Okay, I’m clearly losing my mind, because I keep finding things I forgot to tell you about! So, we’re going to do a little time traveling in this post. First, there is an incline in Manitou Springs, Colorado, that might spark interest in some. That is until you find out what it really is. Then I guarantee most will drop off of that bandwagon! You might remember that we rode an incline last December in Pittsburgh with the Pennsylvania Boogers…a neat little car that takes you to the top of a ridge to overlook the city. That is what I thought of when Mr. Wonderful (MW) mentioned this thing. Then he pointed it out from over at Garden of the Gods. The Manitou Incline is a STAIRWAY that runs all the way to the summit of a mountain!!! According to their website, the difficulty is EXTREME. It even says “we promise we’re not kidding”. There are a total of 2,768 steps or about 1 mile’s worth that climb 2,020′, starting at 6,530′ elevation and topping out at 8,550′. The grade averages 41% and at its steepest is 68%. We ran into a couple of people on the bus to Manitou that were going to climb it. The average person takes about 3 hours, and one of them was doing it in a bit less than that. However, our zipline guide, Abbi, runs up it in about an hour. I ask you…who thinks that is FUN??!!

On February 21, our friend, Bill Moore, passed away after having a rough time, health-wise, for the past couple of years. We met Bill and his wife Cindy at a Navy vs Air Force Football ComeAround in Colorado Springs a few years ago. Bill was already there when we arrived, and Cindy flew in for the weekend, an arrangement that worked for them since she wasn’t retired yet. To be honest, my first impression of Bill wasn’t great. An F-4 pilot in the Marine Corps, he seemed gruff and a bit cranky. It didn’t take long, though, to realize that facade was hiding a very funny, caring man with a truly good heart. He lit up when Cindy arrived and when talking about grandson Gus. He also traveled extensively in his RV, visiting with friends, old and new. We really enjoyed spending time with both of them, meeting up whenever we were within striking distance. On Saturday, March 14, we flew out to Phoenix to attend the memorial service the next day and were blown away with how many friends, going all the way back to his days at the Naval Academy, flew in to be there. What a testament to his life! We also loved that Cindy had people represent their military branch, too. We enjoyed a little time with her, the Naval Academy crew, and the rest of Bill’s family before heading back. The verse below was displayed at the memorial service, and I thought it was very good. (No idea who to credit.)

He Is Gone

You can shed tears that he is gone
Or you can smile because he has lived

You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back
Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left

Your heart can be empty because you can't see him
Or you can be full of the love that you shared

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday

You can remember him and only that he is gone
Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on

You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what he would want: smile, open your eyes, love
and go on.

Before heading back to the hotel, we checked out the Anthem Veterans Memorial, which is pretty neat. It is composed of five stone pillars representing the unity of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard. Each has a hole through it. Every year on November 11 at precisely 11:11 AM, the sun will shine through all of the pillars and perfectly encircle the hand-cut glass mosaic of the Great Seal of the United States. It serves as a reminder of those who have served and sacrificed.

The final note from that quick trip was landing in Knoxville and running into SERIOUS snow! It started as flurries at the airport, but was a full-blown blizzard out near our place. Thankfully, the roads were not icy, at least until after we made it back to the barn.

MW’s birthday is the Ides of March, but as noted above, we were celebrating someone else that day. So, on March 20 we took a little road trip up to Bardstown, Kentucky, for the birthday celebration. Truth be told, I actually booked this trip long before we knew about Bill, because the main event, a dinner train ride, wasn’t available until the 21st. That worked out just perfectly. We left just before 9 AM for the 3-1/2 hour drive north to Bardstown, Kentucky. Our only stops along the way were for a gas/potty break and lunch at Down on Main Bar & Grill in Mount Vernon, Kentucky. (Honestly, tiniest wings I’ve ever had…about the total length of my pinky…for which they charged $14 for SIX!!) Here are some highlights from the long weekend:

