Denver

Today we went into Denver. What a to-do to get there! The hotel is next to a vast interchange but trying to get on to it was a nightmare. In fact, we didn't. We ended up going all round the houses to get onto a road that would take us into the centre.

We ended up going in the right direction and in downtown Denver looking for a parking lot. Eventually we ended up using a parking meter for a couple of hours whilst we scouted around. The main drag is 16^th which has been partially pedestrianized. There's a free bus service that goes back and forth along it which makes for easier travel.

We went up to the main rail station and, like at Cheyenne yesterday, it's a wonderful building. Built at the turn of the 20^th century it shows all the features of a classic American train station. Very clean cut lines and classic light fittings. It was easy to imagine what it was like in its heyday.

We left there and did some shopping buying a few clothes and a book. Mostly we were window shopping. After the two hours had been up we had seen a parking ramp and moved the car to it. Denver has been the most cosmopolitan city we've visited so far. None of the others have had such a varied range of people.

At about five we attempted to find our way back to the hotel and used the satnav. It worked quite well and we arrived safely back.

Our big thing this evening was to repack everything ready for the flight to San Diego tomorrow. We're going to have to leave here at about 5.30 - 6 to be able to drop the car off and check in. The main problem is going to be getting to the airport but we think we've cracked it now.

Tomorrow's blog should be written from Santa Clemente in California.

and back to Denver

First I have to write that this hotel has one of the worst internet connections that we've experienced so far. That's why this is so late up for yesterday. However now we've a connection here goes.

The last part of the first part ends today, so to say.

The long distance driving ends today with a 270 mile drive to back to Denver. The connection to the Internet was flaky but obviously it got made and I uploaded the blog early this morning.

We set off heading first to Fort Laramie, not Laramie; they are two different places altogether. The drive was easy and straight forward. We ended up going little country roads and over rail tracks to arrive at the Fort.

It's not a stockaded fort but started out as a trading post and the US Army took it over and put in barracks and the like. The area was flat and open. The surrounding hills were a distance off so anyone approaching it could see it from a distance. After parking we set off and Isaw my partner stop and something was being pointed out to her on the ground. As I hurried over there was a small rattlesnake slithering away up a dusty path. Which I filmed. We've seen more wildlife, alive and dead, this time than all the previous visits together.

We went over to the Visitors Center after that bit of excitement and read up on the history of the place. This fort was one of those on the Oregon Trail when the first white settlers started heading westwards. It was quite an important place in its time but now was in the middle of nowhere, so to speak, gradually deserted as first the railway in the 19^th century spread westwards and then the roads bypassed it altogether. The site was made into a historic monument in the early part of the 20^th century.

What was there now was amazingly good. Houses and barracks were restored and outfitted. The general store/trading post had replica goods from the era. There were rangers dressed in period costumes acting parts of the locals. We wandered from building to building and through the wooden structures. The bachelor officer quarters were called 'Old Bedlam' due to the boisterous sounds that came from it at times. Strange that 'Bedlam' should raise it's head so far from it's original place (The Imperial War Museum in London, if you didn't know, is housed in the Bethel Madhouse – called Bedlam!) The day was wonderfully sunny and hot. Walking around the site was a real experience as the rangers were friendly and were only to willing to explain things. Basically the fort was a trading post and stop-off point. They didn't have any problems with the native americans and it seems that life at the fort was rather boring. No wonder that Fort Yellowstone, where they could go hunt and explore was considered a plumb posting.

There was even a laundress with her own tent and allotment. The allotment was quite genuine and they were trying to grow vegetables from the time of the settlers. The laundress could trace one part of lineage back to Wales. She was doing some quilting as she worked at doing the laundering too. We had quite a long chat with her and she told us about the conditions at the fort and her own part there. The life she described was one of great hardship and perseverance. The fort must have been hot in summer and cold in winter with very short springs and autumns. She said that the growing season was only 9 weeks so that didn't give much time to grow very much.

