Wild West Road Trip, Page 3 <Previous Page | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Next Page>

Friday – Sept. 16, 2011 – Medora, North Dakota to South Dakota

We had another typical packed day on the road.  We started at the Cowboy Café for breakfast.  We’re going to miss this place.  The weather outside is atrocious – windy, cold, overcast. 

We listened to another audio book, “Oh What a Slaughter,” about the massacres in the Wild West from 1846 – 1890, by Larry McMurtry.  Excellent, but horrifying read (I mean, “listen.”)

We got to Deadwood about lunchtime and dined at the Hickok House (Best Western).  I saw the biggest guy in my life in the café wolfing down a burger with 3 Indian gals.  Bill, my little guy, woofed down a burger while I woofed down a bacon sandwich with fries.  This is so gross!

After lunch we had a lot of territory to cover in Deadwood.  We first went to the Adams House to catch an “on the hour” tour.  It was 12:30 when we arrived at the Adams House, so we scurried on to the Mt. Moriah cemetery to view Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok’s graves.  They were buried in the same little fenced off area.  We also saw the Jewish section of the wonderful old graveyard before it was time to return to the 1:00 pm tour of the Adams House.

Deadwood
Deadwood
Mt. Moriah cemetery
Mt. Moriah cemetery
Calamity Jane's Grave
Calamity Jane's Grave
Wild Bill Hickok’s Grave
Wild Bill Hickok’s Grave

We were lucky to get Michael for our tour guide and we were lucky that we were the only ones on the tour.  Michael grew up in Deadwood and spends half the year in Pasadena.  He is an organist for churches in both towns – Deadwood and Pasadena.  As a kid he was afraid of the Adams House and wouldn’t go near it.  He even paid his brother a dollar to go up to the front door.  Now he works here (and is still afraid of it.) 

Adams House
Adams House
Our Guide Michael
Our Guide Michael

The house was built in 1892 by Harris and Anna Franklin.  Harris was a self-made Jewish guy from Eastern Europe in the indoor plumbing and electricity business.  He changed his name to Franklin and started an alcohol and tobacco business in Deadwood. He did very well and the house was called “the grandest house west of the Mississippi. 

In 1920 Nathan Franklin, son of Harris and Anna, sold the house to William and Alice Adams for $8,500.  Adams' second wife Mary closed up the house in 1936, two years after William’s death, leaving the all the furnishings in intact. 

William Adams, a community leader, was in the grocery business.  Deadwood was booming and his business expanded to the wholesale market.  He and his first wife, Alice, had two beautiful daughters.  The oldest one married very well and moved to Detroit.  She died of thyroid when she was young.  The youngest daughter also married well and moved to California.  While she was pregnant with William and Alice’s first grandchild, Alice went to visit her.  Alice had been diagnosed with cancer and  died suddenly in California.  The daughter went into shock and died as well, along with the fetus.  William was beside himself with grief. 

Years later, at age 72, William is on a train ride back to Deadwood.  He is smitten by a young woman, Mary, who is just 29 (and poor and from the rival town, Lead).  Mary is a widow and ends up marrying William.  They have a wonderful seven years together traveling by car back and forth to California.  William dies and leaves Mary with only $40,000 and the house in Deadwood.  Mary is very clever and invests in IBM and in Disney stocks and turns that $40,000 into millions.  (You gotta love a scrappy coal miner’s daughter like that.) 

The house sat vacant for 50 years.  (That’s when Michael dared his brother to go up to the front door.)  Mary marries her third husband, a dentist.  He is a real jerk.  He takes her car and doesn’t come back and then sues her for alimony.  She outsmarts him and he gets nothing.  Mary comes back to Deadwood every year, opens up the house, but stays in a hotel.  Michael thinks she does this to maintain her residency in North Dakota, not California, to avoid heavy taxes and alimony.  Michael also believes she doesn’t stay in the house because she thinks it’s haunted.  (Michael related several incidences when he saw a man in the house and heard a voice from the top of the stairs while no one was there.  I had fun teasing him about seeing things.  He was genuinely spooked.) 

In Mary’s last years, she turns the house and all the belongings over to Deadwood. William had been very civic minded and built a museum and she thought it only right to gift the house to the town.  The house is wonderful with an elegant living room, dining room (safe tucked away in the wall), servant’s quarters, fancy bathrooms, baby grand piano (with Mary’s music in tact), kitchen with the first electric fridge and first electric stove.  Pictures weren’t allowed – so I only have Michael’s stories to remember.  It was great getting to know about the families, the house and some of Deadwood history.

We left the house at 2:00 and drove a few blocks to town to see the Adam’s Museum (the one William had donated to the town upon his death).  There was a little problem with the GPS, then a little problem with a parade going through town.  It was either home-coming or round-up weekend or time for the townsfolk to celebrate now that all the tourists have left.  We finally found our way to the classy old museum.

It was packed with more Deadwood history.  In an hour, we learned about the town characters – Calamity Jane (who looked very gay); Wild Bill Hickok (who looked like a stud); and Potato Creek Johnny (John Perrett a little elf of a guy) who found the biggest gold nugget in town.  We learned that Calamity Jane drank herself to death and had a huge crush on Wild Bill, so she must have not been gay after all.  Wild Bill was gunned down at the age of 38 playing poker at the Saloon 10 in town.  He was holding 2 aces and 2 8’s, which later became known as “the Dead Man’s hand.” 

We also saw display cases of items from the different cultures from this town – Jewish, Chinese, Italian, Danish, etc.  It was quite a melting pot.  The museum had everything packed in it, including the first locomotive and bones from a pre-historic alligator.  We learned that the name “Deadwood” came from the first gold miners who found a lot of deadwood in the gulch where they were mining. 

After stuffing our brains with facts, I talked Bill into getting an ice cream right across the street.  The ice cream was yummy, and we learned that the ice cream store was once the actual Adams grocery store – way cool.

We left town about 3 p.m., heading to Lead, our second mining town.  (The town is named “Lead” not for the metal, but for the veins in the mine that may “Lead” to the gold.) It is pronounced "leed". Lead produced tons of gold, but didn’t seem as sophisticated as Deadwood. For over 100 years, gold mining has been the #1 industry in Lead and in the Northern Black Hills.

Again, the GPS had a hiccup and took us through the back roads in town – what’s it got against Main Streets.  Maybe it knew that there was a big home coming parade going down Main Street.  It turned out to be a gorgeous day and the streets were filled with locals cheering the hokey floats and marching bands.  We parked in a neighborhood off Main Street and headed to the Visitor’s Center.

Ronda, the VC greeter, wasn’t too interested in dispensing information.  She was watching the parade, greeting her neighbors and enjoying the beautiful day.  However, Ronda did give us a free pass to the Crazy Horse museum worth about $37.  She was sweet.  She told us to go to the Black Hills Mining Museum a few blocks away and then stop in at the old Opera House.  The parade broke up quickly and in no time, the streets of Lead were empty again. 

We stopped in at the Black Hills Mining Museum expecting to go to the simulated underground level and see what it’s like to be a miner in the 1900’s before OSHA took charge.  We missed the last tour by about 30 minutes, so we just nosed around the ground floor exhibits, which turned out to be grand. 

Two brothers, Fred and Moses Manuel, took out the claim in Lead in 1876.  They were doing fine when George Hearst, father of William Randolph Hearst, paid a hardy $70,000 for the claim just a year later.  He went around picking up mining operations throughout California (which didn’t do so well), Nevada (did pretty good) and this one in Lead (which shot through the roof).  The Homestake gold mine was a REAL GOLD MINE! 

At the time, Papa George Hearst was in his 40’s and his new bride, Phoebe, was a spunky 19 year old gal.  (Their son, William Randolph Hearst, was just a mama’s boy).  George made a ton of money in Lead and Phoebe took this town by storm.  She was so good and generous to the mining families.  She established a recreation center that included a bowling alley and a state of the art Opera House.  She offered Kindergarten education to all the families (unheard of at that time) and did a lot to provide health care.  Generations were thrilled to be a part of this mining operation. 

The Black Hills Mining Museum was fascinating.  I bumped into a woman about my age who was researching this mine because it is the place where her grandfather died.  She was 4 months old and he was 54 when he stepped into a shaft and was gone-oh.  She was in town for her 55th high school reunion.  She feels very connected to her grandpa and plays his violin.  She was taking serious notes with sketches and all.

The display cases were filled with treasures.  One was a delicately hair-braided watch chain.  A man on death row made it and sent it to the head of the mining operations, requesting some money for the watch chain to pay for his defense, otherwise he would die.  The cases that involved the people are the ones that tug at my heartstrings. 

