MINUTEMAN MISSILE - BADLANDS - WALL DRUG

Control Center

Yesterday was a full day with new adventures.  We drove from the campground for an hour along      I-90 and took Exit 116 to the underground Delta-09 launch facility to visit the Minuteman II missile.  This is a self-guided audio tour using your cell phone.  This site is significant to illustrate the history and significance of the Cold War, the arms race and the dedication of USAF personnel.  From the missile site we drove 15 minutes down I-90 to Exit 131 to the underground launch control center.  If you'd like more information about this site, click on this link:  http://www.nps.gov/mimi/index.htm

Unarmed nuclear missile

Looking down into the silo

Hatch to go down into the control room

Exit 131 leads to the Ben Reifel Visitor Center and the Badlands Loop Road. The Badlands National Park was different from all the other National Parks we've visited and we found our jaw dropping more than once at the scenic overlooks.  Our mission was to see the wildlife and we were not disappointed.  We choose to take the unpaved portion of the loop called Sage Creek Rim Road where the herds of bison are known to roam freely.  The buffalo were huge and not at all intimidated by our puny car.  It was exciting!  Did you know?  The park is 244,000 acres and the black-footed ferret, one of the most endangered land mammals in North America, have been reintroduced to this site.

This is the first view you see when entering the park

I think this is a Western Meadowlark

The park offers nice boardwalks to keep us away from the rattlesnakes

"Where the deer and the antelope play" (actually, pronghorn) - remember that song?  Pronghorns are the fastest animal in North America, they can run 60 mph for great distances

The antelope played along the road

The bison, shedding their winter coats, found wooden poles to rub against 

Prairie dog's classic pose

The bison look much larger in real life

These beasts are intimidating when they stare at you

Saw lots of prairie dog babies

At this point, it's getting late and we are both hungry and tired.  But we've heard so much about Wall Drug Store and we were so close, that we had to go.  Famous for free ice water and five cent coffee, it's a very interesting place. They say Wall Drug is like Zsa Zsa Gabor, famous for being famous.  If you want to learn more, click on this link: http://www.walldrug.com/

You'll find just about anything at Wall Drug including this chapel

Watch out for visual overload

Wall of original oil paintings

Singing Cowboys

I wonder what we'd weigh if we ate like this everyday

After filling our bellies, we climbed back into the car for our hour drive home.  What a great day.

Thanks for stopping in.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK - DAY TWO

I never dreamed we'd be hiking in snow in mid-May

Did you know?  From Mexico to Alaska, for 2,700 miles the Rocky Mountain chain is the world's largest mountain barrier.  The highest major highway in North America tops out at 12,183 feet above sea level and the Alpine Visitor Center here at the park is 11,796 feet.   The Park holds 72 named peaks above 12,000 feet and today we hiked an elevation over 9,000 feet.  The trail was snow packed with an elevation change of about 700 feet.  The thin air makes it difficult to breathe and I was huffing and puffing in no time but we managed 2.2 miles.  Just as we were a few minutes from the car it started to sleet and we high tailed it to a lower elevation.

What a view

The snow is just starting to melt at this elevation

The sun came out and we had a quick lunch before taking another trail which promised to be much easier but ended up being more than I bargained for.  We hiked 5.4 miles before getting back to the car.  Ryan said it was a nice stroll and I say it was one of our longest hiking days ever.  It was worth every agonizing step because the views were spectacular and the wildlife surprising.

This Clark's Nutcracker swooped down and stole Ryan's granola bar from his hand

We saw two prairie dogs playing together .. so cute

Sighting this moose was the biggest surprise of the day

Don't these Canadian Geese make a lovely couple?

I was hoping to spot a yellow-bellied marmot - he was sunning himself on a rock

I won't be doing a 7.6 mile hike again for a while but just think how strong our lungs will be when we get back down to a normal elevation.

Thanks for stopping in.

P.S.  A Himalayan Salt Brick is used for baking, sauteing, grilling, chilling, curing and serving on.  It is antimicrobial which means it inhibits the growth of bacteria and helps to preserve food.