All in all a fantastic day at the fort.

We set off for Denver again and about half way pulled into Cheyenne, the State Capital, for a meal. A small centre was deserted but we wandered around and found the rail depot where there was the most amazing booking hall in the 1920s style; like the one that is seen in films; not huge but impressive nonetheless.

It was jolly decent meal and after a two hour stopover we made the last leg of the journey to Denver. We followed all the instructions but could we find the hotel? No! We drove around where it should have been but no sign for a Best Western. We looked again at the print-out of the booking and there was a picture of the hotel on the page and on the opposite side of the road from us was the hotel but under a different franchise... arghhhh!

We were told at the front desk that they had switched franchises and the signs had only gone up this week. We unloaded the car totally and took everything up to the room. The annoying part is that the internet access has been the worst of all. We've had it flaky but not so that we couldn't through. Here it's been dead. However it has come back but it's sooooo slow which is why this is a rather late entry.

I've had a request to put more pictures up so what I'll do is make a little portfolio of them in a separate place.

Mount Rushmore and Wind Caves

Mount Rushmore and the Wind Caves were our aim today, but what a day!

We set off amid bikers from Keystone and headed for Mount Rushmore. I've always wanted to see it since seeing 'North by NorthWest' which is one of my all time favourite films.

It was only a couple of miles from Keystone and we were soon there. We parked in the parking ramp which was deserted; well it was Sunday. The sight that greets one even from the parking ramp is quite awe inspiring. The approach is up through an avenue with all the states' flags; this does include our own fair Union flag – it forms part of the flag of Hawaii! (Check it out!) We picked up an audio tour wand for a mere 5 dollars, £2.50; the only downside was the rather over the top (to us) commentary extolling the virtues of the great America constitution. Don't get me wrong, it's a wonderful document, it's just the jingoistic attitude that sometimes comes across in commentaries. Walking along the avenue one can look up and see the four faces carved from the granite rock face. It is a staggering achievement and well worth the visit. Walking around one did hear a Ranger doing the bit about how far sighted and wonderful the founding fathers were forgetting to point out that Benjamin Franklin would have happily stayed under the British monarchy and that the Constitution was only meant to apply those of good British stock and not the natives but those things tend to be forgotten and it wasn't really an appropriate time to point out the errors in her speech or later on in the exhibition hall to point out the really big errors in the history tableau

The bickering and arguments before, during and after it had been built seem no different if they had been doing it today. The amount of rock removed and the completed effect are genuinely staggering and the effect is absolutely amazing.

I have to write that I was disappointed by one thing in particular; the concession area where Eva Marie shots Cary Grant has gone and been replaced by a modern equivalent in the 1990s. I could imagine the end of the film up on the sculptures even though it was filmed in a studio.

After being there for three hours we decided to move on to the Wind Caves. A pleasant drive including more bikers on the move.

We pulled in to the car park and went in. My partner bought two tickets for 'The Garden of Eden' tour.

We went along to the lift(!) that would take us down into the cave system. There was eight of us in the little party that headed below ground. Our guide, a ranger, was excellent. As we attempted to leave the reception area at the bottom we found out why they were called wind caves. There was a strong wind that disappeared as we entered the caves. It was all due to the difference in pressure and there was no real wind.

What greeted us an amazing series of caves with incredible rock formations caused by water evaporating and leeching the minerals through the limestone. There were thin, delicate formations called boxes caused by the original limestone being shattered, the minerals filling the gaps and then the limestone gradually being eroded leaving the in-fill as delicate sheets of minerals.

Our guide showed us what it was like in the early 20^th century down there by turning off the electric lights and using only a candle lamp. It was truly amazing particularly when she blew the candle out too. Where was the light that one sees on television when people are trapped underground?

We went through a series of caves, each one truly different to the others. The number of possible exits from each chamber was frightening if one didn't know the way out or there was a concrete path beneath ones feet. After being given a fascinating tour we ascended to ground level where, unlike the cave, it was warm and brilliantly sunny.

