Day 33 - Rapid City KOA, South Dakota

Today when leaving the campground the Gremlin was confused as to where it was so Google Maps had to help get us going in the correct direction. 

It was bright & sunny when we left, however we could see the fog in the valleys on the left side of the road. Then we received notice via an electronic road sign that there was fog ahead. Which proved correct. The fog wasn't as dense as the clouds we went through yesterday. 

Around 10 AM we stopped at a rest stop and DH made his famous scrambled egg where he kills the egg for me. This one had baby Bella mushrooms, onion, maple sausages, cheddar & Jack cheese in it. 

Off of Interstate 25, DH saw a whole herd of antelope lying down in the field. He stopped the motorhome and I took photos. Another car stopped also. It was so amazing!

150 miles away from Wall Drug we saw signs advertising free ice water which is how it got its start. 

When we drove into South Dakota today with not even a welcoming sign. So weird. Every other state that we have been in had a welcome sign. 

Most of the terrain was flat with grass. Lots of cattle and horses were seen. What we did notice is the grass was greener in both Wyoming and South Dakota. 

The Gremlin steered us wrong, and of course it steered us down a dead end street. We unhooked the MDX first then DH pulled forward into someone's lane. Fortunately with a little maneuvering DH was able to turn the motorhome around. I mentioned it was odd that there wasn't a KOA sign when we made the turn. Google to the rescue!!! I drove the MDX with MIL, leading the way. The campground had the big welcoming yellow KOA sign out front. Yay! We finished the registration process and MIL and I led the way to the site. DH had told me no matter what, to line the motorhome sewer compartment up with the septic inlet at the campsite. The last two campground sites we were in, we weren't anywhere near the septic inlets. In order to fit the motorhome, tow bar and MDX in the site, didn't allow us to hook up to the septic.

For some crazy reason the jacks weren't leveling the motorhome. It would go through all of the motions and we would still be cattywampus. DH ran it through its paces 3-4 times with the same result. Then he did it manually and decided to give up.

We all got in the MDX and drove to see Mount Rushmore. DH and I had been there twice before (1998 & 2002). I also was there when I was a teen with my Parents & Sister back in the summer of 1972. At that time my sister and I panned for gold, she didn't find any and the proprietor felt sorry for her and gave her 5 flecks of gold when I only found 1 or 2. I also remember that there were kids that were 14 years old driving pickup trucks, when I was 15 and had to wait until I was 17 to get my learners permit in NJ. I remembered a lot more too about that trip too as I brought our family to see the sights too. 

In 1998, we were here during the Sturgis Bike Rally. I remember at the time when I made reservations, the campground said it was the week of the Bike Rally. I thought she was talking about bicycles, not motorcycles. The whole area had some 10,000 motorcycles that people came in from all over the country and Canada to participate and tour the Black Hills. Crazy!

Another memorable time was in 2002 which was the first Independence Day after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in NYC World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington, DC. There was a mile long line, police dogs, mirrors looking under everyone's car, National Guard soldiers with machine guns just to get up to the parking lot. Then in addition there were metal detectors to walk through. Our older daughter set off the metal detector with her necklace. BWe also watched the Independence Day Fireworks in the town of Hill City. 

So this time I was surprised that there was no metal detectors to go through to get in. It was just as impressive as every other time I have been there. It's free but the National Park Service charges $11 to park there. One of the precautions is that one can't drive up anywhere near the monument. 

From there we went to a quickie do it your self car wash place. DH wet the MDX down and then I shampooed the MDX and DH rinsed it off. 

From there DH wanted a Bison Steak so we went to the Dakota Steakhouse in Rapid City. $$$$ I ordered a Beef filet minion with deep fried macaroni & cheese. DH ordered a bison ribeye with blue cheese mashed potatoes. DH and I also received salads. MIL ordered New England Clam chowder which we thought was funny. She also ordered an appetizer of fried walleye fish sticks and blue mashed potatoes. We were all stuffed and left without dessert even though they had Crème Brûlée on the menu. 

My phone was low on power and I didn't have my auto charger with me. So I had it on Airplane mode to conserve battery life. When we got back to the motorhome, DH decided to try leveling the motorhome one more time. I frankly can not figure out how the darn things work with only 3 jacks. It's a stupid design. 



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