Back to the future

Wait a minute, Doc. Ah... Are you telling me that you built a time machine... out of a Sunstar?

Well, it's almost obvious to us, but it may be confusing to everyone else.  We've been "back dating" our posts.  Once we ran behind posting, we realized we could post to the blog, and set the time to when the events happened.  

Which is great if you followed us on Facebook and read the links we posted to the individual entries.  Not so much if you just went to the blog and saw the most recent post was something you already read.  Because the new posts were farther down (earlier in time) on the page.

We're in the process of putting up posts from Yellowstone which we will also back date, but while we catch up we will continue to post in "real time", as we planned from the start.  So, it will require some diligence on the part of you, the reader.  Or better yet subscribe to the feed.  Show a little commitment!

Speaking of which, the comment sections are quieter than my Google+ feed!  Come on folks, let's get some feedback in the blog.  Not everyone is connected via Facebook or G+.

As a reward, I offer you our new logo......

Uncle Sam wants you.

In some countries, like Denmark and Israel, there exists mandatory service in the military.  Here in the USA, we have an all volunteer army.  But I think we are missing a great opportunity.  As we leave Yellowstone I can't get over how amazingly beautiful and diverse this land is.  On any given day you can see 1/2 a dozen different unspoiled landscapes.

Every American should come to Yellowstone for 1 month to serve their county so that they can experience the beauty of the land and have a better perspective on our collective stewardships of our one and only planet.  If you love America, you must love both our ideals and the bountiful land that make us the strong nation that we are (as for the people, well, I'll let you decide for yourself).  The genius of preserving this treasure can't be understated.

Yes, Yellowstone is that amazing.  If you have the means (and if you are reading this you do) you must visit Yellowstone.  And I don't mean you should, I mean you must.  Start making your plans today.

On the road again

This morning we pack up and leave Yellowstone.  We still can't manage to get out of bed before 8.  We pack up the Sunstar and head to Old Faithful Inn, one of the oldest inns built in a national park.  In search of $4 coffee and pastries we walk around the inn.  The $4 coffee was easy (two-shot no foam latte).  The pastries were harder to find, so Kristin went to the bake shop located in another building.  I'm vague because it seemed a simple task to find the bake shop. I drove from the inn to the lodge and wait for Kristin to essentially walk the entire complex stopping at every store to get here.  We are rewarded with a selection of muffins or a cinnamon roll.  Ugh, we passed up a scone in the inn for hopes of something that actually resembled a bake shop.  Kristin and I split a lemon poppy seed muffin and the kids get a chocolate chip cookie.

We chat with the woman behind the counter who is from Roanoke Va.  She'll be here until October.  She confirms that Mondays and Tuesdays are the busiest days - that's when the tour busses come.  Lesson #4: come to the park on the weekends.  Friday - Sunday preferred.

In the parking lot at Old Faithful I see more evidence of people having an adventure, like us.  A newly married couple touring the country.  I get a kick out of seeing fellow travelers exploring the country, and the unique way in which we all do it.

As we drive out towards the Madison exit I see a cool site on the lower geyser basin and decide to stop in to check it out.  10 minutes of my life I will never get back.  The parking lot is gridlocked and there are no spots to be found.  Tail between our legs we get back on the highway and head out of the park towards our next stop - Craters of the Moon.

The pinnacle of Human Existence

After cleansing our bodies and minds, we head out to the Mecca of Yellowstone, Old Faithful.  To get there requires a 45 minute drive from the campsite at Grant.  We cross the continental divide twice on the trip.  Once there, we experience something new for Yellowstone - tourists.  It is difficult to explain in words the difference between the vacationers and campers vs. the tourists, but trust me the difference is obvious here.  Additionally, this is the first time we see crowds.  The lodge is crowded, the visitor center is crowded and, of course, when old Faithful blows it is crowded.

