Hello from SD

Prawn Horn Deer at Custer Park

We ended up getting the conventional 3-day weekend this week. The closest city to us is Custer, about 15 miles away, which is large enough to have a real grocery store. The largest decent size city is Rapid City, a little over 50 miles away, fully complete with 2 super-Walmart stores. We spent Saturday going to the big cities, shopping, getting a library card, and taking care of other prosaic duties.

Bring a carrot and feed the begging mules (or else roll your window up)

Sunday was much more interesting. Custer Park is a very large and very popular state park just outside Custer City. After Church and breakfast, we went to Custer Park with the intention of taking a short hike. Unfortunately, rain started earlier than was predicted. Fortunately, it was just a warning shower and we hadn’t gone very far. It was pretty easy to turn around and keep from getting very wet.

We decided to drive the wildlife road, which we can see from the comfort of our car. Boy, did we ever see wildlife. Buffalo is the featured animal. We saw several groups, including one group that was grazing right at the side of the road. One group of young men decided to get out of the car and slowly approach the buffalo, shutters clicking. They kept on getting closer until the buffalo made it clear they were too close. At this time, they immediately turned around and ran back to their car. In spite of their multiple unwise decisions (one should never turn one’s back or run from a wild animal), they managed to survive. They took off and we never saw them again.

We made our own unwise decision and decided to visit a viewpoint. After we entered the roadway, we found a 1-mile narrow dirt road, with no option for turning around, with 2-way traffic, and of course the rain turned into a deluge complete with soft ice while we were going up. We felt rather naked with our sedan amongst the 4×4 pickup trucks. After we went up, we had to go down. As dangerous as the road were the other drivers. We got behind one poor family from Nebraska. The situation obviously did not fit with their sensibilities, where roads are straight and one can see forever. Even when they got on the paved street, they wouldn’t go much faster than 10 or 15 MPH. And, of course, they were going our way.

Today we visited Mt. Rushmore. Here’s a shot from an angle most people don’t see. Below is a picture of the model the sculptor made before starting on the mountain. His scale is 1″ = 1′. He transferred measurements from the model to the mountain using a rotating bar and a plumb line. He almost didn’t get Teddy Roosevelt. There was a lot of soft rock in that part of the mountain. He cut into the mountain so much that  there is only 30 feet of rock behind Teddy.

Arrived!

Reproduction of a lodge. This was the warmest bed in the building. Notice all the wood used in construction.

We had several stops Wednesday. We saw the world’s only corn palace in Mitchel, SD; the Lewis & Clark camp site on the Missouri River, and Wall Drugstore in Wall, SD (It’s as super tourist trap, kind of like South of the Border). The best  stop by far was a prehistoric Indian village in Mitchel, SD. The Indians were part of the Mississippi culture. They occupied the area in about 1000 AD. They lived at the site for about 120 years. We learned quite a bit about these people.

The Dig

These people were farmers, with their “3 Sisters” gardens of corn, squash, and beans. They built lodge buildings of about 20 x 40 feet for each family, typically of 3 generations and about 15 people. The first thing we didn’t know but learned is that these people were terrible housekeepers. They did their meat processing, tool making, etc.; and just left their leavings on the ground. When the the ground got to fowled, they went down to the river and carried mud up to the village. They buried their junk under the mud, and went on doing what they do. They did this several times over the 120 years they were at this site.

Outside of the Dig

The other thing we learned is that their lodge buildings lasted about 10 years. After that, they would burn the old building (or just let it fall down) and build a new one. After 120 years, they had used all the lumber in the area and had to move on to another site. So much for living with nature.

The dig is inside a building which sits on several piers. The site includes parts of two lodges and the space between the lodges — the “back yard” where the Indians worked. Archaeologists have worked on this site for over 20 years, and expect to continue for another 50.

Thursday we had a short, 2-hour drive from Wall to Jewel Cave. It took us all day to check in and get settled. Today we had a day of training. We get one more day of training tomorrow. Next week we will shadow another ranger. The week after that another ranger will shadow us. Then we’re on our own. We missed several important training days. They will make no effort to provide us materials to read on our own or to provide additional training on those subjects. We received a tour outline which had at least one major error. We found that out by accident when I asked a question today. Our uniform shirts are way too large. We are a little less than impressed.

The housing, however, is great. They have a two-story building with living units. Mostly summer help has to live with a roommate. We have our own one-bedroom apartment with a full kitchen. We have a TV and a DVD player. They even gave us a desk (which they usually don’t supply.) We got the internet set up the first day we were here. We reported some minor plumbing issues. They were fixed the same day. In spite of getting a little less than a great training experience, this should be a very good summer.

