Yesterday was a long one, with 13 hours on the road from the time we left Pierre, S.D., to the time we pulled into our motel in Rapid City. Those cities are only about 250 miles apart, but we took the scenic route. First we revisited the fantastic sunflower fields we had discovered on Thursday, to take some photos. Linda dressed appropriately--all in yellow--and I took a couple of photos where she's hard to discern in the field of head-high flowers. (One photo belongs here but is on Facebook.)
She had dialysis on the Rosebud Reservation, a 100-mile drive from Pierre. The hill descending into the town of Rosebud was lush with green growth, a much more welcoming sight than the barren Navajo Reservation we visited in the Arizona desert last year. It briefly made me think life could be good there, though I was assured that more than 75% of the residents there live in serious poverty, with only the business owners doing well.
I'm posting photos below of the memorial quilts that cover the walls of the dialysis unit. When a patient dies, they create a quilt as a memorial. The elderly woman who has done the most quilts was in the chair next to Linda. They're quite beautiful to look at, and a wonderful way to remember members of the dialysis "family" that all units have. They were kind enough to let me take photos of the quilts, though of course I couldn't take any photos showing patients. (See photo now on Facebook.) They have about three dozen patients there, and Linda referred in her blog to the display in the lobby. Each patient's photo is there, along with his/her number of children and grandchildren, favorite tv show, and favorite meal. The emphasis on children is part of the Sioux tribe's dedication to its children more than anything else.
Once we were liberated from the dialysis center, we headed for the Badlands, which I had visited only once before, on my first cross-country trip in 1970. On that trip, the Badlands were the first sign I had of the magnificent geological wonders of the West, and it changed my life. I was awestruck on that trip as I saw many of the famous national parks I'm trying to share with Linda on this trip along with last year's, and that's why I wound up spending 30 years living in the West and criss-crossing the always fascinating terrain. So I was glad to share this with Linda.
She was blown away by it and told me it's the most spectacular place I've taken her to yet. That's a strong statement considering that last year, we saw the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Zion, the Arches, and more. But I could see her point. This was like driving through the heart of my favorite park, Bryce, but not on a rim road as at Bryce, but right down in the middle of the pinnacles and colorfully eroded rocks. I remembered all the canyon-like features below the road level from my 1970 trip, but had forgotten how much of the splendor is alongside you on the road.
We spent nearly two hours in the park yesterday, all the time watching a massive, dark storm to the west. We talked to people today who were stuck in that storm and had to pull over, but all we saw were the brilliant lightning bolts in the distance and wondering if the dark clouds above us were going to open up as well. We felt a few drops but that was all, and know we were very lucky. Perhaps our new friends at the Rosebud dialysis center were looking out for us, having helped us map our route to and through the Badlands. At the last viewpoint, we saw two bighorn sheep in the field below, and after making a turn into an unpaved road came upon another half-dozen, including several rambunctious lambs. (See photo now at Facebook.) A great capper to the first of the Western wonders on this trip.
I hadn't been to Wall Drugs before and we were hungry, so we stopped there. The place became a thriving business in 1931 when the founder of a struggling store began giving away "free ice water" which lured travelers inside. I partook of some free ice water with my dinner while Linda enjoyed ten cents' worth of coffee--and then, of course, we spent another $60. I wonder how that works. But we did need that pair of binoculars (when we moved to Cherry Valley seven years ago, we put all the important stuff in one carton, including the binoculars, and haven't seen that carton since), and the uncensored edition of Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage, not to mention a great present for one of Linda's grandsons. How convenient that all of that stuff was at one place!
Now it's Saturday morning and we're about to head out for a day of exploration. First stop is Mount Rushmore, 25 miles south of here. From there we'll go to Devil's Tower in northeastern Wyoming. I've never been there--one of the few famous places in the West that I've managed to miss--but have this strange compulsion to go there. Then we'll head west, toward Cody, though I suspect we'll wind up spending the night around Sheridan. It's going to be a great day wherever we wind up. We'll catch you again then.
Sounds amazing!!!
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