Changing hours – more play time

Posted on June 26, 2014 by liv2rv

We are still plugging along with work in the gift shop at Crazy Horse Memorial. We were able to switch over to four ten-hour days, which will allow us more free time to play tourist, as well as keep up with laundry, grocery shopping and cleaning. For now, we will have off Wednesday thru Friday. With our new schedule, we will be able to do some things with Phil and Rudee on Wednesdays.

With our new day off, we went out to dinner and a play with Phil and Rudee. The Black Hills Playhouse, located in Custer State Park, is currently in its 69^th season providing plays and events in the park.

Black Hills Playhouse

Dan, Rudee and Phil

This season offers four plays that run for about 2 weeks each. With our VIP pass, we are able to see the dress rehearsal performance that occurs the evening before opening night.(tickets are normally $32.00 for adults) These are always on a Wednesday, so we will be able to see 3 out of the remaining 4 plays. We enjoyed the musical adaption of a 1911 children’s book, The Secret Garden. We were pleasantly surprised by the professional quality of the production, and look forward to the remaining two plays this season. If you are in the area, this would be a ‘must do’ item.

Of course, after our first week on the new schedule, they changed it up on us, and we ended up with a Sunday off. This allowed us to spend some time with Steve and Joan, learning some new card games, as well as joining in with a group of co-workers that go out for pizza on Sunday night in Custer.

Then our schedule changed back, and this past Wednesday we headed out to Hot Springs where Phil and Dan used their VIP pass on half-price golf at Southern Hills Golf Course, a very scenic and challenging course. Rudee and I opted for the more relaxing day at Evans Plunge, which is a natural spring of mineral water. The spring is now fully enclosed, and they have added two water slides, a ‘kiddie area’, rope swings, and a lap pool area. The spring is only 5 feet deep at the deepest portion, and the water is crystal clear, with a pebble rock bottom. This was another complimentary item on the VIP pass.

In the evening, we had reservations at Grand Magic in Custer, which was a fun, family-friendly magic show. (also free for us! Can you tell we like to do all the free items?!)

We also had some visitors this past few weeks. Pat and Diane, Amazon co-workers, stopped in at our park on their journey West for a few days. They found us on RVillage. Although we had to work, we did were able to spend a few hours catching up, and look forward to seeing them again this fall in Kentucky.

Gary and Pam, a couple that we met last June at a Heartland Owners Group rally, surprised us at work on a Saturday. They have been following our blog, and were coming through the area and stopped in. It was also fun catching up with them, and we will certainly see them down the road sometime, somewhere!

Quote for the day: “The world is round so that friendship may encircle it.” – Pierre Tielhard de Chardin

A foggy visit with friends

Posted on June 10, 2014 by liv2rv

My friend Angie and her co-worker Brenda took an extended weekend to drive from Wisconsin to the Black Hills to see Mt. Rushmore, and participate in the 10K Crazy Horse Volksmarch. This was a ‘bucket list’ item for Brenda. They arrived on Friday, June 6, about the same time the fog rolled in for the weekend!

We headed off to “see” Mount Rushmore National Park, in Keystone. Admission to the park is free, but there is an $11.00 fee for a parking pass, which is good for the entire year. Dan and I plan on returning to the park, and I will have a more detailed blog on Mount Rushmore at a later date.

When we arrived it was misty and a thick blanket of fog covered up the Black Hills. The entrance to the park takes you through the Avenue of Flags, which has a flag for every state, in alphabetical order. On a clear day, you can see the Presidents in the background.

Avenue of the Flags

The viewing deck provided this lovely view!

where are they?

The fog in the Black Hills comes and goes, so we decided to check out the small museum and watch a short film on the making of Mount Rushmore, while waiting to see if the fog would lighten up.

cell phones off, please

And as luck would have it, the fog lifted enough to see George, Tom, Teddie and Abe!

hi guys

After that, we went back to Hill City and had a nice dinner at the famous Alpine Inn, which offers two choices for dinner: a 6 ounce bacon wrapped tenderloin or a 9 ounce one.

