2020 July SD, WY, Mount Rushmore, Devils Tower, Deadwood, Grand Tetons

  After spending several days in the Badlands of South Dakota we head over to Rapid City and the Air Force Base for some grocery shopping. This is the first time we have been to a military base since Covid-19 began and I am impressed with how tight the controls are. After getting our groceries we went to the military campground hoping to do laundry and a long hot shower, but they are closed to any new campers, laundry is closed as well.

Mount Rushmore was as expected from others telling us about it. Impressive that this feat was done on such a grand scale but after staring a few minutes you have nothing else to do. I had a great conversation with the Ranger about other things such as visitor volume compared to this time last year? A lot fewer people, the most impactful is tour buses are not coming because of Covid-19.

Not 5 miles away we camped in the Black Hills National Forest. There were a lot of people sleeping in vehicles who were climbers. Apparently, it is common for climbers to sleep in their vehicle rather than tents. OK…. But I prefer my little RV 😊

Try the Needles Highway – it’s windy, some steep parts and 3 narrow tunnels. Slow going for sure but very pretty, the rocks are all pointed straight up! Now I see why there are so many climbers here there is so many different places to climb vertical rocks.

 

We stopped to hike Cathedral Spires, 2.3 miles and 500 ft elevation change. Nice hike we had a good time going slow and resting when we wanted to.

As we enter Custer State Park a herd of buffalo decides to cross the road, traveling the wildlife loop road. We did not see that many animals, apparently in the heat of the day they prefer to go into the shade from trees. Boards at pullovers explained that. At the visitor center there was a display of prairie dogs and how their burrows were constructed, it also showed a burrowing owl which explains why we saw 3 tiny owls over in the Badlands on Sagebrush Road.

Camping in the Black Hills National Forest that night was great, very quiet, shade, we took outside showers, and the air is so dry we were dry in no time. Breaking out the BBQ we cooked poblano peppers with black beans over the grill, Mmmm yummy!

This morning a lone turkey wanders by as I have my morning tea. We returned to Custer in the early morning and saw even more wildlife.  Bison, antelope, prairie dogs, burrows. Stopped on one of the pullouts and made breakfast. So great RVing!

Both Wind Cave and Jewel Cave were closed due to Covid so we decide on another scenic drive.

Spearfish Canyon National scenic highway, Tanya fell in love with this road. Stopped for 2 short hikes to waterfalls. Read about this area here:

https://maps.roadtrippers.com/trips/20168743

Found a dispersed camping site high on top of a mountain near Roosevelt Mountain. Views are fabulous! Working out well to head for a campsite in midafternoon rather than waiting for late afternoon or evening.  One of the enjoyable things about having unlimited time available. Interesting people you meet while boondocking - molecular biologists who gave up working, software engineers working remotely. Different vocations but all in love with traveling.

We had a great time staying on top of the mountain overlooking a vast mountain range all the way out to the Prairie where the Badlands are. The road was gravel and a little wash boarded and quite steep, pulling 1^st gear most of the way up for 2 ½ miles, but this good old Rialta runs like a champ and had no difficulty. I did have the gear selector in 1^st and run the AC so that the fan would blow over the transmission cooler and radiator. This technique worked fine for this use. We enjoyed it there, the three other campers up there and we all had a good time-sharing story and boondocking ideas, it was really interesting.

Deadwood, SD where Buffalo Bill Cody and Calamity Jane became famous. Calamity Jane and Wild Bill you sometimes wonder is a were they lovers who knows there are stories going both ways.

Move on down and go over to Devil’s Tower National Monument. It turned out to be everything that you had imagined that you read or see pictures - a vertical column sticking out of the earth out on a vast Prairie with straight lines carved straight down through it. We saw two people climbing up through those straight lines up to the top, so we didn’t use the telescope with the zoom for the camera (which attaches to the phone and uses its camera to zoom in). It was that close, and we could see them and get a decent picture. A mile and a half walk around the Devil’s Tower is all you need and that’s all there is to see, there’s not much else there, so we had planned to camp there at the National Forest, but it was closed due to Covid and the visitor center was closed to the construction, so all there was to do was a quick look. We headed on down the road to a Walmart to stay the night. Even though it’s 90 degrees out today the air condition is doing a great job.

