Big Sky Country

Cooney State Reservoir, Montana

Driving out of South Dakota we had to stop by the “Geographic Center of the Nation” in Belle Fourche, SD.  This includes Alaska and Hawaii.  A couple of years ago we were at the “Center of the Contiguous U.S.”. I believe that was in Nebraska.  Anyhow, check that one off the list.  

Driving the backroads of Montana a restaurant that tells it like it is.  

We stopped by Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.  We thought it was just going to be a marker on the road or at most a small visitors center and a plaque.  We had no idea it was such a big attraction.  There were hundreds of people there.  Ironically, the Battle known as Custer’s Land Stand happened on June 25-26th, 1876.  Almost 142 years ago to the day.  Being history buffs we knew it would be interesting, but I had no idea it would also be a very emotional and moving experience.  

The park did a really great job explaining both sides of what led up to the battle;  including what was going on economically and politically in the U.S. at the time, what the Native Americans were experiencing, tribal alignments, timelines, and actual facts about this specific battle.  

This is a diorama of the battle and replicas of what the Calvary and Native Americans wore into battle. (Sorry for the reflection and poor quality, hard to get a good picture behind glass with lots of lights). 

We watched a very informative 30 minute movie about the battle and learned about General Custer, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota tribes.  Sitting Bull clearly understood that they won the battle, but lost the war and the ramifications of this - the end of the Lakota Nation. He understood and fought to keep Native Americans from being forced onto reservations knowing that would end their way of life. It was so incredibly sad.  We spent quite awhile walking the battlefield and visiting the gravestones of the Cavalry and the Native Americans. This park really does a great job honoring all who fought and died here.

The large obelisk is the Cavalry Memorial.

Visiting the Indian Memorial was very moving and quite emotional.  I have to admit that both of us got teary eyed.  The Indian Memorial stands just east of the Calvary Monument and is a circular earthwork carved into the prairie.  Once inside the memorial you can see a view of the Cavalry obelisk through a “spirit gate” window.  Symbolically, the spirit gate welcomes the departed Cavalry soldiers into the memorial circle.  What an incredibly moving gesture. 

For many tribes  a circle is sacred and it remains open for ceremonial events.  The surrounding inside walls display the names of those who fought here as well as the words of some who fought in the battle.  

This.  

We continued on through Big Sky Country finally pulling into Cooney Reservoir tonight.  As we drove down the dirt road to get here, Ned and I both looked at each other and said, “I think we’ve camped here before.”  Checked our blog...yep - September 18, 2009.  The campground is flooded and many sites are blocked off.  Ironically, we are set up in the exact same site we were back in 2009.  We don’t have any cell signal so tonight’s biking adventure will be riding uphill until we find some.  If you got this, you know we were successful.  

The Other End of South Dakota

Rocky Point Recreation Area, SD

I woke up last night about 4ish because the air was completely still and lightening was flashing everywhere.  From my days of living in Chicago, it felt like tornado weather.  I jumped out of the top bunk, ran outside and grabbed all our towels, bathing suits, etc.  When I crawled back on top, I woke up Ned and said, “Weather is coming, time to batten down the hatches.”  No sooner had I said that then the winds came roaring through.  And I mean roaring! We knew the top needed to come down so we both jumped off (I came crashing down, owie...). Off came the sheets and pillows, down came the pop-up. Ned ran outside to roll up the awning.  Then we sat in the van, being blown about, and waited her out. About 5ish we climbed back upstairs and went to sleep being lulled off by the sound of hail hitting our van. We woke at 9 to sunny skies.  Gotta love the Midwest.  

Driving out of town this morning there were signs saying “Hail Repair, Free Estimates.” 

We did lose a couple of things in the storm.  My chair was blown under the table, but Ned’s was nowhere to be found.  I eventually located it in the lake. Ned got the pleasure of retrieving it.  Ned’s floatie?  We think is probably floating down the Missouri River.  It had a good life.  

Traveling thru South Dakota prairies.  (I didn’t enhance this photo.  It looks exactly like this!) We took highway 34 and for 3 hours we counted 20 cars. Definitely beats the interstate.  

Our big destination today was Sturgis, SD - home of the world’s largest motorcycle rally.  We’ve been to the Black Hills on several of our trips, but always headed towards Custer Park. (One of the BEST parks in the country btw).  This time we wanted to see what Sturgis and the motorcycle hype was all about.  You know, me being such a badass Vespa rider and all...The interesting thing about Sturgis is that there is a two or three block downtown and then several streets are just lined with GIGANTIC vacant barn-like bars (some with chain link fence around them).  Basically, half the town is vacant except for the annual one week motorcycle rally.  There’s somewhere between 500,000 to 700,000 riders that descend upon this town. Wowza. 