On Saturday, Brenda, Angie and I met up at Crazy Horse to participate in the annual Volksmarch, which is held annually the first full weekend of June. Crazy Horse also hosts another Volksmarch in late September, during the annual Buffalo round-up at Custer State Park. The Black Hills Volkssport Association organizes the event. The walk is a 10K (6.2 miles) that goes through the woods around Crazy Horse, up to the top of the arm, and then back down with the finish line at the Visitors Center.

let the fun begin

The terrain in some spots was a bit challenging, but even with the fog, the scenery was nice.

rocky terrain

many hills to climb

let’s go girls

The AT&T cellular “tree” was mixed in to the woods. (Now if Verizon would just put a branch on this, we could get service out here!)

AT&T’s tree

After an hour of walking, we got our first glimpse of the mountain.

first glimpse

A short while later, we were making it around to the back of the mountain.

around the corner

The top is finally near!

almost there

Congratulations Angie and Brenda!! Another check mark on the bucket list!! And the fog cleared for a few minutes at the top…..

congrats Angie & Brenda

….but soon returned!

the fog is back

We began our descent to the bottom, going past the tunnel under the arm.

tunnel under the arm

And on to the finish line!!

10K complete!!

If you are interested in seeing more photos of the view from the top of Crazy Horse, please check out our prior blog post from our orientation day when we took a van ride to the top (click here).

After we finished, I headed back to the camper, as Dan and I had to work from 2pm to close, and Angie and Brenda continued exploring the Black Hills. It was a short, but very enjoyable visit with Angie and Brenda. By late Sunday afternoon, the fog finally lifted, but they had already began the drive back to Wisconsin.

Quote for the day: “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.” – Vivian Green

“All Aboard” the 1880 Train

Posted on June 8, 2014 by liv2rv

One of the longest running steam trains remaining in service, the 1880 Train, was on our VIP pass, so we spent a few hours taking the 20 mile round trip from Hill City to Keystone. Ticket prices are $28.00 round trip for adults, and we received complimentary passes.

1880 Train Hill City, SD

All Aboard

The train travels through the scenic Black Hills Forest where you can see many rock formations, Harney Peak, and (let’s be honest) a lot of run down trailer homes with a ton of junk in the yards.

Harney Peak from the train

the other scenic views

The train has your choice of open air cars and cars with windows. We opted for the open air car, as it was a nice day outside. The 1880 Train was used in the filming of the Gunsmoke television series. Our engine was number 104, which was built in 1926. They use water and oil to power the engine, which creates a lot of white smoke.

white smoke

Since the Black Hills has many changes in elevation, the train has to maneuver 4 – 6% grades, which is very difficult for any train. After we departed Hill City, the train quickly encountered a steep 6% grade, and we were barely moving on the tracks. Many of us in the back began chanting “I think I can, I think I can” to encourage the train to make it up the hill! When going up a hill, they add sand to keep the engine from overheating. This creates a brown smoke.

brown smoke going uphill

We had an enjoyable time on the trip, and it was interesting to see how the “well to do” traveled back in the early 20^th Century. There were remnants of old buildings along the way.

old mining building

There are some old telegraph poles along the way, with their glass insulators still intact.

telegraph poles

When we arrived at Keystone, the engine unhooked, moved down to the water tower to refill, and then drove around the train to hook back up in the front.

water tower

“refueling” with water

The engine we had for this trip was built in 1926 and was restored by the 1880 Train company.

Engine 104 from 1926

When we completed our round trip back to Hill City in just over 2 hours, the engine was again disconnected and taken back to the shop for maintenance before the next departure. They seem to take good care of these antiques.

back in Hill City

I firmly believe that you are only as old as you feel, so I couldn’t resist heading to the “kiddie” train area for some fun.

I can fit in this

We had a nice time, the weather was perfect for the trip. If you love trains, this would be a good trip to take.

