Tuesday, August 26, 2025 Badlands: We are Bluffing

 

Tuesday, August 26, 2025 Badlands: We are Bluffing

I have trained my humans.  Most times, they now let me walk from the little house that moves to the big house that moves all by myself.  I get to sniff things, so I know if I am gonna like it here.  Sometimes, they carry me.  I whine when they do that.

Woke up to a beautiful sunrise over the plains.  It is cool, but not cold.  No extra blanket was needed.  We took our walk around the park.  Really, not much to see here, but we still managed to get some steps in.

We got on I90 west, heading towards Rapid City, via the Badlands.  There are lots of billboards, some of them quite funny.  Most are for wineries or breweries, but not all.  Here are a few quips:

-Husband Babysitting Services

-We are like a cult with better cool-aid.

-Wine:  better than therapy

-Mexican food so good even Donald Trump wouldn’t build a wall around it.

Quite entertaining!  We get off at exit 131, and see a Minuteman Missile museum.  Off we go.  Here, the history of atomic bombs, and the accumulation of missiles is on full display.  There have been a whole lot of missile silos throughout the Midwest.  A defunct silo is across the street.   

But, back to our itinerary… let’s go through the Badlands.  The Badlands is a national park.  For miles you have the plains, then you have a bunch of sand colored rock formations jutting up from the floor.  The formations are very soft – you can easily dig on them with your bare hands.  At the visitor center, they have a fossil room, where paleontologists are cleaning prehistoric fossils.  This place is loaded with them.  To be honest, it kind of reminds me of Grimes Canyon by our house…  Shh… don’t tell anybody I said that!

We tour through the park, stopping at viewpoints.  There are hiking trails… kind of…  You can walk atop the crest of the formations if you have small feet, good balance, and no fear of heights.  You could see where other walk, but the trails are soft, with loose pebbles.  Your footing could easily be lost.  Then when you get to the end, you have to do a pirouette, maintaining your balance.  Well, I am NO Simone Biles…  The crests I climbed were narrow, but big enough for both of my big feet at all times!  

We stopped at a prairie dog town.  They tear up the landscape, but they are so cute.  They have a very complex social structure.  I brought them blueberries… they told me to f* off!  I guess they are camera shy.  We have had others eating of our hands, but these guys – NO!  Through binoculars, we saw antelope and a coyote.  As we drove on, we saw a deer.  As we exited the park, roaming buffalo.  This was their original home before we killed them off, so it is nice to see them enjoying their neighborhood. 

Right outside the park, there is an area the National Park Service has dubbed dispersed camping. Spouse saw this on YouTube and really wanted to stay here.  We found a spot – terribly unlevel.  We used three blocks to level it and we are still a wee bit off.  No biggie… it is only for one night.  No electricity, water or sewer.  The day is comfortably warm, but there is a breeze with a coolness to it.  With our windows open, it is quite comfortable.  It is first come, first serve, and it is free… right up Spouse’s alley!  And we are perched on top of an amazing bluff overlooking the Badland rock formations. We have a beautiful view of the plains behind us and to the side. This is really quite nice.

We have had some incredible night skies, but this plays tops them all, by far!  Oh my!!!!