We had a coffee there and started on the 90 mile drive to Lusk. The number of bikers decreased rapidly as we headed south. We saw plenty of prairie dogs, a dead porcupine unfortunately, and several other unidentified creatures as well as missing several birds intent on committing suicide, or should that be avaricide or birdicide? After an hour and a half we hit Lusk. A small town with a rail track running through it which, even now, we can hear the train hooting.

We eventually found a Subway and a liquor store – they do like putting the bottles of drink in brown paper bags. We had a pizza each, a salad and a bottle of red wine.

After this I went to the reception area to make better use of the wireless internet. On the way back I fell into conversation with our 'neighbours' a really nice, ordinary couple, Steve and Pat. They had been married for 29 years(!) which must be approaching a record in the USA. They were from Pueblo in Colorado. A nicer and more ordinary American couple I have yet to meet. I suppose that we must have spent well over an hour 'chewing the fat' as they say over here. The attitudes outlook were not what one may be lead to believe from television.

Anyway it's time to sign off for today. Tomorrow we complete the last part of this journey; back to Denver for a couple of days via Fort Laramie.

Mount Rushmore and Wind Caves

Mount Rushmore and the Wind Caves were our aim today, but what a day!

We set off amid bikers from Keystone and headed for Mount Rushmore. I've always wanted to see it since seeing 'North by NorthWest' which is one of my all time favourite films.

It was only a couple of miles from Keystone and we were soon there. We parked in the parking ramp which was deserted; well it was Sunday. The sight that greets one even from the parking ramp is quite awe inspiring. The approach is up through an avenue with all the states' flags; this does include our own fair Union flag – it forms part of the flag of Hawaii! (Check it out!) We picked up an audio tour wand for a mere 5 dollars, £2.50; the only downside was the rather over the top (to us) commentary extolling the virtues of the great America constitution. Don't get me wrong, it's a wonderful document, it's just the jingoistic attitude that sometimes comes across in commentaries. Walking along the avenue one can look up and see the four faces carved from the granite rock face. It is a staggering achievement and well worth the visit. Walking around one did hear a Ranger doing the bit about how far sighted and wonderful the founding fathers were forgetting to point out that Benjamin Franklin would have happily stayed under the British monarchy and that the Constitution was only meant to apply those of good British stock and not the natives but those things tend to be forgotten and it wasn't really an appropriate time to point out the errors in her speech or later on in the exhibition hall to point out the really big errors in the history tableau

The bickering and arguments before, during and after it had been built seem no different if they had been doing it today. The amount of rock removed and the completed effect are genuinely staggering and the effect is absolutely amazing.

I have to write that I was disappointed by one thing in particular; the concession area where Eva Marie shots Cary Grant has gone and been replaced by a modern equivalent in the 1990s. I could imagine the end of the film up on the sculptures even though it was filmed in a studio.

After being there for three hours we decided to move on to the Wind Caves. A pleasant drive including more bikers on the move.

We pulled in to the car park and went in. My partner bought two tickets for 'The Garden of Eden' tour.

We went along to the lift(!) that would take us down into the cave system. There was eight of us in the little party that headed below ground. Our guide, a ranger, was excellent. As we attempted to leave the reception area at the bottom we found out why they were called wind caves. There was a strong wind that disappeared as we entered the caves. It was all due to the difference in pressure and there was no real wind.

What greeted us an amazing series of caves with incredible rock formations caused by water evaporating and leeching the minerals through the limestone. There were thin, delicate formations called boxes caused by the original limestone being shattered, the minerals filling the gaps and then the limestone gradually being eroded leaving the in-fill as delicate sheets of minerals.

Our guide showed us what it was like in the early 20^th century down there by turning off the electric lights and using only a candle lamp. It was truly amazing particularly when she blew the candle out too. Where was the light that one sees on television when people are trapped underground?