Quote for the day: “The introduction of so powerful of an agent as steam to a carriage on wheels will make a great change in the situation of man.” – Thomas Jefferson

Mammoth Site

Posted on June 4, 2014 by liv2rv

We headed down to Hot Springs to visit the Mammoth Site (cost $10 for adults, free with our VIP pass). In 1974, a developer was beginning to clear land for a housing development when the bulldozer uncovered some bones. They discovered the bones were from Columbian Mammoths, estimated to be 26,000 years old. Through local donations, the site was preserved and declared a National Natural Landmark in 1980. A building was constructed around the site, and is open year round to visitors.

It is believed the site was a giant sinkhole, fed by natural springs. Mammoths, bears and other animals entered the watering hole, but were unable to get back out due to the steep embankments, and eventually drowned or starved to death. Mammoth Site is the only in-situ (left as found) site for mammoth bones in the United States.

Mammoth Site

They are continuing digging at this site, and have discovered many more bones over the years. A tour guide explains the many points of interest on the site, and then you are free to explore on your own in the indoor excavation site, as well as an exhibit hall. We found this to be a very interesting and informative exhibit. At the time of our visit, there were volunteers who were painstakingly digging through the dirt. The buckets of dirt they would collect would be carefully washed, to discover any small remains.

overview of dig site

They have left most of the bones where they have found them.

They unearthed a large mammoth that had no head, despite digging all around it. The Paleontologist have no explanation as to what happened to the head, and named the mammoth Marie Antoinette. When they discovered the mammoth was a male, they renamed him Murray Antoinette, in keeping with the be-headed theme!

volunteer diggers

These are the tools that the volunteers were using. It is very tedious work.

Tools of the trade

They had some body parts on display to give you they idea of how big the bones are;

mammoth mandible

human v mammoth

This is part of a pelvis that is left intact in the grounds.

mammoth pelvis

In order to determine what types of mammals they are, the scientists study the angle of the tusk (yes, another Math lesson). There is something called Schreger Lines, which will determine if the tusk is from an elephant (obtuse angle – greater than 90 degrees) or a mammoth (acute angle – less than 90 degrees).

elephant tusk

mammoth tusk

And then there’s the histogram on the tusk angles. (okay, enough math!)

histogram

We enjoyed our visit, and would recommend this place if you are in the area, or visiting nearby Wind Cave.

Quote for the Day: “There is no good scientific reason to bring back an extinct species. Why would one bring them back? To put them in a theme park?” – Hendrik Poinar

Wind Cave National Park

Posted on June 1, 2014 by liv2rv

One of the benefits of working in the tourism area in the Black Hills is the V.I.P. pass that we receive. The pass is for Visitor Industry Partners (VIP) and allows us free or reduced admission for many of the attractions in the area. This way when a visitor asks “what else is there to do”, we can tell them about the other attractions from our own experience. It’s a very smart marketing idea, and we plan on taking full advantage of our pass on our days off.

Our first stop was to Wind Cave National Park. The park offers five different cave tours in the summer. As part of the VIP pass, we received a complimentary Natural Entrance Tour (normally $12.00 per adult), which is the one tour available year round. Admission to the park is free, and they do have a campground.

Wind Cave

Wind Cave covers over 29,000 acres, with 70 percent natural prairie grassland and 30 percent forest. It is home to many species of animals, including a growing herd of bison. But the main attraction are the cave tours. The cave was first discovered in 1881 by two brothers, Jesse and Tom Bingham, who were out hunting deer. When they heard a loud whistling noise, they followed the sound and discovered a hole in the ground that was blowing air so strong it knocked Jesse’s hat off. The original entrance to the cave is no longer used, as it has a 90 degree turn right when you enter. As such, there is no evidence that bats or animals have entered the cave, because it would be a difficult entry way. At a constant 58 degrees the cave is also too warm for bats to live because they need colder temperatures to hibernate. Dan’s Mom would be happy to know there are no bats in the cave!

This is the original entrance to the cave.