  • Bardstown is a beautiful little village in the middle of bourbon and horse country in central Kentucky, Nelson County.  First settled in 1780 and formally established in 1788, it is one of the oldest towns in the state.  Originally part of Virginia, the village was named for the Bard brothers, David and William, who obtained the land and laid out the town. Today there are lots of homes and buildings that date back to the late 1700s and early 1800s still in use. Before checking into the hotel, we went to the Visitor Center, which was recently renovated and is not fully set up, we picked up a few brochures, then walked around the historic downtown area doing a little shopping, checking out a couple of bourbon rooms, and picking up a tasty treat at the Flour & Oak Bakery.
  • On day 2 we headed back into town making our first stop at Hurst Discount Drug at the corner of 3rd Street. They have been in business for over 100 years selling pharmacy and toiletry stuff, plus dishing up some pretty good food at the lunch counter. We bellied up for a little lunch, and MW tried their shamrock shake, which tasted like a Girl Scouts Thin Mint. The girl behind the counter did everything from taking orders, to cooking, to making shakes. She was workin’ it, but did get some help before we left. The store also has a few gift items today.  After that we took a little walking tour. This town has a LOT of houses and buildings that have been around for 200+ years. Here are a couple of examples:
  • We took a look around in the Basilica of Saint Joseph Proto-Cathedral, and it was very interesting. In the early 1800s as Americans were crossing over the Blue Ridge Mountains and spreading west, the Catholic Church needed to spread too. In February of 1808, the Diocese of Bardstown, the first inland diocese in the United States, was established to serve all congregants between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River. In 1841 the Episcopal See was moved to Louisville, and St. Joseph’s became a parish church. Its pastors are also the president of its college and seminary. In 2001, Pope John Paul II elevated the Cathedral to the honor of a minor basilica church, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • On Saturday night it was time to check out My Old Kentucky Dinner Train.  This is actually what the trip was centered around, because MW LOVES a good train ride and good food.  Win-win. They have been serving it up since 1988, and it is a pretty good thing. The round-trip ride is about 2-1/2 hours during which a guide is talking about the train, the area, and what you are seeing while the rest of the staff is hustling to feed you. The meal comes with appetizer, salad, entree, sides, and dessert. Everything was very good with the exception of my fish, which was a bit dry. The standouts, though, were MW’s prime rib, which was HUGE, and the roasted vegetables. Our tickets were for the Bourbon Excursion, where they have a little tasting of three different ones during the course of the evening. I’m not a bourbon fan, so my portion was really a tiny taste except for the drink they served prior, which had blackberry and lemonade with a splash of bourbon. That was pretty good, I have to say. We sat with a young couple from nearby who were celebrating their 7th wedding anniversary. Both were Army veterans: he was a mechanical engineer, and she was a pharmacist. We really enjoyed their company, and whole-heartedly recommend the dinner train, with or without the bourbon.
  • Sunday we went to Springfield Baptist Church, which was great. Pastor Aaron Sherrell gave a sermon from Romans on how we treat those who mistreat us, and how hard it is to actually hit that mark. He’s not kidding! It was a baptism day, too, and the pastor and another church member got to baptize their own sons…how special is that! The place was packed, and everyone we met was very nice.