Driving on down the road, suddenly a bird followed by a hawk crossed right in front of us and there was a high hill on our right side, so they flared up to keep from hitting the hill and that hawk almost caught that bird. For this to happen right in front of us, wow, that’s something you don’t see every day.

A couple of nights in a very pretty campground in the Black Hills National Forest, it is very quiet, full of beautiful pine trees and with several very nice hiking trails. Last night was a little bit cool so we run our generator this morning to take a very nice hot shower. I love it, it's like having our regular house anywhere we choose to go. We got some food and then we went for a hike that was 6.5 miles and 1,250 elevation gain. Whew, this old man was pooped when we got back home, and his old lady was singing songs on the way back to distract herself from pain in her hips. 😊

After camping in the forest, we went back to Gillette, WY and took care of some stocking up the refrigerator and dumping our holding tanks before leaving Gillette and traveling down Hwy 50. Along the way we’re seeing oil fields, black tailed deer, antelope, sheep and cattle herds and approximately 60 miles in the distance is the snowcapped Bighorn Mountains, wow - just amazing this wonderful country of ours.

Very cool National Trails Museum in Casper, WY. I also learned there is a new National Trails state with its own passport stamp. They did not have the passport but did have the guidebooks. I got the whole collection 6 books of the Oregon trail, Mormon trail, California trail. Wow, another road trip someday! The museum had several interactive displays, ride a stagecoach, ride a wagon crossing the Plate River.

It appears that Casper, WY is known for the Pioneer westward trails which intersected here, oil fields, cattle, and Rodeo. Unfortunately, due to Covid there is no rodeo right now.

Stopping for the night at a wildlife management area outside of Riverton, WY, we are alone overlooking a lake, can hear the wind driven waves moving on the shore. Oh my, it’s going to be pleasant sleeping tonight. 

Crossing over the Continental Divide we are finally on the western side of the country. This route (Hwy 25) was great because it did not have severe steep climbs but a long steady climb that the Rialta was able to handle very comfortably. Only 3 times did I have to shift into 2^nd gear. We kept seeing signs for bears on the roadway – don’t stop! Unfortunately, we did not see any bears, well maybe soon in Yellowstone we will see some bears.

First views of Grand Tetons along Hwy25. Took this pic as a panoramic.

Camping in a National Forest Dispersed Camping area where I had camped before. A different spot though and this one provides an excellent view of the Grand Tetons right from the campsite.

 

2020 July, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons

  Grand Tetons, Yellowstone National Park

Camping in the Bridger Teton National Wilderness a dispersed camping area with another couple from NY State we have a beautiful view of the Grand Teton Mountains.  There happened to be a horse trail ride stop in front of us and it makes an excellent picture of this view from the campsite.

Playing tourist in Jackson, WY with the required picture in front of antelope arch. The Wild Bill Bar and grill although too expensive for our taste is beautiful to walk through in the afternoon.

I stopped in a fly-fishing shop and they were very helpful to tie a but section onto 2 of my fly lines. I am so out of practice trying knots and really appreciate their help. Soon I will decide where to fish for the choices are too many and to get a fishing license for 3 states just goes against my frugal spending lifestyle.

Tanya is also frugal and although she looked around, she did not purchase anything just enjoyed the scenery.

Covid appears to have relaxed, merchant s all had masks and hand sanitizer at shop entrances, but few tourists wore masks.

We tried to find the Morman homestead, but the GPS took us off on a fun backroads trip so that we eventually gave up and headed back to the campsite.

We have discovered that the Holland BBQ grill makes an excellent oven, baking a pizza and a glass of wine while looking at this excellent view. Oh, what a life this is!

