Travels With The Shepps - Part 2

Since this was a working holiday for The Big Guy, the kids and I spent a lot of time around the hotel--with an XBox and laptop it wasn't always easy to get them out of the room but the pool and patio with its waterfall were great draws and great places for me to read.


Of course, no visit to the Black Hills would be complete without a visit to Mount Rushmore and we made sure to get there in time to hike, visit the museum, and be awed by the lighting ceremony.



While we were in near Custer, we kept seeing signs in the parks that said "Buffaloes Are Dangerous Do Not Approach." But until the last day we were there, the only buffalo we had seen were the art pieces we had seen all over Custer. Then, on our way out of the area, we finally came across a small herd of the real thing. I was in heaven!



Last stop on the trip (well, except for the required gas station and bathroom breaks) was in Alliance, Nebraska, home of Carhenge. Yes, those are all real cars--the ones in the foreground are arranged to resemble England's Stonehenge. Sadly, I was in "let's just get home now" mode and didn't have much of an appreciation for Carhenge.




And now you are released from having to look at any more vacation pictures--even though The Big Guy thinks there are a lot of other things worth sharing. Luckily for you, he has no idea how to add a post to this blog!

Travels With The Shepps - Part 1

I'll be the first to admit that travel through the central part of Nebraska, along Interstate 80 is dull. It is flat, flat, flat. Hence the reason it was the path that the pioneers chose when they traveled across the territory 160 years ago. So we were no less excited when we first started seeing giant rock formations jutting out of the land in western Nebraska, particularly Chimney Rock.



Since our trip was a working vacation for The Big Guy, the kids and I took advantage of a stop in Scottsbluff to actually go to the top of Scottsbluff where, as you can see, the view is amazing. I think Mini-Me and Miss H might have stayed up there for several hours. It was so quiet and incredible.



Next stop on the tour was Fort Robinson, near Chadron. Fort Robinson was an active military post from 1874 to 1948. It started as an Indian Agency protective post, was the last great gathering place of the Sioux Nation and served as a prisoner of war camp during World War II.



Our final stop before arriving in Custer, South Dakota was an unscheduled one. The Big Guy got pulled over for speeding in a national park. While we were waiting for the very nice officer to discover that my husband was not a wanted felon, we noticed these prairie dogs grooming each other. I wonder how often the officer has seen someone he's pulled over snapping pictures?



The evening saw us heading into Custer State Park and started with a stop at Sylvan Lake. It's not a big lake but is truly beautiful. So beautiful that there was a bride out on some of the rocks having pictures taken.



We followed The Needles highway on through the park. The Big Guy and Mini-me spent a lot of time perched on outcroppings trying to get the perfect shot of the needle rock formations in the park. We couldn't believe how long it took us to work our way back down the highway. We were beginning to think we might just be driving around and around in circles. It was not just a little ironic that when we were finally able to pick up a radio station again, the song that was playing was The Beatles' "Long And Winding Road!"