  • For supper on Sunday we checked out another bit of Bardstown history…the Old Talbott Tavern. Built in 1779 when Kentucky was still the western frontier and Salem, later to be renamed Bardstown, was little more than a stagecoach stop, this tavern has a LOT of history. It is the oldest western stage coach stop in the country and played host to a huge variety of the famous and infamous, including Revolutionary War General George Rogers Clark, Daniel Boone, Queen Marie of Romania, General George Patton, and many others. Over the course of time, the tavern has been known as The Hynes, Bardstown Hotel, Chapman’s House, Shady Bower Hotel, The Newman House, and Old Stone Tavern. Some of its more colorful visitors include: 1) Three future presidents – Andrew Jackson, William Henry Harrison, and Abraham Lincoln. The latter was 5 years old at the time and accompanied his parents while they dealt with a land dispute. 2) John James Audubon, the famous ornithologist and painter. 3) King Louis Phillippe and his two brothers – during the king’s exile they stayed in October 1797. It is believed that one or more of the party painted a variety of murals in one of the rooms upstairs. 4) In that same room, infamous outlaw Jesse James is said to have shot holes in one of the murals after having too much to drink and thinking he saw birds moving in the painting. Sadly in March 1998 an electrical fire burned through the upstairs of the tavern and inn, leaving it heavily damaged. The downstairs was still standing, but suffered severe smoke and water issues. The murals were badly burned and never repaired. Restoration of the building took more than 1-1/2 years, and it finally reopened in November 1999. Today the tavern serves some pretty delicious food and has a nice bourbon room and 5-room inn. It is one of the oldest buildings in Bardstown and a rare example still standing of Flemish bond stonework.  Oh, and you might run into the ghost of Jesse James and/or an unknown woman as the tavern was once ranked the 13th most haunted inn in the country.
  • Our final tourist stop in Bardstown was at My Old Kentucky Home State Park. Home of Federal Hill, built by Judge (and future Congressman and Senator) John Rowan and his wife Anne Lytle Rowan between 1795 and 1818 on land given to them by her father for their wedding. The 7,501 sf mansion was the centerpiece of an eventual 1,200 acre plantation that mostly grew grain to support the bourbon/whiskey distilleries in the area. While the house is lovely (sorry, they didn’t allow interior pics), there seems to have been a lot of heartache there. John and Anne had 9 children and lost their oldest daughter, Eliza, as a teenager. Then, on July 27, 1833, disaster struck. While the parents were making their way home from being away, several of their family members gathered for a meal. Before long quite a few in attendance, plus several slaves, were very ill and the dining room had been turned into a sick room. The culprit was cholera, which came from the spring. Before it was over, two sons, a daughter, and several slaves were buried, and a courier sent with a note to advise the senior Rowans. Can you imagine getting that message? Later the youngest son inherited the property. He passed away, and while his wife was still mourning that, her infant child died in her arms. Awful! The tour was very informative, and the guide, exceptional. She even sang for us. One thing I’m not convinced of is the link between this house and composer Stephen Foster. The park makes it sound like he visited, possibly multiple times, and was inspired by Federal Hill to write “My Old Kentucky Home, Good Night”. Admittedly there are many sources of information on the composer who was the cousin of John Rowan, and I’m sure some of them say he spent time in Bardstown. In fact, Old Talbott Tavern even mentions him possibly visiting there. However, there are other sources that specifically say that Foster never lived in the South and visited only once during his 1852 honeymoon by steamboat to New Orleans. There is no evidence, however, that the trip included a side jaunt to Bardstown. Foster’s sketchbook of lyrics shows that the song was actually written later. Most acknowledge, though, that the more probable inspiration for the song was “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by Harriett Beecher Stowe.
  • The only other thing we did on this road trip was take a ride over to check out the campground for the upcoming Naval Academy ComeAround (previously discussed) and take a run though Rebecca Ruth Candies in Frankfort, home of the original bourbon ball. We planned to check out the Kentucky State Capitol, too, but the building was under renovation.

