Jacqueline’s Jaunts

Sunday, September 12, 2021

09/08/21 Wednesday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 8 Beaver Lake Campground

09/08/21 Wednesday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 8

Beaver Lake Campground

Custer, SD

Site I

Woke up to the first full day here and Barry has been up and has my tea ready. Love that man! Beautiful weather outside and breathing the morning mountain air is incredible. Just hearing the wind in the pine trees is very soothing.

Today was a utility day. We had to drive to Rapid City to pick up the RViBrake3 for the jeep. It was a little more than an hour drive. Obviously not on our list of fun things to do but we enjoyed the drive and seeing country we would normally not see.

Highway 16 is the main highway from Custer to Rapid City. It's also the highway that Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse are on and you can see Crazy Horse from the highway. We will be visiting Mt. Rushmore tomorrow.

Rapid City is a large one. As of 2019 the population was 75,258. It's the second largest city next to Sioux Falls. It's like Fresno and sprawls out everywhere. We picked up a few other things while we were at Camping World and headed to Target to get a new coffee pot and a few items. Our coffee pot has been leaking for a few days. Surgical strike shopping.

We had a great lunch at Firehouse Brewing Company in downtown. The area we ate in was the bay where the fire truck was parked, pretty cool. The inside bar and eating area displayed a ton of original firehouse memorabilia. They also have a great gift shop so we picked up a few things.

Back to camp, Adam called from our house to check in, we put our shopping bounty away and Barry built an awesome fire. We sat and discussed the day and enjoyed the fire. Nothing better than ending the day with a fire.

Can't wait for tomorrow.

Saturday, September 11, 2021

09/07/21 Tuesday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 7 Beaver Lake Campground Custer, SD

09/07/21 Tuesday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 7

Beaver Lake Campground

Custer, SD

Site I

Our drive from Evansville, WY to Custer, SD was an easy one, only about a two hour drive.

Things are much greener here and it was so wonderful to see green trees. I loved the mountain formations we started to see, so different.

We made it to our home for the next 7 days, Beaver Lake Campground. We checked in and asked for a few recommendations for dinner. Here's where the mishap begins. We found our site which was to be a pull in with a meadow view. What we view is a big yellow tracker, a white utility truck and a huge black 10' high water tank that have been stored there for who knows how long since the grass was a few feet high around the equipment. This traveler was not happy.

We backed in fine and got the RV hooked up. I noticed one of the women that checked me in a gold cart and decided to ask her about the equipment. She said she would ask the owner and give me a call back in about 30 minutes. Waited for about 45 minutes and called the desk and asked again. This person said they could move us to 2 sites and we checked them out. Barry was not happy so he walked to the office. I stayed behind because he is much better at dealing with these kind of issues than I am. Long story short he ended up talking to the owner and one of the workers. He convinced them to move the equipment and move it they did. Then they actually mowed the lawn. That equipment has been in that spot for a year and I can't believe no one has complained about this. There are no pictures on purpose.

The owner later asked Barry how he was able to get them to move it. She said she has tried numerous times to get the workers to move it. If that was me they would have been jettisoned a long time ago. Anyway, she thanked Barry and wants to hire him.....yea right! Mishap resolved and we now have a view of the meadow and a nice clean site. Happy Wife, Happy Life!

We took off to find the mexican restaurant that was recommended to us and had a great mezcal margarita and food. I posted this on facebook while we were at the restaurant. Quick service and great waiters. Loved the ambiance.

Grilled Mahi Mahi Tacos

(Updated)

By the time we arrived back at the campground it was dark. As we drove in I noticed a white jeep and an RV that looked like Harry and JeanE's (not a typo). As we got closer I saw Harry inside. We stopped, Barry got out and waved his arms in the front window like a crazy man. Harry saw him and laughed. We were invited in for that glass os Sonoma wine we were promised. We ended up staying for an hour and talked non-stop. You know when you meet someone and that connection is made? That's how it was with them and they live close to us at home. We finally left a little after 10PM.

Good night all, tired!

Thursday, September 9, 2021

09/06/21 Monday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 6 Evansville, WY

09/06/21 Monday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 6

River's Edge RV Park

Evansville, WY (next to Casper, WY)

Site #54

This is our second day in Evansville, WY. Last night we walked the park and counted 12 jeeps. This RV park is close to train tracks so we hear the train whistles a few times a day. It is also next to a work yard, and “I” heard tractors beeping all through the night. When I got up Barry asked me if I heard the train whistles at 6AM. Nope, I slept through them. How could that be when the darn tractors beeping woke me up at least 6 times? I do love train whistles so maybe that’s why.

We visited Fort Caspar & Museum this morning and spent a few hours there. The fort is a reconstructed 1865 military post located at a major river crossing on the Oregon, Mormon Pioneer, California, Pony Express, and transcontinental telegraph trail corridor. We walked through the fort and enjoyed all the displays and information plaques.

