So much to catch up on but let's try it...
My last post was on Monday (you can read that post) but here is the rest of the week:
Tuesday August 12 - Stacy and I went horseback riding in the morning (we were the first ride of the day!). I would post our pictures but this being a post with a wrap up, the link to all pictures will be at the end. Anywho, after that...we went to Custer Park and saw buffalo. Buckley went ape shit over them and wanted to get them. Then we drove on the Needles Highway and saw some neat rock spirals and tunnels. That took us to Crazy Horse monument. It did change a bit from the last time we were there but mostly the grounds (shops, restaurant, etc). Everything looked rearranged. There was a bit of progress on the monument too. After that, we went back to camp and had dinner and hung out by the fire.
Wed August 13 - We started this day early because we drove to Wyoming to see/hike Devil's Tower. That was awesome looking! I want to watch Close Encounters again to see it and say "I was there!". The pups went with us but they couldn't hike the base. We had them under the shade with the top down (screen up), windows half down and plus we walked them before we did the 1.5 mile hike. We saw rock climbers on the tower too! Then we went off to Deadwood and Zeke got to sample jerky. He hit all the water bowls in town. Speaking of Zeke, we didn't need to use the wagon once. Funny thing at Deadwood, they had a little gun fight show (scared the life out of Buckley) but there was a storm looming. After the show, the guys walked ahead and John took Buckley and I had Zeke. I don't mind walking slow with him because I am slow too. I had to rush him along since the storm was picking up wind. By the time the downpour came, we took refuge under a porch by the eatery. He got sympathy from the old ladies and he was loving it. John came back to get us and he had to pick Zeke up because he was so tired and his legs were weak. So much walking for that guy. I am so proud of him to keep fighting. We were going to go to Sturgis but the storm was crazy and Bill had no doors on his Jeep so they were soaked. We stopped at walmart and went back to camp.
Thursday Aug 14 - John's birthday! We went to the Pioneer's tent for their breakfast. The pancakes were pretty good! After that, we went on a hike to a gold mining area. Again, we took the dogs but I think this was too much for Zeke. It wasn't flat and it was a lot of unstable ground and hot. WE came back to camp, I did a little laundry and got ice cream with Stacy.
Friday Aug 15 - We had to leave SD and went north to North Dakota to say we went there. Really not much to see there. We did see the Enchanted Highway and stopped in Bismarck for the night.
Saturday Aug 16 - Just a lot of driving and stayed over night in Minnesota at a KOA.
Sunday Aug 17 - We arrived in MI through the UP area and drove to Munising for the night (another KOA).
Monday Aug 18 - The last trip home. We had to cross The Mack and there was a high wind warning so we had to take it slow across plus there was construction on the bridge. We did see someone off to the side trying to put their camper top back on the jeep but the wind took it off. Her face was one of OMG! I can still see her reaction in my mind. We hit the Love's for a quick stop (didn't want to get stuck in rush hour traffic) and got back to the lot about 4ish. Unhooked and packed up and got home.
Wrap up
South Dakota!
What a fun trip this was. I know I forgot to add little incidents here and there but I do remember them. Getting stuck in a storm, navigating unknown areas, etc that tested our communication skills. And they sure did! The cool nights were such a welcome from the hot days. Wyoming is beautiful while coming home to Michigan reminds me how awesome our state is as well. Overall, a great trip and such a joy to share it with friends.
