Wildlife Day

Drove the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park today. We waited until later in the afternoon to do this in hopes of seeing more wildlife. Saw pretty much the same animals as before - buffalo, donkey, antelope, prairie dogs, and turkeys.
























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Another day in Paradise

Being used to the instant internet in your home can make campground internet very frustrating. They may advertise wifi but it is not equal in all parts of the campground and is very much influenced by the time of day. I have found early morning to be the best time to post. Of course I never seem to get to it in the morning. :-)

Yesterday we toured Jewel Cave which is the second longest cave in the World. It was some what of a strenuous hike. There were 722 stairs that went up and then down and then back up again for one and a half miles. Made us huff and puff a little! There were some nice crystal formations but they were not very colorful. I was glad I went and we got to use our National Park Senior Passes!

We had to drive past the Crazy Horse Memorial on the way home so we stopped and I took a picture from the road. I wanted to compare that picture with the ones that we took the last time we visited. I don't think I am going to see much of a difference. It's going to take a long time to finish.

After we left Crazy Horse we drove the Needles Highway. This is a very scenic route with lots of twists and turns and several one lane tunnels. It can get a little hairy at times especially when you meet a large tour bus. But the scenery is gorgeous and we did get to see some wildlife.              

Today we took the motor home to get the last two tires replaced and all 6 balanced. I definitely will feel safer now.

Hart Ranch Resort Club

We are presently settled in at Hart Ranch Camping Resort near Rapid City, SD. We will spend a week here exploring the area, getting the last two new tires installed on the motor home, and waiting for some important mail to be delivered.

Today we revisited Mount Rushmore, drove past the campground where we stayed on our last visit to the area, and just enjoyed the beautiful scenery and weather.

Crossing the Mississippi

Corn fields and wind turbines in Minnesota

At Wall Drugs in Wall, SD

Mount Rushmore

We made it across the Mississippi!

A lot has happened since my last post. We left the lake, squatted at Bob's cousin's house for a few days, took care of some last minute details, and bright and early Monday morning (July 2) headed out. Our first stop was at Camping World to try and resolve a braking issue with the car hauler. After 4 hours we were informed that there was nothing they could do to fix the problem but they would make certain everything was working the same as when we pulled in. Wrong!! Before we could leave Bob and Terry had to fix the lighting problems Camping World had just created. No wonder there was no charge!
1:00 pm - We finally headed west.
2:00 pm - Bang! Thump! Thump! Thump! Blown rear tire. Good Sam Roadside Assistance to the rescue.






5:00 pm - We limp to Camp Chautauqua on Chautauqua Lake for the night.












Having decided to purchase 6 new tires for peace of mind, we ended up staying at the campground until Friday because the tires had to be ordered. A phone call on Friday confirmed the tires were in but only 4. Go figure! Decision was made to have the four installed and purchase two more while in Rapid City. By 2:00 pm we were headed west once more.






To make up for lost time the guys decided to continue driving after dark. Not the best of decisions. Miscommunication between the driver and the navigators resulted in driving the toll road through Chicago instead of the bypass around Chicago. Also the lighting gremlin reared his ugly head again and started playing with the lights. Aargh!! Boy were we glad to see that rest stop!












Crossing the Mississippi River.






Wind turbines in Minnesota.






How we travel. :-)

R and R

Unfortunately my blog posting hasn't gotten off to a very auspicious beginning. Internet access has not been available at any of the campgrounds that we have stayed at so we have been relying on our Verizon connection. That has been some what of a bust also. I certainly hope connections get better!

We are currently at a campground on Cowanesque Lake in the northern tier of PA. The weather has been beautiful allowing us to spend a lot of time relaxing and enjoying the outdoors. We've also had time to visit with friends and relatives.

Friday we will pack up and move the motor home to Bob's cousin's house. She and her husband will be traveling with us. There we will do the final loading with departure set for Monday if all goes well.

Let the Journey Begin!

Bob and I have talked about taking a trip to Alaska for several years. When we mentioned the possibility to his cousin and her husband they decided they would like to share the adventure with us. But it was always in the future . . . "when we retire".

Well the future arrived and I discovered I wasn't as mentally prepared as I thought I would be. Surprisingly it's somewhat scary to pack up and say goodbye to your family, your home, and even your pets and to realize that you won't be back for at least 3-4 months. I did a lot of procrastinating which I paid for in the end. The past few days have been a blur of frantic activity and frazzled nerves. It has seemed like anything that could go wrong did go wrong.

But we are now relaxing in a campground in Virginia on our way to Pennsylvania to meet up with our traveling companions. It's actually happening! We're going to do this. Wow!

No more pencils, no more books, no more "teacher" dirty looks!

I said goodbye to my last set of students on Friday and will say goodbye to the school next Tuesday. This past week people have asked me how I was feeling. Was I sad, was I excited? I can honestly say neither. At the end of every school year we pack up and say goodbye. However, come next August I probably will be able to answer that question. What my answer will be at that time . . . I have no idea. Hopefully we will still be in Alaska having the time of our lives and so grateful that we don't have to stop and head back to work. What I will miss will be the camaraderie and fellowship of my co-workers. I have been blessed in my teaching career to have always worked in schools with great faculty and administration.

I did make a startling discovery this week. Well, I don't know if startling is exactly the right word but it did make me stop and think. Bob has been retired for about a week. On Monday I had a dentist appointment right after school and I stopped at home for a quick tooth brushing before I went for my appointment. When I walked in the door I found Bob all ready to accompany me. I had no problem with that, in fact I was happy to be chauffeured, but like I said it did make me think. Bob has always worked 8-5, five days a week, about fifty weeks a year. I, on the other hand, have usually been able to leave work by three and have extended holidays and all summer to do what I wanted to do. If I wanted to go shopping after school or spend 4 hours wandering through a store during summer vacation I just did it. No having to tell someone where I was going or justifying why I wanted to go. Hm-m-m, things will definitely be different now. Food for thought!