We are en route home. We separated from Don and Linda en route to Denver Thursday. We have enjoyed their company during this trip and we thank them for putting up with us. It cannot be easy traveling with two old coots like ourselves who are known among family members as “the Bickersons”..
Barbara joined us in Denver and will accompany us to Glendale. After a brief visit with the locals in Glendale, she will conclude her visit to the States with a visit in Prescott, Arizona before flying to Little Rock for her departure to Brazil.
We spent Sunday, August 15, in Mitchell South Dakota. The highlight of our visit there was a visit to the Corn Palace which is a unique tribute to “corn”. They decorate the building each year with remnants of corn i.e., silk, actual ears of corn, shucks etc. We missed Kenny Rogers’ appearance which is scheduled for August 28.
Monday, our travel included a stop at the Lewis and Clark museum overlooking the Missouri, river. We then drove through the Badlands, stopped at Wall for a “tourist” thing and then made our way to our RV Resort outside Rapid City. Monday evening we celebrated Ken’s 79th birthday with dinner at the site and a birthday cake to “herald” the occasion.
Tuesday, we visited Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse statute in progress. The Crazy Horse statute is a spectacular work of sculpture that will be years in the carving. It is fully funded independent of any governmental assistance and apparently, does not receive any contributions from the Indian nation as well. We were pleased to see the progress of the sculpture since our last visit in 2005. After a drive through the countryside where we invited the buffalo, the deer and the wild donkeys to say hello, we accepted our snubbed status and returned to “camp”.
Wednesday, Ken fulfilled another of the many items on his bucket list with a trek to Devil’s Tower in Wyoming. Of course, he also had to walk the approximate mile and 1/3 around the tower but not without frequent rest stops. I waited with my usual patience and lack of interest while he did his thing. We concluded the day with a drive through scenic Spearfish Canyon, Deadwood and back to our RV site. It was a long, full and for Ken, an exciting day of adventure.
Thursday morning, we were up early and out of camp by 830AM en route to Denver where we spent the night.
Fridat, Ken’s sister, Barbara rejoined us for the last leg of our trip through Colorado over Monarch Pass and into Gunnison where we spent Friday and Saturday night.
Saturday, we did a drive about through the canyons and gullys en route to Montrose and a revisit to Ouray, Colorado. After a nice lunch, we viewed an interesting film on Ouray prepared by one of the locals which provided a passionate overview of the psyche of the mountain people who live there. Ouray was a favorite spot of Ken’s parents thus, the siblings enjoyed visiting the area. A favorite reminisce of the siblings is the story that Ken’s father was ready to buy a house there until he double parked to let Ken’s mother out of the car and he was rear ended by a Deputy Police Officer. Ken’s dad was given a ticket for double parking. Ken’s dad felt that he was wrongly cited since he was not double parked, he simply stopped to let someone out of the car. He cancelled purchase of the house and I am not sure whether he ever returned to that locale. Personally, although Ouray is a quaint and interesting town, the mountains tend to “close me in”.
There you have it for another week. We are off for the last leg of the trip which, hopefully, will conclude in Glendale on Wednesday.
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