June 4, 2022
Today is Keystone day. We have driven through Keystone and it looks like a quaint little town,. We decided to go back and spend some time walking around and visiting the local sites. Again our VIP card is allowing us to visit two museums today for free. Doesn't get much better. Our first stop is the Borglum Museum. It is dedicated to the man and his art. He is the designer and sculptor of Mount Rushmore. One of the most interesting facts I found was that Borglum had to convince Congress the Teddy Roosevelt should be on the mountain. Obviously, he did. Can you name the four presidents on Mount Rushmore?
We pulled into the museum and on the edge of the parking area is the Dahl’s Chainsaw Art. Absolutely gorgeous art with some prices that I can’t afford. We strolled around and admired the art before going into the museum.
We entered the museum and it is an audio self-guided tour. We were each given a remote control number pad with a headset attached. Each area has a number and when you get there you press the number on your pad and listen to the description of what you are viewing. Very cool. I only took one picture. It is an actual size granite eye. The detail shows a piece of stone projecting from the eye but that is what gives the eye a shadow or depth. Borglum figured this out. Very cool.
After the museum we wandered through the gift shop and then decided it was time for lunch. One young lady from the gift shop suggested Boss Burger’s and Cheesesteaks. Sounded great to us and we could easily walk there. Nancy had the Pineapple Express Burger. In addition to the burger it came with Provolone cheese (her choice), grilled pineapple, Teriyaki, ham and lettuce, tomato, and onion. The side is tater tots. I had the cheesesteak with the works (sautéed onions, green peppers) and tater tots as my side. Very good food.
After lunch we headed to the National Presidential Wax Museum. Again this was a self-guided audio tour,. Except this time you did not have any headset. You held the device up to your ear to listen about the facts of the President you were viewing. Each President was dressed as they would have been. Very interesting museum. Even some of the First Ladies were displayed. Again, we didn’t take any pictures except at the beginning of the tour. The very first exhibit is a mock up of the Press Room. It has quite the history. You can stand up and give your speech and it is even “televised” on a screen. At the end of this tour we headed home. It was quite the day.
June 3, 2022
No trips are planned for today. Actually we finished up the fire pit area and stacked some firewood. Nancy did a great job of digging out and leveling the area around the fire pit. I hopped on the Kubota BX 235 with a bucket and brought in 3 buckets of gravel. Then I went to the free firewood stack and picked up 3 buckets of firewood. I dumped it and Nancy stacked it. We have a nice little area for entertaining.
May 28, 2022
Today was a work around the house day. I emptied our tanks and had to replace one section of our sewer hose. I first opened the valve and then I noticed a pin hole leak. I immediately shut it down and let everything drain out of the hose. I replaced the bad section and proceeded with my task. The only other thing we did today was to move our fire pit. It was not in a very good position as people were sitting at angles. So we found an area a little more level but not a great distance away. Nancy even tried to dig a little around the pit to make things even more level. Now we just need to get some firewood and let the campfires begin. Actually, there is a very large pile of firewood that they cannot sell. They were going to just add it to their burn pile. The workampers said if you’re just going to burn it, can we burn it? So we have permission for free firewood.
May 27, 2022
Our day started with lunch with Belinda and Kathy at the Alpine Inn. The lunch menu is fabulous. The food was excellent. The Alpine Inn is one of our favorite places to eat. From there we went to the South Dakota Railroad Museum. It was very small but very cool stuff inside. The cool thing is that there was a caboose inside and you could go aboard and watch a movie about people who worked on the railroad and what the caboose meant.
We left the museum and we had reservations for the 1880 Train ride. It is a 10 mile ride through the Black Hills Forest with some interesting sites along the way. You ride in an old passenger car. Pretty interesting. The locomotive is a diesel/steam engine. I think the diesel fumes got to Nancy. One of the interesting facts on the trip is we passed the old miners camp and mine entrance. Tin was mined in the area. The railroad played an important part of that business. We also passed the back side of Mount Rushmore but could not see the front of it. There were still some telegraph poles standing. A piece of history. Of course there is always wildlife. Shortly after we left Hill City station there was a platform that the town erected to relocate the osprey nest. Apparently there are eggs in there. Of course we spotted some deer. Another point of interest is being able to see Black Elk Peak. The highest point in the Midwest at 7,244 feet. Parts of the ride take you within a foot or so of the rocks or trees.