After the mining museum, we went next door to the Opera House and were sad that it was closed.  Good news about being in town after tourist season – no people / Bad news – things shut down early so the folks can go out to see the homecoming parades.  We peeked through the large doors and saw the marvelous renovation going on at the old Opera House, the place that Phoebe Hearst gifted to the town.

We walked back to the car, and then made another stop at the Visitor’s Center.  Directly behind the Visitor’s Center was the Open Cut Homestake mine. Homestake, in operation from 1876 until 2001, was the largest and deepest gold mine in North America, producing more than 40 million ounces of gold. Several buildings in town had to be removed because the town is sinking, due to the mining operations.  In 1990, the gold mine shut down because gold wasn’t doing well and the cost to extract it was enormous.  The mine is now being “re-purposed” for underground experimental purposes – which probably will prove to be another “gold mine.” It was selected as the location for the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL), winning out over several candidates. If completed, the DUSEL facility will continue work on dark matter and neutrinos, as well as providing a site for biology, geology, and mining research.

Open Cut Homestake Mine
Open Cut Homestake Mine
The Hearsts
Fred and Moses Manuel

We left Lead, amazed at what we had learned and seen, and headed to Hill City, our final destination of the day.

Our GPS directed us to the Christmas Cabin at the Holly House Bed and Breakfast.  Our first impressions were not good.  The main house, right along the main highway, was filled with cats and crap.  The proprietor didn’t look at all like a B&B operator.  She took us to the cabin, which wasn’t bad, but filled with Christmas crap.  This would be our home for the next 7 nights and frankly, we were a little worried. 

We settled in and grew to love the little cabin by the stream.  I took several of the Christmas knickknacks and stuffed them in the big walk-in closet so I could breathe again.  Then I drank some wine and walked down by the stream.  It’s really a nice, quiet place – I’ve got to learn to stop jumping to conclusions.

Our cabin in the Black Hills
Our cabin in the Black Hills
Our neighbors
Our neighbors
Christmas decorations in the cabin
Christmas decorations in the cabin
Christmas decorations in the cabin
Christmas decorations in the cabin

We went to town in search of pasta – no luck.  We ended up at the Bumpin’ Buffalo Bar and Grille, an old bar turned into an eatery.  We found salmon on the menu and went for it.  Hill City is a hopping town.  We stopped for milk at a convenience store on the way home.  Things are looking up.  I was exhausted and watched a stupid Charles Manson biography and wasted 45 minutes while Bill was engaged with the internet.

We went to bed and stared at the two stuffed reindeers draped over the headboard, but then went to sleep and slept very well.

Saturday – Sept. 17, 2011 – Black Hills, South Dakota – Mt. Rushmore

We made breakfast in our cabin and then headed out to Mt Rushmore.  I got such a rush when I first saw Mt. Rushmore.  I loved the hokey grandiose entrance.  I loved the carved heads.  I loved the cockiness it took to blast away a mountain in order to bring some tourists to South Dakota. 

Mt. Rushmore entry
Mt. Rushmore entry
Mt. Rushmore entry
Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore
Gutzon Borglum
Gutzon Borglum

Ranger Amber took us up the path closer to the four larger-than-life-faces.  She told us the story of how Gutzon Borglum, the crazy artist, born in Idaho of Mormon parents, who went off to study sculpture in Paris with Rodin.  He had a huge ego and landed a gig sculpting a mountain memorial to heroes of the Confederacy, planned for Stone Mountain, Georgia by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The relationship went south (after he smashed his model they claimed they owned) and he left town.  Borglum then hooked up with Doman Robinson who wanted to blast out some rock structures to form Indians and other figures of the Wild West to bring tourists to South Dakota.  Borglum said why not make it American’s leaders and blast out a mountain.  Borglum picked Mt. Rushmore named after a curious New York lawyer on a business trip to sort out some mine / claim issue.  Rushmore asked his guides about every stone and every flower.  When he asked “What’s the name of that mountain,” the replay was, “It doesn’t have a name, why not name it after you?”  The rest is history.

Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore

Back to our Borglum story – Borglum picked the mountain and the four leaders to be carved in stone.  They were:

  • Washington because he was the father of the country and led us through the American Revolution
  • Jefferson because he had the foresight and negotiated the Louisiana Purchase for 2 cents an acre saving us (and the French) from another big war.
  • Lincoln because he lead us through the awful civil war and believed in human rights
  • Teddy Roosevelt because he was a friend of Borglum’s – and I think, a visionary, although there was a lot of controversy over TR’s selection – after all, Teddy had only been dead for 7 years.
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument
Mt. Rushmore National Monument

It was a massive operation that took years and involved a lot of PR and fund raising.  After each bust was completed, there was a big hoop-la and a big celebration.  Borglum was almost finished with the faces when he went to Chicago for routine surgery on his prostate.  Turns out he died at the age of 74 and his son, Lincoln, completed the face of Lincoln.  Borglum had a lot more planned for the project.  He wanted to add three huge archive museum tunnels right behind the heads of the great leaders. 

The museum exhibits were excellent, showing the equipment used, how the explosives blew away the mountain and how the model was developed.  The final heads were 12 times the model (1’ equaled 12’). The shapes from the model were transferred to the mountain using a protractor and weight to set the precise points.  The model had to be changed from time to time when the actual rock on some parts of the mountain wouldn’t take to sculpturing. 

Mt. Rushmore Museum
Mt. Rushmore Museum
Mt. Rushmore Museum
Mt. Rushmore Museum

The stories from the workers were amazing.  Apparently Borglum was a real son of a gun and fired workers at the drop of a hat.  His son, Lincoln, had to patch things up the next day and beg the workers to return.  The workers formed a very tight community, organizing baseball teams and just hanging out.  Some were terrified of the great heights, but they knew they were a part of history. 

Bill and Nancy
Bill and Nancy
Mt. Rushmore
Mt. Rushmore

We left Mt. Rushmore about 11:30 and drove down the famous Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway. Peter Norbeck was a humble son of immigrants who became an engineer, hooked up with Borglum to design a 68 mile road through the Black Hills, which was an engineering feat.  The byway takes you through spiraling “pigtail” shaped bridges, towering granite pinnacles, “out of this world” rock formations and six rock tunnels, three of which were designed to frame the figures on Mt. Rushmore.  Not only did Norbeck complete this engineering marvel, he also went up the political ranks becoming a powerful senator from South Dakota.  He was head of the Finance Committee when the stock market crashed in 1929. He appointed Ferdinand Pecora as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate's Committee on Banking and Currency. The Committee investigated the Wall Street Crash of 1929. At the Peter Norbeck Overlook to Mt Rushmore we made a peanut butter sandwich and had lunch.

Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway
Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway
View from Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway
View from Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway

Next we drove to Custer State Park, stopping at the Peter Norbeck Visitor’s Center.  The free “ranger led” panning for gold tour was just beginning.  We dashed across the street to French Creek to hook up with another adorable ranger and try our hand. With our tin pans, we scooped up some mud on the banks of the French Creek and then went to the creek to filter out the lighter material, leaving behind the heavier clunks of gold. (Gold is 18 times heavier than mud.)  Panning was very boring.  None of us came up with anything.

South Plaza bluffs
Custer State Park

Swallow-tail gull
Panning for gold

We gave up our gold mining gig and took off for a 4-mile trail to “Lover’s Leap.”  The trail, marked by blue diamond symbols, went up rather steeply through Ponderosa Pines.  (We learned earlier that the place is called the “Black Hills” because it is covered with Ponderosa Pines that give it a black appearance from a distance.)  We got to the top and checked out the overlook from “Lover’s Leap” – a disappointment for the miles we put in.  Coming back, we crossed several streams tucked under more Ponderosa Pines.  We used fancy foot work to try and avoid the poison ivy.  The trail went on and on (and ended up being 6.5 miles).  We finally emerged right by a tour bus stopped outside a rather large gift shop.  Bill wasn’t pleased when I found the chintzy souvenir – a Frisbee shaped like a buffalo patty – just had to have it.


Lover's Leap Trail
Lover's Leap Trail
Lover's Leap Trail
Lover's Leap Trail

Blue Diamond marking Lovers Leap Trail

Lover's Leap Trail

Down the road a bit we spotted some pronghorns grazing by the roadside.  They looked so lovely.  Finally, we got back to the car just as the rain was starting to fall.

Pronghorn
Pronghorn
Pronghorn
Pronghorn

We drove through the town of Custer in the rain.  I saw a sign for a restaurant advertising PASTA. For the last week or more we’ve been hungry for pasta, but pasta isn’t big in these parts.  I was excited, but it was only 4:30 and too early for dinner.  We drove on down the road, stopping at a market to get some supplies and then headed back to our little Christmas-adorned cabin in Hill City.  We showered, checked the internet, watched the news, made chili, and had some wine. After dinner I caught up on my journal while Bill snoozed.  The rain is falling softy outside – but sunshine is predicted for tomorrow.     

Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011 – Black Hills, South Dakota

In our quiet, peaceful cabin, we slept in until 7:15.  We had some cereal and toast and then hit the road.

First stop was to hike Harney Peak by Sylvan Lake.  Dave, who runs the B&B with his wife Dawna, couldn’t even imagine us attempting Harney Peak.  He was puffing on his cigarette as he bid us good luck.  It’s an 8-mile hike to the Harney Peak Fire Lookout, elevation 7,242 – highest point east of the Rocky Mountains and West of the Pyrenees mountains (located between Spain and France).  We meant to do a shorter out and back hike, but parked in the wrong lot and added some distance, but also a lot of beauty.

The valley was covered in Ponderosa Pines.  However, some weren’t doing so well, due to the Mountain Pine Beetle (much like the White Pine Beetle).  The park is attempting to control these pests before they wipe out the forests all together.  They’ve learned that pesticides don’t work on the MPB because those little varmints only adapt to pesticides, becoming stronger than ever.  The game plan now is to take down the infected trees, transport them to a lumber mill and dry them out.  In this area, they were using helicopters to remove the sick trees.

Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak

The Harney Peak trail gradually went uphill taking us past magnificent rock structures referred to as “Needles’.  We were tempted, but we bypassed the trail to Little Devil’s Tower. The structure was amazing. 

There was some trail confusion as we passed through the Elk Forest Wilderness.  The trail numbers changed and did not match the map, but we forged on and finally made it to the top.  The top turned out to be spectacular, crowned with a rock “castle.” The Harney Peak Fire Lookout, dam and pump house were all built by the CCC in 1939. My Dad was in the CCC in Michigan during this era.  Being a poor farm boy, he was able to learn some skills, make a little money and start on a path to making a better life for himself and his future family (that would be me).

Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak
Trail to Harney Peak
Harney Peak
Harney Peak
Harney Peak
Harney Peak

The trail guide said that on a clear day, you can see 4 or 5 states in the 360 degrees panoramic (South Dakota, Montana, Nebraska, Wyoming and North Dakota).  We had our lunch perched in a gorgeous spot and kept trying to remember which states we were seeing. 

View from Harney Peak
View from Harney Peak
View from Harney Peak
View from Harney Peak

We took a different trail back – nice and rolling.  We heard a woodpecker in the quiet forest making a lot of racket.  We crossed some streams and before we knew it, we were back at the car.

We decided to drive through the Needles Highway (part of the Peter Norbeck scenic highway we were on yesterday).  We passed through amazing structures such as the Eye of the Needle and Cathedral Spires plus a couple of tunnels sized for only one car.  We were giddy with the exciting views.  We did see one large tour bus stopped for a photo opp.  We wondered how in the heck did they get here?  There were several motorcycle riders dashing over the roads – looked like fun.

Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway
Needles Highway

Next stop was Badger Hole – a most quaint cabin occupied for 30 years by a poet-writer named Badger Clark (1927 to 1957).  Badger (his mother’s maiden name) was born in 1883 in Deadwood.  He graduated from Deadwood High.  His father was a Methodist minister.  His older brother and his mother died of T.B., so when he got T.B., he went to Arizona to be healed (which he was).  In Arizona he become a cowboy and wrote cowboy poems and music.  He was a bohemian and traveled to Cuba to join in a commune, which didn’t work out.  He came back to the Black Hills to take care of his folks and ended up building this charming little cabin on the grounds of Custer Park.  He was very famous and the poet laureate of South Dakota.  Dwight D. Eisenhower even came to spend the afternoon with him in the cabin.  What a character!

Badger Hole
Badger Hole
Badger Clark's Cabin
Badger Clark's Cabin

Our last stop in the park was the Gordan Stockade.  On Oct. 6, 1874 a group of 28 people headed west from Sioux City, Iowa following the wagon trail of the Custer Expedition. They were driven by rumors of gold.  They were also illegal invaders into the Black Hills, which had been given to the Sioux by Ft. Laramie Treaty. The gang of 28 eluded the cavalry and made a permanent camp in this area in December, 1874.  Named for the leader, John Gordon, their structure became known as the Gordon Stockade. 

The group spent the first three weeks building a stockade for protection.  Using native ponderosa pine, the stockade measured around 40 feet by 40 feet containing seven cabins.  It was built to last.  The door to the stockade was solid and each corner offered a shooting bastion for protection.

Gordon Stockade
Gordon Stockade
Gordon Stockade
Gordon Stockade

After their dwelling was established, they turned their efforts to gold panning in nearby frozen French Creek.  Party members panned throughout the valley, failing to make their efforts fruitful – and as time passed, they became disheartened.

Due to cold weather and sparse findings, six party members deserted the stockade in March, 1875.  Captured by the cavalry, they were forced to disclose the stockade’s location.

Captain John Mix and the 2nd Cavalry Company discovered the stockade on April 5, 1875.  They escorted the party members back to Fort Laramie.  Ironically, many of them were not charged for any crime and they returned in future months to continue their search for gold.  “Caught, but not prosecuted” was a similar story for many in the gold rush.

I enjoyed crawling around in the old stockade.

A little background .. in case you’re interested . . .

Cultural conflicts (between the Indians and Whites) erupted across the eastern Great Plains during the 1860’s.  Expanding railroads and frontier posts encroached on the traditional hunting grounds impacted the tribes on the northern plains.  Restrictions on westward settlement disturbed the government. Without a compromise, war was certain.

A treaty commission began talks in April 1868 at Ft. Laramie (Wyoming).  With political pressure, the first chiefs signed the treaty on April 29.  The Senate approved the treaty and President Andrew Johnson declared it effective in February 1869.  This agreement temporarily ended frontier clashes.

The Fort Laramie Treaty created the Great Sioux Reservation.  General William S. Harney told the Lakota Sioux, “We know that you have been treated badly for many years.  We will take care that you shall not be treated so any more.” Chief Red Cloud refused to sign the Laramie Treaty until the military posts along the Powder River (Wyoming) were abandoned and destroyed.  The posts ruined the prime buffalo hunting grounds.

Things calmed down until the economic crash of 1873 which affected the entire nation.  The government pressured to boost the economy and needed to explore new land.  Open land for settlement and rich resources would create markets and new jobs.

George A. Custer and his expedition entered the Black Hills in 1874.  Custer’s Expedition left Ft. Abraham Lincoln (near present day Bismarck, North Dakota) on July 2, 1874.  They traveled 883 miles and surveyed 1250 miles of land in 60 days at a cost of $2500. There was a loophole in the Fort Laramie Treaty which allowed governmental officers and agents onto the reservation lands.  Using this premise, the government planned its future site for a military post.  An underlying goal was to confirm the presence of gold. 

NOTE:  Custer was only a Lt. Colonel during the expedition.  However, during the Civil War, he rose to the rank of Brevet Major General.  He was a jerk and deserved to be demoted. 

Custer’s Expedition was the largest military force of its time – more than 1,000 men (including over 50 Indian scouts), 1900 horses and mules, 300 beef cattle and 110 supply wagons.

Horatio N. Ross and William T. McKay were two miners on Custer’s Expedition who found gold in French Creek. Even though the findings were meager, national news inflated the story of “There’s gold in those Black Hills.” The media fueled the hype causing the famous gold rush.  Between 1874 – 1876 thousands of citizens illegally entered the Black Hills in search of gold.

The military made vain efforts to control the tide of illegal gold seekers.  Before long, 10,000 to 12,000 peopled flooded the region, building towns and mining camps.  To quell the rush, the government planned another expedition, the Newton-Jenney Expedition in 1875.  The party had orders to set a price tag on the region’s wealth.

The Newton-Jenny Expedition valued the Black Hills at $6,000,000 and offered to buy the land from the Lakota / Dakota Sioux tribes.  This did not sway the tribe.  They said the region was theirs by the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty.  The government responded by withdrawing its troops and the prospectors were left to enter or remain at their own risk.

In 1876, the Manypenny Commission offered the Sioux compensation in the form of food, land and houses.  It also decreased the size of the Great Sioux Reservation by taking the Black Hills away from the Indians.  The treaty was not negotiated - it didn’t get the required number of signatures to make it legal.  However, Congress passed an act anyway that screwed the Indians.

