Our Camping Adventure - Virginia to Alaska
Friday 7/14/17 we left Salem and drove to Rapid City, South Dakota. Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse monuments are located just outside Rapid City. On the way to Rapid City, we passed the Badlands, Wall Drug (no we did not stop), and many windmill farms. Looking across the landscape you can see for what seems like hundreds of miles. Since there is very little to stop the winds, it was a very windy and at times steep drive. We are in a campground that is built into a very steep incline. Every camper coming in has to be escorted to their site and the escort provides guidance in getting into your site. The views are spectacular, but it is a bit unnerving. Today is the hottest that we have had so far – 101 degrees. We were really expecting to have cooler weather in the mountains. It does not sound like it will cool off too much during the next couple of days.
Saturday 7/15 we took the opportunity to do some sightseeing in Black Hills National Forest just outside Rapid City. It was a wonderful adventure seeing the wild life and navigating the narrow twisting mountain roads. In the Custer State Forest we saw 2 buffalo herds, antelope, prairie dogs, and prong horn. On the Needles highway we had to pass through several extremely narrow tunnels cut into the mountains. In a F250 pickup truck we only had inches to spare between us and the tunnel walls. In the Eye of the Needle tunnel, we had to fold in the truck side view mirrors to keep from scraping the walls. The Needles Highway winds through amazing granite
Bette Donaldson
48 chapters
16 Apr 2020
2017 Alaska adventure - South Dakota
July 14, 2017
|
Rapid City, South Dakota
Friday 7/14/17 we left Salem and drove to Rapid City, South Dakota. Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse monuments are located just outside Rapid City. On the way to Rapid City, we passed the Badlands, Wall Drug (no we did not stop), and many windmill farms. Looking across the landscape you can see for what seems like hundreds of miles. Since there is very little to stop the winds, it was a very windy and at times steep drive. We are in a campground that is built into a very steep incline. Every camper coming in has to be escorted to their site and the escort provides guidance in getting into your site. The views are spectacular, but it is a bit unnerving. Today is the hottest that we have had so far – 101 degrees. We were really expecting to have cooler weather in the mountains. It does not sound like it will cool off too much during the next couple of days.
Saturday 7/15 we took the opportunity to do some sightseeing in Black Hills National Forest just outside Rapid City. It was a wonderful adventure seeing the wild life and navigating the narrow twisting mountain roads. In the Custer State Forest we saw 2 buffalo herds, antelope, prairie dogs, and prong horn. On the Needles highway we had to pass through several extremely narrow tunnels cut into the mountains. In a F250 pickup truck we only had inches to spare between us and the tunnel walls. In the Eye of the Needle tunnel, we had to fold in the truck side view mirrors to keep from scraping the walls. The Needles Highway winds through amazing granite
formations reminiscent of needles, organ pipes, and spires.
We took the opportunity to get a little exercise and hiked around Sylvan Lake. Sylan Lake was formed by damming a nature stream. Arising in the middle of the lake are huge granite formations. What a beautiful lake.
Of course we couldn’t miss seeing Mount Rushmore. We had several fabulous views of Mount Rushmore as we wound through the park.
1.
2017 Alaska adventure - Virginia to Pennsylvania
2.
2017 Alaska adventure - Pennsylvania to Michigan
3.
2017 Alaska Adventure - Michigan
4.
2017 Alaska adventure - Michigan to Wisconsin
5.
2017 Alaska adventure - Wisconsin to South Dakota
6.
2017 Alaska adventure - South Dakota
7.
2017 Alaska adventure - South Dakota to Wyoming
8.
2017 Alaska adventure - Wyoming to Montana
9.
2017 Alaska adventure - Columbia Falls, Montana
10.
2017 Alaska adventure - Glacier Park Montana
11.
2017 Alaska adventure - Glacier Park Montana part 2
12.
2017 Alaska adventure - Glacier Park Montana to British Columbia, Canada
13.
2017 Alaska adventure - Banff National Park, British Columbia, Canada
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2017 Alaska adventure - Banff National Park, British Columbia, Canada
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2017 Alaska adventure - Banff to Grand Cache, Alberta, Canada
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2017 Alaska adventure - Grand Cache to Charlie Lake
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2017 Alaska adventure - Charlie Lake to Toad Lake
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2017 Alaska adventure - Toad Lake to Watson Lake, Yukon
19.
2017 Alaska adventure - Watson Lake, Yukon to Whitehorse Yukon
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2017 Alaska adventure - Whitehorse, Yukon to Tok, Alaska
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2017 Alaska adventure - Tok, Alaska to Valdez
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2017 Alaska adventure - Valdez Day 1
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2017 Alaska adventure - Valdez Day 2
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2017 Alaska adventure - Valdez, Alaska to Seward, Alaska
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2017 Alaska adventure - Seward Day 1
26.
2017 Alaska adventure - Seward Day 2
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2017 Alaska adventure - Seward, Alaska to Homer, Alaska
28.
2017 Alaska adventure - Homer, Alaska Day 1
29.
2017 Alaska adventure - Homer, Alaska Days 2 & 3
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2017 Alaska adventure - Homer, Alaska to Kenai, Alaska
31.
2017 Alaska adventure - Kenai, Alaska to Anchorage, Alaska
32.
2017 Alaska adventure - Anchorage, Alaska to Talkeetna, Alaska
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2017 Alaska adventure - Talkeetna, Alaska to Denali, Alaska
34.
2017 Alaska adventure - Denali, Alaska
35.
2017 Alaska adventure - Denali, Alaska
36.
2017 Alaska adventure - Denali, Alaska to Fairbanks, Alaska
37.
2017 Alaska adventure - Fairbanks, Alaska to Beaver Creek, Yukon
38.
2017 Alaska adventure - Beaver Creek, Yukon to Whitehorse, Yukon
39.
2017 Alaska adventure - Skagway, Alaska
40.
2017 Alaska adventure - Whitehorse, Yukon to Iskut, British Columbia
41.
2017 Alaska adventure - Iskut, British Columbia to Hyder, Alaska
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2017 Alaska adventure -Hyder, Alaska to Fort Fraser, BC
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2017 Alaska adventure -British Columbia to Omak, Washington
44.
2017 Alaska adventure -Omak, Washington to Culver, Oregon
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2017 Alaska adventure - Culver, Oregon to Caldwell, Idaho
46.
2017 Alaska adventure - Caldwell, Idaho to Lava Hot Springs, Idaho
47.
2017 Alaska adventure - Lava Hot Springs, Idaho to Laramie, Wyoming
48.
2017 Alaska adventure - Beat feet back to Virginia
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