Rapid City, SD, Thursday, 2 August

Devil's Tower and new state citizenship.  We headed out to see Devil’s Tower (DT) over in Wyoming this morning. We drove out via I-80 thru Sturgis (the land of motorcycles and motorcycle mamas), Spearfish, and Sundance (yes, the Sundance Kid’s area), before turning north for DT.  Again, beautiful scenery, but very little wildlife.  The first view of DT is so dramatic that it almost takes your breath away – it is that breathtaking.  The closer we got, the more dramatic effect DT has on all the surrounding landscape.  We drove into the park area, bought our Lifetime Senior National Park Pass (finally), and proceeded up the park road, circling DT in a clockwise direction, getting closer and closer with each bend in the road.  After numerous stops to take pictures (with my excellent J. Kuntz discounted camera, of course), we arrived at the Ranger Station.  And there, looming us, like some rock-like giant, was Devil’s Tower.  And I mean it LOOMED.  DT is one huge piece of rock that just juts right up out of the earth.  We started to hike up a quite steep main path, going as far as my bad knee would let me, taking pictures as we went, and from as many different angles as possible.  That said, I’m sure nothing that I managed to capture with my photographic skills will even come close to what DT actually looks likes and appears to one’s eyes.  It is one very, very majestic piece of nature.  Again, well worth the drive out into the Wyoming backlands.  Plus the roads are quite good, even off the Interstate.  

We drove back thru Hulett and Aladdin, WY, and into Belle Fourche, SD, which is the geographical center of the US after Alaska and Hawaii became states.  Believe we even got a photo of Obidiah standing in the middle of a very nice marker in Belle Fourche. 

Headed south and picked up I-80 in Spearfish and drove back into Rapid City.  We stopped at our new “home,” America’s Mailbox, to pick up mail one more time before heading for Cheyenne, and also picked up our new SD license plates.  Guess we are now officially SD residents: Drivers’ license, permanent address, and license plates.   Yippee!  Decided to celebrate and had a brewski and a bite to eat at Rapid City’s old firehouse, now the Firehouse Brewhouse restaurant.  Lynette had a dark beer and I had an English-style ale that used Yakima hops.  All in all, good food and cold beer.  What more could one ask?