Rocky Mountain National Park

Had a great time visiting Rocky Mountain National Park. The weather was a bit cold and wet - but it can't be sunny every day. This was our first national park campground and had no power, water, cell connectivity, or any other convenience. It worked out just fine.

We did the drive to the highest elevation - over 12,000 feet, stopped by the continental divide, and a few visitors centers. We saw a great program on coyotes and another on squirrels. We are all learning quite a bit from the ranger talks.

A special part of this stop was that Erling's friend Rob stopped by for a cookout. Rob, Robyn, and their son Ryan drove a long way for a visit. It was great fun. Elena and Ryan became instant friends. We hadn't seen them since their wedding. Thanks Rob.

The Rocky mountains are pretty amazing. Glad we had the chance to stop. You can find more images of this stop.

Erling

Wind Cave

While we were in the Rapid City area, we had the chance to visit Wind Cave National Park. Wind Cave is considered the third largest cave in the world. It has a unique rock formation that looks like a box or grid.

We took the Needles Highway to get there. Along the way, we saw a lot of wildlife including a herd of buffalo, a prarie dog town, and some mule deer.

After visiting the park, we did the President's Alpine Slide. You ride a chairlift to the top of a mountain, then ride a bobsled-like cart down. We all had fun and wanted to do it again.

Pictures of our visit are here.

Mount Rushmore

We knew we would be away this year on the Forth of July. After a bit of thought, we decided it couldn't get much better than to be at Mount Rushmore for the holiday. The common theme of the presidents on Rushmore seems to be freedom. Each one stands for freedom in a different way. Each is uniquely American.

Now they usually have one of the best fireworks shows in the nation that day. Unfortunately for us, there is a beetle eating pine trees across the Western US. Because of that, there was too much dead wood and the fireworks were canceled. We had a great time anyway.

We hiked around the trail and attended a ranger talk on the construction of the monument. Andres and Elena did the Junior Ranger program which is a great way to learn more about the parks.

While in the Rapid City area, we stayed at the Rafter J Bar Ranch. This campground was a stop on a famous stagecoach trail. It is a beautiful setting up in the hills and away from most city noise. Plus, it had a great pool.

More to come soon on Wind Cave, Rocky Mountain, The Grand Canyon, and Glen Canyon. Hope summer is treating you well. Look forward to hearing from you.

Here are pictures from Rushmore

Wall Drug

Well, we did another "Must See" attraction along the way. We stopped at Wall Drug in Wall South Dakota. The free ice water really brings them in. Got the fridge magnet - what else is there to say.

More images here

Corn Palace

On our way out West, we had to do a stop at the Mitchell Corn Palace. Each year, the building is redecorated outside using different colors of corn. Amazing.

More images here

Blake

On our way from Itasca to Rapid City, we make a quick stop in Wahpeton, ND. Well, actually, we stopped in Breckenridge, MN which is just across the Red River. We had lunch at Wilkins with Blake. Blake is friend of Erling's from the time they were four. It was great to catch up and have a good meal together.

One cool surprise was that Blake had just bought a Ram pickup almost like ours. We just had to pose for a shot with our trucks and the grain elevator in the background.

Itasca State Park

Itasca State Park is in Minnesota. It is where the Mississippi river starts. Judy and I have visited the park several times and have always enjoyed it. One thing we always dreamed of doing was riding our bikes through the park. Well, we did it.

What a great visit. We had good cool weather. Our site overlooked Lake Itasca. The bike trail was just feet from our site. We rode our bikes through the park to visit the ruins of the general store, a logging exhibit, and the pioneer cemetery. At the end of the trail was the Mississippi Headwaters. You can literally walk across the river. It was very cool. Later that day, we drove the rest of the park and climbed up an observation tower.

You can see more images from Itasca

We are having fun so far. But, our posts are a little behind. It is actually somewhat hard to get internet access from state and national parks. But, we hope to soon post about Mount Rushmore, Wind Cave National Park, and Rocky Mountain National Park. Hope your summer is going well.

Erling