Breaking Radio Silence
Here we are in Rapid City, SD which I have never thought of as the epicenter of the modern world but here I am on the internet just like a real millennial woman. I didn't really miss it when we were in Yellowstone (really, that's no lie) but once the possibility was there I was all over it like a duck on a junebug, I almost told Durwood to go look at Mt. Rushmore by himself, but I didn't. We drove from Yellowstone (oh, it was so hard to leave there) to Buffalo, WY yesterday on the oddest series of roads, not really highways exactly, state highways I guess, through the smallest of towns, even for Wyoming--Basin, Emblem, Ten Sleep, Graybull--through the Shoshone National Forest, past Buffalo Bill Dam (tunnels!), and the Bighorn National Forest (which was surprisingly bereft of trees) and should have been called mountains instead of forest, part of which wasn't paved. A mountain road... wasn't paved!!!! Admittedly it was because the road was being worked on, but still this was a road with a number on a sign shaped like a shield and there it was only dark, rusty gray gravel for about 5 or 6 miles. I drove on that part, of course. We stayed at the Mountain View Motel and Campground in a cottage that looked like the previous occupant had been a Wyoming version of Heidi. There were hanging baskets of petunias on the eaves and white clapboard sides, and the inside was made of highly varnished logs. Durwood enjoyed the flatscreen TV but my laptop didn't like their internet so I was thwarted. Instead I called both of my children and sat outside in the gorgeous Wyoming evening talking to them. Did I mention that Yellowstone National Park was lousy with Wisconsinites? We met people from Fond du Lac, Eau Claire, Milwaukee, Merrill, Richland Center, even 4 vans full of UW-Madison students... I figure except for DS & DIL1 and Lala Wisconsin is empty. Crazy. Oh, and we saw a family in Brewers shirts at Mt. Rushmore today and a biker guy was telling someone about the Vietman War Vets welcome home rally at Lambeau Field last summer. And the motorhome parked behind our cottage in Buffalo? It had a Wisconsin license plate on it. We can't get away from these people. Mt. Rushmore was lovely, smaller than I though it'd be, but moving. One of the workers was signing books in the gift shop. I was amazed that any of them are still alive. I bought one and am looking forward to reading it.
Here we are in Rapid City, SD which I have never thought of as the epicenter of the modern world but here I am on the internet just like a real millennial woman. I didn't really miss it when we were in Yellowstone (really, that's no lie) but once the possibility was there I was all over it like a duck on a junebug, I almost told Durwood to go look at Mt. Rushmore by himself, but I didn't. We drove from Yellowstone (oh, it was so hard to leave there) to Buffalo, WY yesterday on the oddest series of roads, not really highways exactly, state highways I guess, through the smallest of towns, even for Wyoming--Basin, Emblem, Ten Sleep, Graybull--through the Shoshone National Forest, past Buffalo Bill Dam (tunnels!), and the Bighorn National Forest (which was surprisingly bereft of trees) and should have been called mountains instead of forest, part of which wasn't paved. A mountain road... wasn't paved!!!! Admittedly it was because the road was being worked on, but still this was a road with a number on a sign shaped like a shield and there it was only dark, rusty gray gravel for about 5 or 6 miles. I drove on that part, of course. We stayed at the Mountain View Motel and Campground in a cottage that looked like the previous occupant had been a Wyoming version of Heidi. There were hanging baskets of petunias on the eaves and white clapboard sides, and the inside was made of highly varnished logs. Durwood enjoyed the flatscreen TV but my laptop didn't like their internet so I was thwarted. Instead I called both of my children and sat outside in the gorgeous Wyoming evening talking to them. Did I mention that Yellowstone National Park was lousy with Wisconsinites? We met people from Fond du Lac, Eau Claire, Milwaukee, Merrill, Richland Center, even 4 vans full of UW-Madison students... I figure except for DS & DIL1 and Lala Wisconsin is empty. Crazy. Oh, and we saw a family in Brewers shirts at Mt. Rushmore today and a biker guy was telling someone about the Vietman War Vets welcome home rally at Lambeau Field last summer. And the motorhome parked behind our cottage in Buffalo? It had a Wisconsin license plate on it. We can't get away from these people. Mt. Rushmore was lovely, smaller than I though it'd be, but moving. One of the workers was signing books in the gift shop. I was amazed that any of them are still alive. I bought one and am looking forward to reading it.
1 comment:
What a wonderful trip. We did that same trip a few years ago and had a super time. Have distant relatives in Graybull, although they probably don't know it. Drive safe!
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