June 25, 1876, the Native American tribes beat the crap out of Custer at the battle of Little Big Horn – a lot due to Custer’s arrogance and stupidity. The nation was shocked and shamed by the massacre.  It came just as the U.S. was celebrating its 100th anniversary.  However, about ten years later, the cavalry got its revenge when they massacred the Native Americans at Wounded Knee.  That pretty much ended the disputes and put the “Indian Problem” to rest.   

It was about 4:30 when we decided to head back to our cabin.  We stopped in Hill City to call Amy – no cell phone service in the cabin.  It was wonderful to talk to Zi.  “Annie” rehearsals are going great.

We stopped at the market for bread and beer and drove up to the Holly House Christmas Cabin about 5:00.  Dave, the proprietor, was very surprised that we bagged Harney Peak.  We showered, watched a little “60 Minutes” and then went into town to dine at the Slate Creek Grill.  We were in luck – the special tonight was fresh white fish – big piece and nicely done.  The best meal we’ve had on our trip and it was only $12.

We came back to the cabin to work on the journal.  Man-oh-man we’ve learned a lot! 

Monday, Sept. 19, 2011 – Black Hills, South Dakota – Day Trip in Wyoming

Beautiful day.  We had breakfast at the cabin and headed to Devils Tower, making stops along the way. 

First stop was Sundance where the Sundance Kid (A.K.A. Robert Redford) got his nickname.  He moved with his family out from Pennsylvania.  At about 14, he took off to find his fame and fortune, discovering that stealing horses and robbing banks was about the easiest way to get there.  We learned so much from a great storyteller at the desk of a dusty, over packed museum in the basement of the county court building in Sundance. 

Sundance, WY
Sundance, WY
Sundance, WY
Sundance, WY

Here’s just a sampling of what we learned from him and the amazing treasures packed in that museum:

“Cowboy Mustang” was a local guy who researched the wild mustangs and discovered they are a breed by themselves.  He spent a lifetime keeping the bred pure.  Great exhibits!

Moses Annenberg (of the wealthy Annenberg clan) built a get-away in these hills for his buddies.  The place was called “Ranch A” and one area of the museum displayed some of the furniture from “Ranch A.” If those things could talk – especially that old poker table.  Moses would fly in famous Chefs to make exotic dishes with lobster and such. Cabins were built to house floosy women for “extracurricular activities.”  Moses was able to hide his “blood money” out in this hills and show his friends, like Al Capone from Chicago, a good time.  Moses’s wife was appalled and only visited once.  “Ranch A” is now an educational retreats facility.  The heirs of Moses wanted nothing to do with the place after Moses passed on – so they gave it on to the county.

Sundance Museum
Sundance Museum
Sundance Museum
Sundance Museum

Everything in the museum came from Crook County.  We saw guns, memorabilia from Custer’s troops, beds with tall headboards for patients with typhoid who had to sit up in bed, school books and flash cards, chairs from the old court house and so many more amazing relics.  I could have spent the whole afternoon in there – and it all was free to the public.

After a few fumbling questions from me trying to get the story of “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” our story-telling museum guide revealed some hidden away details.  First of all, the Sundance Kid was named for the town of Sundance.  His real name was Harry Longabaugh. He was allegedly in jail for 18 months in Sundance for horse thievery, but was released for good behavior (although he attempted escape from the jail a couple of times).   However, records indicate that there was another “kid” held in jail while the Sundance Kid was out stealing more horses, robbing and committing other heinous crimes.  All of this was covered up by the politicians who probably got a cut of the action.  In fact, the museum guide told us that he was researching these hidden facts with an author who will be coming out with a book, “The Sundance Conspiracy.”  The premise is that Teddy Roosevelt is linked to the Sundance Kid.  According to the book, Sundance Kid’s gang – the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang – was staying across the street from President McKinley in Washington the night before McKinley was assassinated.  Guess who was V.P. and then became president – Theodore Roosevelt.  (After I read the book, “War Lovers” I can see Teddy, who happened to be the biggest “war lover” of all, pulling such a stunt – although I hate it to think of him that way.)

We left the museum about 11:00.  I was starving.  It’s good to have a hardy appetite, but Bill thought it was too early for lunch.  We checked out a cafe across the street where the proprietor / owner paints local animals using tropical colors – pinks, blues, etc.  Buffalo looked silly in pink – but maybe I was in a foul mood because I was hungry.

On the drive to Devils Tower, we stopped at a Prairie Dog Town to watch the little critters – so many in these here parts.  They’re cute and charming to me, but must be a real nuisance to the locals.

It wasn’t much further down the road when we got our first glimpse of Devils Tower. WOW – gave me chills to see that huge, isolated, giant rock tower jutting up straight from the flat landscape.  It’s a mile around the circumference, 867 feet from the base to the summit and 1,267 feet above the river (Belle Fourche River).  Magnificent to behold.  Thank you Steven Spielberg for giving us “Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind” and making this place a personal destination for me.  I could just see Richard Dryfuess piling up his mash potatoes, making a model of Devils Tower.  I’m sure a few aliens are left behind in that amazing mound of rock. 

Nancy and Devils Tower
Nancy and Devils Tower
Bill and Devils Tower
Bill and Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower

We arrived at the Visitor’s Center parking lot and I immediately went for the trunk of the car to gather the supplies to make a peanut butter sandwich. It was noon and I was running on empty.  After wolfing down our sandwiches, we went to the Visitor’s Center to learn about the place.  We took the 1.3 mile hike around the perimeter of the rock tower, losing most of the crowds at about a half mile.  We watched in amazement as climbers made their way up the deep crevices.

Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower

We finished our hike in time to hear a Ranger, John Alonso, give a wonderful account of how sacred this place is to Native Americans. 

We learned that the Indian’s name for the rock tower had something to do with a bear and tower – Bear Lodge, Bear Tipi, Home of the Bear and other variations.  The Indians viewed the bear as a powerful God.  Legend has it that 7 little sisters and their one brother (who turns out to be a bad bear) were out on a walk when the brother gets hungry and decides to eat the sisters.  They prayed for help and God built the rock structure (Devils Tower) around them to protect them.  The ridges on the side of Devils Tower look like a giant bear tried to claw his way up the sides.  (Kind of a grisly story – a little like my brothers were to me!)

The Indian name got lost in translation in 1875 when the surveyor listed it as Devils Tower. He took his interpreter’s translation, “Bad God’s Tower,” and thought “Devil’s Tower” sounded better.  The Indians were appalled when they learned the new name because they don’t designate evil things as Gods.  But hey, that wasn’t the first time we offended the Indians.  Another naming footnote – someone left out the apostrophe in Devil’s Tower when drawing up the first map.  It would forever be called Devils Tower.

We learned that Indians from about New Mexico down into South America (Mayans, Incas, etc.) build tall structures for their scared areas (we’ve been to several Mayan ruins), but Indians north of New Mexico find tall or unusual structures in nature and go there to find God and worship. 

Indians come here for scared purposes.  Our guide said he goes to church and lights a candle to send off a prayer.  Indians come here and tie a piece of cloth to the trees to send off their prayer.  They also go to a tree nearby and do a “bundle” – bundling together maybe a lock of hair, sage and something else, burning it to send off goodwill to their departed loved ones.  The park personal will not remove any of these items because it is scared ground.

Our guide told us that everyone is equal in Indian custom.  The rangers have learned to live and respect the Indians.   In the month of June, no one (expect for foreigners who don’t get it) is allowed to climb the mountain.  On one weekend in June, the place is invaded by 3,000 Harley Bikers so the rangers hold their programs inside in an effort to just get along. 

John told us the legend of the “500-Mile Loop” – a race between 4 legged creatures and 2 legged creatures.  By the way, the “500-Mile Loop” is the distance around the Black Hills. The 4 legged competitor turned out to be a giant buffalo – so big and powerful that when his hooves hit the ground, the earth was displaced forming the Black Hills.  But, as luck would have it, a crow (or magpie?) turned out to be the 2-legged competitor that jumped on the shoulders of the Buffalo and ended up winning the race.  Because the 2-legged creature won, we are in charge and responsible for the well-being of the earth. 

Our guide told us about the cleansing “Sundance” ritual.  It happens pretty often, although the park never knows when it will be.  The participants fast for a couple of days then gather somewhere to do a simple dance – lifting one leg and then the other.  However they do this for days on end until the exhaustion and pain become overwhelming.  That is the way they can take some of the pain they’ve inflected on Mother Earth and experience it themselves.  The “Sundance” movement was very big during the “Indian Conflicts.”  And of course, the white guys tried to outlaw it. 

Once when Sitting Bull was not sitting, but “Sundancing,” he cut off flesh from his arms to add to the pain.  It was then he had the vision that the Indians would massacre the white guys (which they did  the Little Big Horn), but he saw that the Indians would not win out in the end if any of the Indians touched or disturbed the bodies of the dead white soldiers.  The Indians did “disturb” the dead soldiers after the battle … then came Wounded Knee.