The train ride goes to Keystone and back. We got back to Hill City about 4:45PM and we were in the mood for some ice cream. We searched in Hill City but came up short. So we went back to Custer to the Purple Pie Place. We found the prices were high and the ice cream was not that great. It definitely was not home made as we had thought. Oh well, now we know. Thus ended another off day.
May 26, 2022
Okay, today is a work day. Nancy wanted a TV mount that you could bring the TV down to an acceptable eye level. Most RV TVs are mounted high. So today we are taking the old mount down and then install the new one. It took almost all day but it is up and functioning.
Tonight we are heading to Belinda and Kathy’s for a cookout. Great food and great company. A campfire and adult beverages. As we were sitting and talking we had a few visitors. It is amazing how domesticated these deer seem. Bree was sitting in her bed but not barking. They came within 30 feet of us. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day so we had to get some rest. Got home around 10:00PM.
May 25, 2022
What a plan we have for today! The main goal is to go to the Badlands National Park. It’s about a 2 hour drive from here so we decided to hit a few places on the way. The first stop was the South Dakota Air and Space Museum. It is right outside of Ellsworth Air Force Base. It has 20 to 30 various aircraft outside. There are a few more inside but the indoor portion of the museum does not open until 5/27/22. We are a couple of days early. Will have to return. The weather was beautiful. Sunny, breezy, and mild temperatures. Just right to get sunburned if you didn’t bring a hat or sunscreen. Really need to put those items in the truck. Some very awesome aircraft. At each plane they had facts about the aircraft and/or about how it was used or who flew it. I learned a lot more history by reading these. One of the most interesting planes there was the C-54D Spymaster. It was a bomber but during the Berlin Airlift, it actually dropped candy to the children of West Berlin. Another one I thought was very interesting was the F-101 Voodoo. The actual plane on site was flown by Indiana’s Gus Grissom, one of the original Mercury astronauts. All astronauts had to keep their flying skills. This is on our list to go back. We also saw a jack rabbit at this exhibit.
After we walked around for a couple of hours we headed a little further east. It worked out that the Minuteman National Historic Site is the same exit as the eastern entrance to the Badlands National Park. First stop, Minuteman. Nancy did not want to go in but I did for about a half hour. It is a very small but interesting site. They had some great items on display as well as a lot of video. The thing is I grew up during this “Cold War” Era. There are two other sites associated with this one, Delta 01 and Delta 09. I want to go to each of these. Delta 01 is a guided tour into an actual missile silo to see Launch Control Facility. On the list.
Next stop is the Badlands! It is quite the contrast. You first pull into the park and you see flat grassland. Then all of a sudden you see beautiful rock formations in multiple shapes and sizes. The views are beautiful. They have several trails available to hike. Nancy actually hiked about halfway on the Door Trail. You can see the big smile on her face on her selfie. A lot of the trails start with a boardwalk but then you go off road. There are several lookout points along the Badlands Loop. We did not stop at all of them but a lot of them. It was interesting to see the warning sign at the beginning of each trail we stopped. We did get to see some wildlife, all four-legged. There is another leg through The Badlands, Sage Creek Road, which will be the next time also. Wonderful drive.
When we left the park we opted to go to Wall, SD. The big attraction there is Wall Drug. It is an interesting place but we were in the mood for ice cream and the ice cream section just closed. Bad timing. There is a Harley dealer there, which will be on my radar for the next trip. We spent all day on the road, hiking, etc. and it was around 7:30PM by the time we got back to Custer. We opted to dine out at the Mount Rushmore Brewing Company. Nancy had prime rib sliders and I had chicken tenders. Both were very good! And of course, I had to try their beers. I had 3 that I would get again. A couple that were so-so and a couple that I did not care for. A good ending to a great day!
May 20, 2022
Not much going on today. One of the perks of the VIP Card is half price for the Fort Hays Chuckwagon Supper and Show. We made reservations and we went with our friends Belinda and Cathy. The site is actually part of the movie set from Dances With Wolves. There have been several movies shot in South Dakota and at least 3 in this area.