We went through a series of caves, each one truly different to the others. The number of possible exits from each chamber was frightening if one didn't know the way out or there was a concrete path beneath ones feet. After being given a fascinating tour we ascended to ground level where, unlike the cave, it was warm and brilliantly sunny.

We had a coffee there and started on the 90 mile drive to Lusk. The number of bikers decreased rapidly as we headed south. We saw plenty of prairie dogs, a dead porcupine unfortunately, and several other unidentified creatures as well as missing several birds intent on committing suicide, or should that be avaricide or birdicide? After an hour and a half we hit Lusk. A small town with a rail track running through it which, even now, we can hear the train hooting.

We eventually found a Subway and a liquor store – they do like putting the bottles of drink in brown paper bags. We had a pizza each, a salad and a bottle of red wine.

After this I went to the reception area to make better use of the wireless internet. On the way back I fell into conversation with our 'neighbours' a really nice, ordinary couple, Steve and Pat. They had been married for 29 years(!) which must be approaching a record in the USA. They were from Pueblo in Colorado. A nicer and more ordinary American couple I have yet to meet. I suppose that we must have spent well over an hour 'chewing the fat' as they say over here. The attitudes outlook were not what one may be lead to believe from television.

Anyway it's time to sign off for today. Tomorrow we complete the last part of this journey; back to Denver for a couple of days via Fort Laramie.

The Devil's Tower and Beyond

Our route today ended at the town, Americans call it a city, of Keystone, SD. We had thought about going to Sundance but gave it a miss to add another 40 miles to the days mileage.

We decided last night to go to The Devil's Tower. It was in the direction we were going in and it would, as I wrote above, add another 40 miles to the journey today but that didn't matter.

We set off a little earlier and I was going to buy some 'gas' but the price in Buffalo was $3.13 a gallon (USA gallons are 6 pints, not 8) regardless of the gas station and I'd seen it cheaper that that. We had half a tank which was enough for the day. I pulled off just after Gillette,WY, (look it up, it's real) and filled up at $2.92 a gallon – seems like the same rip-off happens over here as it does in the UK. Anyway, we noticed that there was an increase in the number of bikers and not just ones or two. This was in fours and fives and quite frequent! We wondered what was going on. Well, we had heard that there was some sort of motorbike rally in Sturgis, SD, but hadn't really thought about it much, until now.

We pulled off I90 and headed north up to the Devil's Tower. Again there was an increasing number of bikers. These were not young men with nasty grubby machines that looked like a good wash wouldn't hurt them and that applied to both machine, men and women! They were principally in their late 40s, 50s and 60s. The majority had leather wear on but more common were the grey beards, glasses, jeans and a 'chick' – probably wife or current partner – on the back. These were no hoodlums. What was interesting even more so was the lack of helmet wearing.

The landscape changed from scrub land to pastoral. The hills were much more rolling, there was green grass that didn't look as if it had been watered by anything other than rain; differing varieties of trees, not just different pines. And then thrusting out of this landscape was a huge upthrust of rock. It was so incongruous in the setting. There was a scenic pullout which we pulled into and took some pictures. Off we headed again and now the bikers were beginning to swarm like bees around honey pots; they were more numerous than cars. It's difficult to describe to someone in the UK what it was like but believe you me, this wasn't just one or two, this was forty or fifty we were seeing. The closer to the monument the more there were. All were very respectful of the law, no breaking of speed limits; staying in lanes; not swerving between cars; they were behaving themselves and acting as responsible citizens.

We pulled into the parking lot at the monument, the USA's first national monument, and got out. The air was scented heavily with ponderosa pine and the day was beautifully hot. The Devil's Tower is a massive volcanic plug that has been left after the surrounding rock has weathered away. It's one of those that you hurt your neck looking up at it. It's made of basalt and where it cooled the rock has crystallised into hexagonal columns. They are massive. It was spectacular to walk around the base and see the different aspects of it. There were climbers trying to get up it. We saw at least four groups. The sides of this thing start out shallow and quickly slope upwards and then are vertical. Goodness knows how you get to the top other than climb. Someone did do a parachute drop onto it!