We learned so much from our guide and now understand the spiritual power of the place much more from that humble little ranger named John.

Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower
Devils Tower

We headed to Aladdin, a town with the population of 15.  It had the coolest General Store.  We nosed around all the stuff, and then bought a beer and an ice cream.  (The cashier liked Bill’s Zion-designed “positive people " t-shirt.)

Aladdin, WY
Aladdin, WY
Bill in Aladdin, WY
Bill in Aladdin, WY

Our next stop was the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery in Spearfish, South Dakota.  Established in 1896, it is one of the oldest operating hatcheries in the country with the job of propagating, stocking and establishing trout populations in the Black Hills and Wyoming.  The facility now is the Bureau of Wildlife’s central archive for records of the fish from all over the country.

It was a most beautiful, peaceful place.  However, just as we got there, several of the buildings were closing early because the crowds have gone.  However we did corner a couple of volunteer guides who gave us a little history.  Ron was one and a real character.  He spends the summers hanging out and volunteering in the north with his wife and their dog.  They head for Texas in their RV for the winter months.  Didn’t look like there were too many winters left.  He was attached to an oxygen tank and not moving too quickly.  He was a great guy and had great information to share.

D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery
D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery

The government created an agency in the Commerce Department called the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and named D.C. Booth as its first manager.  He lived in the hatchery until he married and his wife started having kids, then they built a lovely house up on the hill.  (Beautiful classy house – sorry we missed that tour.)

The employees would travel on horseback to Yellowstone to collect trout eggs.  It took a week to get there.  They’d bring the eggs back and work on hatching them at the hatchery.  Eggs need fresh, circulating water at just the right temperature – so a lot of experimenting was in order.  Once the eggs hatched, the baby trout were delivered to lakes all over the country.  Later, the operations included railroad cars that delivered the baby trout to their new homes.  Today Ron told us they put a chip in the neck of each trout so that they can be tracked.  Some of their fish end up in New Orleans.  The Booth Hatchery closed down in the 1950’s because a better operation with newer equipment opened up in the area.  Now the hatchery is a wonderful park. People even come here to get married.  We loved the peaceful place.

We left the hatchery and found route 14A – the 17-mile drive through Spearfish canyon. Bill said it’s rated one of the top bicycle rides in the country.  We saw a couple of cyclists along the way.  It was an incredible place. 

We passed through Lead (feels like home now) and then on to Hill City and our cabin.  It was almost 6 p.m. when we drove up to our cabin.  We were tired and hungry.  Much to our surprise, Dawna (the owner) had left 2 big pieces of lasagna for us in the fridge.  It was delicious.  We woofed it down and then stopped in at the big house to thank her.  What a sweet thing to do.

I did the journal which took up the evening.  Almost bedtime.  I’m bushed!

NOTE:  I woke up in the middle of the night thinking I was being bitten by bed bugs.  I went to the bathroom – Bill went at the same time.  I shouldn’t have told him about my alleged encounter with the bed bugs because he couldn’t sleep the rest of the night.  I was fine – nice transferring my load to my hubby so I can get on with life – or at least on with sleep.  Turns out there were no bed bugs, just an over active imagination.

Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2011 – Black Hills, South Dakota – Crazy Horse

Very cold and windy – we didn’t want to get out of our warm bed, but somehow managed.  Had some breakfast at the cabin and then hit the road for another adventure in the Black Hills.

We got to the Crazy Horse parking lot about 8:30 or 9:00.  It was a crystal clear day, but the wind was howling and it was cold!  We added a few layers of clothing to get from the car to the Visitor’s Center.  We did the usual Visitor Center routine – viewed the orientation video, checked out the museum and took the tour bus to the monument.  The overview film and exhibits filled in a lot of the details. Joe, our bus driver and married to an Indian gal in the museum, also told us a lot about the monument.  Joe drove us in an old school bus, telling stories and pointing out places along the road.  Fascinating. 

Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument
Crazy Horse Monument

For 14 years Native Americans watched the 4 presidents being carved out of Mt. Rushmore in their scared hills.  So, in 1948, seven years after Mt. Rushmore was completed, they thought it was time for a great Native Americans to take over a mountain.  Chief Henry Standing Bear picked the sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski to head up the project.  Ziolkowski was from Poland and was an excellent choice.  He had worked with Gutzon Borglum on Mt. Rushmore and gained respect and attention when his sculpture won first place in the World’s Fair in Chicago.  He was ready to take on another mountain.  The elders of the tribe picked Crazy Horse as the subject.  They wanted him on a horse and pointing to the scared hills of the Dakotas.

The real Crazy Horse was born between 1840 and 1845 during a time of great turmoil, when the Lakota history was only oral.  From our history books, we know that after the Louisiana Purchase, Lewis and Clark passed through eastern South Dakota in 1804 – 1806.  In 1817, the fur traders came to establish their bases in South Dakota in Pierre.  Then came the really big invasions with Custer and his expedition of 1874 followed by the masses in search of gold.  Crazy Horse was a renowned warrior and great hunter.  He ended up being a hero in 1876 at the Battle of Little Big Horn. 

Crazy Horse wasn’t interested in being famous.  He never signed a treaty, didn’t give speeches never went to Washington and did not want his picture taken, but he is one of the Lakota’s great leaders. 

Chief Henry Standing Bear had a vision of Crazy Horse carved in a mountain like the whites’ great leaders carved in a mountain (Mt. Rushmore) not far away.  Along with the mountain carving, Chief Standing Bear’s vision included a museum, a university and a medical center. 

Korczak, working alone, started the carving in 1948.  He was a bigger-than-life kind of guy and took charge in a bigger-than-life way.  He picked out the mountain to be carved, got the land (not sure how) and set up a lumber milling and dairy farming business to support his mountain carving habit.  In the meantime he married a woman about 20 years younger than him and they had 10 children.  He then had to build a one-room schoolhouse for the kids and hire a teacher.  6 of the 10 children (along with some members of the third generation) are involved in the business today – running the operations, gift shop, concessions, or still blowing away at the mountain.

When completed, Crazy Horse will be 641 feet high by 563 wide.   The face, 87 feet tall, is now complete, but there hasn’t been a lot of progress in the last decade.  But hey, they can still charge a bundle to draw folks from all over the world, so why bother?  Luckily Ronda at the Visitor’s Center in Lead gave us entrance passes that she couldn’t use and saved us about $37!  Thank you Ronda!     

We were overwhelmed by the Native American Museum.  It contained case after case of Indian artifacts that poured in from all over the Americas.  However, the organization of the artifacts had no rhyme or reason. My Western mind needs a left to right, linear path with greater emphasis on the really key treasures.  The Alaskan Native American displays were mixed in with the Mayan stuff with no attention to chronological order.  One little case, stuck in the massive rooms, claimed to hold the actual beads that were used to purchase Manhattan by the Dutch in the 1600’s.  There were letters of authenticity –  but I rather doubt it.

Out back we saw Budha, the old generator that Korczak used to start the blasting.  We also saw his studio with more of his artwork.  Korczak died in the early 1980’s and is buried along with his daughter on the property.  Every year, on the date of his death, people are allowed to visit his tomb if they bring 3 cans of food to give to the poor.

The foundation is doing very well. Story goes that Korczak refused governmental grants of $10,000,000 two times because he didn’t believe in government handouts – had to be something more than that. 

It was lunchtime when we got back to our car – but since the wind was so blustery, we chose to forget about making peanut butter sandwiches and headed into the town of Custer for some burgers and fries.

We dined at The Baker’s Bakery – burger was not bad and the fries were hot!

I insisted that we stop by the Visitor’s Center in Custer to pick up some more facts about Custer.  The darling young gal was happy to show us some pictures and tell us what she knew.  Ross, a member of Custer’s 1874 expedition, is the one given credit for discovering gold in French Creek right outside the window. The gal showed us a photo of the town of Custer in 1875, one year after Custer’s fact finding trip in this area.  By then the town was well established which gave me an idea of what gold fever did to this area.  She also showed us a photo of a line of covered wagons that stretched on for miles.  She did say that one of the wagons had a broken wheel and had to stop for repairs backing up the other wagons.  (Times have changed – our little Honda CR-V wouldn’t stop traffic with it’s broken CO2 sensor.)

After the Visitor’s Center, we walked down to Custer’s museum housed in the old court building. Bill was artifacted out so I negotiated a frozen yogurt instead of another museum.  The yogurt was good – priced by the weight – and the owner was a real sweetie.  He only cared about delivering the freshest yogurt.  The town of Custer is surprisingly health conscious.  We spotted a couple of organic food places and gyms in this little town.      

