We are trying to stay off the interstate highway system so that we can see the towns that make up rural heartland America. So we traveled today on US Route 44 west across the Missouri River into central South Dakota. On the way we refilled our propane tank in Winner, SD, the largest town between here and Interior, our destination for today. Interior, South Dakota, population 75 (give or take a few) is at the eastern entrance of Badlands National Park.
We pulled into our chosen campground, Badlands Interior Campground. It's a little rough around the edges, but Alice and Jessie, our hosts, are real friendly. After an inch of rain last night, Jessie wanted to be sure that I stayed on the gravel drive. I did get off by about just one foot, and I thought I was going to sink up to the axle in the fine top soil here.
After getting Scout settled in, Sarah and I began the loop tour of the Badlands National Park. Every twist and turn of the road caused us to exclaim over again how beautiful and magical this place is. Traversing this landscape today on roads engineered to convey our modern vehicles, it takes no imagination to comprehend the difficulty this terrain presented to travelers in the 19th century.
The wildlife we saw today was impressive. It includes; Bison, Pronghorns (also called Antelope), Big Horn Sheep, Mule Deer, White Tailed Deer, Pheasant, Rattle Snake (just one) and turkeys.
Massive thunderstorms passed over us last night, they threatened again this afternoon but passed well to the south. Scout does not like thunderstorms. We have some Valium to administer should they threaten.
I think that today was one of my best birthday celebrations ever. Sarah's dream to travel the country with an Airstream has become my dream also. Please don't pinch us, the dream is wonderful.
We are now in the Black Hills and will post once we have reliable internet access.
Stay tuned
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