The other thing that happened this spring was one of the most important to this Yaya…all FIVE Boogers were at the barn for a few days!! I haven’t had all five of them together for several years, and I miss that. There was a LOT of fishing (catch and release only because they aren’t quite big enough yet), visiting, and laughter; at least one good campfire night; a visit to Briarwood Ranch Safari Park in Bybee, Tennessee; a stop a Elrod Falls; a bit of shooting; and of course, church in Sneedville. In order to make it happen, I drove to the West Virginia/Pennsylvania line and picked up the PA Boogers (16 hours!) while the Georgia Boogers (and our son Ryan and DIL Alene) came up. When it was time to disperse, MW and I went together to return the northern kids, spending the night just before we got to the meeting point.

COOLEST THING: While we were at the safari park, we noticed an ostrich egg laying on the ground. Our tour guide said they don’t have males, so the eggs are unfertilized. The next time he saw one, he jumped off of the tractor and brought it to us. It was pretty cool…bigger around than a grapefruit and, according to him, holding the equivalent of 16-20 chicken eggs. At the end of the tour, Ryan offered to give it back to him, and he said we could keep it. So, you know what we did, don’t you?! Breaking into the thing took a little work as the shell is pretty hard. The yolk was more orange that a chicken egg is typically, and the general consensus was that it tasted okay, maybe a little more buttery. However, the texture was a little odd, grainy almost like a powdered egg. It did, indeed, have a lot of liquid in it! We used one of my large mixing bowls and a 12″ frying pan! Here are a few pics:

MW snuck in an air museum…the Hagerstown Aviation Museum… just before we dropped off the PA Boogers. I was pooped and stayed in the car while they went in to check it out. I noticed something taxiing out on the end of the airfield that didn’t look like general aviation. About that time, MW came out to get my camera to take a couple of pics and saw it too. It was an F/A-18 Hornet that was going to roll right past us on the nearby runway. He ran back into the building and yelled for the kids, who made it out just in time to see that bad boy lift off. It was pretty darned cool to be that close. Here is a pic and a couple from the museum, too.

Okay, that gets us back to our regular timeline. Take a deep breath; time travel can wear you out!! On Monday, June 29, it was time to pack it in and go north. Our plan was to head east over to I-25, then take that north through Cheyenne, Wyoming, to the Guernsey exit. Things were going well until we hit the Wyoming state line and found a high wind advisory. Having seen plenty of blown over RVs on the forums I follow, we popped in to the Wyoming Welcome Center to see what was up. There we found that I-15 north of Cheyenne was closed for anything under 35,000 pounds until further advised. The wind usually calms down later in the afternoon or early evening, but no guarantees. The closest alternate, US-85 north, was also closed with the same parameters. We opted to stop in Cheyenne for lunch at Chili’s and see if anything changed. Well, it did…the weight limit went up to 50,000 pounds! Okay, so now our choice was to sit in Cheyenne until the closures were cleared, or drive around the issue. We opted for plan B, and headed east on I-80 over to Kimball, Nebraska, then turned north on NE-71 up to Scottsbluff. There we took US-26 northwest through Torrington and Fort Laramie up to Guernsey. The wind was still pretty strong for that drive, but the roads were open and it wasn’t enough to cause a problem. We pulled in at Guernsey State Park after 5 PM, which was really late for us, but also a blessing. It was certainly better than rolling onto our sides on I-25!! (Seriously, folks, if you are driving in wind-prone areas, pay attention to those 511 warnings. You can usually find a state website that has everything listed.) We got Priscilla all set up and watched a movie before bed.

Tuesday was a pretty quiet day. I slept until after 7 AM, which was seriously needed, then took a while getting my act together. Later I went into Guernsey to find some quiet for a little writing, landing at Crazy Tony’s Grub & Pub (the flatbread was awful and service was worse) which worked out, and I even got to watch some of the Serena Williams Wimbledon match. After a grocery stop on the way back, we settled in for the evening and watched The Streets of Laredo. (Y’all know I enjoy anything by Larry McMurtry.)

Wednesday we took the drive over to check out Register Cliff State Historic Site. Similar to Independence Rock in Wyoming that we stopped at before, this spot is a trail register of sorts filled with the names of folks who traveled the Oregon Trail. Travelers would have passed here before Independence Rock, and although there were once many more, 700+ can still be seen. Many of the oldest areas are now fenced off to keep modern day folks from writing over the names there now. Original names date went as far back as 1829, with one from 1797! Purportedly those were scratched over Native American petroglyphs that dated much further back. Soldiers from Fort Laramie, ranchers, and cowboys also scratched their names in the soft rock during the early years of the Wyoming Territory and statehood. It was pretty cool to imagine these folks riding across the plains and wanting to put their name in this rock to prove that they made it this far. While there I met a precocious little boy from Colorado Springs who was on vacation with his parents and sister. He helped me search out some of the older dates and gave me a little history lesson about the Oregon Trail. I love running into kids interested in history.

