Wow, I lost you for a minute.

Sorry guys, was caught up in trying to forget what Illinois was like and got caught up in South Dakota. South Dakota by the way, for all its parks and grasslands, isn't all that interesting. Especially not when you know that Devil's Tower and beyond are waiting for you. Anyway read on.

Yesterday I woke to find that we had the misfurtone to happen upon Al's Oasis Campground. This was in the middle of "The Oasis" which consisted of Al's resteraunt, Al's grocery and other of Al's things that I probably don't know about. Al owned the entire 5 acre tract of land that was its own super rest stop. I was sleeping in a van approximately 50 yards from I90. The highway where '88 Chevy pickups with no exhaust came careening through at 85mph during the night. I finally had the, "what the hell were we thinking?" moment.

Things could only go up from there right. I used my anxst to write the blog about the Bullet Train and, when Kristen volunteered to drive, threw myself at my book. Hours later Kristen announced that we were nearing the point in the trip we had both been waiting for. The Badlands.

After endless grasslands, which I have to admit were pretty cool, we rolled into the gate. A dull but smiling ranger told us that today was one of the days during National Parks Week. This would allow us free admittance into the park. Kristen was elated. I actually think she would have been fulfilled just turning around after hearing that rather than entering the park boudaries. But enter we did. Around the first corner brought stunning panoramics of jagged cliffs painted in lines of taupe, cyan and deeper reds. In some places the topography soared above our heads and in others it was like the land fell away into a mirror opposite of those high places. Moving even at 30mph was too quick for me, I had to get out. The first pull out offered an amazing glimpse of what lie ahead.

After taking an extended drive through to the visitors center and watching the 20 minute movie on the park and its history (also dull, like the ranger) we parked at the entrance that gives access to multiple trailheads. Our intention was to do a vigorous hike through the Badlands. The options were two handicapped accessible .5 mile trails, and a more strenuous 1 mile trail that involved climbing up a ladder. What fun! Due to this signs warnings we put on our stoutest shoes and headed for the hills. I noticed a sign proclaiming that we should be wary of rattlesnacks and thought that I would like to see one before I die. Hopefully not just moments before mind you.

As we rounded the first corner of the trail we noticed five small mule dear eating their way across the grass lands. Their path would eventually take them right across ours. We stopped and I mocked them as I always do with woodland creatures. They took it better than the raccoons... The trail wound itself through some of the smaller mounds at first and Kristen and I noticed something funny. The Badlands aren't made of rock, or shale, or peanut butter, they are in fact made of dirt. That's right, dirt. Dirt that is eroding at around an inch a year. And in 500,000 years the badlands will have eroded so much that it won't resemble what it is now, so says the ranger in the film. Glad he told me that. Smart guy that one. Anyway the Badlands are made of dirt and I didn't know this going in. Somehow this deteriorated from the grandure of the place. As we walked the rest of the trail I was impressed at how chaotic the masses are, but from up close you don't have the ability to see the colors or the shadows of the earth. After we returned from our short trip the weather was getting cooler, the wind picked up and it began to rain slightly. Taking this all into consideration we decided it would be a good idea to take a 6 mile hike. If that were'nt enough we decided to do it with no water, phone or map. Will and Kris the ever experienced hikers and campers...lucky they didn't find us face down in the muck. The trail was flat, wound all over creation and at points I was wondering if it would ever bring us back to the van. We did catch a good glimpse of a young photographer from Ohio wearing a funny hat (think it was a cab drivers hat) during his musings. We finally found our way out of that grassland and back to the car. After a celebratory beer we headed for the campground in the park to put down our stakes.

The campground consisted of a picnic table, a dirt area to park and no water (bathrooms included). It didn't take us long to decide that the best course of action would be to drive the loop road out of the badlands and seek shelter elsewhere. I was disappointed about this because I expected the Badlands to be more awe inspiring. Just as we were climbing the first hills on the road and my spirit was at a near all time low the corner staightened and I got to see what all the fuss is about. Spires five times as tall as any previous loomed in front of the van. They shot to the sky like castles built of sand but to real scale. The colors on this side of the park showed vivid purples, deepers tans and browns. The areas that fell away from the side of the road were like small canyons that ran into the distance for as far as the eye could follow their twists and turns. The van crept up those hills slower than normal due to our want to see all the sights. As we approached the highest points in the park we were surprised to come across three distinct groups of big horn sheep. Some wearing radio collars stood next to the road and the big males were laying around eyeing us. It is something I never expected to see in all my life, but I did. Made me feel like god darned Marty Stauffer I tell ya.

Reeling from the ups and downs of the day already we left the Badlands on our way towards the town of Wall. You may know of the Wall Drug signs, the ones that start in Illinois. We were finally here after 800 or so miles. The town was a shrine dedicated to the store so it didn't take us long to find it. I needed batteries for the second camera so we parked and went in. I don't want to say anything good about this place so please don't get that impression. It was a tourist trap in the worst way. Figurines of charging indians lined the shelves. Postcards, many of which made no sense at all in this area, were taking up square feet of merchandising space. The girl behind the counter looked like she was waiting for someone to come in and take her away from that place, and that was in Kristen's words... I did find the batteries. 4 of them for only $6.50. I figured with batteries slightly edging out gold by cost I would skip that provision for the time being.

After a quick run into the local grocer (still haven't found good beer west of NY) it was on to the local campground. Kris was happy because they provided wi-fi, showers and laundry. I was happy just to be out of the dreaded Wall Drug.

To Be Continued...