Now, it's not so crowded that Isabella can't handle the scene, but is vastly different from the other parts of the park.  And the irony is that, after watching two eruptions of Old Faithful, I'm underwhelmed.  By the Park's own admission, Old Faithful isn't the most reliable geyser.  It probably isn't the largest, and by many accounts of friends that have travelled to the park it isn't the best geyser to watch.  With recommendations of other geysers to see in hand, we head back to the RV to check out one or two of them.  And here is where we learn lesson #3 - which is probably mostly relevant to those traveling with children.  Do not see Old Faithful.  At least not as your first geyser.  Because once you do, the kids will not want to bother seeing any more.  In their minds, they have seen the best one imaginable.  The pinnacle.  And given our long hike up Mt. Washburn yesterday, another forced march, no matter how small, was not in the cards.  So, back in the RV headed back to camp.

On the drive back, we agree that we will cancel our reservations for dinner at the Old Faithful Inn (and cross the continental divide two more times - which means probably more times than Lewis and Clark in their lifetime in one week).  Flush with time, we attack laundry.  We drop off our clothes and drive back to camp.  That's when the rigors of travel hit me.  So I lay down for a well needed nap.  

For those who don't know in our house I am in charge of laundry.  This happened early in our relationship, as I witnessed Kristin run lipstick through the wash twice while we were dating in college.  With that backdrop my day went into the double bonus when Kristin offered to complete the laundry.  She hopped on her bike and, with Kellen, rode to the laundry building to move the loads from washer to dryer.  45 minutes later, we was back on the bike, laundry bag under her arm, back to fold clothes. It took two trips to bring them home, but as I said earlier, this was a huge bonus for me.  We all chipped in folding and putting away the last load, and contemplate dinner.

There is a restaurant nearby, probably walking distance but we don't know the way so we drive.  We eat with a view of Lake Yellowstone, which gives us an excellent view of the rain storm heading our way.  It rains about 25 yards outside away for about 10 minutes before the building, and the path back to the RV, is engulfed.  We try to wait it out but loose patience.  So far, we have encountered some rain every single day of the trip, but none of it has affected our plans.  Until this day.  We planned on going back to the beach to star gaze, and that plan has just been cancelled.  

I run up the RV to try and  move it closer.  The elevation laughs at my attempts to breathe.  I've never been this out of breath ever, and in the span of about 300 yards.  I clamor to the RV but I'm unable to find the service road leading to the restaurant.  I call Kristin to tell her where I am, about 1/2 way from the original spot, and she meets me with the kids.  The rain ends early in evening, but we are exhausted and hit the sack.

One postscript - a friend (who I will refrain from outing) told me to bring my sleeping bag, because the weather would be perfect for sleeping under the stars.  Rob (oops), you're nuts.  The temperature went below 45 every night since the Badlands.  I'm more than happy with the tin roof over my head.

Shower Day

It's a big day in the Urban RV-hold - shower day.  Here in Yellowstone they ration shower tickets.  For a two day stay, we got 4 tickets.  Back in the Canyon campgrounds, which is clearly more modern and the campus is more compact, Kellen and I were able to share a ticket.  This allowed us to give one ticket to my dad. Here in the Grant campground we needed to drive about 1/2 mile to the laundry/shower building.  This camp site is certainly older and less "high brow".  There is a ticket taker, and when Kristin suggested that she and Bella share one shower he was having none of that!  Then, they were buzzed into the woman's shower area.  That's right, the doors are locked and secured at all times.  They are serious about their water rationing here!

In the shower building, I received confirmation of the French aversion to bathing.  A little boy being bathed by his father was squealing the entire time. Clearly, this was a punishment to him!  How cruel of his father to torture him in this way.  I wonder what he did to deserve this treatment.

The ticket taker handed Kellen the used up coupons to take as a souvenir. He now has proof that at least one day he was clean.