Baltimore to Badlands, Days 5 – 6

JGG

The big adventure for Sunday was Blue Earth. They have a very large statue of the Jolly Green Giant. They also have two rest stops on I-90, with a connecting trail that goes under the interstate. This trail was important because it is paved (hence not muddy) and because it wasn’t actually raining while we were there. That gave us an opportunity to get out of the car and stretch our legs a little bit. Blue Earth’s main claim to fame is that the two crews working on I-90, one going east and one going west, met up at Blue Earth and put a strip of gold-colored cement to mark the completion of the road. The gold-colored cement is either long gone or buried under a more recent layer of paving, but the mosaic at the East-bound Blue Earth rest stop lives on.

Blue Earth Golden Spike

It’s about 30 minutes from Blue Earth to the South Dakota border. I gave Danita the keys and took a rest. When we stopped, the sun was out, the temperature was warm(er), and the speed limit was up from 70 to 80. Life is better in SD.

Danita lifting a car

We spent two nights in Sioux Falls. That was a good decision because Sioux Falls is a very nice place to be. We were lucky to have a very pleasant morning. The afternoon got a little windy, cool, and cloudy; but the forecasted rain didn’t start until we were back at the hotel.

We started with a tour of sculpture in downtown, We saw a lot of art. Some of it was interesting, fun, and/or beautiful. Some of it was funky. (I’m being as kind as possible here). But it was all fun.

 

We kept on walking after we got to the end of the sculptures and walked on into the Sioux Falls waterfall. When the town was first getting started, the falls was the focal point of local industry. The most ambitious effort was large flour mill that went bust in just a few years. New owners tried again a few years later, only to have it go bust again. It seems there wasn’t enough wheat or enough water to meet the break-even point the large investment required.

The Falls at Sioux Falls

There was a lot of information about how this beautiful place was trashed by the mill, hydroelectric plant, and railroad. Today, there are beautiful tree-lined streets everywhere. In 1900, there were no trees in the area except for a few near the falls that got destroyed. However, the addition of trees in Sioux Falls doesn’t fit into the story of reckless misuse of resources “they” want to tell, so it isn’t mentioned.

Pettigrew’s Window

The local hero is Pettigrew. We learned a lot of stories about him in visiting museums and his house. But there’s one story that lays his character bare. When the US was entering WW I, Pettigrew was so outspoken about staying out of the war that he was indicted. Years later, charges were dropped. He had the formal indictment mounted on the wall next to the Declaration of Independence, which he said was a symbol of his freedom of speech. Of course he had a house with all the modern conveniences, including the small stained glass window towards the left in the picture above. It is visible only from the outside of the house. On the other side is a fireplace in his formal reception area. When he wanted to accept visitors, he had a fire built in the fireplace. People saw the window lit up and knew they could visit.

After all this, we still had time to visit a small but delightful aquarium and indoor butterfly garden. I’ve never seen so many butterflies at once.

Baltimore to Badlands Day 3, 4

Diner

We’ve had two days of heavy rain with temperatures of 40 to 60 degrees. This is a part of the country where the interesting things are outdoors. We’ve bypassed most of our planned activities (except meals). We found a very good geological museum at U of Wisconsin. We had a dinner at a wonderful diner. It was a new building built as an old-fashioned diner. It had a wonderful mix of modern and retro. And the food was quite good. I had “Meatloaf of the gods” and rhubarb pie.

River tug

The good thing is that the inside of the car is quite comfortable. We didn’t bring much in the way of warm weather clothes. We each have a sweater and a rain jacket. I’ve learned how to put them on and take them off while in the driver’s seat by kneeling on the seat and facing backwards. It’s a cool trick. When we crossed the Mississippi River, we were lucky enough to stumble upon a lock. The Minnesota welcome center was just down the road from a small visitor’s building at the lock. Mississippi barges are huge beyond my imagination. One tug pushes two sets of barges (side by side).

Mississippi Barge

The rain has let up but it’s still cloudy and quite cool. We plan to get at least a short walk at one or two parks on our way to Sioux Falls today.

First 2 Days

There are pics this time.

Columbian Exposition Wagon

Our objective the first day was to get through PA. Their interstates are so bad, they are a disgrace to the nation. We had 6 hours of driving to do. I took I-68 through Western MD. It added 45 minutes to the already long drive, but the road is much better. We still had to drive north to Pittsburgh and then west to Ohio. We stopped in Akron for the night (near Cleveland). We had time to take a short hike in Cuyahoga Park, which is very nice. But basically we just drove.

