Relief!

Relief!!
Tearing down camp this morning was very difficult. The wind was
blowing so hard that I couldn't fold anything nor just set things down
without them blowing away. They had a little shed that I carried
everything over to so that I could hide behind it and fold things.
The trip across the plains is very, very dull. I had to constantly
lean the motorcycle to the left so that I could fight the wind and
keep a straight line. I was relieved when a semi would pass because
of the respite in the wind. I met a guy riding a Goldwing at a fillup
and he said the same thing, he was tired of fighting the wind.
I was hoping to make the Badlands about noon and I pulled in at 10:45
AM. I also knew that there was a NPS stamp at the newest National
Historic site in the US at the Minuteman Missile silos but I didn't
realize it was the exact same exit as the Badlands. The Minuteman VC
is new and was having fresh gravel spread out so I parked at the gas
station adjoining it. I went it, got my stamp, and watched the video
about this site. They had a virtual tour of the Delta II launch site
as a video. It was the only view I could have as they didn't allow
access to the missile silo after 11 AM (I don't know why so early) so
I hopped on the bike and headed toward the Badlands.
I had been to the Badlands in 1980 so I knew what to see and expect.
I entered the park and headed toward the vc. I got my stamp and then
proceeded on the loop drive to the town of Wall with the heavily
advertised Drug store. I saw a few mule deer while on the loop. As I
was exiting, I saw a road that looked interesting; Sage Creek Road and
I took it west. It was a gravel road and I could use the practice for
AK roads. A sign up ahead warned of bison being in free range and
sure enough, there was a small herd about 75 yards off the road. I
stayed on the road about 5 miles and then found a sign pointing me to
Wall so I turned and continued on my trip.
In Wall, I saw a sign for the Buffalo Gap Grasslands VC so I went in.
I did get a specialized stamp there and chatted with the ranger in
charge. The vc had a lot of great exhibits about the grasslands and I
wish I could bring my students here to learn about prairies. It was
awesome!!
I got back on the road to try and make Devil's Tower in WY by closing.
As I was leaving South Dakota, I passed the famous Sturgis, where the
annual motorcycle rally is held. They advertise it heavily also and
there are lots of t-shirt places to get souvenirs of it. The rally is
this August but I'll be somewhere in the SW while its going on.
The other great thing about Sturgis is that you're also out of the
prairie and into the Black Hills. That means the roads are more
interesting and have some twists and that the wind is blocked by the
hills.
With my GPS leading the way, I turned off the interstate and headed
north toward Devil's Tower. I thought the vc would close at 6 PM and
I was going to make it with 10 minutes to spare. I saw my first
Pronghorn antelope of the trip in WY on the road toward Devil's Tower.
I soon saw the tower in the distance. It has a distinctive shape and
again, I've been here before. I still had 20 miles to go but I made
it in time. They told me the vc closed at 7 PM here so I had extra
time. Good thing because the vc was VERY busy with two bus tours
there. I got my stamp and went outside to see the tower. While
standing there, a mother mule deer and her twin fawns made their way
through the valley below me. I didn't see spots on the fawns and
don't know if mule deer fawns have spots like whitetail deer fawns do.
I also chatted with a guy from TX who rode his goldwing from TX to CA
to WA and was now looping back toward home. We even considered
sharing a tent space but he needed electricity to charge his cell
phone at his camp and the campground at the park didn't have any
electrical sites. I pulled in here for the night and got all set up.
I did chat with the guy next to me also. He and his wife were from
West Virginia and had been traveling in their RV for three weeks.
Whew! It was a long day and I was ready for bed.

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Todd Ryan; Hudson, MA
Westborough HS Science Teacher
MSF RiderCoach