Mt. Washburn, We Have Climbed You

We decided we wanted to do one big hike in Yellowstone but it would have be something that motivated the kids or we'd never get them to hike 5-6 miles.  They hiked up Cadallic Mountain in Acadia last summer so we thought another summit might be the way to go.  I bought a book of easy day hikes in Yellowstone and one of the hikes was up an old service road to the highest summit in Yellowstone, Mt. Washburn.  It ranked the hike as moderate and said it was a great hike for views of the park since it was all open almost the whole way up.  It also helped to tell them it was to the top of the Yellowstone caldera, or what is left of the volcano that erupted so long ago.  The final bit of motivation came in the form of doughnuts.  It happened to be Sunday, Happy Doughnut Day in the Urban house, so we bought 2 packs of mini doughnuts at the store and told the kids we would open them at the summit.

We gathered all our gear: packs, poles, rain coats, jackets, lots of water (you can never have too much water), cameras, binoculars, and drove up the Dunraven Pass from Canyon to the start of the service road.  You had to drive up the  mountain about a mile on dirt and rock to get to the parking lot.  The Sunstar handled it like a champ!  There seems to be nothing this little RV can't handle!! 

Once there we put on our packs, and headed up the path.  It was a pretty strenous up hill walk from the start.  We have water packs in our backpacks that have a tube that allows you to get water without having to pull out a bottle.  The kids absolutley LOVED getting water this way.  Greg says it's the closest thing to nursing a child he's ever experienced ;-). Next year they are definitely getting their own water packs!

We had to stop quite a bit for rest breaks, you could definitely feel the altitude.  We chatted for a bit in the beginning with this very fit older couple.  The woman had on an Ironman fanny pack.  Greg asked her if she had done one and she had, Kona.  For those of you that don't know, it's the original and like the super bowl of triathlons. 
It takes place in Hawaii.  So you swim in the ocean, and bike and run through volcanic lava fields.  Hard Core.  They soon left us in the dust but we didn't want to turn the hike into a forced death march so we we let the kids stop as much as they wanted (Greg too!). 

We stopped for lunch in a patch of trees.  We found a nice long downed tree to sit on.  Everyone was hungry at that point so we had a leisurly lunch and enjoyed the views and saying hi to the other hikers that passed by us.  The weather was cool and sunny but there was a pretty strong breeze.  Most of the time we kept on our outer layers.  In other words, a perfect day for a hike!

The kids were getting pretty tired as we got closer.  Because it was so open we could keep our eyes on the prize of the building at the summit.  That and the promise of doughnuts kept them going.  When we got close to the summit, we saw a patch of ice and snow.  That was very exciting for Bella who had wanted to get to the snow she saw in the Tetons.  We had hoped to see some big horn sheep on the mountain, but unfortuntely all we saw was their scat. 

At last we made it to the summit!  Pictures were taken, doughnuts were eaten and we learned about more about the fire observation building and fires at Yellowstone.  It's very interesting how important fire is to the ecosystem of the pine forest that covers most of the park. There was also a fat little either chipmunk or ground squirrel(there was debate on which it was) in the building that was living large off all the snacks that hikers dropped.  The views were pretty spectacular.  You could see the Tetons, the Grand Canyon, the lake, and some of the other geo-thermal areas of the park.

After awhile, Bella was ready to hike down the mountain.  We could see rain in the distance and thought it best to start the hike down.  It was a much easier hike although at one point I rolled my ankle pretty badly.  My Presidential hiking buddies might remember that I did the same thing on that hike, weak ankles.  I used the poles to ease the weight on my foot and continued down.  The wind was really picking up and the rain was moving closer.  There was also some thunder in the distance and since I learned how to handle that on my white mountain hike, I knew it would be better if we could get down the mountain before it moved in.  The weather in Yellowstone is amazing. You can have every type of weather occurring at some part of the park at the same time. That is lesson #2 of Yellowstone.  If you are going to be outside, and who isn't, come prepared for any type of weather.   

