what was my favorite part of our trip? what was my least favorite? what met or didn't meet my expectations? any surprises? hmmmmm.... I really didn't know what to say. It was a great trip. And due to the variety of stuff we saw, it's really hard to compare. But I pulled together a quick set of lists (perhaps not complete) - I LOVE lists!! ;-) However, the items are not listed in any particular order!
things that exceeded my expectations:
1) the Badlands
2) the Sawtooth Mtns
3) certain "scenic roads" - denoted in our atlas with little green dots!
4) the weather - we usually managed to dodge the rain pretty well; yeah, there were a couple days that were kinda cold, a little snowy, and yeah, South Dakota was windy as all get out, but overall GOOD weather
5) the Navajo fry bread at Twin Rocks Cafe in Bluff, Utah - NUMMY
6) Custer State Park, S.D.
7) the Lehman Caves in Great Basin Nat'l Park - very kewl to see and walk thru, very educational - wish our timing would have been right for the 90 minute tour instead of just the 60
8) the teepee in Idaho - very unexpectedly nice
9) wildlife sightings - lots of bison, and several elk herds in Yellowstone, many many antelope in central to western Wyoming, some white-tailed deer, and TWO bighorn sheep herd sightings!!!
things that confirmed my expectations:
1) S.D. east of the Badlands is BORING!! Hot, dry, windy, flat, yuck.
2) Wall Drug is huge - bigger than I remember from many many years ago - very tacky, packed with tourists - they were expecting 21 buses on a Friday!
3) the U.S. has a fabulous park system!
4) 5,000 miles on a motorcycle, mostly in 14 days, is pushing my limits. (Greg did 6,000 in 17 days - thanx, honey, for suggesting I fly to Denver and meet you there!)
biggest disappointments:
1) After driving on a soft gravel road, we were not allowed by park staff to continue driving to see the Medicine Wheel (a Native American circle of boulders that represents many aspects of life to them, and is an important part of their life). We didn't have time to hike the 3 miles round trip, so we didn't get to see it. :-(
2) it was so cold on our beautiful ride in Idaho - I didn't get any pictures, and it wasn't as enjoyable as it could have been
3) we didn't see the Sawtooth Mtns until almost dusk - too late!!
4) it was too cloudy and snowy to see and enjoy the Tetons
5) the corn palace in Mitchell, S.D. - my childhood memories are WAY better than current reality; the palace is in the middle of redecorating (?), and there wasn't much done
6) the "scenic road" in Nevada - yuck, boring
7) we didn't get to spend nearly enough time with friends and relatives:
Tim & Michelle
Krista & Dave
Maria, Dave, Katie & Shannon
8) the part of Minnesota that we drove across was quite boring - of course, that would have nothing to do with the great scenery we had been seeing for days previously!!
Monday, September 19, 2005
someone asked me today...
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well... you have the answer to one question - the next major trip (for me) will be a cruise next year. We'll do little weekend things, but probably not much else. Well... except Greg - he's going skiing in Vail, Colorado in December!
Yes, it is hard to imagine that bison were nearly extinct. However, it's so hard to tell how many there really are, because we only saw them at Yellowstone.
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