The highlight of Sturgis was visiting the Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame.  I loved it!!  So many cool motorcycles, dating as far back as 1903. The  museum has a motorcycle owned by Charlie Chaplin (the red one in the top corner) who apparently was a cycle fanatic.  Also, Liz Taylor’s jacket when she would ride with Forbes. But the cycles...OMG so cool.  

This motorcycle was made entirely out of wood! There was also the 1949 Indian Papoose. (Lower corner).  It was developed during WWII by the British Army for use by British paratroopers.  The seat and handlebars could be folded down so that it could be packed into a steel cannister and tossed out of an airplane.  It never caught on in the US.  If you’re into cycles this museum is definitely worth a stop.  

Tonight’s campsite is still prairie camping, but at least we’ve got a bucolic spot near the lake.  Everything has been flooded in this part of the country, which is evident by the overflowing lake.  There’s a sweet little canoe next to our campsite.  It looks so inviting...Tonight’s activities: bike, swim - you know the drill.   

South Dakota - in all its glory

Farm Island Recreation Area, SD

On the Minnesota and South Dakota border is Pipeline National Monument.  This park honors the Plains Indian life, the red stone and the pipes that the Indians have made over the last 2000 years.  The Visitors Center has a carving demonstration area, intricately carved pipes and other items created by the Plains Indians.  There’s also a nature trail that takes you to a demonstration quarry, rapids and thru the open prairie.  

This apron is made up of 1000’s of tiny beads.  

Beeswax is rubbed over the finished pipestone product to give it the shiny appearance.  

The carvers prized this durable yet relatively soft stone that ranged in color from mottled pink to brick red. This location came to be the preferred source of pipestone among Plains tribes. 

Today pipe carvings are appreciated as works of art as well as for ceremonial use. 

We had a long 4 hour drive across the prairies of South Dakota.  Occasionally, the drive was broken up by watching corn and soy beans grow.  I was really looking forward to getting to Pierre (pronounced Perre) and see the bustling sights of the State Capital.  Only problem, there are no bustling sights.  We toured the Capitol building, which was gorgeous with all the marble laid by Italian craftsmen.  Highway 34 runs through the “city” and is mainly lined with fast food restaurants. The downtown shops and mom & pop restaurants run perpendicular to Highway 34 and are maybe a block or two long.  That seemed pretty much it.  

Pierre has a quest to place life size bronze statutes of every former Governor of South Dakota around the city.  We spotted a couple of them, but didn’t seek them out.  Ned posed with one of them, but almost burned his hand in the blazing hot afternoon sun. Time for a bike ride.  

LaFramboise Island was listed as one of the top things to do in Pierre.  It’s a nature island situated in the Missouri River with nothing but bike paths on it. 

Sounds like our kind of place!  It was the worst bike ride of the trip.  There were very few trees covering the path and no historical markings of any kind. We either rode in mowed down prairie grass or walked our bikes through sand pits with the sun beating down on us.  We lasted 5 miles and called it quits. 

About 4 miles east of Pierre is a recreation area called Farm Island.  Rather than push on past Pierre, we decided to stay here mainly because it had swimming next to the campsites.  Farm Island is actually located in the Missouri River.  The area between the Island and the mainland land is Hipple Lake.  That’s where we are camped.  We spent the next several hours swimming.  It was delightful and definitely picked up our spirits.  

Much to our surprise, we discovered that Farm Island Recreation Area has real bike paths, for miles(!) and all through the adjoining island.  We took an early evening ride and it was great. We can’t figure out why all the “Things to Do in Pierre” lists mention LaFramboise Island and not Farm Island.  The CCC was stationed here during the early 1930’s and built the causeway linking the mainland to the island and several other structures.  Unfortunately, most of them are no longer standing.  We think most likely flooding from the Missouri River over time caused them to crumble.  The biking paths on this island were really fun and the white stuff flying off the cotton trees is surreal.  

Back on the mainland we rode through gorgeous prairie with lots of wildflowers.  There is also an archery range here.  (Made us think of you Molly learning archery while horseback riding!).  

We’re really enjoying the cool breeze this evening and less humidity.  So nice that our towels actually dried out today! Couldn’t resist putting in this picture of Winnie with the moon in the background and the sunset reflecting off the door. She’s been such a trooper this trip!  

Minnesota - Saints and Sinners

Lake Shetak State Park, MN

It always feels like a milestone on our trips when we cross over the Mississippi River, whether going or coming.  And it never gets old.  Today the Mighty Miss was a foot above flood stage.  (Ned tells me I’m the sweetest girl West of the Mississippi. In the East, not so much).  

