Devil's Tower, WY

We left South Dakota and were excited to reach Wyoming and see Devil’s Tower, an amazing rock formation in eastern Wyoming. Most people can recall seeing this rock formation as Richard Dreyfuss’ inspiration in in the movie “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”.

View from far

 


Closer

Closest...Becky took the kids trekking up these rocks despite the "Please Stay on Path" signs. They're under the tree on the left.

We went on a scenic hike around the tower and even got to see mountain climbers scaling it.

King of Devil's Tower!

 

Teepee in field

Stop or else your ears will stay that way

Climber in center in light blue shirt

The kids had another opportunity to earn a Junior Ranger but almost missed out when their parents realized the ranger station closed in 15 minutes while completely on the other side of the tower. Becky and Tyler raced ahead to try to catch the rangers before the visitor center closed. Tyler had the revelation on their impromptu run that he much prefers running downhill rather than uphill. Fortunately they made it back just in time and convinced the rangers to stick around and grant the boys their hard earned badge.

 

Driving away I spotted a snake in the road and inadvertently ran it over. I think it was an accident but my subconscious mind may have made me steer the RV tires right over the evil serpent. I pulled over and ran back to confirm that it was indeed my favorite kind of snake…a dead one!

 

What travel blog would be complete without a picture of road kill?

 

Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

Finally,  after a long arduous trek across South Dakota, we made it to Mount Rushmore.

The picture sums up driving through South Dakota

 

 

We hoped to see the lighting of the monument at night as we heard that is the best time to view it. Unfortunately we were still on central time and the kids were too tired.  Maybe next time…




We visited to monument the following day and went on a nice hike underneath the monument.  The kids earned another Junior Ranger badge. On the hike the kids got to learn about Indian life from a park ranger and even explore inside a teepee.

There were pillars and flags representing all 50 states

Here is California

View from trail below

Which one of us will be the next face on the mountain?



Brady inside a teepee

 

 Later in the hike we encountered mother and baby mountain goats reminding us of Gramps, the original mountain goat (He runs mountain races in New England and earns the distinction of being a "Mountain Goat" for completing the six race series). Needless to say, the real mountain goats looked slightly more nimble on a mountainside than Gramps.

Mama and baby mountain goats



 

 

 

Reptile Gardens, South Dakota

On our way to Mount Rushmore we saw 97 billboards for the Reptile Gardens and decided that might be a nice treat for the kids. It turned out to be a great decision as the kids got to see plenty of their favorite animals, pet a giant Galapagos tortoise and even see a crocodile wrestling show!

 

This guy is underpaid

Baby gator

This tortoise was 130 years old and about 500 lbs...yet didn't seem at all insecure about its weight or its age!

The reptile whisperer

Bald Eagle

 

 

Badlands, South Dakota

We departed Minnesota and headed for the Badlands National Park in South Dakota. 

The Badlands are very interesting rock formations with layers of different colors very similar to the Painted Desert in Arizona.




Boys sliding down rock formation

The boys earned another Junior Ranger badge despite throwing off the delicate balance of the Badlands ecosystem by spilling a smoothie all over a precious rock formation.


Junior Ranger badge

We also got to see our first herd of buffalo and plenty of prairie dogs.


Buffalo Soldiers

 

Prairie dog



Prairie dog 

 

Gucci eyeing a some old bones

 

 

Minnesota

From the second we arrived in Minnesota we were knee-deep in silly kids!

 



Our four kids got along great.  We took a break from the RV and stayed in the Pellegrene's guest room at their new lake house in Annandale.  I was so happy to be with my BFF Jaime, but we were also happy to watch our families play.  It was sooo much fun!

Leaving their dock, ready to cruise!
 

 



Vinnie cracked us up wearing goggles while he rode!

We spent our days on the pontoon, watching the kids tube...

Vinnie and Brady



Liv and Ty yelling "Faster!  Faster!"



...swimming in the pool...


tough life

...fishing, cooking healthy meals, and just hanging out.  Pete even got in a 20-mile run (have I mentioned he's running a marathon when we get back?) 

Jaime and Joe are expecting their 3rd baby within the next few weeks.  We wish them all the best with what's to come!!  We certainly wish that they didn't live so far away...

 

Thanks, Pellegrenes, for the hospitality and memories (and my new mother's necklace)!  We love you!

Wisconsin

After driving through Canada, we made our way to Minnesota with an overnighter in Wisconsin.  This is where we hit our first "road block."  Gucci hurt her paw somehow during a run with Peter and began limping.  By the time we got her to a vet in Madison, WI, it was very swollen and she couldn't walk on it at all.  The vet was unable to determine the cause but we put her on painkillers and antibiotics and now she's back to normal.  It calmed her down quite a bit for a few days, though! 

 

Note the booty.



We decided to stay the night in Wisconsin so that she could rest.  We found a super fun campground complete with a BMX track and raft pond. 

Peter would time the boys around the track and they would try to beat their personal records.



The raft pond was a new experience to the boys and their favorite raft was actually the flat one they could play "king of the raft" on and Brady discovered that he can do flips off the side!  (Our little daredevil...)

 It was all fun and games until poor Bray got attacked  by a horsefly on the top of his head and I had to jump in and save him (even though I was already showered and fully clothed!)  Those darn flies hurt! 



We also took a canoe down a quiet river into a lake.  Brady took a nap and the big boys used their nets to fish for minnows. 

 



The beautiful sunset made up for all of our bug bites!  This was the view from our campsite.





Next stop:  Annandale, MN to visit Jaime and Family!!