After a few days in the Tetons, we mosey on up to Yellowstone National Park to see the sights. At both National Parks the numbers of tourists is quite down from the normally high level. I am attributing this to Covid in that people are being cautious and also many people have used up their vacat6time during the national shutdown. Although this is a terrible thing it does make our travels much more comfortable to have less crowds. We do not come into direct contact with very many people and disinfect frequently so we do not spread viruses.

I stitched together short videos of several of the sights to make a memorable video of visiting Yellowstone.

While dispersed camping nearby Yellowstone a bear came into the campsite.  I did not want to be lunch for this Grizzly bear so these pictures were still at some distance.

Frugal Tom bites the bullet and decides on a Montana fishing license. After so long of not fly fishing my elbow muscles ache after a short while. As experienced in kayaking and the last work assignment “ibuprofen is my friend “. I resolve to continue to fish every few days to build up some new muscles.

Successful at my low level of experience, Tanya gets a trout dinner!

Multiple trips into Yellowstone and we feel we have seen about all that is available to see and decide on a fishing day on the Madison River near Ennis, MT. I could not wade very well for the current was quite swift, fortunately the fish thought so also and were close to the bank. 3 fish, 1 of which broke the road before landing it. Wow, must have been a crack in the red to break like that, but it makes a good story!

Got lucky to get a campsite in National Forest, Madison Baker which is just outside Yellowstone.  My brother, mother, sister will meet us here the 4^th July weekend so we lock in with a 2 week stay.

Taking Tanya to the Potato Museum in Blackfoot, ID and she is thrilled at the displays. My previous trip here I took a video of one of the video displays.

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A work friend Mike had bought a ranch in Wyoming and playing email tag we connected to catch up. What a beautiful place! I did not get a picture of the view from the living room looking over winding creek and cattle in the field, but you can see a tiny bit of it behind the lodge.

That night we sat around the campfire and the men who delivered the chuck wagon sang “cowboy" songs. They explained that country songs are all inside – bars, jail, truck and cowboy songs are all outside in the form of a story. Like when on a roundup the cook puts a lantern on the wagon so that the night rider can find his way to camp. Great songs, great voices, we all had a good time.

Mike had just purchased an authentic Chuck Wagon! So cool! He sent me a video the evening before we arrived of cowboys sitting around the fire next to the chuck wagon.

A nice visit with Mike and as he takes the cowboys to Jackson, WY for tourist we head to Fossil Butte National Monument.

 

OMG, so mindboggling, the ranger talks of the history of the earth revealed 5 extinction periods, oxygen and carbon dioxide level changes, impact of a Bolides (Asteroid) in Yucatan. Another was volcanic activity in Siberia with lava 2 miles deep covering land mass the size of the US.

The displays were phenomenal, there was a range using an air gun (mixed with different sands) to remove sediment from a slab to expose a fossil.  He stopped and described to us many facts of earth to include fracking for oil, earth formation and much more. I am so overwhelmed that my brain hurts.

Back at Mike’s we share experiences, chat what a good visit we’ve had and make goodbyes for we shall leave in the morning going our respective ways.

2020 July MT, ID, WA

   4^th of July 2020 weekend, post COVID-19 we are still in the Yellowstone Grand Tetons area spending some time fishing and relaxing, small day trips into town of West Yellowstone or to Bozeman Mt and Yellowstone National Park to review some of the places we saw that we enjoyed, I’m having a good time.

Scheduled to meet my brother here this evening and anticipate a few days seeing Yellowstone and Grand Tetons, along with him is sister Barbara, mother Camille. We anticipate having a great time, we're going to stay together at the National Forest campground where we have based ourselves and it will be good to see family again.

Wow, 3 days we spent together and no pics! Chatting constantly, catching up, dinners together around the campsite, all in all a very good relaxing time together.

Bob, Tanya and I would go fishing each day, Mom and Barbara would go sightseeing in the Yellowstone Park or sometimes just in the shops of West Yellowstone.