We drove about 15 or 20 miles from Custer to Wind Cave National Park.  I loved the area around the caves.  It’s where the open prairies, rolling grasslands, Ponderosa pines and ravines all begin to mingle.  The 28,000 plus acres are filled with life – bison, pronghorn and lots of gutsy fat prairie dogs who live in a very large Prairie Dog town – growing larger by the minute.

We took a tour led by Lacey, a “Calamity Jane” type of gal from Arkansas.  She made the cave very interesting.  I really liked her spirit and her ability to communicate.

Wind Cave National Park
Wind Cave National Park
Ranger Lacey
Ranger Lacey
Boxwork in Wind Cave
Boxwork in Wind Cave
Boxwork in Wind Cave
Boxwork in Wind Cave

Wind Cave wasn’t like any other cave we’re seen before.  There were no bright colored rocks or stalagmites or stalactites.  It’s a dry cave formed by the pressure of the prehistoric ocean and cracks in the limestone.  When the water dried millions of years later, it left behind unusual underground structures like boxwork, popcorn and frostwork formations.  These structures are the reverse or negative image of the cracks in the cave.  95% of all the boxwork or “honeycomb” formations in the world are found in this cave.
 
This cave has the same theme as several other caves.  The Indians revered the place and believed the Great Spirit lived in the earth, so they left it alone.  It wasn’t “discovered” until 1881 when two brothers, Jesse and Tom Bingham, out deer hunting heard a loud whistling noise.  In fact Jesse’s hat was sucked right into a narrow opening in the cave.

Not much happened until 1890, when Alvin McDonald, not even 18 yet, begin to explore the cave and its many passages – like 131 miles of cave.  His family blasted open the passages to make way for a big tourist industry.   They later hooked up with John Stabler and business really boomed with their “Wonderful Wind Cave Improvement Company” even offering stagecoach rides to Hot Springs to pick up more visitors.  In 1893 the families went to Chicago to promote their cave to Easterners even offering a peak at an Egyptian mummy allegedly found in the cave for an extra 2 bits.  Unfortunately Alvin got pneumonia from the trip and died.  Then the Stablers and McDonalds began to have big disputes over the business.  They took it to court.  The court ruled that neither family had rights to the cave.  Since one had a homestead deed and the other had a mining deed, the government claimed possession and made Wind Cave the 7th oldest national park and the first cave to be protected. (And yes, Teddy Roosevelt had a hand in it although he never visited the cave.)
  
After our cave tour, we went north to Custer State Park to drive the Wildlife loop with tour buses, motorcycles and other assorted cars and campers.  The scenes were eye popping.  We saw lots of buffalo, pronghorns, burros and a couple of wild turkeys.  We fed one burro the apple Bill didn’t eat for lunch.  We couldn’t get rid of him.  He kept licking the car door.  It was really fun.

Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife Loop
Wildlife LoopWildlife Loop

Herds of buffalo are being gathered on this side of the park for the big Stampede this weekend.  Thousands of folks will descend to watch cowboys (and rangers, I suppose) gather up the bison.  They do a blood test on each of the buffalo to check for diseases.  They also vaccinate the herd and weed some out for auction (and eventual slaughter) to keep herds functioning.  For tracking purposes, they insert a chip into the neck of each animal, just like they insert a chip into each trout – and probably into each of us.  It’s scary – but technology must move on.   

We left the Wildlife Loop and caught the road back to Custer City, stopping for the basic necessities – gas, milk and Fritos. 

An hour later we arrived at the cabin and frightened a deer away.  We watched it dash down the side of the creek and scamper off.  Dave was blowing away the debris from all the trees – a never ending job in these high winds.

It was nice to get inside the cabin and turn on the heat.  I took a shower while Bill made some spaghetti for dinner . . . then I spent a couple of hours doing a brain dump on all the beautiful, amazing things we saw today.  Life on the road is truly wonderful!

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2011 – Black Hills, South Dakota – Jewel Cave / 1880 RR from Hillside to Keystone

We had a cold night last night, but we kept the heat on low and stayed pretty cozy.  I am so glad we’re not camping. 

We drove to Custer City, the oldest town in the Black Hills.  (Hill City – our home – is the second oldest.)  We had breakfast at The Baker’s Bakery – nice, hot eggs, hash browns, sausage patty and homemade bread for toast.  Very good!

We drove east out of Custer City on Highway 16 about 10 miles to the Jewel Cave National Monument.  We made it in time for the first tour at 9:20.  Mitch, the geeky Ranger, was our guide.  He adored caves and told us all about Jewel Cave.  We were lucky – there were only about a dozen on the tour so we had lots of room.  I had a little gas from breakfast so I got even more personal space. 

We took “The Scenic Tour” – $4 for Seniors with a Golden Eagle Pass.  The half mile loop tour lasted about an hour and a half with 723 steps to climb.  We saw glittering calcite crystals (my favorite and the reason the cave is named “Jewel Cave”), knobby popcorn, boxwork, stalactites, stalagmites, “drapes,” “bacon,” and other lime structures formed by calcium carbonate.  It was a huge cave with several grand “rooms” connected with steep metal staircases. 

Jewel Cave
Jewel Cave
Darwin Research Center
Ranger Mitch

The cave was discovered by miners Frank and Albert Michaud in 1900 – another brother team.  (The Native Indians never knew about this cave. The brothers filed a mining claim, but later hooked up with a pal, Charles Bush, and widened the entrance of the cave to start a tourist business.  They built a lodge and established the Jewel Cave Dancing Club in 1902.  Business wasn’t good.  When the brothers died, the claim was sold to the government for a nominal fee.  At that time, just half of a mile of the cave was mapped, but the beauty was well known.  In 1908, Teddy Roosevelt declared the cave a National Monument – God Love Him!

The many cave passages remained undiscovered until a local geologist named Dwight convinced his two rock climbing buddies, Herb and Jan Conn, to help him explore the cave.  The Conn's were from New York and were drawn to the West to climb rocks and mountains.  At first they didn’t take kindly to cave climbing … but then fell in love with it.  In less than 2 years, they expanded the cave to 15 miles. Today the cave is the second largest cave in the world, about 150 miles, with discoveries found almost every day.

Mitch spoke fondly of Herb and Jan, who are living in Custer City.  Herb is 91.  He was a handy man and Jan was an art teacher.  They had no children and spent all their time exploring this amazing landscape (and sub-landscape).  Jan was the first woman to climb Devils Tower freestyle.  They still go caving from time to time and have certainly left their mark on Jewel Cave.

The Pioneer Museum at Jewel Cave was closed so we drove back to Hill City to check a few more things off our list.  We bought tickets for the 1880 Steam Engine railroad ride from Hill City to Keystone (the Mt Rushmore connection).  Tickets were $24 each – Bill seemed very interested and I’m always ready to go along for the ride.  We had time to eat a peanut butter sandwich outside at the picnic tables before boarding time at 1:15.

Luckily we choose a seat right next to Colleen, the main tour guide on the train.  Immediately I liked her.  She remained me of Frances McDormand, the actress who played the sheriff in “Fargo.”   She was warm, friendly and sincere.  We learned a lot from her between her announcements on the P.A. that she had to make from time to time.  She lives up by Harney Peak and was married on the Peak one December. Everyone who worked on the train came by to say “Hi.”  I could tell they were part of one big family.  Colleen knows Dave and Dawna, the owners of our cabin.  It is a small world up here. 

1880 Train
1880 Train
Colleen
Colleen

The two-hour train ride was hokey.  It could have been boring, but I rather enjoyed the experience.  I practiced using the video function on my new camera, capturing the clickity clack and the train whistle as nature flew by right outside my window.  The two hours flew by as well.  Cheryl, the train photographer took pictures of each willing passenger with a “green screen” held up by her assistant.  She did her photoshop magic and presented each passenger at the end of the trip with their heads superimposed over Mt. Rushmore and over the 1880’s train.  Damn, we looked adorable and so in love after 45 years, we had to pay the $20 for the stupid pictures.  That means our little train ride cost us 68 bucks!  Let me remind you that this is a private enterprise and not run by the government

Darwin Research Center
1880 Train
Darwin Research Center
1880 Train
1880 Train
Cheryl's photo of us
1880 Train
1880 Train

Here are a few facts we gleaned from our $68 train ride:

  • The original depot for the steam-powered 1880 train is in Hill City.  In earlier days, the train traveled only to Oblivion and back, about half the current distance to the Nelson Sawmill.
  • The steam engine locomotive was brought to the Black Hills in 1879 by the Homestake Mine in Lead – glad we visited Lead so we could connect the dots with George and Phoebe Hearst and their mining operations there. 
  • The first narrow-gauge railroad was completed in 1881, carrying supplies and people between mining camps.  During the gold rush and mining boom of the 1890’s, Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad built the standard gauge track.
  • 1940’s diesel engines replaced steam engines. One guy in town, William B. Heckman, businessman and big RR fan wanted to make sure the steam engines rolled on.  The Hill City train depot was built in 1890, but it wasn’t until 1957 when the first 1880 trains left the station.