1902 Electric Car

Today we drove through Ohio. We stopped at the Great Lakes Museum in Toledo, mostly just to stretch our legs. We didn’t realize how dangerous it was to be on a commercial boat in the great lakes. They lost a ship every 11 days, on average — all the way up through 1970. We’re staying in South Bend, IN. Of course, one should never go through South Bend without visiting the National Studebaker Museum. I enjoyed this stop quite a bit and Danita was pleasantly patent.

1904 “C”

Studebaker started out as one of the best known and most successful manufacturers of horse-drawn wagons and buggies. Their first cars were electric. The one pictured here had a range of 60 miles and a top speed of 22 MPH. Not bad specs for 1902!

1919 Bix Six

Those of you who are younger may not realize that Studebaker was one of the most successful car manufacturers from the early 1900s up through the 1950s. The oldest gasoline Studebaker in existence is the 1904 “C”, which is quite a looker. Before WW II, they were especially known for building rugged, reliable cars – such as this 1919 “Big Six” that traveled 475,000 miles.

1935 President

Their big car before WW II was the “President”. They had several of various models and years in the museum. All were impressively large and attractive.

 

 

 

1931 Six Roadster

They made small cars as well as large ones, and they all looked great. They even made some entry level cars. They weren’t price competitive with Ford model Ts, but they consistently had top-of-the line styling, features, performance, and reliability.

 

1953 Champion Hardliner Hardtop

Immediately after WW II, they were the first company to come out with attractive cars. They kept their styling advantage throughout the 50s. The Champion Hardliner is considered one of the most beautiful production cars ever made.

 

 

My New Studebaker

At the end of the tour, Danita and I had a great little fantasy of what it might have been like to own one of these most desirable cars. The one pictured here was from the 40s and featured one of the most unique and identifiable styling queues — the rocket nose. It had all the fun of a great convertible, without any of the fussy seat belts and beeping warning buzzers.

Wedding Bells

This post has pics — and a change. If you want to see the pics, viewing the blog is now public. One no longer needs a username and password. Just click on “Blog”  in the black toolbar to see these posts.

Jersey T’s second life

Joe and Toni got married Saturday. All three kids arrived in time for dinner Wednesday. Ryn made a big hit with her new backpack and duffle bag. They were made from Jersey T, a calf that lived at Eastwind.

 

 

Mark helping Bryon with a puzzle

We had different events for different folks Thursday morning. Pat, Mark, Ryn & Taeo toured a guitar factory. Danita & I took B & E to the Robinson Nature Center. In the afternoon, we played Monster Golf — a minigolf that is indoors (very important for a rainy day). Danita & I take yoga Thursday evenings. We are the only people in that yoga class, so we converted it into a family yoga class. Danita, Mark, and Jul played Scrabble after dinner.

Taeo & Ryn

Friday Danita & I took B, E, and Jul to Emmitsburg to see the Grotto (Shrine Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes). We had a picnic lunch during a break in the rain, then visited the Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. It’s not a typical adventure, but everybody had a good time. We were fortunate to have very little rain during the day.

Scrabble

The wedding was on Kent Island (just on the other side of the bay bridge). The ceremony was very nice. Joe and Toni both obviously love each other. The reception was in Annapolis. The food was good,The wine (and beer) flowed freely. In between, we had some free time. It was rainy, so we hung at the Annapolis Mall, which fortunately had an interesting Lego store.

Ryn made this hat from a Racoon they trapped. (Racoons were attacking the ducks and had to go.)

The Reeds left early Sunday morning so they could go to work and school Monday. Ryn, Taeo, and Mark went to a celebratory brunch Sunday. If they get back in time, we’ll catch a movie — probably the highly reviewed “Guardians of the Galaxy”. Ryn & Taeo are moving on to New England. Ryn is looking at several farms where she can work a while and learn useful new stuff. Taeo is considering working as an assistant chef at this restaurant in South Carolina:
http://www.thebrentwoodrestaurant.com/low_country_french_cuisine/

Danita, doing her thing. The spaghetti was very good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Livingroom Showdown

That’s a lot of stuff for one week. We’ll spend a couple of days packing before leaving on our great journey to South Dakota Wednesday morning. I hope this finds everybody doing well.

 

 

 

 

Ed, Rick, Bud, Danita, & Lynn

At the Lego Store

Wedding Reception Games

Bud and Danita

Toni and Joe – First Dance

Susie and Rick

Ed & Lynne