Day 2 ~ Our Anniversary Trek to the Great Plains

(Dan’s Update) Day 2 was the longest and wettest day of driving we have ever experienced.

The day started in Bozeman, MT.  Chewy and I started the day with a rain-soaked walk.  We packed up the car and stopped at the Nova Cafe in town for coffees and breakfast to go.  I checked on Evan while Jule ordered a few really light egg sandwiches and home fries that made us satisfactorily stuffed and totally awake for the next few hours…lol.  The sandwiches were amazing as they had a tomato and jam paste garnish that made us lick our own fingers. Chewy knew he was missing out on this breakfast and he let us know he wasn’t happy about it.

We headed out of town with our eyes and the GPS set on Mt. Rushmore.  It was about a 5 hour drive through the remainder of Montana which continued to just show off it’s beauty.  We passed the site for the Battle of Little Bighorn, better known as Custer’s Last Stand. After only ever reading about this in history books and seeing it in movies, this never gave me reason to pause, but here it was, the sight where three American Indian Tribes defeated the US Army’s 7th Cavalry.

(Evan’s Update:  Evan takes the time to call us while we’re in the car to check on us and let us know how he’s doing.  He traveled to Jamestown, VA the night before with his class where they stayed for the night.  He said he didn’t get much rest, but he was doing okay.  He said Jamestown was very cool, but very warm and he learned a lot.  He was in Williamsburg, VA at Tavern Hall having lunch.  He said he was tired, but still having a lot of fun with his friends.)

It was at this point we realized we should slow down as we enter the different states and take a picture of or with the sign of the state we are now entering.  We were not successful with Wyoming. That sign came and went like the 85 mph speed we were traveling at. We entered Wyoming and amazingly it looked just like Montana. The rain really set in on us here and we didn’t get much relief. We kept pace with a few rest stops and it looked like we were going to get to Mt. Rushmore at about 5 p.m. We were concerned the monument would close early on Sunday and decided to check the hours.  The park was open until 10 p.m….whew…(we should have checked the forecast!).

Signs for the Black Hills Forest started showing up during the drive. This was very exciting as this was the first indication that we were getting closer, but the Black Hills covers a massive amount of land and it was a haul. We entertained ourselves with the names of different towns and rivers. We crossed over the “Crazy Woman River” to which I said that was the most appropriate named river I have ever seen…Chewy laughed…Julie didn’t. Chewy gets me. We didn’t get a picture with that sign either.

We cut the corner of Wyoming to head southeast into South Dakota. Even in the rain, we could see how lush and naturally beautiful the country is. The scenes became less mountainous and more rolling.  It was very clear that the roads here were more susceptible to high winds as there were wind socks that you would normally see at an airport along the highway to let the truckers and motor home drivers know what the wind conditions would be like on the highway. With hail storms having rolled through this area before we wondered what drivers did for cover. There was nowhere to hide.  No overpasses. Just open road.

Here comes South Dakota.  That “Welcome to South Dakota” sign came and went faster than the Wyoming sign. We traveled through Sturgis. This is the major national biker rally event to go to every summer if you’re a biker.  With the rain and cool temperatures we didn’t see many bikers venturing out for the day.  Here it comes, the climax of the day. The afternoon was drawing to a close and the signs for Mt. Rushmore came into view.  We wound through a few small towns and came to the town of Keystone, South Dakota.  Signs for “Gold Prospector”, “Mt. Rushmore Souvenir’s” and everything you can think of is in this town.  We both agreed that Evan would love it here. There was a sole pizza shop tucked into dozens of souvenir shops. We made the climb up to the National Park Entrance to meet a Mt. Rushmore Ranger to which she tells us that the mountain is not visible due to the rain and fog. They expect it to clear around 9 p.m.  We’re a little crushed. Okay, a lot crushed. We made our way back down to the town of Keystone and discussed our options. We decided to get on the road and try to make Sioux Falls, SD before the end of the day. Mt. Rushmore was just going to have to wait for another day.

(Evan’s Update: Evan gave us another call to tell us about his day. He had dinner and sounded like a different person (which is totally unlike his mother). Food definitely made a difference. The kids made it back to Northern, VA where they would stay for the rest of the tour. He said he missed us, couldn’t wait to see us, and couldn’t wait to get to Grandma and Grandpa’s. Everyone said good night and Evan went off to bed.)

Back out on I-90 East and back in the rain, we made the run for Sioux Falls.  We had another 5 hours of driving and another time zone to go before our Anniversary was over. I swear we drove in 20+ mile stretches without turning the steering wheel. We made several stops with Chewy to get out and stretch. Some of the rest stop signs were interesting and educational – “Stay on Sidewalks, Rattlesnakes in Grass.” The rain started to slow and we came upon the South Dakota Badlands. These are amazing to see even from the highway.  We would like to come back and spend some time here to see these up close.

At 11:30 p.m. we finally came into the town of Sioux Falls. What a pleasant sight to be in the town that we were going to finally rest in and be off the dark highways. As we came off the highway we passed a Memorial for the USS South Dakota.  I looked at Jule and said, “That’s my Pop Pop’s ship from WWII and we’re going there tomorrow morning.”  She said that sounds like a good idea. We got to our hotel, unpacked the necessities and headed into our room totally exhausted, a little sore, but relieved that we all made it to Sioux Falls safe and sound.  Chewy entered the room like an out of control Jr. High School kid ready to party.  After an hour or so we were all able to shut it down and get some rest.

Day 2 complete.