I enjoyed the experience (although a little pricey).  I loved how the folks waved at us from their porches, how the deer scampered alongside the train, how the Ponderosa pines flashed by my window and how the train did it’s “I think I can” mantra as it powered up the hill.  It was a simple, precious experience.  (However – advice to future travelers in the Black Hills – Instead of the train, we both wished we had driven to Mammoth Hot Springs to see the dinosaur bones.  We learned what a treasure the dig is after we got to Nebraska.)

View from the Train
View from the Train
View from the Train
View from the Train

The train returned to Hill City at 3:15.  I was ready for The Museum of the Black Hills Institute, the next activity on our list, but practical Bill knew he was facing a mound of laundry so we went back to the cabin to gather our dirty clothes.  He went to the local Laundromat to do his chore while I showered and then caught up in the journal.  It’s a good thing he’s gone.  I have no clothes left.  I’m sitting here without any underwear – but having a grand time remembering my grand day!  Bill returned with clean clothes while I was finishing up the journal.  It’s tough being disciplined. 

Our friend from Cambodia, Sovechea, emailed the first photos of our finished school in Cambodia.  We financed it's construction through our Cambodian Village Fund. The school is beautiful – made me cry to see the school name displayed in Khmer and in English – “Man Soeurn’s Dream.”  Pretty amazing.  

We drove down to the Alpine Inn in town (Hill City) for a fabulous dinner.  We had wine with filet mignon, baked potato, lettuce wedges and a grasshopper pie for dessert.  The place was packed – best bargain in these hills.

We waddled back to the cabin.  This crazy red meat diet will end in a week – but for now, we’re not worried about our gluttonous carnivore side.    

Thursday – Sept. 22, 2011 – Hill City, South Dakota – Rapid City

We ate our breakfast in the cabin and drove to Rapid City (about 30 miles north of here).  The cold and wind are gone and now the weather is gorgeous.

We arrived at the “must see” Journey Museum in Rapid City right at 10 when the doors were opening.  It was a spectacular place. 
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum

The first section of the museum was a huge dark space with nothing but stars representing the time before our solar system was formed. The next area revealed how the Black Hills were formed.  These hills are older than the Rockies.  The display showed how the layers from deep under the ground pushed up forming the Black Hills, which are about 100 miles long by 50 miles wide.  The Mt. Rushmore / Harney Peak area is mostly granite.  There are other red sand sections and places where the gold came up in Lead and Deadwood.  It was a cool way to explain the geology of the area. 

Next came the dinosaurs.  This place is thick with the bones – T. Rex, and others.  The roaring dinosaur models were fun and scary.

The next section covered the existence of the first man, Clovis man; then Folsom man who made tools and weapons to kill the Mammoths.

Native Americans were the next to occupy this land.  A beautiful large arena displayed their wares.  One teepee displayed a continuous loop video of an old woman telling stories and singing songs.  The projected image was eerie and effective. 

We moved quickly into the White Man Cometh Area with artifacts from Custer’s expedition, the fur trade, the gold rush, and the mining towns that sprung up all over the hills.  The displays told the story through individuals in the cavalry, the explorers, the miners, the bad guys, the pioneers, the newspaper, the missionaries, the school teachers, everything that came with the Wild West. 

Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum
Journey Museum

Intermingled was the story of the Native Americans, fighting to maintain their way of life with the broken treaties, hunted buffalo, and some of their great leaders like Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.  There were photos of the reservations and the schools set up for the children run by strict looking nuns.  This education system ended the culture, the language, the Indian way of life. 

The last of the rooms documented the modern day events – the great flood of 1972 that wiped out almost 300 people forever changing the town of Rapid City. 

We had spent two hours going from display to display.  We were brain dead when we hit the gift shop.  I found the perfect gift for Zion – a raccoon named Rudy dressed in toddler 2 sized clothes.  The item, $72, was really a piece of artwork created by 3 sisters (and their elderly mother) who live in northeastern South Dakota.  I couldn’t put it down.  Bill was not thrilled with my choice – especially on the day when the Stock Market dropped 3% – but it really spoke to me, so we bought Rudy and carried him into the big theatre to watch the orientation video.  The video played on your heartstrings – very nicely done. 

At 12:30 we were finished with the museum.  We drove a few blocks into Rapid City for lunch.  We ate at Botticelli’s.  It reminded me of home and flavors I haven’t tasted in weeks.  I ordered the goat cheese, artichoke hearts, pesto pizza with sundried tomatoes.  Bill got the sausage pizza.  The pizza and Caesar salad were delicious and small, manageable portions. 

We checked out the life sized bronze statues of presidents adorning the corners in downtown Rapid City.  They were a fun touch to an otherwise pretty boring town.  We did go to the Prairie Edge Trading Company and Galleries and were knocked out by the beautifully renovated buildings and the gorgeous things inside.  We were also knocked out by the prices, but hey, we had already bought a raccoon doll for Zion for $72!

Galapagos cows
Rapid City
Farmer
Prairie Edge Trading Company

Rapid City Presidents

Rapid City Presidents

Rapid City Presidents

Rapid City Presidents

Rapid City Presidents

Rapid City Presidents

Of course we had to stop for some ice cream (at Armadillo’s) before we started our trip back to Hill City.  The calories I can pack away!

We were back to the cabin about 4 – very early for us.  We showered, checked email and researched tomorrow’s trip into the Badlands. 

We hit the Slate Creek Grill for another dinner.  We enjoyed the white fish special a few days ago and were hoping for another special. Well, Wednesday night’s special was Chinese.  I haven’t seen a Chinese or Thai or Vietnamese place in weeks so I went for it, although I knew better.  My sweet and sour chicken was just fried chicken stripes with gooey jammy stuff glopped over the top.   I ate the whole thing.  Bill is trying to get a grip on our run away diet and ordered a chef salad, adorned with rolled up ham.  He wasn’t very impressed either.

We stopped at the market on the way home to get some cereal and bread (and beer).  We’re running low on supplies.

We couldn’t find the news channel on television.  What we caught was pretty frightening – the world market is falling apart.  Only hope I’ll get my first social security check next month.  So many things to fret about.  

Friday, Sept. 23, 2011 – Hill City, South Dakota – Badlands

We slept in until after 7:00 – don’t know what makes me feel so restful in this cabin.  We made breakfast, cleaned up, packed the car and were off by about 9:00. 

We headed down the road to Wall Drug – famous throughout the world. In 1931, a guy named Ted Hustead and his wife, Dorothy, decided to start a pharmacy in a little town in the plains of South Dakota.  He had just graduated from the University of Nebraska with a degree in pharmacy.  They decided to give the business 5 years, but it still didn’t make any money.  Dorothy didn’t want to give up.  She decided to put billboards up all along the highways offering free ice water and 5 cent coffee.  All the tourists going to Mt Rushmore stopped here and then others followed.  The highway billboards increased the range of customers and before long, Wall Drug was on the map.  It is a huge operation and the second highest employer in the state (after the state park service).  We followed the billboards to an empty football field-sized parking lot.  We’re glad we’re here on the off season.  We made our way to the town center and saw the massive “Wall Drug” about two blocks long with all its additions.  Wall Drug still has 5 cent coffee and free ice water and the best donuts in the world, they say.  Bill and I didn’t partake – we’re not donut fans, but you could smell them as soon as you opened the door.

We went through the whole 72,000 sq. ft. of Wall Drugs, store to store, section to section, looking for cool things for our friends back home.  Prices were good, but, after a while, we were overwhelmed by all the stuff.   

Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug
Wall Drug

At noon, we drove a couple of blocks to the Red Rock Café.  I was bad and had a hamburger and fries – it was good.  Bill can’t keep up with the gluttony any longer so he settled for the soup (clam chowder) and salad – wimp!

I left very full, vowing not to do that again.  We drove southeast out of Wall on highway 90 to the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site Visitor’s Center.  The Ranger said she had tour tickets available today at the launch control facility.  It was just back up the road.  We picked the 3 pm slot so we could do a drive through the Badlands Loop road and make a stop at the Silo – Delta-09 where the missile was stored. 