Fortunately it is an indoor event as we had, you guessed it, snow shower, winds, cold temperatures. The bad news is that the venue was not heated. The good news is the venue had a couple of large propane heaters running. You ate at picnic tables which were arranged in front of the stage. This part was attached to a large open area. Once you are seated at your assigned table, you wait for the dinner bell to ring. Then you go through a chow line. The meal is served on actual tin plates. You are given instructions before hand on what you will receive where in the line. Kind of interesting to me.
The first thing is you pick up your plate. Next you receive your baked potato. It is wrapped in aluminum foil and is smashed flat on your plate so it won’t roll off. Next you receive your beans. Then you have a choice of either a BBQ chicken or brisket. Nancy and I both chose brisket. Next you got your applesauce (western style). This is the only cold item so you have somewhere to hold onto your plate as everything else is hot. When you get your applesauce, they place a piece of waxed paper on top of your plate and then you get your biscuit and your dessert, spice cake. This is almost the end of the line. The last item in this line, is your lemonade served in a tin cup. If you would rather, you had other choices; coffee, decaf coffee, or tea. This was the first time in two years they have had this show. They really have their stuff together.
The food was fabulous. After we ate, we enjoyed the show. It was a five man group. The played, sang, and told some Dad jokes. A couple of the jokes were really good. The music was old country, new country, 70s rock, 90s rock, and patriotic. They had a lot of audience participation too. Was a very enjoyable show. The last song was a mash up of God Bless the USA, America the Beautiful and one other song I don’t remember. Just before the song they took the time to thank the military personnel, LEOs, firefighters and all first responders. They had us raise our hands if we were one of the above mentioned. They had a large American flag in the background. A really good show. Great evening.
May 19, 2022
Our first of three days off. We’re heading to the Big City today. Rapid City that is. It’s about an hour away but it is the closest civilization. Nancy wants to get her haircut and do a couple other errands. We also want to check out Safeway grocery store and Dakota Butcher.
I decided to leave early and grab breakfast on the road. We have been hearing raves about the Baker’s Bakery and their fine pastries. We stopped in Custer at the bakery, just a few minutes past nine. Yes, for us that is early. The selection was not great. We had been told that you need to get there before 9. Didn’t quite make it. I had a yeast sugar donut and a cinnamon glazed twist. Nancy had a custard filled chocolate iced Bismarck. WOW! Will need to go back. The sign above the door entrance indicated that the building was a historic site. Cool.
Made it to Rapid City and ran a few errands. Belinda and Cathy were also in Rapid City so we met them for lunch at the Firehouse Brewery. I’ve had my eye on this place since seeing the fire equipment along Interstate 90 advertising for them. This is the oldest brewery in South Dakota. The cool thing is they are housed in the old Rapid City fire house. The station was built in 1915. The decor is all firematic. So is the menu.
Nancy did not like her food at all. I really had high hopes for this place. She had crabmeat stuffed mushroom caps. Didn’t even eat all of them. I had the Rueben with a side of chili. My food was very good. However, Belinda and I each ordered a flight to try their beers. You did not even have a choice of what you could try. All in all, the beer was unimpressive. Some just not very good at all. Both of us were disappointed in the beer. More breweries to try though.
After lunch we stopped at the Dakota Butcher. It was not what we expected. They had some interesting items. We did buy a few things. Mostly frozen items like ground beef, ground bison. Going to try their beef hot dogs also. We left here and stopped at Safeway on the way home. We bought a few groceries. They did actually have a deli section. They sell Primo and Dietz Watson. We tried the Primo American Cheese. Did not like it at all. So we got some Dietz Watson American Cheese. From here we headed home. The weather here has been very windy today and cold temperatures. A lot colder than forecasted.
As we headed back to the truck after shopping we could feel a light rain begin. About 20 minutes of driving we ran into snow showers. We had snow showers off and on all the way home. They continued for a while but never stuck. The weather is really funky around here.