Original entrance

The wind, which gave the cave its name, is created by the difference in barometric pressures inside and outside the cave. On the day we visited, the wind was blowing in to the cave, as demonstrated by this Park Ranger’s red piece of tape.

winds blowing in

The Bingham’s told others in town about their discovery, but there is no evidence they explored the cave further. In 1890, 16-year-old Alvin McDonald began exploring the cave, using candles and string (so he could find his way back out). He kept a diary of his daily explorations, which the Park Service has, and uses to document the history of the cave. The McDonald family blasted open passages to the cave and offered tours for a fee, along with selling specimens from the cave. In 1893, Alvin traveled to Chicago to display specimens at the Columbian Exposition, and to market the cave for tourism. Alvin came down with typhoid fever at the Exposition, and passed away in December, at the very young age of 20.

A land dispute erupted between the McDonald family and a mining company (there was no gold found in the cave), and eventually the government stepped in and took control of the cave. In January of 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established Wind Cave as the seventh National Park (and the first cave), forever protecting the park for future generations.

Studies of the barometric pressure of the cave have estimated that only a small percent of the cave has been discovered. The Park Service is continuing to explore the cave, and it has been “growing” as they continue to find new passages. Right now, there are 141 known miles of the cave, all covering just one square mile of surface area. (ponder that math fact…!)

Wind Cave is famous for formations of Popcorn, Frostwork and Boxwork. Ninety-five percent of all the known Boxwork in caves around the world is found at Wind Cave. On our tour, we saw a lot of Boxwork, and a little Popcorn and Frostwork. The Popcorn and Frostwork is more prevalent in other parts of the cave that can be seen on other tours. Stalagmite and Stalactites are not common in the cave, as it is considered to be a dry cave. The visitor’s center has excellent specimens of the Popcorn and Frostwork, so the following are photographs of the specimens.

Popcorn is formed when small deposits of Calcium Carbonite seep through the limestone.

Popcorn crystals

This is the Popcorn that we saw on part of our Natural Entrance Tour:

Popcorn in the cave

Water seeps through the porous rock, evaporates, and leaves behind aragonite crystals, called Frostwork.

Frostwork formations

We saw one area that had a little frostwork:

frostwork inside the cave

The Natural Entrance Tour that we took is about 90 minutes in length, and has about 450 stairs to negotiate. It was a rather easy tour to navigate, and we did not feel too enclosed. We would recommend this tour as it was very informative. There was a part in our tour where the Park Ranger turned off all the lights, and lit a candle, so we could see what the early explorers were dealing with. For those so adventurous, they do offer one tour that is strictly by candlelight, so you can experience what touring the cave was like when it was first discovered. They also offer a very strenuous four-hour tour which involves a lot of crawling through narrow passages, so you do need to meet certain “width” restrictions!

The Natural Cave Entrance tour has some narrow passages….

watch your head!

But also some large rooms where everyone can fit, and the rangers will spend several minutes talking about the history of the cave.

wide open rooms

Boxwork is what this cave is known for, and we saw many examples on the ceiling of the cave. Boxwork is a honeycomb formation of thin calcite fins that protrude from the walls and ceilings of the cave. The Park Ranger explained that when they were first exploring the cave, using candles, the Boxwork initially looked like giant spider webs. That is what is documented in the diaries they have of the early cave explorers.

Boxwork formations

Photographs of caves are not the best way to see a cave. We definitely would recommend a visit to Wind Cave (remember…no bats!)

inside wind cave

Quote of the Day: “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek. Fear of the unknown is our greatest fear. Many of us would enter a tiger’s lair before we would enter a dark cave. While caution is a useful instinct, we lose many opportunities and much of the adventure of life if we fail to support the curious explorer within us.” – Joseph Campbell

Liv2RV

Living and working around the country in a RV

Monthly Archives: June 2014

Changing hours – more play time

A foggy visit with friends

“All Aboard” the 1880 Train

Mammoth Site

Wind Cave National Park