on one of the legs and he wasn’t sure if we’d get it back up on the truck. Fortunately things went fairly well and we got underway. Sad to leave the Black Hills, but the trip continues. Great place and we’d like to return some day to investigate further.

Big horn sheep in Bad Lands NP (they were really close!)