May 18, 2022
We worked the morning shift today. That means Nancy got off work at 4:00PM. I got off at 1:00PM. We decided to drive the Wildlife Loop this evening. Supposedly the early evening is a great time to see various wildlife. Well we did get to see some wildlife but we did not see what we were hoping to see. A couple of days ago our friends had gone through the Wildlife Loop, in Custer State Park, and saw goats, mother and baby bisons, prairie dogs, and donkeys. We had to go get carrots before we could go so we could feed the donkeys.
We did get to see lots of prairie dogs. They are a lot smaller than I thought for. The area they are in is called Prairie Dog Town. They were very cute. Again, we saw a couple of lone bull bison. After some research, the males live near the herd or in the herd, depending on the season. After the prairie dogs the next animals we see are the lovable donkeys. They are a show in and of themselves. We stopped, took some pictures, fed them carrots and then moved on. It was comical to see the donkeys totally surround one vehicle. Not sure if they were feeding them. The views were phenomenal. I am so happy to be able to experience these sites in person.
May 16, 2022
It was decided that after work tonight it was time for a fire. It was going to be held at Belinda and Cathy’s site. Nancy and I went down and Cora (one of our next door neighbors) also came down And Steve came down as well. We were all sitting around the campfire enjoying our adult beverages and having a great time conversing. And then, we felt a little bit of rain. Then we saw lightning and heard the thunder. We decided it was time to go home. We just made it in the door when the bottom fell out. Oh well. There will be other times.
May 14, 2022
We awoke to real nice weather. Today’s agenda will be a walk around Sylvan Lake. There is a 1 mile trail around the lake. It’s an easy hike but we did not do the entire round trip. We had Bree with us. We enjoyed the walk, the beautiful scenery and talking with a lot of nice people. We decided that on another day, we would return without Bree and walk the entire trail. After exploring the gift shop we decided to just drive around and sight see.
As a side note, we decided to to do a couple of things. One is to collect Christmas ornaments from the various places we visited . This is because we will not be home this year for Christmas. Nancy thought it would be cool to do. I agree. One downfall to the ornament idea is that they are sometimes the size of a baseball and fragile. We came up with an idea. Why not use keychains? So our Christmas ornament will depend on what we find is cool and affordable.
The other thing we are doing is getting post cards and sending them to our grandchildren. We will try to incorporate some education into them as well, most of the time. Braxton was happy to finally get some mail. Michelle also got the US wall map out and it gives the boys an idea of where we are at or have been. They say they enjoy them.
We took the Blue Star Memorial Highway again. I might note here that the deer alongside the road I talked about yesterday, was actually today. The picture says it all. We headed to a little town called Keystone. In order to get there we had to pass by Mount Rushmore. It was awesome. Can’t wait to get to see more of it. We arrived in Keystone. There are a couple of places I want to go back to on another day. The town is small enough that you can park and walk the entire town. It looks awesome. Can’t wait. Not wanting to travel the same road we took yet another road back home. This way took us back through Custer State Park on the Norbeck Parkway. It was very curvy and took us over Iron Mountain. It was awesome. Time consuming but beautiful. We finally got to see our first wild bison. Actually we saw 3. All single bulls in 3 different locations. Totally oblivious to people. All in all, a great day!
May 13, 2022
The weather is nice, so far. So we decided to head to the Crazy Horse Memorial. We decided to take the scenic way to the Memorial. The road is SD 89 which meets SD 87. This is a road that is usually closed in the winter. In addition, it is the Blue Star Memorial Highway. It is a tribute to the Armed Forces. The scenery was beautiful. We also met some wildlife. About 15 feet from the road stood a deer. We had Bree in the back street and she was barking at the deer. The deer stood there and just looked at us. Not a care in the world.
PICTURES - ROAD TO CRAZY HORSE
One of the perks we get as workampers here at Fort Welikit, in addition to a free site with full hook up, is a Badlands VIP Training Program cards. These cards give us free admission to some places, 1/2 price for some places, discounts at various merchants and gift shops. The cards are for employees that work in the area. It is my guess that most are like us, and not from the area. The purpose is to give the employees a chance to explore the area, learn about the history and appreciate the area. It has been wonderful so far. An excellent perk. Free admission to Crazy Horse is one of the perks.