Surprise, surprise there were plenty of bikers here too! There were even parking bays put aside for them. Obviously they were expected. After an hour and half we started back down and stopped off at the stores near the entrance to the monument. There were many, many more bikers now. At a guess there must have been easily 200 and they were catered for. Now we noticed marquees that had been set up selling biker orientated goods. All were friendly and there was a great camaraderie amongst them.

As we headed out of the monument area we spotted some prairie dogs and pulled over. They are pests in the wrong place but in the right place, here, they are so cute. Rather like meercats they stand up on their hind legs. There was a couple boxing and another pair just standing looking around.

Off we headed to our next stop. In this case we thought some food and a coffee were in order. Just at the state border, Spearfish, we pulled in and picked up some vittals which we ate at a rest area a few miles down the interstate.

Our next stop, which you'll notice I've not mentioned 'till now, was Deadwood; yes, that one of Calamity Jane and Wild West fame.

The number of bikers had decreased however...

Just as we hit the outskirts there were two lots of bikini clad, mostly well figured and endowed, young ladies offering to clean cars! I nearly drove into the kerb in surprise as I thought it was the sort of thing one only saw in the movies or tv series.

On entering Deadwood it was like entering Biker City. There were bikers of all types, shapes and designs- mostly Harley-Davidsons. Some were obviously showing off by riding up and down the main drag; the bikers were on the sidewalks and all were very amiable and although there were obviously drinking there wasn't anything nasty. The noise was slightly overwhelming from some of the motorbikes. A point to note in differences in language what we call a multi-storey car park, here in the USA is called a parking ramp. We parked in a parking ramp and went for a walk. It was sight to behold – down one side of the street was a continuous line of parallel parked bikes. The shine of the chrome and stainless steel; the coloured windshields; large panniers; small panniers; seats of leather; seats covered in fleece; bikes with long handlebars; most were short. The clothes were much as described before except there were a few woman wearing bikini tops and a few who shouldn't have been wearing them. There was even a naked biker, riding his bike along the main drag I might add with his partner, female and fully clothed, sitting behind him.

We ended up in the Adams Museum giving a good run down of the history of Deadwood. It's worth looking at website as the picture showing the main street is quite different from the way we saw it. The town itself has been revived and restored. The architecture was fascinating and worth looking at.

After about an hour and half we decided that our ears needed some quiet. The satnav helped us out of the town and set us on the right track.

We had discovered in the information centre about the bikers. The nearby town of Sturgis has been holding a bike rally since 1938 and it has grown. It seems that several hundred thousand bikers descend on the town and surrounding area. Again, it's worth a look at the website as it's the town that runs the event. As we headed for Keystone we saw any number of bikers; groups of them; long tails of them; sometimes there was the odd individual but mostly in groups and mostly men but there was one or two women bikers; they were on both sides of the road; slowly the numbers decreased until...

We reached Keystone where it was like a miniature version of Deadwood regarding bikers. However I wanted to know where Cary Grant and Eve Saint Marie were in 'North By North West' when they were here for this is where the climax of the film takes place. Well, it's at the Mount Rushmore memorial nearby but some of the action took place here! It's been a superb day with the weather, scenery and the bikers!

Tomorrow it's Mount Rushmore and the Wind Caves.

Today it's the Little Big Horn!

The weather until now has been good in the morning and cloudy in the afternoon. It was the reverse today, cloudy this morning with rain. As a prelude to today, last night we were listening to 'Round the Horne' on BBC7. The story was 'The Palamino Kid' a skit on westernsand it just seemed so very appropriate.

We set off for Little Big Horn but made a diversion to a Wal-Mart. There were one or two items that we had to get. I used my credit card and the poor chap couldn't get his terminal to accept our address and then the card reader wouldn't read my card, there's no magnetic strip as such and the card reader couldn't do chip and pin!

