I'm in South Dakota!

Getting back to that book about the Dull Knife family, one of them actually travelled through Europe with Buffalo Bill and his wild west show.
He heard an Englishman bet Bill that one of his buffalo wouldn't be able to beat his prize bull head to head in the ring.
Bill took the bet.
The bull lasted about two minutes.
Big fings dem buffalo.

Maybe you mistook them for jackrabbits, Arella.

Um, I don't think I saw a single rabbit, jack or any other kind. This was way back in maybe 1973 or 1974. Hope Chai is having a good time!

That wasn't the parrish bull, was it? There might have been some deeply disappointed heifers . . .

Well HOWDY everyone!

Yes, I'm having a fabulous time.

Izzy, we actually just came back from Deadwood about an hour ago. It's very easy to picture is as it was about 125 years ago. BTW, we had our best restaurant experience in Deadwood...The Frontier Club, Miners Dens. If anyone goes to Deadwood, that's the place for a really good meal. I don't think it is possible to be a vegetarian in SD.

We also went down into the Black Hills Caverns today. They don't start guided tours until after Memorial Day (I think this coming Monday?) but we could buy tickets and go down for a "self guided tour" which meant "Here's a flashlight, no one's gotten permanently lost down there yet." It's lit adequately, but can still a bit scary, being so deep underground, and thinking about how it must have been for the first peoples who explored it. It took over an hour to get to the end, as far as where they let the public go, and to climb back up. We ran across one other couple coming down, as we were ascending, and we all got startled!

Yesterday we went to an active dig site in/near Hot Springs where the fossils of about 175 mammoths have been found (so far) Long ago a sinkhole formed that was filled in with 90 degree water. Grass grew around the waters edge, and mammoths and other animals would fall in, and would not be able to climb back up the slippery sides.

We also went to an original prarie sod house, which was very very interesting. There we saw our first prarie dogs. You see one, then you see 3, then you see about 50 of them. I can see how they would be a real pest, but they are really funny. They chirp like birds in warning to each other, flipping their tails and scooting down their holes.

Mostly I really like the people here. They are friendly and helpful, but don't jump up and greet you with a fake smile. They're genuine, with no pretenses.

The Badlands and Black Hills are incredible, hard to describe. The praries roll on forever. We went through the Sioux reservation, and the grassy hills...I've never seen anything like it. It's like there're hundreds of grass covered spheres of different sizes, all piled up over each other, with the road winding and winding amongst them.

Distance gets meaningless here, it's always farther away than it looks. A few times I'd have no idea how large something was, until you'd see a vehicle or building for comparison. You'd look ahead on the road thinking there's a sharp turn up ahead, but when you get there, it's actually a moderate curve.

We've seen antelope and jackrabbits and 2 bighorn sheep, as well as the buffalo and regular deer, racoons, etc.

I'll check back in a couple of days.

If u chance to play any poker,
don 't sit with your back toward the door of the saloon.





David

( . . . and keep your gun within reach )

Or hang a mirror in front of you showing the entrance. Advice from Wild Bill Hickok from the grave.

http://www.ausbcomp.com/~bbott/subjects/hickock.htm

I didn't know about the lead poisoning either. Huh. Rapid City, which has been our home base for this trip is in Custer County, and where the buffalo ran out of the trees, across the road in front of us, and back into the forest, was in Custer National Park. There are 1300 bison in the park.
Buffalo seem to equally like living in forests or the praries.

We decided to head back home tomorrow morning. It'll be a 20 hour drive, so 2 days.

Today we went to Mt. Rushmore. It was underwhelming. I mean, it's fine and everything, but to me, nothing compared to the natural wonders.

When we were entering the parking for Mt. Rushmore, we got an informational tabloid re the monument, other information. I opened it up and said "Look Gus! I mean, er, Wally" I forgot about Devil's Tower. It's in Wyoming, only 2.5 hours away." Since we spent only about 15 minutes at Mt. Rushmore, we took the rest of the afternoon and went to see Devil's Tower. Big, really big. I had flashbacks of the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and wanted to replicate the tower in mashed potatoes.

BTW, there's only about 500,000 people in the entire state of Wyoming.
We talked about how the filming part of that movie there brought in welcomed tourism, and income for the locals.

Same as for Deadwood. If it hadn't been for names like Hickok, Calamity Jane, etc. millions of dollars would not have passed through this little town with a population of about 1350 (There were more than 5000 during the early days). Main Street which is the main tourist area is full of small casinos, as well as restaurants and attractions. However, on this same street is the local grade school (we happened to be walking by when school let out. Nicest grade school I ever saw.), chamber of commerce and a large Catholic (I was surprised by the Catholic part) Church, among other signs of a financially solvent community.
As we passed by Mt. Moriah Cemetary, where Hickok is buried, I thought about how he would never believe how his name has supported so many people.
It's a small place,a little gulch, It seems that most people live in homes up on the hills surrounding the small downtown.

It's been fun, we came right before the tourist season starts, which is on Memorial Day. We were able to, with a LOT of driving, to see everything we wanted. If we'd gone next month, it would have taken twice as long.

The weather is cool, and windy all the time. I told Shewolf that I think I was a Mongol in a former life, living out on the steppes. The entire environment is good for me. Of course, I'm not sure about the winter experience here.

Most over-hyped attraction in America if you ask me.

Oh wow, one of these days I hope to see Deadwood too - I should, shouldn't I? The scenery must be breathtaking beautiful. I hope you took tons of
pictures to show us, Chai!

Does the salloon where Wild Bill spent his last human minutes remain intact ?

In North by Northwest Cary Grant was in a Mt. Rushmore scene.

I imagine in today's time you are right about that. I was there in the 70's so it was a lot different for me. I was there about the time they were just starting up the Crazy Horse (or whomever it was) whatever you call it.

In the UK comic strip Judge Dredd, set in the distant future, Judge Joe Dredd rides through the Cursed Earth and comes across Mt. Rushmore. There are six heads carved on the mountain. The sixth is the head of the psychotic mutant warlord ruling that part of the Cursed Earth. The fifth is Jimmy Carter.

Similar in nature to the Exxon Valdez. Like the Exxon Valdez, Mother Earth will, in time, erase that scar.

What is the source of his judicial authority ?





David

He is a genetically manufactured clone of the first Judge. The Judges assumed power after the last President of the United States was deemed corrupt, and by extension deemed the whole office to be corrupt. The Judges aren't democratic by any means. It's a good comic strip though.

they were just starting up the Crazy Horse (or whomever it was) whatever you call it.

I went by there in '99 and they were still plodding along on the first character.