SD - WY Day ??

Did you think we got lost? We're still heading West. Weather has been cool at night, probably high 40s to mid 50s, while the day have been in the high 60s to mid 70s. Great weather for traveling. No rain hitting the windshield, but many bugs! Driving across SD you see large swarms of bugs and birds. The birds look like low clouds in the distance. It is now Wed am, and we are in Gillette WY, which claims to be the energy capital of the nation. The energy seems to be long strings of trains carrying coal. I don't know where it comes from or what happens to the coal in Gillette. A future search project for the internet.

Yesterday found us traveling through old mining towns, including Sturgis, Deadwood, Lead and Spearfish SD. Beautiful roads through the Black Hills National Forest and side trips into canyons – Spearfish Canyon and along Iron Creek. These roads make Skyline Dr look like a dragstrip. There are many 10 – 15 mph switchbacks, both going up and down the mountains!

After entering WY we headed for the Devil's Tower, a natural formation caused by a long extinct volcano. The tower is a pretty awesome sight as you come down from the hills into the valley. The Native Americans still consider it a spiritual gathering place. And then there are those who see it as a climbing challenge...not our sport. However, we did spot 4 climbers in the late afternoon who appeared to be about a third of the way from the bottom – 2 seemed to be staying put and the others were descending.

We'll probably continue on to Montana with the intent to enter Yellowstone at the northeast corner.


Can you see the climbers?