South Dakota Adventures

We flew to Rapid City, South Dakota via Denver and Oklahoma City to discover National Monuments, Mountain Trails, Beautiful Vistas, welcoming B&B's, and Great Plains animals like Buffalo, Great Horn Sheep, Prairie Dogs, and Deer.  We were not disappointed!  

Upon arriving  in Rapid City we drove our rental car south to Custer State Park, purchased our park pass  and followed the twisty Iron Mountain Road, part of the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway, northwest. The road affords views of Mount Rushmore framed by one lane tunnels before checking into our B&B, Peregrine Pointe,  nestled in a forest seven miles west of Rapid City. Our room had a comfortable queen size bed with a jetted spa tub.  The host provided us with delicious breakfasts on both days complete with both fresh fruit and vegetables.     

 We drove into Rapid City for dinner at the Firehouse. Deer bounded across the gravel road leading to the B&B.  Back at the B&B turkeys foraged right outside our room. 

After breakfast, we drove back down south to Mount Rushmore and then along the Needles Highway, also part of the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway,  to Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park.  Check out the YouTube video by A+K Adventures.

Iconic Mount Rushmore

There were plenty of tourists at the memorial, but it didn't seem too crowded.  After reading about it for so many years, it was a great feeling to see it up close.

  

We hiked around Sylvan Lake and I (Richard) stuck my nose into Sunday Gulch.  We hiked the short but strenuous Cathedral Spires trail gaining 500 ft of elevation by the end of the trail. Joanne made it most of the way up although some of the rock scrambles were pretty difficult.  The reward at the end is the bases of the granite spires formations.  Pretty amazing! See A+K's drone photography of the Needles and more:  Hiking at Custer State Park... 

At Sylvan Lake

Along the Sylvan Lake Trail

We followed the Needles Highway into Custer State Park and then into the town of Custer for we thought hamburgers at the famous Burger and Bun.  They were closed so we waited for the  Sage Restaurant to open. They opened exactly at 5 PM and within less than a minute all the tables were taken with people waiting outside. Dinner was excellent. 

Cathedral Spires Trail

The next morning we drove back down to Custer State Park to loop the Wildlife Loop, eighteen miles of open range and forests, prairie dogs, donkeys, hundreds of buffalo and big horn sheep.

Ever Watchful

A hot day, over 90 F.

According to Tom (1899 Inn), Buffalo were much larger in the 1800s, so this is a small one.

Lots of Babies

Posing Just Outside Our Car

After we snapped hundreds of photos along the loop, the time arrived for Burger and Bun.  Not so fast. The restaurant was packed and the waiting time was two hours! We opted for takeout, waiting about one hour partly at the rock shop next door where we bought a souvenir . We walked our takeout to a park a few blocks away to enjoy our delicious burgers. 

From the Black Hills Burger & Bun, Recommended by A+K

Our Souvenir, A Rock Buffalo

We stopped at the Crazy Horse Memorial, a work in progress. on our way to the 1899 Inn B&B in Deadwood.  Work began on it in 1948 and it is still under construction.  We enjoyed the movie which explained how and why it is being built and touring the Indian museum.

The 1899 Inn, a restored home, is located away from the noise of the gambling tables, but just a 5-minute walk to all the historic sites. Tom Griffith and his wife, Nyla, operate the inn. Extroverted Tom, the author of many books, is a wealth of information.  Tipped off by Tom, we detoured slightly on our way over Devils Tower to pass through  Aladdin, WY, population 15 to take-in an old time general store.  Before heading that way we had a night to look over Deadwood and a day to travel through the scenic Spearfish Canyon Byway. 

Dinner at the Social Club

Joanne Listens to Wild Bill at Saloon #10 While We Wait for Dinner at the Social Club

The Roughlock Falls Trail is an easy hike with peaceful views of a stream meandering through a meadow filled with wildflowers. It was Joanne's kind of hike. 

Joanne Hugs a Ponderosa Pine 

Roughlock Falls & Cascade

Crystal Clear Water Just Below the Roughlock Cascade

Spearfish Canyon

We had been blessed with sunny skies although the on day of the Wildlife Loop, the temperature climbed into the nineties. Light rain began to fall as we exited Spearfish and continued off and on until for the next, our last, day in South Dakota.