We arrived at Crazy Horse. We have seen it from the main road a couple of times already but it was neat to go a little closer. This memorial is actually a work in progress. It was started in 1948. It is intended to be not just a memorial to Crazy Horse but it is supposed to represent and memorialize all Native Americans. On the campus is the Native American Educational and Cultural Center, the Indian Museum of North America, the Nature Gates, and several others with more to come. We first entered the Welcome Center and we sat in a theater to watch a movie on the origins of the memorial and the people involved. Very cool. After we left the theater we wandered around the museum to take in the sites and history. The artwork was beautiful. The quotes were very appropriate, even today. One display that caught my eye was the Code Talker display. During World War II, native Americans were used for communications in their native languages. The most famous was the Navajo, depicted in the movie, “The Wind Talkers”. The Navajo were used in the Pacific Theater. Other tribes, like the Lakota Sioux, were used in Europe. Of course the exit from the museum is the gift shop. One section was nothing but hand-made items from Native Americans. Beautiful craftsmanship. One thing that caught my eye were the arrows and the quivers. Very cool.
The gift shop opens to an outdoor viewing area. You can view and photograph the Memorial. On the other side is a snack bar and the Laughing Water Restaurant. It was time for a late lunch so we went in. After looking at the menu, we opted for two dishes and we split them so we could each experience the tastes. We shared the Native American Taco and the Tatanka Stew. The taco was a base of Indian fry bread with taco meat, refried beans, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, onions, salsa, and sour cream. The stew was cuts from local bison (buffalo), carrots, peas, potatoes, and onions. We enjoyed the meal but not overly impressed. Nancy liked the Indian fry bread but I did not.
After we left the restaurant we continued to explore the rest of the campus. There was a 1/34th size model of the completed memorial. Other items included statues, a 9-11 tribute, and the actual hose the sculptor (Korczak Ziolkowski) and his family lived in while they were working on the memorial. Chief Henry Standing Bear was the catalyst of this project. Visit www.crazyhorsememorial.org, to see the progress of the memorial. They have live web cams, etc. You also have the opportunity to donate. The neat thing about this memorial is that it is not funded by any government. Strictly donations.
May 12, 2022
Big plans today. We were going to go to Crazy Horse Memorial and then later in the evening so down to Belinda and Kathy’s and sit around the campfire. Mother Nature had other ideas. I had just gotten back inside when a hail storm came up. Pea size hail for several minutes at quite the intensity. So we did not go. Maybe tomorrow. No campfire either as it thundered and stormed most of the day, off and on. So we had Belinda and Kathy down for dinner. We still had some stuffed peppers from our Christmas present from Phillip and Michelle and boys. They brought a salad and we had a great meal. Afterwards we played Five Crowns. We may have been rained out but still had a good day.
May 11, 2022
Today starts our four days off. Work week was fine. We puttered around the RV today. I again tried to isolate the water leak and make repairs. Unsuccessful still. I haven’t totally given up yet but I am close. Nancy put the wheel covers on and anchored our outdoor mat. We went to the grocery store and since we had a late brunch, decided to try out the Alpine Inn located in Hill City. Hill City is a small, quaint little town about 12 miles north of us. We had been told the Inn was a great place to eat as the food was really good and very affordable. They only have three entrees on their menu. The first is a 6 ounce bacon wrapped filet, served with a lettuce wedge salad (with house made Ranch dressing), baked potato, and Texas Toast. All of this for only $13.95. The second option is the same except you get a 9 ounce bacon wrapped filet for $15.95. And the third option is Kaes Spaetzle Primavera for $13.95. You get German dumplings with Swiss cheese, topped with fresh steamed vegetables, Texas Toast and a lettuce wedge salad with Ranch. Of course drinks and dessert are extra.
Surprisingly, at least to me, Nancy ordered the Spaetzle. It looked very good. She enjoyed it but I think would have enjoyed the filet more. As for me, the 9 ounce filet. The meal was truly delicious. We took dessert home with us but was not impressed with our selections. I did enjoy a good German beer, Erdinger Hefeweizen. Rather tasty! Nancy opted for a blended Pina Colada made with wine. They only have a license to serve beer and wine. It was okay but she’s not a big wine drinker.
