How Hard Could It Be – 13.1 Miles
For my 50th birthday, I wanted to do something epic – something truly memorable. I decided to run a marathon (26.2 miles). I started training about a year ago. At first it was difficult. As a rule I don’t run unless being chased by something scary. Eventually, running got easier and then a crazy thing happened; it got difficult again. Soreness. Injuries. Burn Out. I spent so much time running and thinking about running, that I was no longer enjoying the journey to my goal. Also, intense training interfered with seeing the country and building memories of great times. We both agreed (Scott joined the training about a quarter of the way through) to work toward the less daunting half-marathon (13.1 miles) instead. The half seemed doable and wouldn’t take over our entire lives.
October 2 was the magic day. We awoke at 3:30am in order to get ready. We arrived at the meeting place at 4:30am where a bus took us to the starting line. It was completely dark, but the atmosphere was expectant. Loud music, trash cans with fires, and excited runners talking about their personal bests and nutrition. Being novices with no war stories, we were just nervous and apprehensive about what was to come.
BANG! The starting gun went off at 6:15, but sunrise wasn’t until 7:08. A herd of runners stampeding in the dark is not fun, so we stuck to the back of the pack. We passed through beautiful Snow Canyon (pictured) and into downtown St. George, Utah. With loud music playing and the crowd cheering, we crossed the finish line hand in hand. It was a gratifying experience and we are so proud of our accomplishment. We both agreed we are never running a marathon of any type again.
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
The Battle of the Little Bighorn was fought along the ridges, steep bluffs, and ravines of the Little Bighorn River, in south-central Montana on June 25-26, 1876. The combatants were warriors of the Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes, battling men of the 7th Regiment of the US Cavalry. The Battle of the Little Bighorn has come to symbolize the clash of two vastly dissimilar cultures: the buffalo/horse culture of the northern plains tribes, and the highly industrial/agricultural based culture of the United States.
We got there just in time to hear the rangers talk about the battle and lives of Lt Col George Armstrong Custer and Sitting Bull.
This was a short stop to explore the battlefield, then off to Glacier National Park.
Speak Softly and Drive a Big RV
Our title borrows from the famous quote by Teddy Roosevelt, “Speak softly, and carry a big stick”. Roosevelt fell in love with the Little Missouri River Valley of North Dakota and visited often to refresh his soul. While we were in North Dakota to visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Scott found some time to play the scenic Bully Pulpit Golf Course and refresh his soul.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
TRNP was really beautiful without the crowds of many of the more popular parks. The park is known for its painted canyons and rocks that appear different depending on the light of day.
Medora Musical
The Medora Musical is a musical revue that’s produced each summer at the open-air Burning Hills Amphitheater in the town of Medora. Though quite folksy for our taste, we still had a good time and enjoyed the views.
Next stop is Montana.
The Devil Made Us Do It
My dad, Scott and I traveled from South Dakota to Sundance, Wyoming to check out the local sites.
Devils Tower
According to the Native American tribes, a group of girls went out to play and were spotted by several giant bears, who began to chase them. In an effort to escape the bears, the girls climbed atop a rock, fell to their knees, and prayed to the Great Spirit to save them. Hearing their prayers, the Great Spirit made the rock rise from the ground towards the heavens so that the bears could not reach the girls. The bears, in an effort to climb the rock, left deep claw marks in the sides, which had become too steep to climb. Those are the marks which appear today on the sides of Devils Tower. When the girls reached the sky, they were turned into the stars of the Pleiades.
Devils Tower is 867 feet from summit to base.
Sundance
Sundance, Wyoming’s population is small about 1,200 people. The town is named after the Sun Dance ceremony practiced by several American Indian tribes. The biggest claim to fame is a one time resident of the local jail, Harry Longabaugh aka The Sundance Kid. Longabaugh did take his sobriquet from the name of the town.
Mt. Moriah Cemetery
Buried beside each other are Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok. The cemetery overlooks the town of Deadwood, South Dakota a short drive from Sundance. My dad, Scott, and I visited a few of the casinos in Deadwood to play a few hands of blackjack.
Here we say good-bye to my dad and continue our trip to North Dakota.
Memories Carved in Stone
We continued our excellent adventure with my dad in South Dakota to see The Crazy Horse Memorial, Bear Country USA, and Mount Rushmore.
Crazy Horse Memorial
The Crazy Horse Memorial is a mountain monument under construction in the Black Hills, in South Dakota. It will depict the Oglala Lakota warrior, Crazy Horse, riding a horse and pointing to his tribal land. The memorial was commissioned by Henry Standing Bear, a Lakota elder, to be sculpted by Korczak Ziolkowski. The monument has been in progress since 1948 and is far from completion. The memorial is controversial, as descendants of Crazy Horse say the destruction of the sacred mountain is a disgrace. There is also speculation that the sculptor’s family is the true beneficiary financially rather than the Lakota people.
The white sculpture is a rendering of what the monument will look like upon completion. The current monument is in the background. There is a long way to go until it is finished.
Bear Country USA
Bear Country USA is a drive through wildlife park. We enjoyed seeing the various types of animals.
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
We traveled on the Needles Highway in Custer State Park to visit Mount Rushmore. We had no idea that our first sighting of it would be through a one car tunnel carved into the rock. It was so cool, we immediately stopped for pictures.
There is enough rock up there to carve more faces. What about mine??
We came back for the evening presentation. There was a movie about the history of the memorial…
then a celebration of current and former military. Military and their families were invited on stage for the lowering of the flag ceremony. My dad is in the red hat that reads, “Once a Marine, Always a Marine.”
Caves and Custer
Encompassing 71,000 acres in the Black Hills, Custer State Park is home to abundant wildlife and adventure. We spent two weeks here hiking and enjoying our surroundings. My dad joined us half way through our stay here to see Mount Rushmore (pictures coming soon).
While you are not supposed to feed the wildlife, many people were feeding the wild burros. They were used to people and I made friends with this one.
Wild herds of Bison can be found along the Wildlife Loop Road.
There are also some spectacular hikes in the park. Little Devils Tower and Black Elk Peak are among some of the top hikes.
Harney Peak Lookout elevation is 7,242 ft and is the highest point east of The Rocky Mountains and west of the Pyrenees Mountain in Europe. The Lookout sits on top of Black Elk Peak.
Frank and Albert Michaud, two local prospectors, discovered what is today Jewel Cave in 1900, when they felt cold air blowing out of a small hole in a canyon. Jewel Cave is the third longest cave in the world.
Established on January 3rd, 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt, Wind Cave National Park was the seventh national park and the first cave to be designated a national park anywhere in the world. The cave is notable for its calcite formations known as boxwork, as well as its frostwork. Approximately 95 percent of the world’s discovered boxwork formations are found in Wind Cave. The cave is recognized as the densest cave system in the world, with the greatest passage volume per cubic mile. Wind Cave is the seventh longest cave in the world with 154.2 miles.