We stopped in Wabasha to check out a chocolate shop.  It’s not bean to bar, even though the shop had a mural and display about how cacao is grown. The owner, not knowing we were chocolate makers, stated many dubious facts regarding cacao and chocolate. Ned subtly tried to educate him on a few things, such as the correct pronunciation of the criollo bean and how chocolate is actually made. After learning we were chocolate makers the owner didn’t back down, but continued his enthusiastic schpiel of misinformation.  Oh well, why let facts get in the way?  We still bought some chocolate, market research and all. We’ve coined a new term, “fake chocolate.”  

Next stop, Lark Toys, just down the road in Kellogg.  What a fun shop!  They have every toy imaginable, a great collection of toys from years past and a one of a kind handcarved carousel. We were impressed with all toys they made available for the kids to try out.  It was actually more fun watching the kids play than looking at the toys. Okay, Ned and I played around a bit too. 

And now, for the highlight of the day!  We stopped by Rochester to visit my college friend, Sister Marisa.  She just moved back to Rochester to work at Assisi Heights, which is the Motherhouse for the Sisters of Saint Francis.  Marisa and I went to Holy Names College. Our big claim to fame was doing a skit for the dorm from the movie White Christmas (“Sisters.”)  Hard to believe no one picked up our act.

We were honored  to get a private tour from Marisa of the Motherhouse. It was amazing! The building is 400,000 square feet and has an inner and outer courtyard.  It sits majestically on a hill on 100 acres.  We were impressed to see a solar farm, honey beehives (yes, we had to get some of that honey!), a beautiful vegetable garden and wildlife. The inside is incredible. The first long hallway we went down displayed the history of the Order, honoring various Sisters and their service to society.  The chapel took my breath away and the parlor rooms were from a bygone era.  Marisa has taken on the responsibility of being the Archivist for the Order.  No small undertaking!  We also got to view the archive intersanctum.  The Sisters of Saint Francis were instrumental in the development of the Mayo Clinic. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed, (okay, I did sneak a few, sorry Marisa!) but here’s a link that shows an overhead view of the property.  

Overhead view of Assisi Heights

The property was built about 60 years ago and is modeled after the original monastery in Assisi, Italy.  Ned and I hope to visit there this fall. 

Marisa, thank you so much for the tour of Assisi Heights, downtown Rochester and the Mayo Clinic.  I’m also glad we did this in June and not January.  Good luck Marisa with adjusting back to Minnesota winters after so many years in California.  (Another tidbit:  The George E. McDonald Courthouse in Alameda is named after Marisa’s dad, Judge McDonald).  

Traveling through the prairie, we thought about stopping and seeing a sod house that was advertised along the side of the road.  Turns out we pulled into someone’s yard.  They wanted us come knock on the kitchen door and pay admission. It was too close to dinner time and it felt too weird so continued to drive on. Next stop Laura Ingalls childhood home in Walnut Grove.  We got there within 5 minutes of it closing.  We opted out of paying the admission price and just took pictures of us goofing around in the parking lot.  (There are a LOT of Laura Ingalls homes and museums.  We’ve visited one in Missouri and I think there’s one in South Dakota too). 

We pulled into Lake Shetak Campground.  Ned said it looked familiar.  I checked our notes and blog.  Yep, turns out we were run out of here by the Park Ranger almost exactly 8 years ago - short by one day! The story goes we had wanted to take a drive thru the campground and pick out a site before paying. Well apparently that violated all kinds of Minnesota State Park rules.  The ranger came tearing after us in a pick-up truck and gave us a major chewing out.  We said, “fughetaboutit” we’re outta here and left the campground.  The ranger followed us for several miles in hot pursuit.  We drove across the state line.  

Biking Wisconsin

Lake Wissota, Chippewa Falls, WI

We pulled into Green Bay, WI mid morning heading for the Fox River bike trail. At first glance, Green Bay was unimpressive.  Ned stated, “She’s a sturdy girl with not much personality.”  Yep, nailed it. We started the bike ride from downtown.  It was mostly industrial, with piles of coal and big smoke stacks across the river. 

As we continued down the Fox River things became much more interesting.  I loved the history of this area. We went by Shantytown, the site of the first American Settlement in Wisconsin, Vince Lombardi’s house and lots of swanky homes.  The river began to be a little more picturesque. 

We spent some time at the lock and the rapids (Rapides des Peres). So fun to watch the white pelicans dive for fish, boats go thru the locks and the roaring rapids. The lock keepers house and gardens around it were really charming.  The Fox River was the main travel route for trappers beginning in the 1600’s as it provided the best access to the Mississippi River. 

The bike path continued on for several more miles, but we turned around when it became more of just riding thru open prairie.  Fun 15 mile bike ride, now time to drive across Wisconsin.  

