Spearfish, SD
Sunday, October 13, 2024
Andi, Tory, Aden, and I started our day camped on the eastern outskirts of Yellowstone National Park. We left early — 6:30am — to get a jumpstart on driving. Our goal today was to put on some miles, as we need to be in Iowa by Tuesday night for an RV service appointment.
Our morning drive was a peaceful one, weaving through the Big Horn Mountains. The sunrise lit up the rocks around us, and we saw several deer out grazing. While Andi and I drove in the front seat, Aden and Tory slept in the beds — one benefit of traveling in a Class C Motorhome.
Traveling through the Big Horn Mountains of northern Wyoming was a slower drive with some steep road grades, but it was worth it for the views.
We stopped for breakfast in the town of Cody, WY around 9:00am. Andi picked a place called Roosters Cafe. It’s funny that it felt more like “home” here. The restaurant was full of families, and lots of people talking about hunting. It’s interesting to compare the similarities and differences of people in each state we travel through — the way people dress, how they talk, political signs in their yards, activities & interests; each state in the USA has its own vibe.
Our food wasn’t so great at Roosters Cafe; Andi said his corned beef hash was so salty he could barely eat it, and the veggies in my omelet were still raw. All that said, it was nice to have breakfast together. This is the first time we’ve eaten breakfast in a restaurant during our entire six-week trip!
From Cody, WY, we continued driving east toward South Dakota’s Black Hills. Andi and I worried about poor air quality or detours traveling near the Elk Fire burning through northeastern Wyoming, but we didn’t encounter either of those things.
We took another driving break in Buffalo, WY, stopping at the Sportman’s Warehouse store and for lunch at Qdoba. Then, back on the road toward Spearfish, SD.
Many private and state park campgrounds begin closing in October, but we’ve found that city campgrounds tend to stay open longer. Andi suggested we stay at the Spearfish City Campground in Spearfish, South Dakota. This was a beautiful campground, nestled beside the Spearfish Creek. Normally, it has the option for full hook-ups, but only electric was available for camping this late in the season.
Therefore, we had to fill up the RV with water at an open spigot before settling into our camping site for the night. It was a gorgeous evening with temperatures in the mid 60’s, so Andi and I decided to take a walk to stretch our legs. A nice paved walking path followed the creek beside the campground.
Only Andi and Aden were hungry, so the boys warmed up leftovers for dinner. Andi, Aden, and I took short showers to rinse off before bedtime. Tory was fine skipping the shower, and cozied herself up in Andi’s side of the bed with her television show & the last few bites of Ben & Jerry’s.
Monday, October 14, 2024
Another drive day—
Andi and I talked last night, and decided it might be best for Tory, Aden, and I to drive a rental car back to Wisconsin while he takes the RV to the Winnebago Factory in Iowa for service repairs. Temperatures are forecasted to dip into the 20’s the next few nights, which means we’ll have to drain all the water out of the RV’s plumbing lines. We could get a hotel for the four of us to stay in Iowa for a few days, but at that point it seems to make just as much sense to rent a car and have the kids and I drive home.
Reserving a rental car during South Dakota’s pheasant opener proved to be quite a challenge, but Andi was finally able to secure one from Enterprise in Mankato, MN. The plan is to drive from South Dakota to Mankato, Minnesota, then the kids and I will drive home to Wisconsin and Andi will drive the RV to Forest City, Iowa.
Before we hit the road today, Andi walked to a coffee shop in Spearfish to work while Tory, Aden, and I stayed in the RV to do school work. The kids did a great job getting their lessons done for our last school day in the RV.
Around Noon, we left Spearfish and drove to Rapid City, SD for lunch. Andi ended up spending over an hour on the phone with Enerprise sorting out the car rental situation while Tory, Aden, and I ate inside Noodles & Company.
Then, we spent the next six hours driving across South Dakota to Magnolia, Minnesota. Andi found another city campground there for us to park for the night. We literally pulled in, parked, and went to bed.
Today wasn’t an especially interesting travel day — just work, school, and lots of driving. Tomorrow morning, we’ll drive to Mankato, MN to pick up a rental car and split up from there.
The end of a trip always brings mixed feelings. I think we’ll all sad to see our fall adventure come to a close and thankful for all the great memories we made, but we’re also excited to be back home in Wisconsin for the last few days of the fall season.
Until next time!
