We awoke to clear skies today. Yeah! Spent a few hours in the Badlands before breaking camp and starting east. The Badlands are still one of my and Don’s favorite places. It is just so unworldly and unique. I didn’t charge my helmet cam since I wasn’t going to take many photos and I missed a couple of great shots. We idled through a small flock of bighorn sheep meandering in the road. I could have reached out and touched one. Then a half mile later were 3 beautiful big rams grazing the edge of the road. Extremely close and had a panoramic view of the Badlands behind them.
The Badlands are special. But if you visit, do plan on a morning and/or late afternoon-evening here. They are still amazing with the sun high in the sky, but it’s the changing light and shadows that really bring out the magic of this place.
We cut across the lower side of South Dakota on the two-lanes. The vastness and emptiness of parts of the West is just mind boggling. If you live east of the Mississippi and have never traveled the western plains, It is truly hard to comprehend just how open this land is. And such few people or towns. After six hard hours of running almost due east at 70 mph, we are still in South Dakota tonight, although just barely. North Sioux City is in South Dakota. Sioux City proper is Iowa. And now I’ll try to get some sleep with that Tom Petty song still in my head.
TigerTracks 