Overall a great night. This establishment has been in business for at least 3 decades. The Inn is also a hotel built in 1876. They have quite the lunch menu which I hope we can check out a few times. A lot of menu options sound very intriguing. If you want to see more about the Inn go here.
May 7, 2022
Today we played tourists. We decided to take a drive on Needles Highway. It’s a 14 mile loop through Custer State Park with a couple of unique tunnels. You’ll see by the pictures and videos. The drive took us through some very beautiful scenery. Along the route there are plenty of pull-offs to relax, take pictures, maybe hike a trail, or have a smoke if you had a harrowing drive. The route also took us by the Busskohl S Ranch, a private game refuge. That is where we were able to capture the photos of the bison. Technically they are bison, but most people refer to them as buffalo. Check this page for more information; https://www.nps.gov/articles/bison_badl.htm Either way, you do not pet the fluffy cows. The first video is one of my favorites. It is us going through Needles Eye Tunnel. Appropriately named. The second video is just a view through our dirty windshield along the Needles Highway. The last video is us going through the second tunnel, Iron Creek Tunnel. Impressive but not as cool as Needles Eye. I broke out my old Nikon D40 SLR camera. The pictures are okay from it but today’s phones have a higher pixel count. But still with the different lenses, the photos are okay, I think.
Later we went out to dinner with our friends, Belinda and Cathy. We went to the Custer Beacon. It was a great place. Not only did we have a very good meal, we had some very good adult beverages. The big draw was the live band. A 6 member band called Hot City Soul played for several hours. They were awesome and played songs from our era, mostly. They were so good, even Nancy dragged me up to dance a few numbers. Over 20 years ago we had taken dance lessons. I did remember a little. We had a great time.
May 6, 2022
Today is a clean up day. Time to reorganize. We had packed a variety of clothes in totes. Some were our winter clothes which we pulled out for our first week here. Well the temperatures are going up so we decided to repack the totes and put them away in our basement. I’m still trying to find the source of a very small water leak.
We finally cleaned the front of the RV and put up our LED flag. We got our camping rug out and put out. We still need to put our wheel covers on. Just before we left, I purchased 4 new fire extinguishers. 2 - 5 lb. ABC and 2 - 2 1/2 lb. ABC. One 5 lb. extinguisher went into the cottage and the other in the Big House. The smaller extinguishers, one went in the truck (under the back seat) and the other one I hung in the RV. The RV came with one but not very reliable, big, or dependable. And then it was beer thirty. Plan to ride Needles Highway tomorrow.
May 5, 2022
Happy Cinco de Mayo! Our first day off. Today we decided to venture to the Big City. Rapid City is about an hour drive north of Fort Welikit. It is the largest city that is even remotely close. We were looking for a few items so we decided to check out the city. The drive was easy and very nice. Some beautiful scenery. We passed the Crazy Horse Memorial. You could see it from the road. Can’t wait to see more. We also passed the entrance to Mount Rushmore. About 10 miles north of here is a town called Hill City. They have a local grocery store and it is very nice also. No one has a deli where you can get fresh sliced luncheon meats and cheeses. I miss Publix. No Boars Head meats and cheeses. The only American Cheese is the prepackaged processed stuff. YUCK!
A major event to end the summer season is the Governor’s Buffalo Roundup. I am so looking forward to seeing that in person. To coincide with that, there are buffaloes scattered around town. Each are painted by local artists and high school students. At the roundup they are auctioned off. I have two favorites so far. One is the patriotic which I have a picture of and the other is a motorcycle themed one. I will get a picture of it soon.
We got to Rapid City and made our stops. There is a large grocery chain with 2 stores there, Safeway. On the next trip we will check them out. We did find a Target and there is a couple of Wally Worlds. And if you remember from Iowa, we found another Perkins. We really like that restaurant. So we had lunch there. As we were leaving, Nancy started talking to a couple who had come in and had overheard part of their conversation. They were in a Penske rental with a trailer moving across the country. They are moving from Spokane, WA to Greensboro, NC. What are the odds??
As we were driving around, we noticed that the majority of the car dealers had shelter erected with the cars under them. It is apparently to protect them from the frequent hail storms they have here. The hail tends to be quite large as well.