We managed to make it almost to the parking lot before it started raining, it never really rained that much, again the weather in the park is ever changing.  Tired and happy with our accomplishment we decided to head down to our next campground on the shores of Yellowstone Lake.  We wanted to have an early dinner and maybe get out to the lake front, which is just what we did. The new campground in Grant was very flat.  Kellen was able to spend the evening exploring the area by bike, he discovered a crater by our campsite, and made some campground friends. Yes, I have to say it, another amazing day in Yellowstone. 

Doing that thing you do.

This post is a little on the dry side, but some of you may be curious how we do some of the daily life stuff.  For starters, the blogging.

I am the first person up every morning, so I tend to write my posts before the family gets up.  I brought my trusty old MacBook which I use to write the posts, and if we don't have Internet access I just use Open Office.  Otherwise, I use Blogger.  I also like to write just before bed, but the first week there really was no time to do that, as we all pretty much collapsed in bed at about the same time.  More on that later.  I also write when Kristin is doing the cooking or general RV cleaning (Thanks, hon!).

Kristin tends to write after breakfast, or when we are driving.  There's plenty of drive time which gives here ample opportunity.  She uses her iPad for blogging, and her iPhone for taking pictures.  Most of the blog pictures are from her iPhone.  I take some pictures with my phone (HTC One), but since I also use my digital camera (Olympus E-PL1) I don't have as many camera phone shots.  I haven't taken the time to upload the photos from the Olympus to the Mac to the blog, that will probably have to wait until we are home.  Besides, the phones take pretty amazing pictures.  I'm beginning to question the usefulness of a full digital camera.

The glue that ties it all together is my iPad, which has Verizon data service (our phones are AT&T) and personal hotspot enabled.  That allows all of our devices to get access via WiFi when we are in range of Verizon 3G or 4G service.  So far, it's been great until the Tetons and Yellowstone. I installed a 1000 watt inverter, which is connected directly to the "house" battery in the RV and lives under the sofa.  There is a power strip connected to it, and we use that to charge up all of our devices.  The battery charges when we drive, so we have had no problem keeping the battery with juice.

I mentioned it's hard to do work when everyone is in bed because all the living space disappears.  Bella sleeps on the dining table which converts to a bed.  She used to sleep up top with me but after the disaster of the second night where she proclaimed how much she hated me, Kellen gladly swapped places.  Kristin sleeps on the sofa turned bed.  In bed time configuration, only the front two seats are available, and we usually pile them with stuff.  The passenger front seat does swivel to face backwards towards the RV living area, and I use that seat on occasion.

We cook in the RV and the kids often eat inside, too.  Kristin and I eat outside.  We have a shower but exclusively use the campground showers.  The shower stall in the RV has become invaluable storage space for our two camp chairs.

Well, that's a peek at our daily life.  Time to pack up and hit the showers.

Random thoughts from the road.

Some random thoughts I've had about the trip.  Here are some winners and losers:

Winner: I bought a lens specifically for this trip – a Rokinon 16mm fish eye (technically 8mm for the micro-4/3 camera, but 16mm in the 35mm equivilant). The first day of driving I noticed it wasn't in my bag. I looked for it where I thought I may have left it from its last use. No luck. In Casper, I found it in the pool bag. I put it there when using it at a swim meet. I was really bummed not to have it in the Badlands, but....

Winner: I think taking panoramic photos with the phone cameras (both Kristin's iPhone and my HTC One) made up for not having the lens. Plus, the phones are taking incredible pictures, and we can upload the pictures easily. At least to Facebook and to Google+, However...

Loser: Google+. They modified the photo section, and I can't figure out how to create a new album, or make all of the pictures in the blog album available from the blog. Plus, when I try to add photos directly from the phone (running Google Android) to the blog, I only get a listing of the older photos, not the most recent ones. It's pointlessly complicated, particularly considering what I'm looking to do must be just about the most commonly used feature.

Loser: The fridge is dying. At least on propane, which we are going to need for 4 nights in Yellowstone w/o electricity. It looks like ice is in our future. I'm glad we brought a cooler along.