The museum gives you information on central Wyoming’s regional history, and features exhibits on prehistoric peoples, Plains Indians, ranching, the energy industry, and the City of Casper. Very informative of the area.

On our way out I wanted a photo of this metal sign that was at the entrance of the fort. Barry stopped, I got out and ran to the sign hoping to get my photo before someone came up behind him. Well, that didn’t work. The light changed so he had to move. He ended up going down the street to an industrial park to turn around to pick me up. I was able to get some other photos and as he drove up, he is shaking his head and laughing at me.

The Photo I had to have

From Fort Caspar it was off to Casper’s National Historic Trails Interpretive Center. It sits on top of a hill and looks over Casper. The view was great even though it was a little hazy from smoke. I loved this place. The focus is the migration trials just like at Martin’s Cove. There are so many interactive displays, a great movie, and timeline displays. But my favorite was the covered wagon experience. I posted a video below because trying to explain it is difficult.

We were starving after the Interpretive Center and found Wyoming Ale Works on yelp and headed over there. Food and beer were great. When we returned to our RV we decided to walk to the river and sit on the grass for a bit and just enjoy the river flowing. We talked about how we both are amazed at the rich history Casper has and we enjoyed learning about it.

That's me

Wednesday, September 8, 2021

09/05/21 Sunday Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 5 Evansville, WY

River’s Edge RV Park

Evansville, WY (next to Casper, WY)

Site #54

Before we left Rawlins for Evansville, we meet one of our neighbors and found out they are from Sonoma and heading to Mt. Rushmore. Their names are Harry and Jeannie. Wonderful people. They will be staying in the same RV park as us and we agreed to hook up with them and have a glass of a Sonoma wine. Hopefully this happens.

We finely got off I-80 and headed northwest on state route 220. Our drive from Rawlins to Evansville/Casper was a pleasant drive due to the terrain turning a little greener. Mainly it was the meadows that where green.

The drive to Evansville was only 2-3 hours. We saw a sign for a historical place called Martin’s Cove and I convinced Barry to stop, a worthwhile decision. There is quite a bit of history at this place. This area is part of the California Trail, Oregon Trail, Pony Express.This was also an area that was part of the Mormon trail migrations from Iowa City to Salt Lake City. Five companies of Mormons made this trek at different times but the last two left too late and hit major snowstorms in this area. There were many deaths in Martin’s Cove and the exact number has never been determined. The visitor center is full of history and a great explanation of what happened. This site is part of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and partnered with the Mormon Church.

Legend for map below

Great info if you zoom in

From this area you can see Devil’s Gate. It’s a cut in the mountain that the Sweetwater River passes through. The Mormons passed south of Devil’s Gate to Martin’s Cove. Devil’s Gate is also a part of the Oregon – California Trail and a historic landmark. It’s an impressive mountain.

Devil's Gate

At both sites you can still see deep wagon trail ruts. I found this whole area very fascinating and would love to return and walk the trail from Devil’s Gate to Martin’s Pass. We decided to make lunch here and found a bench under a few trees. It was a great spot to look out over the meadow and the surrounding mountains. Very tranquil.

After lunch we packed up and headed toward Evansville/Casper to River’s Edge RV Park. We drove by a few reservoirs with lots of water. On the way here we noticed about 3 State Prison Signs. The signs state “Do Not Pick Up Hitchhikers.” We found this kind of amusing even though it’s not. All these prisons are literally in the desolate parts of the state.

Alcova Reservoir

We are staying here for two nights which will be nice.

Monday, September 6, 2021

09/04/21 Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 4 SLC, UT to Rawlins, WY

We got up early for Starbuck's run and hit the Apple Store at City Creek Mall. We decided to buy a new iPad. The one we have is old and sloooooow. Since I'm the trip navigator I was getting frustrated with it.

As we drove downtown I noticed huge cranes and new buildings in construction. There is a huge one going next to the Salt Palace Convention Center. We found out it's a new hotel. According to Google, the 26-story hotel is to be a Hyatt Regency, it will have 700 rooms and 60,000 square feet of meeting space and will be built into the existing Salt Palace for “seamless access.”

New Hyatt Regency In front of the Salt Palace

I showed Barry where Temple Square, Plaza Hotel and FamilySearch Library are. We purchased our new iPad, and headed back to the RV Park. Finished a few things and took off. As we were leaving the park I had Barry stop by a fence so I could take the photo below. It just cracked us up.

The drive from SLC to Rawlins, Wyoming was a brutal one for the motorhome. She DOES NOT like hills. Roadwork...Roadwork...again...and again. One stretch was 22 miles long and another 6 miles. We did notice the smoke was clearing and enjoyed seeing blue skies.

