FRI., MAY 26 thru MON., MAY 29, 2023
Today was one of the prettiest drives we’ve ever had towing our tiny home! Just gorgeous! We saw rolling hills, miles of farmland, picturesque farm houses, grazing cattle, horses, and the Missouri River. Since there was a stiff breeze of about 20-30 mph, we also had undulating waves of grass. We drove 175 miles on the Lewis & Clark Trail and other roads to arrive at Left Tailrace Campground in Fort Thompson, South Dakota. No Memorial Day traffic on this ride, although the campground is busy with families enjoying themselves. We’re here through Memorial Day weekend.
This park was built by the Corp of Engineers and like most COE parks, it was built around a body of water… in this case the Big Bend Dam and Lake Sharpe which flows into the Missouri River. There was lots of fishing being done this weekend, although not by any of us!
How many RVers does it take to do a bike repair? Apparently 4 of us! My bike had a flat tire… again! Gary had threatened for the past few weeks that I was going to have to change the inner tube… not him. My hero Joe came to the rescue! He and I did it “together” then lubed the chain and got that back on where it needed to be and voila, I have a working bike again! Cheryl photographed the whole thing… took less than an hour. Not bad! And I got to pedal around for awhile! Thank you Joe for coming to my rescue, and thank you to Cheryl for loaning him out! Gary did end up helping out despite his threat to the contrary. lol.
We’ve all enjoyed our stay in Fort Thompson, SD. A relaxing several days. Cheryl & Joe hosted dinner one evening and we hosted another. We played a 3-hour game of Mexican Train and a 2-hour game of Five Crowns. Joe won both! Apparently nice guys do finish first! We’ve had periodic thunderstorms and torrential rain but thankfully mostly at night. And Gary & I even got to watch our grand-nephew Brendon’s high school graduation live-streamed one morning on our television.
On Sunday, May 28 (2023) we headed to Chamberlain SD to the rest area on I-90 to see the 50-foot, stainless steel statue entitled “Dignity of Sky & Earth.” Gary & I saw this once before about 6 years ago. At that time, we just happened to stop at the rest area and there it was. Amazing. It was a gift to the people of South Dakota by a wealthy couple to mark the state’s 150th Anniversary. Cost? $1,00,000. The Native American woman depicted in the statue is to honor the cultures of the Lakota and Dakota people. She’s wearing a dress patterned after a two-hide dress of the 1850s and holding outstretched a star quilt featuring 128 stainless steel blue diamond shapes. The statue is sooooo impressive from any angle. It was installed in 2016. It’s a marvel. In addition, there is an awesome Visitors Center at the same rest area telling the story of Lewis & Clark.
After stopping at the rest area, we visited the Aktá Lakota (meaning to honor the people) Museum and Cultural Center. Very well done. The museum had a display of star quilts which are used in Indian culture to mark significant events such as weddings, the birth of a child or the passing of a loved one. There were also handmade children’s moccasins on display to be worn for special occasions… even the soles were decorated. There was a diorama about Lakóta Buffalo Days with movie props from Dances with Wolves. Another display was of “Turtle Fetishes” from the 1940s. The fetish held a small piece of the baby’s umbilical cord. Little girls often wore these fetishes on their belts. The turtle symbolized longevity. After visiting the museum, we managed to just get back to the truck before the skies opened up with yet another storm.
Next we move on to a KOA campground just outside Badlands National Park.
