Our trip so far has been fantastic.
After Forsyth we went to Nashville, St.
Louis, Mount Rushmore and today we hit Yellowstone. We spent a fun day in
Nashville only to return to the campsite to a flat tire. I carry plenty of
spare parts like bearings, races, two complete wheel hubs and two spares, so a
spare tire was mounted and we were ready for the next day. It was a brand new
tire flat too, WTF! The following day I brought it to a shop and they checked
it out. Turns out that the guts in the valve were leaking so they replaced it
at no charge! We’re definitely not in the northeast anymore Toto! 
Nashville was also a great stop. A bit crowded with the festival, but fun. We
visited “Recording Studio B” which was used by many of the great recording
artists of the past and is still used today. It was pretty neat to sit at the piano Elvis
used in many of his songs and to stand exactly where he and many of the other
artists (Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline, Frank Sinatra) stood at the mic while
recording.
Nashville was also a great stop. A bit crowded with the festival, but fun. We
visited “Recording Studio B” which was used by many of the great recording
artists of the past and is still used today. It was pretty neat to sit at the piano Elvis
used in many of his songs and to stand exactly where he and many of the other
artists (Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline, Frank Sinatra) stood at the mic while
recording.
Off to St. Louis. Of course the Arch was the first place we hit.
They are rebuilding the entire waterfront so it wasn’t the most welcoming, but
they still accommodate visitors. The engineering is amazing and in case you
don’t know it, you can actually take a ride to the top. That is if you don’t
mind sitting in a washing machine for 7 minutes. You get a great view of the
entire city from the top. We also spent a day at the Missouri Botanical
Gardens. Acres of different gardens and
well worth the visit. They have many rare plants and do a lot of research. Well
worth the visit if you go there. Jess,
being the gardening fanatic, had to be dragged out.
Our ride to Mount Rushmore was also
wonderful. As you drive through the open plains, which can be boring, you come
to the foot of the Black Hills and start climbing. Our rig, trailer and truck, is 58 feet long
and weighs 10,400 pounds but our 3500 Silverado with a diesel Duramax pulled it
like a champ. More importantly going downhill the truck has a special trailer
mode and an exhaust brake. I hardly have to put my foot on the brakes as we descend
some pretty steep hills at a 7% grade for as long as 5 miles at times.
Mount Rushmore is a great story,
four presidents representing: Founding (George Washington), Growth (Thomas
Jefferson), Development (Theodore Roosevelt) and Preservation (Abraham
Lincoln). We learned a lot about how the
mountain was carved and the men who worked on it. We also visited Jewel Cave. This cave is the
third largest in the world and is over 183 miles. I don’t know how deep it is but we descended
to a depth of 370 feet. The temperature is a constant 49 degrees, so bring a
sweatshirt. Or you can buy one in the
gift shop like I did because I forgot mine at the campsite.
A ride through Custer State Park
is a pleasant loop where you can see many a buffalo and prairie dogs barking at
you to keep away from their mounds
Below are a few picture:
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| Elvis's Piano |
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| X marks the spot where current and past artists stand to record. Look at how old the tiles are. |
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| The St. Louis Arch |
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| One of many displays at the Missouri Botanical gardens |
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| Mount Rushmore |
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| A herd of Buffalo at Custer State Park |
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| An example of some of the roads and terrain traveled |
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