If you read the post about the vehicle selection, you will recall some of the things we wanted a vehicle were

• reliable
• had a bathroom
• had A/C
• had a fridge
• could go up the mountains with traffic

So far only the top two bullets are holding strong, although the A/C appears to have righted itself.

Edit. OK, I'm being too hard on the old girl. She's taken us in comfort for 2,800 miles. We've been down miles of dirt roads to explore off the beaten path. When it was really cold we had heat. And we've never had to sleep on the floor.

Canyons, Mudpots, and Wildlife

We had a very busy first full day in Yellowstone.  After saying good bye to Rudi in the morning, we decided to spend the day seeing all the sites on the Canyon side of the park.  Yellowstone is huge and we knew we wouldn't see it all on this trip.  We decided right off the bat to skip some things.  We did not go all the way north in the park, which means we didn't see Mammoth Hot Springs.  I am sure it would have been cool, but it was a long drive and there was so much to see that was closer.

We went to see the Grand Canyon and falls in the morning.  You can't see it from the road, which is amazing because when you get to it, it is huge and spectacular.  We did some walks on both the north and south rims, so we got lots of amazing views of the canyon and falls.

We decided to take showers at lunch since you had to drive to the showers anyway, so we parked the RV, made lunch and then 3 out of 4 Urbans showered.  Bella was the hold out, and in retrospect it was good.  There was a little girl screaming the whole time in the showers, which would have been impossible for Bella to handle.  

Squeaky clean, we headed out to explore some geo-thermal sites and some wildlife.  We hit the Mud Volcano area and got to see up close everything bubbling up from below.  We also got very close to a bison who was hanging out in the area.  We also got our daily rain (it has rained every day of our trip at some point).

We then decided to try out a short bike ride down a semi-paved road to Natural Bridge. Greg and Bella were on the tandem for the first time. Kellen and I rode our bikes and all and all it was great. Bella didn't want to ride the whole way out and Kellen had a few issues coming back, but overall it was great. We have a ways to go before we can ride any distance together, but it is a start! Natural Bridge was cool and we got an up close view of a fox who sauntered by right before the bridge.

To end the day, we decided to cut over to Norris Geyser Basin to check out the geysers.  It was very impressive, you go out through a small building and your field of vision is overtaken by this huge expanse of geysers and other geo thermal features as gas as the eye can see! We also did a short nature walk to Artists Paint Pos, which was nice but not overly impressive.  The highlights of that walk was the chipmunk who let us get close so Kellen could take some good pictures and Bella who kept asking what would happen if she stepped onto the boardwalk and into one of the geysers.

Long and tiring first day. We rewarded ourselves with milkshakes and cheeseburgers at the soda fountain in the Canyon Resort area and then we called it a day, a day well done!

The Many Faces of Yellowstone

We entered Yellowstone from the south after a long day in the Tetons.   It was a 63 mile drive to our campground, almost all of it in the park.  What became clear on that drive is that there isn't one landscape of Yellowstone, it is an amazingly diverse world unto itself.  Seriously it is like no where else I have ever been.

We started out in a fairly flat area of pine forests as we entered the park.  Then the landscape opened up as the road hugged the edge of Yellowstone lake, an absolutely huge lake on the south side of the park. 

Next the road followed Yellowstone river as we began to head north.  We encountered our first geo-thermal areas as we smelled before we saw the mud pits and sulfur cauldron areas.  The road got a bit more hilly and we saw our first bison as the landscape changed once again and the trees gave way to the open grasses of the Hayden Valley.  This is where the buffalo roam although we wouldn't see the whole herd until our second full day.

After the beauty of the valley we once again were in the pine forests as the road again rose up as we approached the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.  We finally got to the Canyon junction and our campsite. At that point we had only seen a fraction of the park but it was amazing.  It felt like each time we rounded another bend we were entering a new world.  

As we settled into, our campsite, I began to realize what a special place Yellowstone really is and how lucky we were to be able to be there and witness nature and the world as it should be.