As we crossed the border into Wyoming we noticed all the billboards advertising where to purchase fireworks. I was so busy looking at the fireworks bill boards I missed the "Welcome to Wyoming" sign! Evanston, just across the Wyoming border, had a huge warehouse building called Pyro City. It was open to the public to shop for fireworks. As we drove I-80 toward Rawlins, we saw more billboards advertising fireworks. Such an odd thing to see since we have not bought fireworks for 20 years BUT if we could we would have stopped.

I downloaded a find your state license plate app which was a good thing. Even though the scenery opens up and the geography changes this gave Barry something to look for as he drives.

Looking for state license plates

After about 4.5 hours on the road we made it to Rawlins, Wyoming. Western Hills Campground was our home for the night. Hooked up, heated leftovers from last night (SLC) and walked the campground to count jeeps. We counted eight tonight, six where in our row.

This is such a small funky campground. They had a little miniature golf course and the movie Overboard came to mind. As you walk around you see wood and metal cutouts of bears eating honey, moose, deer, Indian figures, long horn cattle and even Bigfoot...makes you wonder.

Sunday, September 5, 2021

09/03/21 Mt. Rushmore Trip Day 3 Winnemucca to Salt Lake City (SLC)

Our drive today should have been about 5 hours, one of our longest. We should have arrived around 3PM but we had two mishaps and didn't arrive until around 7:45PM. Right after we left New Frontier RV Park in Winnemucca and got down the freeway about 3 miles Barry said something felt wrong with towing the jeep. We pulled over on the freeway (not fun) and he went to check the Brake Buddy in the jeep. Everytime a big mac truck went by, the RV shook like crazy. Barry messed with the Brake Buddy for about 30 minutes trying to get it to work. The problem was the jeep was braking on her own so causing drag on the RV. Not something you want while towing a vehicle….imagine that!

He ended up removing the brake buddy and decided to put a call into Uncle Richard and see if he had similar trouble in the past. No answer so Barry left a message. We purchased our RV and jeep from Uncle Richard which has been great because we have been able to consult with him many times. We ended up stopping at a rest stop not too far down the freeway. Barry messed with the brake buddy for about another 30 minutes and we tried all kinds of things but no luck. He ended up calling Brake Buddy’s tech support and after about 30 minutes the result was, wait for it - GET A NEW BRAKE BUDDY. After all, the one we have is 20 years old and the parts are becoming obsolete. OK so much for the first mishap.

We got back on the road and headed for SLC. We hit numerous construction zone areas again like our drive to Winnemucca. Thank goodness these orange cones were not 2 feet into our lane. We had a lot more room but it still stressed Barry out and me too. This road from Winnemucca to SLC is all semi trucks. There are about 10 semis to every car. It’s crazy and these trucks can haul 3 trailers, not like California where only 2 trailers are allowed.

It’s crazy to think all this work is going on to improve the I-80 across the country and we can’t even get I-580 repaved in California. I think I’m going to contact one of our Senators about this. Wish me luck.

The I-80 goes along the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah and you could see cars out there messing around and people standing about. It is totally white. The salt flats go on for miles. I think that was the highlight of this drive. It really is a site to see.

I bet by now you're wondering what happened to the second mishap? Well...we ended up getting lost when we took the off ramp to head to the KOA campground in Salt Lake City. We ended up by the airport. We pulled off the side of a road and remapped our GPS. We needed to go down the road about a half mile so we could turn around and head back the opposite direction. Instead of doing that, Barry decided to do a MAJOR ILLEGAL U TURN! I was totally shocked. If you know my husband this is not like him. I think my jaw dropped to the floor. Anyway it worked and we finally made it to the KOA.

Barry took our bikes off the bike rack and we put them in the motor home. We headed to Wasatch Brewery in the Sugar House area of Salt Lake City. Apparently it’s a new up and coming trendy area. A recommendation by one of the KOA attendants. We were seated and I ordered a pilsner but of course they were out. We ordered food a little later and I asked if the flautas I ordered had iceberg lettuce. If you know me well you know I’m allergic to it. The waiter said he wasn’t sure and I asked him to make sure there was not any on it. I also let him know I was allergic to it. You know what’s coming next right…..my flautas were covered in iceberg lettuce. The waiter was very apologetic and took it away and said he would remove it from our bill. No hesitation at all. That was nice but when he finally brought it back it wasn’t even warm but I was so hungry I ate some of it. We took the rest home.

On the way back we both agreed that we would MAKE the next day a better one. Due to us getting into SLC really late and not eating until after 9PM we didn’t get to walk the camp ground and count jeeps. I do know there were 4 in our street. Kinda missed doing that.

Our next leg is from SLC to Rawlins, Wyoming. Thanks for taking the time to read this.