Visiting the Devils Tower and the Badlands in one day makes for a lot of driving, over three hundred miles, ending at the Rapid City Airport for a midnight flight home. 

Deadwood - Aladdin - Devils Tower - Badlands

The General Store in Aladdin, WY

If you can't find it here, you probably don't need it.  An old timer sat at the bar (Yes, a bar that can accommodate about two thirds of the town.) drink in hand looking like he been glued in place.  

Inside the General Store

Devils Tower, WY on a Rainy Morning

Devils Tower, our nation's first national monument, is sacred to 23 Indian tribes and they leave "prayer bundles" to remind us that this place is special. It is 867 feet high and many rock climbers scale it every year.   We spent a few minutes or so walking around in the drizzle and snapping photos before heading East for the Badlands. A long drive later we stopped at the much billboard advertised Wall Drug for a bathroom break on our way down to a wet Badlands. 

Badlands

A cloudy sky in the late afternoon and early evening made for some dramatic photos.

Badlands

Bighorn Sheep at a Distance

Evening Sky Clearing over Badlands

Wall Drug in the Afternoon Before Visiting the Badlands

We stopped at Wall Drug for Buffalo Burgers before returning to the airport about 9 PM.  Our journey had come to an end.  We dropped off our rental car and took an Allegiant midnight flight straight into our home town of Punta Gorda, 3 hrs. 40 minutes away.  

What a wonderful trip into our nation's heartland!

Visiting Family in Oklahoma June 2021

For our first post-COVID trip, we hopped a plane to Oklahoma City.  Two years passed since our last visit and it was time to visit brother, Bart, and sister-in-law Nita and see how much our great nephew and nieces have grown!  Everyone looks great!  A red dachshund, Teckle, now 6-months old, joined the family and provided hours of entertainment.  She is one active little puppy and oh, so cute.  

Niece, Jessica and husband, Clayton, with adorable 2 year old Claire, took us to Scissortail Park along the river for fun viewing the bridge sculpture and watching Claire enjoy the splash pad.  We also had a lovely lunch with niece, Ashley, and her cute children, Gideon and Ruthie.  Food in Yukon was plentiful and delicious!  We loved the Tex-Mex, Guatemalan, BBQ, ice cream cones and Nita's specialty pot roast.  Diets are definitely in order after gorging ourselves on these delights.  Bart and Nita's home is so pretty and the time flew by. It was so great to catch up and we enjoyed many conversations. Can't wait for a return visit!

On Scissor Tail Bridge

Claire, with Parents, Jessica & Clayton

Ruthie, Claire and Gideon

Joanne, Richard, Bart & Nita after church Father's Day

Memorial Day at IYC

 Memorial Day - Joanne served as IYC Chaplin. Marie (Joanne's 100 year old Mom) was recognized for service in World War II receiving a standing ovation. Many attendees thanked her warmly for her service. 

Chaplin 

Marie, Joanne and Piper

Field of Honor

 

This year our little town of Punta Gorda (Rotary Club) created a Healing Field of Honor for Memorial Day, a breathtaking field of FLAGS, to honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice AND those who served us so selflessly, our living VETS.  We sponsored a flag for Richard's brother, Colonel Bart Collins, U.S. Army, our family hero, who served our country in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and other posts throughout the world.  Pictures below.

Blind Pass Beach with Mary, Al and Marie

 

My sister, Mary, and brother-in-law, Alan, visited from Connecticut, the first of our family post-COVID.  We had a wonderful time catching up and enjoying the beach with our 100-1/2 year young Mom.  This is Blind Pass Beach on Manasota Key, Englewood.  The water was a Caribbean-like blue green.  We felt like we were in the movie, A Wonderful Life, because complete strangers came up to welcome us and actually applauded Mom's efforts in getting in and out of the water.  A very special time!

We also toasted and celebrated Mary and Al's 50th Wedding Anniversary and Alan's 75th birthday, complete with a home-made, coconut custard meringue pie, a special favorite of Al.  