Entering Yellowstone

After the hike we drove back to our campsite to pick up the Sunstar and head to Yellowstone.  We follow the road up a few miles and enter the park (after taking a few pictures at the entrance sign, of course).  I recommend this entrance to the park.  Within 15 minutes we saw our first traffic jam.  Lesson 1 of Yellowstone, when people slow down or stop at the side of the road, ask them why.  It turns out an elk was finding a good spot to take a nap by the side of the road.  I went into the grass and took a few photos.

Along the drive to Canyon camp area we pass Yellowstone Lake, grasslands, forests, cliffs, rivers, marshes, and more.  It's simply amazing.

The Canyon camp area appears relatively modern.  Across the road from the campground is a complex with the welcome center, outdoor store, grocery store, gift shop, soda fountain, and lodge.  We check in and head up the hill to our site. The sites here are *huge*.  The site across the road has two young women from Indiana.  I couldn't figure out where their tent was until Kristin pointed it out.  It was a good 20+ yards away in the trees. We are right by the bathroom building so we're primed to meet about half the campers in our campsite loop.  There is plenty of room for dad's car and tent, which he positions in the only flat spot of the site, on a cow path to the bathroom.  We position the RV to encourage people to walk around his tent.

A fire in the fire pit cooks up some brats, and then gives us warmth to hang out and finish our Crow Peak porters before turning in.  It gets down into the 40's that night.  Given the crystal clear sky it's not a surprise.  But that's good sleeping weather, and we'll need our rest for the exploring ahead.

Swinter in the Tetons

As we approached the Tetons from the East we could see the snow still up on the top peaks.  The kids thought that was way cool. Bella decided they have a unique season here, Swinter. Summer + Winter = Swinter. She also wanted to go up and see the snow. She was disappointed to find out we wouldn't be hiking up quite that high.

We had already decided to skip Jackson since we needed the time that morning for laundry and shopping.  That is something we are trying to remember as we go, we can't do everything and we need to stay a little flexible with our plans. We reached our campsite just north of the Tetons around dinner time.  Greg has a great story about who we met while checking into the campsite in this post: here.  It was a busy campground and I heard other folks saying that all the campgrounds were full, I was very glad we had our reservations!  We cooked up a yummy steak dinner cooked over charcoal and enjoyed catching up with Rudi.  We had been lucky up to that point not to need the A/C at night but this was the first night where we actually needed the heat! I love the warm days and cool nights of the mountains!

The next day started out cool and sunny. We only had one day to spend in the Tetons, so we decided to head to Jenny Lake for some great views of the mountains and a nice hike and boat ride.  We made a quick stop in Colter Bay for passport stamps and then headed down to the lake.  We had packed a picnic lunch to eat on the way around the lake.  The hike was supposed to follow the base of the Mountain around the lake and then head up to Hidden Falls. When I checked with the park ranger she said that trail was closed but we could take the other more moderate trail around, so off we went!

We stopped early for lunch, on an old log in the shade, then we continued on as the path started to rise in elevation. Bella wanted to be first so, she and Greg went ahead while Rudi, Kellen and I brought up the rear.  We had our walkie-talkies with us, which was really nice since we had split up. We have been using them quite a bit on the trip, especially to stay in contact with the kids at the campsites! 

The 3 mile hike wound up being more strenuous than we anticipated.  We got some beautiful views from high above the lake, but it was a hot day and our first at that altitude so it was a tough hike.  We were rewarded with some amazing views of the falls. It was crowded there since most folks opt to just take the boat ride over.  As a result we had a long line to wait for the ferry back, but Bella kept everyone around us amused with her comments that lack any social filter.  We finally got on a shuttle and enjoyed the ride back across the lake.  We were all tired at that point and elected to head up to Yellowstone.  It was a 63 mile drive up to our site at Canyon and we wanted to get there by dinner.

It was a great day to get a quick taste of the Tetons, we will have to come back someday and explore more!

We cross the continental divide to travel one mile.

