After the harvest was over we scooted quickly south to
warmer weather.
I live in my car. Why would I ever take off my pajamas?
Dan noticed this picture was in the camera right after the
previous driving shot. I can see the resemblance.
Somewhere in South Dakota there was a roadside attraction
that advertised a cowboy ghost town and buffalo herd. I wanted to check it out.
The place was pretty busy because it was the only gas station for miles, but
apparently no one ever went inside the cowboy town. The gift shop was also a
fireworks store and an overpriced grocery store for shelf goods and meats. All
of the souvenirs were left over from years ago, faded, and covered in dust.
Around the walls there were animatronics exhibits behind plexiglass walls of
cowboys and the piano-playing gorilla that would move and talk and play and
shoot if you put a dollar in. We didn’t want to see what they looked like in
motion. Apparently it was a preview for the cowboy town attraction, which cost
an extra $7 per person. The owner of the shop was sitting behind a paper-strewn
dusty check out counter behind racks of old souvenirs. I collect spoons from
places that I travel and I asked him if he had any from Nebraska, and North
Dakota, but he said he was out of those. But then he said that he had every
collectable shot glass, bell, thimble, magnet, and patch. He also sold buffalo
products, from teeth to jaw bones to tanned hides to meat and even green hides.
He also had many informational booklets about South Dakota and Badlands
National Park, and spent half an hour showing me all of the pictures when I
mentioned I had thought about visiting it. Dan stuck up a wonderful
conversation about New York and Las Vegas with the guy while I picked out a
buffalo tooth, a few magnets, a South Dakota spoon, and some bison jerky. I
wish I had gotten a green hide to tan because they were a steal at $80, but I
had nowhere to keep it and work on it. He was selling the tanned hides for
$700-$1500.
We left this little attraction and continued on South bound.
Right before dark we began to pass signs for the World’s Only Corn Palace, and decided to stop
to see it. It took a while to find, and by the time we got there it was dark,
so we just took pictures as we drove by. It wasn’t as interesting as it sounds
from the outside, but maybe it’s better inside. I didn’t realize that it was
actually open at the time we drove by, otherwise we would have parked and went
inside.
It was just a square warehouse building with cool looking
metal work and a few corn stalks glued to the front of it.
I asked Dan to find us an awesome campsite. Usually I’m the
one who does the logistics, but this time I let Dan handle it. He didn’t
disappoint. Our destination was Byre Lake in Kennebec South Dakota. It was dark
when we arrived and we still managed to easily find the dirt roads leading to
the lake, which had plenty of parking space, a picnic shelter with electricity
and trash cans, a pit toilet, and a boat ramp. It was rainy and cold and dark
when we arrived, so it wasn’t until morning that the beauty of the area was
apparent.
Along the road to Byre Lake.
The dirt road by the lake.
The dogs enjoyed running along the beach.
Apparently the place is popular with hunters, and there were
plenty of hunting parties and target shooting practices while we were there.
During the first dreary rainy day we were almost always alone, though, and
Rosie got to graze and the dogs had free space to run for acres on grass,
through fields, along roads and beaches, and in the woods. The next day we
moved close to the picnic shelter and hogged some power for a couple hours to
run the heater, do some cooking, and watch a movie while it was cold and wet
outside. The next day was sunny and warm, so I took the dogs on a hike and let
the goat out to graze. Walking along the beach I found a huge dead beaver,
halfway decayed at the edge of the water. I collected it teeth to add to the
buffalo tooth. Collecting bones is a hobby of mine, and I have a nice skull and
tooth collection. There was a swingset, volleyball net, and horseshoe game on a
grassy peninsula projecting into the lake, and I spent a while swinging and
taking pictures. The lake was calm and glassy. In the afternoon hunters came
with their dogs and a man went out on a tiny boat to fish, so we took the
animals back inside. Byre Lake was a welcome change from driving and sleeping
in truck stop or rest area parking lots as we do so often.
Plenty of room to roam.
Speaking of rest areas and truck stops; when you have a self-contained RV it's easy to stay overnight in almost any parking lot. We utilize this often, and when we're not in the middle of nowhere on free dispersed camping land, we often stay in casino parking lots, Walmart parking lots, rest areas, gas stations, truck stops, or roadside pull offs.
At one rest area we saw a familiar sight across the road: a sugar beet piler in operation!
Halfway over the Rockies we found a nice rest stop for the night.
We finally reached the Rockies and it was time to really test out our engine. She did wonderfully going up the mountains, albeit at a very slow pace. Down the Rockies was a bit scarier, though.
A first look at snow-covered peaks in mid-October.
An overlook offered a beautiful view of a mountain lake.
A lone cloud floated above the mountains.
On the way down we got a kick out of the warning signs for truckers. They were definitely heeded by us as well.
Even when staying at rest areas and truck stops we see wonderful views of the surrounding area.
This Love's truck stop was in the middle of lots of canyon walls.
This rest area had a wonderful sunset over the hills.
Between Byre Lake in Kennebec, SD and Moab, Utah, we stayed exclusively in parking lots. Moab was sure to have the warm dry climate we desired, and it was our main goal to get there as quickly as possible. Colorado is pretty, but too cold for me in October! We'll leave the Northern adventures for springtime. Next up... Moab Revisited!
