Sorry to have been blog-less for the first part of our trip, but as you know from yesterday's blog, we ended up condensing many of our plans and that left no time for typing in a hotel room. We are not very good at one-nighters and had planned for 2 or 3-night stays along the way, but we’ve managed well despite the changes. The Corn Palace in Mitchell was quite interesting to say the least, even though we arrived after the birds had had their piece, quite literally. Still lots of cobs left, however - and the effort is amazing. They do this every year, always with a different theme, and we saw some drawings that showed the pre-planning stages and where they would put which ear of corn. Who knew that corn came in such glorious colors including bright green? I’ve seen my share of Indian corn but these colors had far more variety.
Next stop Rapid City with a tour through The Badlands on the way. What a glorious surprise! It’s like an above-ground Grand Canyon, or several of them - colorful layers of rock soaring skyward. Unfortunately these absolutely gorgeous rock formations do not photograph well (the colors appear quite muted). Rapid City was another glorious surprise - the friendliest, nicest people and a lovely downtown area with a beautiful huge park situated along the river. We ate very well the two nights were were there, and couldn’t help but notice the vast array of on-tap beer selections in nearly every restaurant - one had 70 choices! I tried one, a local ale, and it was very good. I guess I’ll have to go back a few times to try the other 69.
While staying in Rapid City we took a long day trip south to Mt. Rushmore and beyond to Custer State Park. Cindy had been to Mt. Rushmore as a kid but I had never seen it, and it is indeed impressive when you stand right there looking up at those four noses. The history of the construction is well presented in an interpretive center, but unfortunately the dining hall where some of the scenes of “North by Northwest” were filmed is long gone.
The rest of the day proved to be the only disappointing part of the trip - way too much driving and switchbacks that turned my stomach, and while the park is pretty it pales in comparison to everything else we’ve seen on this trip. We were there on the day of the famous bison roundup when wranglers on horseback herd the bison to another part of the park. Thank goodness we got there after the big event but we still encountered lots of traffic and the only bison we saw were part of a large herd behind a fence. Who needs to see fenced bison? As you read in the previous blog we saw bison up close, really close, in Yellowstone Park and that was far more interesting. Apparently in Custer State Park the animals have holidays, because they were definitely away while we were there. (As an aside, the best investment I have made was to purchase a lifetime pass for all National Parks for only $10 ten years ago. Great pass to have!)
Back to Billings, the city we meant to stay two nights all along, but two nights in a row. Our second night proved to be really fun and interesting, mostly due to our discovery of Bin 119, a perfect little restaurant and wine bar. We had a quick glass of pre-nap wine when we first arrived and got to know the bartender/ manager named Kari who was delightful and knew a lot about wine. We promised to return for dinner when an equally delightful guy named Christian was in charge. He was charming and funny and competent, and the food was delicious and served with plenty of garlic. We made a mistake by ordering our favorite Côte du Rhône because it was an off-menu special (and well-priced) but didn’t check the alcohol level in time: 14.5%! That is way too high; this wine shouldn’t be more than 13% or 13.5% tops. Ah, as mistakes go I guess I can live with this one, a drinkable mistake - but we did leave a nice portion in the bottle for Christian and he was thrilled. When he first uncorked the wine he wrote the name of the restaurant, the date, and his name on the cork - a very nice touch, and a first for us.
The next morning we ate breakfast at Stella’s, the bakery / cafe next door, and oh my what a breakfast it was! We could choose from list of seven items that were included in our room price, from 2 eggs with bacon to yogurt with fruit, and every choice was huge. I tucked into the eggs and bacon that came with a slab of crispy hash browns, and it was enough to get two mornings off to a grand start. Cindy ordered the pancake with an egg and sausage, and the pancake was as big as a dinner plate and was served with a pint of syrup, yes a whole pint in a pitcher. She drained it. (Right.) We avoided the cinnamon rolls which were truly as big as a small loaf of bread; first time we’ve seen a breakfast treat big enough to require a fork and steak knife! Well-fueled personally and with the gas tank already filled, we headed east into sleet and wintry weather toward Bismarck ND.
Best to all as we point ourselves toward Tampa. We'll give you an update on all of that next week. Cindy and Wm
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