Tuesday,
August 25, 2015 Elk Point, SD trip odometer approx. 5,900 miles
Yesterday driving through
north-eastern Wyoming I drove out of the drought zone. The range showed a haze
of green, which looked more normal compared with my memories. At one point I
was admiring a lovely, deep stream running through the rangeland, when I
spotted a herd of Red Angus, in my opinion the handsomest breed of beef cattle,
lounging in a low spot where the stream took a bend. Riding purposefully down
the slope towards them was a working cowboy: Stetson, chaps, lariat, colorful
saddle blanket, the whole Western calendar page picture. For a vignette I
glimpsed driving by at 65 MPH it is remarkably clear in my mind. Every once in
awhile these perfect moments happen, and all we can do is appreciate them.
In South Dakota there is a great
deal more commercial development based on the fact that this is a Western
state. Cowboys, Indians, prospectors, gamblers. Some of the places just looked
like a way to fleece tourists for dough (The famous Wall Drug, which sounds
more like a theme park, and may actually have a prescription counter between
the shooting gallery and the six-foot-tall rabbit). Other places might be more
interesting, such as Laura Ingalls Wilder’s home, an actual prehistoric Indian
village archaeological site that allows visitors, a classic car museum that
claims to have the original General Lee, and a mock-1880’s town that has a
display of props and costumes from the movie “Dances with Wolves.” Goodness
knows the Native American connection is very much alive here. But, except for necessary
stops for gas, food, and to stretch my legs (geocaching), this was my day to
test Bruce’s capabilities. He did well, and tomorrow there will be some city
driving to challenge him.
I found three outstanding geocaches
today, considering that they were all park-and-grabs. The first was a clever
adaptation of a bison tube in an unexpected place. Using my fingers where my
eyes wouldn’t reach paid off with ‘something different.’ A tug moved the object
slowly, as if dragging a magnet against resistance, and… Hey! Cache found! The
second and third were both ammo boxes in rest stops, a type of cache I always
like to see. How do you entertain geokids on a long trip? Caches with lots of
swag. How do you move TBs the most easily? Caches big enough to hold them
placed where people travelling can find them. My personal philosophy is that
every hide should be the largest container that will reasonably fit and stay
hidden.
The proliferation of virtuals and
micros in Wyoming prevented me from dropping two items tagged by Boy Scouts.
These were not strictly trackables (they had Munsee barcodes on the tags but I’m
not equipped to scan them) but were ‘racing’ to Colorado and had been pressed
on me by a couple at the Block Party who discovered I was headed east. Thanks
to whoever hid the ammo can near the first rest area I came to, I was able to
get them as close as I could. This one, I had a hunch I’d need the knee boots,
walking staff, and pack, and I did. I did some serious ‘brush busting’ through
an interlaced copse of pitch pine. I’m still picking twigs out of unlikely
places. But I enjoyed it, as here, where the drought has not hit, the plants
smell as well as look green, and the dirt underfoot feels resilient, alive. Finally
I spotted the cache, and it was naturally on the fringe of a meadow with a
trail I followed back to the entrance of the service area (where no one on foot
would think to go). Past logs show that no one has figured out the easy way,
and some people found ways considerably harder than I did. To prove a point, I
grabbed a Travel Bug that had been there only 3 days, and am moving it along.
I missed one cache that I was trying
for because the undistinguished pull-off it was concealed in flashed by without
me being able to slow down. No signs or anything. I did find the other rest
stop ammo can, which had been muggled previously and now was secured to a tree
by a bright, new heavy chain. I do appreciate the cache owner persevering to
offer a quality cache to travelers.
In between caching, I had a hungry
attack (I’m heartily sick of ‘continental breakfasts’) and stopped at a place
called Marlin’s in Mitchell. This was right across the street from Cabela’s
flagship store, but I figured it would not be much different from the one in
Hamburg, PA I’ve visited so often. At any rate, I had one of the best meals of
the trip at this truck stop restaurant, and even took away a piece of their own
peach pie for an evening snack, now happily disposed of. (Yum!)
Now I’m tucked into a cozy room in a
family-operated motel which is much nicer than many chain places I’ve paid more
for. The time zone change has caught me unprepared, and goodness knows what
time (central daylight savings) I’ll hit the road tomorrow. I selfishly took a
75-mile detour south to add two states to my geocaching statistics, which I
will do tomorrow. Then it’s off to grab a North Dakota cache and on to the
notorious Twine Ball. Tomorrow, if the gods are with me, I will stay at the
Twine Ball Inn.
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