Before heading back to the park, we had lunch at Twisters Restaurant and BnB in Guernsey, which had a pretty nice salad bar to go along with our sandwiches. The owner was a pretty nice guy, and we chatted a bit with several local police officers, too. Next we checked out the Guernsey State Park Museum. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) had a hand in building many of the structures at the park, and the museum building is among them. Inside they have displays about the CCC, the establishment of the park, immigrants, Native Americans, wildlife, and plant life. It sits atop a knoll high above the reservoir, so the views are pretty amazing, too. My favorite part, though, was just the building itself. Built in the mid-1930s, it took about 6,100 man hours to build and cost ~$3,200. We also checked out The Castle and the Million Dollar Biffy, both CCC construction projects built of sandstone and logs. The former is a large picnic shelter with a stone arch and stairs to the top patio that overlooks the reservoir. The latter a 21′ wide and 42′ long latrine nicknamed by the workers, not because it cost that much, but because it took so long to build.

Although Guernsey State Park is near the town of Guernsey, it feels very remote. This CCC-built park built in the 1930s covers ~6,000 acres of rugged terrain and is spread out around the Guernsey Reservoir on the North Platte River. Facilities include a visitor center, the museum, pavilions, boat ramps, playgrounds, a swimming area, an archery range, over 14 miles of trails, and a dump station. Visitors enjoy hiking, biking, swimming, fishing, boating, and horseback riding. Lodging options include 4 yurts and 19 camping areas with more than 250 sites. This was a really nice park, and we would definitely stay again. We stayed in the Sandy Point campground, which had dirt sites that were fairly well spaced with picnic tables and fire rings with grill tops. Our site was a back-in, 50-amp with water, but there are some pull-thru sites available. Most of the campgrounds are primitive, though. There were no available over-the-air tv stations, and Verizon only had one bar of LTE, while AT&T had nothing. For this stay in July 2026, we paid just under $46 per night for 3 nights.

On Thursday it was time to continue the trek north, but we didn’t have too far to go. We made a quick stop in town for caffeine for MW, and ran into a diesel mechanic on the way back to the truck. When hooking up this morning, I noticed that our right taillight cover was missing, and we wanted a replacement or at least a temporary fix. He recommended Howshar Hardware in Guernsey, and they had red tape and some tank treatment that we needed, too. It was a fairly small store, but man, they had a lot of stuff crammed in there! Finally on the road, we headed north on WY-270. Just a few miles north, we passed through Hartville, which has several distinctions: 1) Established in 1884, it is the oldest incorporated town in Wyoming that is still in existence; 2) It has a “Boot Hill”, where many cowboys are buried who met their end during the Wild West times. 3) Miners and Stockmen’s Steakhouse and Spirits is the oldest business in the state of Wyoming. We continued north to Manville, then turned east on US-18. At Lusk, US-18 turned north, then east again after about 50 miles. We crossed into South Dakota and stopped in Edgemont for lunch at Hat Creek Grill. You know I chose it because of the name…at the beginning of Lonesome Dove, Gus and Call are at the Hat Creek Cattle Company, and the decor in this place had a replica of the sign. The food was pretty darned good, too; really fresh tasting and well seasoned. The last leg of the trip was US-18 all the way into Hot Springs, South Dakota, where we pulled into Hidden Lake Campground around 2 PM. The drive was beautiful, but a bit hazy. The wind was also pretty stiff, especially when we passed through the open grassland. We saw lots of pronghorn and cattle, and the views were spectacular.