Bob would always out fish me of course – he has truly engaged fly fishing and it’s his number one passion.  Me I dabble at it and enjoy being on the water, same as I feel about kayaking.  As always, I truly enjoy time on the water with my brother.  Tanya would sit on the bank with her feet in the water or sit in the RV working or reading.  She did enjoy the quiet time and relaxing atmosphere.

After a few days together Bob, Mom, Barbara head out to see the Grand Tetons and onward to Wisconsin to see family.  It was not in the cards that we all meet in Wisconsin, so it was awesome that we had a few days together along the way.

So, after 3 weeks in Tetons and Yellowstone Tanya and I departed to drop Tanya off at the airport to go back to MD for some daughter time, me I go on for other fishing opportunities in Montana.

Boulder Creek, MT not good fishing but a great campsite along the river. Puttered around during the day fixing this and that and realizing that traveling alone is not the same as when you have someone to share things with. It’s going to be a long 10 days apart!

Tonight, I’m on the Madison River and did not realize that another weekend is here. Boy, got to watch that for campsites are booked for weekends. Fortunately, I scored so booked through the weekend at a National Park campsite.  There are people floating the river in all kinds of crafts, watching them is the only other thing to do for there is no TV reception, no cell service.  Just fish, read, cook and eat. Hmmm sounds relaxing, doesn’t it?

Nothing much about tourism to write about. Tanya had a great time with daughter, I had a great time fishing several of Montana’s famous and not so famous rivers. Madison, Jefferson, Big Hole, Boulder rivers. Found that Montana has a great interactive map by Trout Unlimited to find access points at most rivers. Some of these access points also allowed camping right on the river! My fishing improved somewhat although I will never be as good as my brother.

I had dinner with Mother Brother and Sister when they stopped off on their way back from Wisconsin. They enjoyed the family time and Uncle Jerry’s birthday and are glad to be going home again.

It seems Covid19 has taken a turn for the worse and Montana has pushed additional restrictions. It is really hopeful to see more people wearing masks as they go about their business. This type of traveling you do not interact with people very much unless you seek it out. It is easy to maintain privacy in your own home (RV), just as others in a stick and bricks house you feel the need for social interaction at times. Keeping distance between you is easy enough and of course masks! So, we continue our travels for we seldom use formal campgrounds and dispersed camping is so easy to find in the western states. As a matter of fact, we have not used a formal campground yet! This is the type of traveling we prefer, dispersed camping on public lands in beautiful remote areas, enjoying nature and each other as we travel. Tanya is committed to full timing now and we continue on our way.

Tanya returned from DC, and we head off to travel once again. Arriving in Idaho and on the way to Craters of the Moon National Monument we find an out of the way camping spot alongside a small creek. We have a light dinner and Tanya shows me an app that Maria shared with her for music. We played our old favorites and danced outside of the RV. Oh so fun to feel free and easy to enjoy time with each other in such a beautiful place.

A moose come close by our RV! Wow, this is the first Moose I have seen up close with full antlers. He was not in any hurry to move on, simply hanging around for a while – seems he enjoyed the music and dancing we were playing! I thought about why a moose would be here? This is arid desert; one small stream cannot give him what he needs? I don’t know an awful lot about moose, they are famous in Maine and are pictured in swampy areas feeding on water-based plants. Hmm something to check

Arco, ID the first town in the world to be powered by atomic energy.  Having breakfast at Pickles Place, home of the atomic burger!

This makes the third time I have been to Craters of the Moon National Monument and the absolutely best visit. It truly appears that having no time constraints I approach life totally differently.  As I mentioned I am now Semi-Retired and when arriving at a scenic area I no longer look for the highlights to capture as quickly as possible what is the top thing of interest to see. That was before when running in the rat race. Now I look at all the available sights regardless of how much time it would take and set out to find the whole experience.  I had no idea this is how I have been approaching things. This attitude has changed my experience and expectations allot.

 We took the time to walk several trails and the interactive signs allowed us to learn so much more of this unique landscape. The way that volcanoes normally function and how this location was totally different.  You must try this different approach and you will be happy you did.

