Badlands and Mount Rushmore
We have found affordable tickets to fly to the Netherlands......from Vancouver - Canada. We are currently in Tulsa-Oklahoma -which is 3850 km away! But...the great thing about this itinerary is first of all that we are all going to visit states we have never been to before, secondly we have plenty of time for that and finally we are immediately in the right direction as our son and daughter-in-law will be traveling with us. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
When we travel, we usually do so for a maximum of 3 hours a day. Because there is not much to see and do in some states, we travel several days in a row.
The first state we visit is Kansas
With strong winds at our tail, we leave for this state. We spend the night near Kansas city at the home of an elderly couple. We are invited to come in and we are allowed to use the patio, gazebo and hot-tub. We don't take advantage of the offer and call home.
Moments later, the host taps the camper and tells us that a tornado warning has been issued. Should the alarm go off, we are expected in the fully equipped shelter. We fortunately did not have a tornado! The next day as we say goodbye, we are invited to admire all the wife's paintings and the shelter.
The next destination is the state of Iowa
We spend the night at Ditmars Orchard & Vineyard. Very friendly owners welcomed us. They are busy getting everything ready for the summer season. The store and restaurant are still closed, so in the evening we are all alone on the property and it is very quiet. We didn't know that the neighboring village was hit by a tornado the day before. Fortunately, we didn't notice anything.
South Dakota
The next day we drive - through the state of Nebraska - toward Sioux Falls in South Dakota. It rains so much that our boondocker host sends a message saying that, due to the huge rainfall, we probably won't be able to get into her yard. We don't feel like getting stuck in the dredge and thank her for the message. We spend the night at the Cracker barrel.
The next day we drive to a church in the town of Mitchell. This is the first time we have not stayed at our Boondockers Welcome/Harvest host address to spend the night. It's a little remote, not unsafe or anything, but it felt better to go to Dakota campground. te gaan.
Star in windshield
The northern states are very sparsely populated. You drive for hours on very quiet roads through vast expanses of landscape. Suddenly we hear a tap against the front window and see a star appear. Oops, now what? A new front window for an Adria Sonic/Fiat Ducato is not available in America. The roads are not always the best, and weather conditions change quite often as well. Before the crack gets bigger, we want to find a garage that can fix it as soon as possible.
We take the first exit we see, which is to the town of Chamberlain. We see a visitor center, surely they know if there is a glass service in this small town. We are enthusiastically welcomed. When we ask for a glasservice we are surprised that this small town has one. We are helped there immediately and the cost is only $45. We are so pleased!
We spend the night at the Pioneer Auto Museum in Murdo. The owner of this museum owns a lot of land in this town and he is also the mayor. It is a nice place to stay overnight and in the morning we have breakfast in the cozy diner.
Must-see: Badlands National Park
The nature in this park is so special! The vastness, the shapes of the mountains and the colors are so beautiful. There is plenty of parking to stop and take it all in. It is not a bright day, but still everything is beautiful. It continues to be fun to see our camper in this landscape ?
Badlands not only has a campground, but also an even more beautiful boondock spot. We park our camper on the edge of this very beautiful canyon. In the morning and evening we are treated to beautiful sunrises and sunsets. We are so glad we drove here.
In the evening the temperature drops around freezing and the wind makes it feel even colder. In this remote spot, we see thousands of stars in the clear night.
Wall and Rapid City
For hundreds of miles we have seen billboards for a store in the town of Wall: Wall Drug Store. We read that it has a nice shopping street, so we decide to stop. The little street is indeed cozy, but not that special.
We then drive to Rapid City, fill up with gas and head for our overnight spot. This place is not on a paved road. It has rained so much over the past few days that everything has turned into one big clay swamp. Robert doesn't panic easily, but sweat breaks out on him when we almost get stuck. Even the host's yard is like quicksand. If the owner had told us that beforehand, we wouldn't have come. The next day we have to pass by the car wash and, with great difficulty, remove the huge slabs of clay stuck to the camper.
Rapid City is a perfect base from which to visit Mount Rushmore and we're really looking forward to that!
Mount Rushmore
The way there is already beautiful and then suddenly you see the famous heads in the mountains. Parking is easy and we immediately walk as close as possible to the famous mountain. What a special atmosphere hangs here. With our telephoto lens we take pictures and then you can see even better how cool all this is. In the visitor center you can discover what the working method of artist John Gutzon de la Mothe Borglum was. It took him 14 years and he died just before completion.
In beautiful places we set up our Starlink to share everything with our (in-law) children. At Mount Rushmore, wifi is available and we can let them enjoy it again.
Hurricane wind force
As of Monday, hurricane force winds are predicted around Rapid City. We drive after our visit to Mount Rushmore to the town of Gilette (State of Wyoming) where we spend the night in front of a garage shed. The nice hosts come to greet us and offer power, water and an extended stay. We sleep there wonderfully, but don't like Gilette enough to stay longer.
The next day we drive to Canyon Creek Brewery in Billings in the state of Montana. We took the wind with us. We actually want to travel further, but the wind is really too strong for that.
Grey Cliff Mill
It keeps blowing, pfff...... We decide to go out on the road anyway and experience how this goes. Even though the wind is really fierce, the roads are full of traffic. Grey Cliff Mill is a mill with a restaurant, a wonderful store and very nice free RV sites. In addition to the wind, the weather is cold and wet. We choose the spot that offers the most shelter and enjoy coffee in the restaurant. This is another Harvest Host gem!
Next stop
We're going to Yellowstone!
Before heading to Yellowstone, we will stop in the town of Livingston at camping Osens RV Park. The rain has turned to sleet and we are glad they have a place available for us. We are going to visit Yellowstone in the next few days which is perfectly convenient. This is because the road to the west, via Bozeman Pass is completely closed due to heavy snowfall and many travelers are stranded as a result.
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