Our 27th Anniversary

 

Richard made this beautiful card for our 27th Anniversary, a compilation of fun times and adventures.  We celebrated by having a special dinner at Carmello's here in Punta Gorda Isles.  Lovely!

2021 - The first Quarter - January through April

 As I reflect on the first 4 months of 2021, it's been a whirlwind of ups and downs, but mostly hope for the future.  The 'down' was the January 6th terrible attack on the Capitol before the inauguration of President Biden.  The UP was our democracy prevailed and Biden assumed the presidency.  Trump was impeached again and his  FB account was frozen.  It's been so nice not hearing his hateful rhetoric.  In Biden's first 100 days, he has done a wonderful job making vaccinations available to everyone.  That alone is a big improvement over Trump's indifference to the plight of our citizens.

Blowing in the new year - Duane, Rob, Richard

Our annual cruise to Pelican Island to ring in the new year was cancelled.  However, we did "blow in" the new year at the Punta Gorda Gilchrist Park waterfront with our shell horn.  Sue and Rob joined us as well as friends, Diane and Duane.  We had a lovely Friendship Force Holiday Pot Luck at Gilchrist Park, too.  Everyone was very careful wearing their masks and managed to enjoy the holidays despite the Pandemic.  We did a lot of zooming with the family, our Friendship Force Group and our PGIslander's Boating Club.  A year ago, we never heard of Zoom - now it has been our salvation to socialize safely and stay connected.

Sunset at Marker 1 PGIslander Cruise

Us with Friendship Force friends on picnic in park

"Getting the shot" became the goal for everyone here.  Fortunately, in Florida, those over 65 years of age (that includes us!) were first up on the list.  BUT, we had to navigate computer systems that crashed.  I scored one of the first appointments with the Charlotte Co Health Dept.  Richard was not so lucky, but with persistence, he was able to get vaccinated here at Publix Pharmacy in Punta Gorda.  He helped friends schedule their appointments, too.  It was great that others tried to help those who were not computer literate.  

Richard, Betty, Joanne & Richard

The highlight of the month of February was a week long visit of our dear friends, Betty and Richard who flew here from Houston once they received their shots.  They were overjoyed to travel again and after a look at the Florida Keys and Key West, they stayed here in Punta Gorda.  We took them to a great exhibit of Van Gogh at the Dali Museum in St Pete. The displays that were projected on the walls were so novel and exciting!  It was truly amazing.  Unfortunately, our friends had to deal long distance with a freeze in Houston resulting in broken water pipes in their condo.  Later, the next month, there was a terrible fire that destroyed much of their complex.  They now have to move out for at least 2 years for extensive repairs to be completed.  Looks like their Asheville House is in their future!

Mom with her artist friend, Nancy in New Port Richey

I also drove my 100-year-old Mom on a trip north to New Port Richey to visit her old friends where she lived for many years.  We had such a wonderful welcome and fun lunch together!

Lickity Split sitting on new boat lift

Boating wise, we went on an Isles Yacht Club Cruise to Boca Grande in late February.  It is the first cruise in a year!  Most everyone was relieved that they received their inoculations, and once again, could gather together for pot lucks and dinners together along with a fun game of Right - Left - Center!   After getting warranty work completed on our engines, we decided a boat lift was essential in extending the life of our boat, Lickity Split.  It took a while, but recently the lift was completed.  Last week, we attended a raft up at Marker 1 with a bunch of PGIslander boats.  What fun!

On Pontoon going to Marker 1 

Heavy equipment to put in boat lift

We've booked some trips to Oklahoma, the Badlands, the Big Island of Hawaii to visit Michele's new home for later this year.  There is so much to be grateful for!  Covid is on the decline.  The country is back and we need more folks to get vaccinated.  Hurrah.

Joanne tours Boca Grande during cruise

 

Widdens Marina - Old Florida in Upscale Boca Grande

Walk Around Boca Grande

Beach at Boca Grande

Friendship Force Picnic in Fort Myers

Biking the Venice Waterway

Walk for Poor - February 2021

Canal Clean-Up  PGIslanders  March 2021

Webb Lake Bike Rides