Rapid City has a small quaint downtown area. One day we will park and walk around. It is known for having statues of presidents on downtown corners. We saw a few. It was really cool.
We have also made a list of places we wanted to check out on our next trip. One looks very promising. Dakota Butchers. It’s a real butcher shop. Can’t wait.
May 2 - 4, 2022
We survived our first work week. Nancy is doing well in the office. Steve gave her a compliment on how well she was doing. If you come in at 9:00AM your first duties are to re-supply the firewood and clean sites. If you come in at 1:00PM your first duties are to clean the restrooms.
Since we have only a few campers here, all of the restrooms are not open yet. One of the days this week, I cleaned a few of the bathrooms to be ready for guests. This is a deep cleaning. They have not been touched since last October. All dispensers had to be filled, water to the toilet turned on, and everything scrubbed and sanitized, floors swept and mopped. Also this week, did more sight cleaning, replaced more signs. Even replaced a sign post. I am still getting used to the elevation. We are at 5,315 feet. The air is a little thinner. Beautiful country though. We have the next 3 days off and have plans. We want to try and get to a lot of places before the top of the tourist season. Some places haven’t opened yet. Great trip so far.
May 1, 2022
Our first official day of work. I went in at 09:00AM and Nancy will go in at 12:00 Noon. Since we had no departures, I didn’t have any sites to clean. We have 2 gasoline powered golf carts. I set one up for the morning site cleaning and maintenance. My very first duty was to hang an official sign at the campground entrance. In the picture above it is the bottom sign. We still have several sites that need to be cleaned up as far as downed branches, pine needles, etc. I cleaned up a couple of sites and then I had to put dirt and gravel on one as there had been a couple of water leaks discovered when the water was turned back on. We had one large area in the drive. I put a few buckets of gravel on the spot and tried to level it out. After all that the spot was still soft so we decided to leave it coned off and try again in a couple of days. The bucket I am referring to is a Kubota tractor with a bucket on the front and currently has a back hoe on the back. There are a few other attachments for it also. It’s lots of fun. It’s not a large tractor but bigger than a garden tractor. 1:00PM came and I was ready to go home and put my feet up. I have not had any problem getting my 5,000 steps a day in. Nancy got home a little after 4:00PM. She was tired but had a good time. She has a computer booking system to learn then the nuances for the campground such as which sites will take what size RVs, etc. She needs to learn how to up sell also. Eventually she will also have to learn the cash register as their is a small convenience store in the office. Miscellaneous items for camping, firewood, snacks, drinks, wine and beer. We also sell propane here so I will need to learn how to fill propane. Fortunately for us we will get a lot of stuff at cost.
April 30, 2022
We met Belinda and Cathy at the Maintenance Shed at 10:00AM. This morning’s project is to hang the new site number signs. Each sign had to have 2 holes drilled in it. It took Belinda and I about 15 minutes to drill 100 signs. Then we spent the next 1 1/2 hours putting up the signs. Some we couldn’t install as they are presently marked with a metal post. Those will be replaced with wooden posts. Some sites do not yet have their number so we were not sure which sign to place where. The weather was sunny, cooler than yesterday and very windy. Overall still a nice day.
We completed what we could and reported to Steve. It was then decided that the 4 of us would go into Custer for lunch. We chose Black Hills Burger and Bun. Great choice. Their burgers are made with beef burger or buffalo burger. We started with an order of fried dill pickles with a house sauce. I was expecting pickle chips. Not this time. Pickle slices (lengthwise). The house sauce was excellent also but too spicy for Nancy. I had to try some craft beer. I had a Remedy Amber Ale. It is brewed in Sioux Falls. Very good. Nancy got the Black Hills Burger (blue cheese crumbles, bacon, grilled onions, and garlic aioli). She opted for buffalo burger. I got the Western (cheddar cheese, bacon, grilled onions, and chipotle BBQ sauce). I also opted for the buffalo. Very tasty and leaner than beef. The texture and flavor is just slightly different but as long as we are out here, I’ll order buffalo.
After lunch we rode over to Custer State Park and got an annual pass. Lots of state parks nearby and this is the way to save. A lot of driving tours if you aren’t a hiker or kayaker, etc.