We pulled into Lake Wissota campground late afternoon.  It was in the mid-80’s. We were going to head out for another 15 mile bike ride on the Old Abe trail, but decided instead to go for a swim.  We hung out in the lake until 7:30.  Beautiful mid-west evening. I think some stormy weather is forecast for the next couple of days so we thoroughly enjoyed the swim and biking around the park.  We were also pleasantly surprised by the nicely wooded campsites. Thanks Wisconsin, you’ve treated us well.  

Bike rides, Boat Museum and Beaches

Peninsula State Park, Fish Creek, WI

Gary & Dru headed back to Illinois today. We’re going to miss them! We had such a great time together. 

We spent the morning exploring this vast park on bikes.  It’s one of the best bike rides we’ve ever done.  We did 15 miles and went thru woods and meadows, biked along the shoreline and eventually rode into town. 

There are lots of dedicated trails just for bikes (in the summer) and cross-country skis (in the winter).  Here’s a trail marker we haven’t seen too much biking thru the South.  The Sunset bike trail was really fun cause you never knew what was around the next bend.  Sometimes a view of Green Bay, the town of Fish Creek and even a lighthouse.  

This afternoon we decided to do some further exploring on the island.  We toured Death’s Door Maritime Museum. There is a small straight connecting Green Bay and Lake Michigan that runs between Door Peninsula and Washington Island.  That’s the strait we crossed on the ferry yesterday. It’s named Death’s Door.  Although some people claim its due to all the shipwrecks there, it was actually named by the French (Porte des Morts) to discourage the British from settling here and trading. Door County gets its name from Death’s Door Straits.  We really enjoyed the museum.  We had the place to ourselves and wasted no time goofing around. Kevin is that you? 

Interesting things in the museum: an ice sled, a 600 year old dug out canoe, a 1909 Evinrude motor that became the basis for their first line of production motors and watching a video about the ferries cutting through the ice. There was also a 1930’s fishing boat that we crawled around in and explored. 

Always time to stop for some smoked whitefish, a hard cider tasting and a picnic.  

The last couple of days we’ve been mainly on the Green Bay side of the island.  We thought it would be fun to check out the Lake Michigan side.  We took a break on Rowley’s Beach and watched some brave souls wade. It would have to be a lot hotter than the mid 70’s for me to get in this water, that’s for sure.  

Exploring Washington Island, Door County WI

Hanging with my gnomies.  

We spent the day on Washington Island.  It’s a small, 35 square mile island, at the very tip of Door County Peninsula.  There are 710 residents that live here year round. How they do it, I don’t know.  There’s no stoplights, one grocery store and can only be accessed by ferry. They can also have very long winters. 

I asked one of the residents if they were able to get any Amazon deliveries.  Yep, the truck delivers packages to the ferry. Once it arrives the resident gets a personal phone call and has to pick it up at the ferry terminal.  

The great thing about being on an island is that you really can’t get lost.  I think we explored every mile of roadway available.  My favorite place we visited was Stavekirke.  It’s a place of spiritual meditation and worship. The building is both a replica (patterned after Borgund, Norway church in 1150 A.D.) and a tribute to Washington Island’s large Scandinavian heritage. The carvings and adornments blend both the pagan and Christian symbols.  

We spent a lot of time at the farm museum.  There were lots of barns, homesteads, farming machinery, blacksmith shop and livestock.  One of the barns had a 12 minute video of Hans talking about his grandmother from Iceland arriving in the late 1800’s.  I’m sure it was interesting, but we couldn’t understand a thing he said.  Ned, however, stuck it thru.  

Great place to have a picnic too!  The weather was amazing. Hard to believe it’s pouring in Chicago with flash flood warnings.  It was a close game...we both sucked. 

We climbed to the top of Lookout Tower in Mountain Park.  There were 169 stairs.  It was an amazing view you could see as far as Michigan. 

P.S.  I don’t really like my brother this much, I was just exhausted from climbing all those stairs.  

Of course, there’s always time to goof off too! What’s this?  A telephone booth with a princess phone??  Gary encouraging Ned to upgrade to a cell. 

Washington Island is a beautiful place.  

Tonight Gary and Dru introduced us to a fish boil.  It’s a great local experience.  So what is a fish boil? It’s a Scandinavian tradition that’s been occurring on this Peninsula since the 1860’s.  A big pot with locally caught whitefish is boiled on an open fire in a outdoor community style kitchen, usually in a large metal kettle. Tonight, Gil was our boiler master. Salt is added to the boiling water, next come the potatoes. Once the potatoes are cooked then the whitefish is added.  Once the fish is just about ready the boil master says, “The boilover is about to start”.  He throws kerosene onto the fire and it causes the oils in the pot to rise and overflow. Our dinner was so delicious.  For dessert we were served cherry pie.  Did you know Door County is the 4th largest producer of cherries in North America?  Here’s a video of the boilover.  Fish Boil.