The Minuteman (named after our Revolutionary Soldiers) missile program was U.S.’s response to the Soviets during the Cold War.  In the 1950’s, we were in a full on arms race with the Soviet Union so the leaders of both countries decided to build a deadly system aimed at each other.  The missiles were armed with nuclear warheads equivalent to a million tons of dynamic, 60 times more deadly than what we dropped in Hiroshima.  The missile could be launched in less than 6 minutes and reach its target some 6,000 away in less than 30 minutes.  Even if the Soviet Union preformed a first attack, we could take them out in 30 minutes.  The point of the defense was to give the bad guys pause. 

The system was developed in the 1950’s.  The South Dakota system was fully implemented in 1963 with 150 launch sites and 15 launch control centers.  This was a very expensive proposition.  It was in operation until 1991 when Bush (George H) and Gorbachev (Mikhail) signed the START – Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.  All Minuteman II facilities were shut down in South Dakota, except for one location (Delta 09) which would serve as an interpretative center.

After we did a quick loop through the Badlands, we drove back to the Wall exit, then east again on I 90 to visit the Silo – Delta-09.  Way out on the plains, with no markets, we explored the Silo, then drove on to the Launch Center for our tour. 

Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo
Minuteman Missile Silo

The guy who led the tour worked here in 1972 and knew a lot about the operations.  He showed us where the crew slept and ate and entertained themselves while watching out for orders to release a missile aimed at the Soviet Union.  He took us down to the bowels of the operation, surrounded by 4-foot thick concrete walls.  We saw the control panels which looked very archaic with the rotary dial phones and the red box which required two men to use their keys to unlock the code before a missile could be launched.  Luckily that never happened.  Our guide was terrific and gave us insight into what it was really like to be in charge of launching such weaponry. 

Minuteman Control Facility
Minuteman Control Facility
Minuteman Control Facility
Minuteman Control Facility
Minuteman Control Room
Minuteman Control Room
Minuteman Control Room
Minuteman Control Room

After the tour we headed back to the Badlands National Park and checked into our little cabin, number 14 at the Cedar Pass Lodge, on the prairie and in the shadow of the incredible sandstone structures.  We really liked the funky place built in the 1920’s – I hope they never remodel and risk losing any of its charm.

Our leader
Cedar Pass Lodge--Badlands National Park
Lava Tube
Our Cabin

We returned to the Badland Loop to stop at the overviews and capture some pictures in a better light.  It’s truly a beautiful place.  One of the mini trails showcased the bones of ancient animals that once lived on this dry, dusty plain – forerunners to the rhino, the horse, the hyena and others.

Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park

We got back to the lodge at 5:30 to have some dinner.  We shared some salmon and the Indian version of a giant taco.  We were stuffed all over again.

Bill checked the internet in the lobby of the lodge (the only place with WIFI).  Meanwhile, I talked to a Native America Indian who works at the jewelry counter in the lodge.  She is married to the medicine man.  She had a very bad cold.  She said a lot of folks are getting whooping cough down at the Reservation near Wounded Knee.  (Think I have all my shots.) She also told me that an Indian Pow Wow would be held tomorrow at Porcupine, a town near Wounded Knee.  Her kids will be there dancing.  She warned us that we’d probably be the only White People, but it will be a great adventure.  We’re in.  Wounded Knee has always had a pull at me – it’s such a sad and sacred place.

After dinner, I worked on my journal … it’s endless.

Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011 – Badlands to Alliance, NB

We woke up about 7:00.  It’s very quiet on the plains.  One problem with these little cabins is that all manner of insect make their way inside.  I had quite a few pesky flying ants sleeping with me and taking a bite from time to time.   We also captured a few worms in the bathroom … but I still like this place.

We drove back on the Badland Loop road stopping at overviews to get some shots in the morning sun.  We came back to the lodge for breakfast – the only gig in town.  Wasn’t too bad – we had an all you can eat buffet for $7.95.

Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park
Badlands National Park

After breakfast, we packed up and checked out.  We stopped at the Visitor’s Center to see what makes this place famous.  The big displays were mostly of the prehistoric animals that roamed these parts – no dinosaurs, just strange looking critters.  There was a guy from the Bureau of Wildlife with a black footed ferret.  Today is ferret day at the park.  This ferret was 4 years old and very sweet and you could tell the guide was very attached to him.  We learned that ferrets dine only on Prairie Dogs so they must be very happy around here.  Actually we learned that ferrets (the only ones native to U.S.) were almost extinct when this little guy was found.  The Bureau of Wildlife saved the black footed ferret and is now reintroducing them to the Prairie Dog Towns – where else?  (Somebody has to stop those prairie dogs!)

Next, we drove to the Castle trail head.  Volksport is holding a group hike today for $3.  We learned that Volksport (meaning – people hike) started in Germany and the idea was brought to the U.S. by returning soldiers.  Apparently the organization is all over the country.  However, we never heard of them in San Diego.

We paid our $3 each and started on the hike across the Prairie in the hot sun.  It’s in the upper 80’s.  The San Diego “Badlands,” where we hike in the Anza Borrego desert, are much more interesting and dramatic.  However, we did see some friendly rabbits and frisky chipmunks and some bighorn sheep on the hike.  There were also several fellow Volksporters.  We decided not to finish the whole 7-mile loop because we were anxious to get to Wounded Knee and to the Indian Pow Wow down the road.

Badlands National National Park
Badlands National National Park
Badlands National National Park
Badlands National National Park
Badlands National National Park
Badlands Bunny
Bighorn Sheep
Badlands Bighorn Sheep

We stopped and had a peanut butter sandwich and drove south out of the Badlands along the back roads through a few little towns dotted with Reservations.  As instructed by the Ranger, we found the Pow Wow in the high school gym in Porcupine – Go Quills!  It was fascinating. 

The gym was filled with Indian families, most decked out in feathers and beads and other tribal regalia.  It was very loud as the drum circle moved from drum to drum.  There was only one other white couple.  It was a thrill to see the Indians dancing and having such a great time.  Some of the dancers were vying for top dancer – judged by a panel.  Kind of like “Dancing with the Stars.”  At one point in the program, we stood to honor Grandmothers, then Grandfathers and then Mothers and Fathers.  For snacks, they were selling lemons ($1); a large dill pickle ($1) and a can of Red Bull ($3.50).  We watched in amazement for about an hour and then headed down the road to Wounded Knee.

Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow
Porcupine Pow Wow

We drove through back roads dotted with lots of trailer houses and old cars.  The blighted area was topped by a few America flags flying upside down.  Guess folks here don’t feel part of the “American Dream.”

After a few miles, we spotted the “historical marker” at Wounded Knee and pulled off the road.  The story of Wounded Knee was written on a large wooden sign.  Part of the words had been replaced.  “Massacre” at Wounded Knee replaced the original words “Battle” at Wounded Knee.  The Indians demanded that the sign be changed.  Finally, in 1972, they got a few wooden, patched in words. 

There was a family offering information and selling souvenirs.  A woman told us the horrible story again and showed us newspaper articles.  Every year on the anniversary of the massacre, of Wounded Knee, about 250 Indians ride 400 miles in December to honor their ancestors’ tragedy.  Across the road from the pitiful marker was the mass grave and little church.  There was also a shabby museum.  The woman told us not to go to the museum.  A guy from another tribe got lots of funds to build a really nice facility, but used the money to buy cattle and now has left town.  We took her advice and didn’t go to the museum.  We did buy a dream catcher from the woman’s family for Daira, our friend who is facing knee replacement surgery.

Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee

We drove across the road to see the cemetery at Wounded Knee – such a haunting, sad place – and to think 20 American Soldiers who carried out this slaughter were given Medals of Honor.

We took country roads to our final destination in Alliance, Nebraska.  We passed through wonderful farms, tall silos, fields of hay and wheat and sunflowers.  There was hardly a car on the entire road. 

Right before we got to Alliance, we stopped at a place called “Carhenge” – a graveyard for old cars stuck out in the Prairie placed to simulate Stonehenge.  It was a hoot.  To make it even stranger, a wedding party was out among the cars posing for wedding photos.  They had arrived in a big limo and most were pretty drunk.  Oh the strange sites you can see on the road.

Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge
Carhenge

Our GPS gal took us right to our motel – First Inn Alliance.  It was a motel straight from the 60’s and down by the RR tracks.  The people are friendly – the place is clean – and the price is right ($50 a night).  The town isn’t much. 

Recommended by our motel hosts, we walked down to the shopping center for dinner at Sam and Louie’s.  The pizza was great, but a waitress was in a very bad mood.  My Nebraska friends would be appalled at her. 

We came back to the room and called it a day – another very full day.



       


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