One of the spatter holes had snow inside it! With this high heat and low humidity, I was very surprised. 

Unique formation of lava flows

Tonight, we parked in a Walmart parking lot for the first time in several weeks, so different than dispersed camping. Fortunately, it was quiet, and we rested very well.

Shoshone Falls, last time I visited was in the fall and waterfalls were very minimal.  Now in midsummer its quite breathtaking. Notice the rainbow on the left side!

Balancing Rock, wow quite impressive, looking through binoculars and see several cracks and the base looks like its thin slabs. Don’t understand how it does not fall!

Along the route we stopped at a little park for lunch, a display for sheep ranching and how it developed. This is the shepherded home on the range.

This Princess Rialta celebrated 100,000 miles today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What an outstanding 23 year old machine that takes us to so many great adventures. Happy Birthday Princess! (Tanya named the Rialta Princess for she is always needing TLC from me 😊)

One of the things about full timing is that you follow the weather to enjoy more adventures. We were monitoring the weather each day and observed that the next week will have very hot temperatures, scanning ahead we decided to push on to the coast of Washington to beat the heat. Pushing a lot of miles for 2 days gets us to Tacoma, WA. Stopping along the way to visit my sister Pattie in Yakima, WA just as I have done each time I traveled west. She has had a lot of changes in her life, and I was really happy to see her so happy. Since I saw her last, she has lost one husband to illness and is now engaged to another. Living among people that give her a purpose and feeling helpful. So happy for her. We met at a restaurant and Covid has resurged so no indoor eating, so we set out the lawn chairs in the parking lot, eat, chat and catch up with each other.

A very short backtrack to Toppenish, WA to tour the city of murals. Most were about the history of the town. Quite impressive, we enjoyed RT66 for the same reason of a lot of things to see along the way.

Nearly everywhere we go now Covid has created increased precautions. Masks are required anytime in public, cannot enter any store without masks. Of course, we had always carried alcohol in a spray bottle also as additional precautions. Tanya surprised me one time by handing the spray bottle after pumping gas, I did not think of that one!

Over the mountain and arrive at Tacoma, WA we decided to bypass Seattle even for a drive through, seems a lot of disturbance here as well as Portland so why risk problems. Boy I love the opportunities RV travel provides to go where you want to when you want to.

We plan on spending time around Olympic National Forest before heading toward Portland, OR area where my brother lives. I have ordered some parts for the RV and will be able to use his repair shop to install.

Camped in Tacoma, WA and caught up on laundry before heading into the wilderness.  Knowing there will not be cell service and the apps I use for finding camping and interesting things to see I must copy gps coordinates into the dash gps for dispersed camping in the National Forest.  Now were ready to go! Plan on 3 days which will allow the heat wave to pass by while we stay on the pacific coast where its cooler.

Olympic National Park

Whew a 17-mile steady rise from sea level to 5200 feet. 5-7% grades the whole way. Princess Rialta handled it so fine!

This is definitely worth the drive, views of the inner mountains of this park are amazing, signs explaining the glacier actions, erosion and views on short hiking trails of the Straights of Juan De Fuca.

Pullovers on the drive back down the hill are possible now, on the way up I felt I did not want to lose the momentum and so stops on the way back down are in order. Not as great views as from the top but definitely nice.

We met another class B driver in Walmart camping area, she is a ranger at Grand Canyon on hiatus. We chatted over several things camping related, shared apps to help with travels, pretty cool lady, she is definitely into hiking!

We followed the road around the park stopping and camping in the rain forest 2 nights. Definitely a very different habitat than anywhere else we camped. I expected as a rain forest it would be hot and muggy, not so the cool air from the Pacific Ocean kept the rain forest very cool. Moss grows over much of the trees, extremely tall trees!

Time to follow the coast to the point when the time to cut inland and visit Mom. We are finding it harder to find free camping along the coast. Understandable for it is popular and perhaps the homeless gravitate this way too. We have been diligent and only one night so far, we have paid $10 to park at a boat launch.

Next blog will be visits with family in Oregon.