Friday morning I spent a bit of time outside writing. We noticed this robin hanging around constantly and looking agitated and generally giving us the stink eye. MW figured out the reason. Her nest with babies was just above our heads in a tree about 3′ off of our right rear. I told her everything was fine, and we wouldn’t bother them. (Yes, MW gave me crap for talking to the bird.) It took a while, but she would finally fly to the nest. The other thing that is consistent in our site and the rest of the campground is rabbits. They really don’t pay us any mind or even bother to hop away when we come out. They clearly were not aware that I’ve eaten rabbit and actually like it. LOL After a while I headed out to get the laundry taken care of, then popped in at Taco John’s and brought some burritos home to MW. Storms with lots of wind moved through in the evening, which made for good sleeping for me.

Saturday morning we were up at 3:50 AM and headed out shortly after, and it was MY IDEA!! The last time we were in the area, we drove the Wildlife Loop at Custer State Park in the early morning and saw lots of amazing animals. So, we hit the park just after first light to see what we could see. We got quite the surprise with the first couple as we rounded a tight curve in the road and almost ran right into two big bull bison. MW slammed on brakes and the giant bovines split off in opposite directions. They really can move very fast! We saw hundreds of bison, dozens of elk, pronghorn, white-tailed and mule deer, and bighorn sheep, a large flock of turkeys, and what seemed like THOUSANDS of prairie dogs! It was totally worth the early wakeup.

We made it back to Hot Springs and popped into Wandering Bison Coffee for breakfast sandwiches, then headed over to Wind Cave National Park to see if we could get a tour. We booked one for the afternoon, then went back to Priscilla where, I won’t lie, there was a little nap. Well, at least until our neighbors ramped up their party mid-afternoon. We headed out again a little before 4 PM to catch the tour. There are several options ranging from wheelchair accessible, 1/2 hour tours to super strenuous, wild cave tours that have you crawling arm-over-arm in undeveloped areas for up to 4 hours. We chose a moderate tour of 75 minutes that started near the natural entrance, descended 300 steps and covered 2/3 mile underground. It was pretty cool, and despite having been on lots of cave tours, we saw stuff we’ve never seen before. Unlike every cave I’ve ever been in, this one is dry…no dripping water, no ponds or pools, no stalactites, no stalagmites. In fact, except for one very small place in the walkway, there was no dampness at all. It also only has one natural entrance, a hole big enough to crawl through, so wind does not blow through, When you stand at the natural entrance, whether you feel air coming out or going in is totally dependent upon the barometric pressure outside. Pretty cool! The lack of water and moving air currents, plus minimal wildlife also create formations that are different than any other cave…boxwork, frostwork, and cave popcorn. The current cave map shows 169.5 miles of explored area, but that is increasing all the time. In all honesty, we did this tour to check off another National Park, but after checking it out, we were glad we did. The park also has a nice museum at the Visitor Center and miles and miles of hiking trails

STUPID HUMAN TRICKS: So to enter Wind Cave, our entire group passed through a door into an airlock area. At that point, the guide let us know that we were about to descend into a tunnel, down about 300 steps, and into low ceiling areas. He noted that anyone with any reservations about small spaces or walking that much speak now or forever hold their peace. After everyone agreed to go, he made a point of doing a headcount and assigned one person in our group to be the caboose and make sure everyone in front of them stayed on the path. The descent began, and about halfway down the stairs, a woman and a kid about 13 or so did an about face, squeezed past everyone on the narrow staircase, and exited. When we got to the first large, open area, the caboose let the Ranger know, who then made a call to the surface so someone up there could ensure that the two made it out. He again made sure we were clear on headcount and pointed out that ensuring everyone’s safety was paramount. The tour continued. At the next big open area, the caboose said we lost two more who said to tell the Ranger they were going back. WHAT??!! Those people already saw that it was somewhat of a big deal and didn’t even bother to say anything to the Ranger even after he was so concerned about headcount??!! The Ranger seemed a bit distressed, clarified that we were now down by four, and made another call to the surface. By the time we got to the next large, open area, another Ranger joined the group and a supervisor appeared shortly after that, both having come down the elevator on which we would eventually exit. They asked all of us if we saw anyone go off trail and for the specifics on what the last couple said and did. Apparently no one knew where they were. Now they had a problem…did they make it back to the entrance and no one saw them come out, did they get lost somewhere in the cave, or were they purposely concealing themselves? It didn’t get any better for them by the time we all left the cave. The couple had still not been located, and because it was Independence Day and tickets were given away for free, there were really no records of who the tourists were. It is most likely that they came out of the cave and went to their car in the parking lot without going back through the building. However, thanks to that bonehead move, there were going to be a lot of park employees spending extra time on a cave search that evening. How rude!!