Camping next to a family from Ferndale can now be looked at as a curious coincidence. Last night we checked into our campground at Flagg Ranch in the Grand Tetons after traveling through the 9,658 Togwotee Pass. Traveling along US 20/26 brought our first significant VW camper siting. Two groups of 3 VW passed us within a few minutes of each other while heading east: a Splitie, bay window Westfalia, Vanagon Westfalia; followed by a double cab, splittie, and another Vanagon Westfalia. Only the Vanagons waved back. Must be an air cooled / water cooled thing.

Anyway, back to the check-in. We drove up to the visitor center, and Kristin went to check in. After she went into the building a couple on bicycles rode up to the building. Kristin chatted with them, and they told Kristin they rode 67 miles on un-paved roads that day.

It turns out we needed to check in at the campground office, so we headed there in the RV. While Kristin checked in I noticed the couple and we started chatting. They are riding the continental divide, starting in Calgary and they will end their trip somewhere in Colorado.

The woman asks me: “Hey, are you from Maryland, too?”

Me: “Yes, we are. Where in Maryland are you from?”

“Annapolis”

That's funny. "Where in Annapolis are you from”

“Cape St. Claire.”

No way. "Where in the Cape?”

“River Bay Road”

“Wait, we live on River Bay Road. We are at the end of Cape St. Claire Road”

“We live down at the other end.”

The conversation continues and the woman mentions her daughter. That's why she looks so familiar – her daughter is Farrah Hall, an Olympic windsurfer that lives next to my friend Russ. And she looks like her daughter – go figure. Cue “It's a Small World” theme for the next 12 hours. The randomness of being in the same campground, not just the same park, checking in at the same incorrect building, at the same time is hard to wrap my head around. I saw them the next day while I was getting coffee, and they were preparing to head on down the road. I took some pictures and I hope to post one on their daughter's FB page. Can't seem to do that from the mobile app. She'll be surprised for sure! God speed, fellow Capers!

Nothing to see here

Thursday morning was a "maintenance day".  Laundry, shopping, and re-supplying.  Boring, but necessary. But the kids got to swim in the hotel pool and we got some posts out.   Then, on the road to the Tetons!

Looking Up Into the Light and Down Into Darkness

We headed back to Mt. Rushmore on Wednesday morning to see the monument during the day and explore all the exhibits.  There are lots of things to see and lots to learn, especially about the building of the sculptures.  We spent a good 1/2 hour or so inside the exhibit hall, which was very crowded. Of course the boy disappeared and unlike his sister who will find the nearest adult and announce she is lost even when I can still see her, Kellen just kept trying to find us.  It probably took a good 45 minutes to find him.  It was hot and we were all feeling a bit grumpy at that point.

We decided to walk the trail that goes along the base of the mountain. It was also crowded with lots of young children. We barely made it onto the trail when Bella lost it.  She was completely on edge and her anxiety was on high, so she and I headed back to the RV while the boys finished the trail.  After a snack and some quick souvenir shopping ( we needed our sticker for the RV ), we loaded up the RV and headed for Wind Cave National Park, just an hour or so away.

We arrived at Wind Cave and got our tickets for the Natural Entrance Tour and grabbed some lunch in the RV. One of the many things I like about the RV is being able to make lunch anywhere!  The kids got their National Park passports stamped and we got our RV sticker and then headed down for the tour.

Something about going down into a dark cave turned our two kids into a couple of chatter boxes. They are not normally the most talkative kids but they pretty much talked though the whole tour. It was only a problem when the ranger wanted to talk.  The cave itself was very cool and so huge. Apparently they are still discovering new sections all the time.  The box work formations were neat to see and apparently that is the only cave that has them.  Kellen said the cave was creepy and Bella really wanted to see some bats. We didn't see any but they had fun looking. It was nice to have Rudi along as well.

We said goodbye to Wind Cave and soon enough South Dakota as we headed for Casper, Wyoming and our first hotel stop of the trip.  More about that come.....