By the time we made it back to Priscilla, we were exhausted. Unfortunately, our neighbors were not. After the rain on Friday night washed out the festivities, a group of a dozen or so adults were sitting around about 12′ from our bedroom wall playing music fairly loud, talking loud enough to be heard over it, and only getting worse as the drinks flowed. We turned on our air conditioner in an attempt to drown out the noise. Despite the holiday, the park didn’t allow fireworks, but there were plenty in town. (That was a bit surprising, because several places we had been to recently banned not only fires, but fireworks, due to the drought.) Thankfully, because that sounds a bit like thunder, I can usually sleep through it. I put my nose in a book until quiet hours began at 10 PM, hoping the din would ease up, but it was not to be. The fireworks were over, but the party kept going. NOTE: On this RV park’s welcome email it says: “Quiet hours are from 10pm to 7am and are strictly enforced. We are not a party campground. We are here so EVERYONE can enjoy their stay.” They even go so far as to not allow anyone to check in after 10 PM and provide a phone number to text for issues. About 10:30 I texted a request to ask the neighbors to please quiet down a bit. No response. Honestly, despite the fact that we are early to bed folks, MW and I know that anything goes until quiet hours, but if a park is going to post them, it should not simply be a pretense. I waited another 15 minutes or so, then got dressed, walked over, and politely asked if they could take it down a notch. They were super nice and apologized for letting time get away from them. The next day I received a text from the owner saying that the camp host had walked through and didn’t find anything out of the ordinary. So I guess the upshot is that they actually ARE a party park, if that was the case, huh?!

Sunday MW and I headed over to Calvary Baptist Church, where Pastor Matt Lim gave a great sermon about what changed when we were saved and what “good works” are. Afterwards we had lunch at Whiskey River downtown, which was pretty good, but they were out of a lot of stuff thanks to the Independence Day crowds. Back at the campground, I walked over to talk to the neighbors and thank them again for being so nice. They apologized again and said they really had no idea it was that late. They were up from Colorado Springs, and we talked about our recent visit there. The reason for their trip was pretty cool…they had tickets to see the festivities at Mount Rushmore for America’s 250th with President Trump. They said the whole thing was awesome!

Hidden Lake Campground is right at the edge of Hot Springs, South Dakota, and within easy driving distance of Wind Cave National Park, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, and the famed Needles Highway. The approach is through a dry-looking dusty area, but when you top the hill onto their little plateau, it looks like a little oasis. Facilities include an office, camp store, various games in the picnic area, a playground, a swimming area, a trail around the lake, bathhouse, laundry, and wifi. Activities mostly center around the lake, with hiking, swimming, fishing (catch and release only) kayaking, canoeing, paddle boating, and paddle boarding. All of the watercraft are provided at no additional cost, but you do have to reserve them and sign waivers. The property includes 9 cabins (one that is a duplex) and the campground. The latter has 19 graveled sites, 7 of which are pull-thru. All are full-hookup with 50-, 30-, 20-amp, cable, fire rings, and picnic tables. Despite the party situation, we enjoyed this campground. Our site was one of the curved pull-thrus that faced into the woods, which made it a bit more private. Even the parallel pull-thrus were spaced well, though. It was a bit more pricey than most, though. For this visit in July 2026, we paid just under $70 per night.

Well, that seems like a good stopping point. Next up…Teddy Roosevelt, Crossing the Border, and Saskatoon. See you on the path!

Talisa

Sources: Park and attraction websites, brochures, and signage and Wikipedia.

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