Whilst in the store the heavens opened and it poured down in a deluge. Even after we set out on the road it remained overcast. The scenery was very much the same as before. We arrived at the Battle of the Little Big Horn memorial site.

The area is high and undulating hills with sharp ridges dropping to a plateau with the river running along the bottom of the hills. There were forested areas below and it's easy to see how the battle took place. The museum gives a very fair and balanced viewpoint from both sides. I would imagine that 20 years ago it would have been quite different. The whole situation leading up to Custer's death was a disaster waiting to happen. It seems to have ill-planned and ill-led. There were talks given by the rangers and one of the talks made a very significant point. He pointed out that for all the 'advanced' technology that Custer and his men had, it failed – the guns took too long to load, even the pistols. The Natives were technologically backwards but their weapons – knives, bows and arrows, hatchets – all worked and they defeated the troops. Now, doesn't that sound just like a certain Asian war where the 'backward' peasants defeated the technologically advanced Americans. Enough of this philosophising and back to what we did. We must have spent a good two hours there as we also did the self-guided auto-tour. That was interesting as it built up a pattern of the troops being gradually winnowed down in a series of skirmishes and the 'Last Stand' was the climax. All in all it was very good.

The weather by this stage was quite stable and sunny. It was time to move on and we headed off to Buffalo. Again, the scenery was much as I've described earlier. The area we were travelling through is where the Rockies meets the plains. The road, an Interstate, was good and fast, up to 75 mph. When we arrived we noticed that there a 'Hoot and Howl' restaurant and bar attached to the motel. The name says it all but the food was good.

Tomorrow, Saturday, it's Sundance, Deadwood and a stay near Mount Rushmore.

Cody to Laurel

Another short journey day today. It gives us time to look around some of the towns we stop in otherwise it'd be just one drive after another.

Today we go up into 'The Big Sky' state, Montana. There's no sales tax! We moseyed along to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, '5 museums in one'. The five museums are: Buffalo Bill Museum, what else; Draper Museum of Natural History; Plains Indian Museum; Cody Firearms Museum; Whitney Gallery of Western Art

The two of the five that we didn't do were the Plains Indian Museum and the Western Art ones so I can't write about them. You walk into the lobby and the five museums split off from that; quite clever. We first went around the Buffalo Bill Museum. Fairly obvious what it was about and it did it very well. It showed his life story fairly and without embellishment. He did lead an exciting life when he was young but when he went into show business the events of his life and the show business side blurred and it was quite fair to explain that all the stories about him were not made up by him but by others who used him as a cypher for the 'Wild West'. The Wild West show he ran he was at pains to point out was nothing more than that, a show. It caught the public imagination so much that they believed it to be the truth rather than a fanciful show. It didn't seem to make claims about him that were unrealistic, unlike one or two exhibitions we've seen. On show were various artefacts from his life including clothes, saddles, newspaper articles,etc in fact, all the things you would imagine there should be as well as exhibits about some of the other people involved. Overall not too bad.

If ever there was an exhibition dedicated to slaughter the Firearms Museum is it. It was a relentless exhibition about firearms, which pretty much speaks for itself. However the first item on show was a machine gun of the type used in 'Carry On Up the Khyber' where Terry Scott and Charles Hawtry use one to try and shot the invading Burpas. All I could do was look at and ask my partner where the gramophone records go - if you don't get the reference watch the film and you'll get it. With 1,500 guns on show on the upper level and another 1,200 on a lower one it was a touch overwhelming. A one-theme exhibition that got tedious fairly quickly and we both headed out after about 10 minutes.

The Draper Museum of Natural History couldn't have been more different. It presented the natural history of the area in a series of levels representing the different heights. It was very interactive and quite beautifully done. Starting at the highest level one spirals down through different exhibition areas. The quality and standard of the information and exhibits is extremely high. There are glass panels in the floor that one can walk over showing what goes on under the ground too.

After a coffee and bun in one of the cafes we wandered down along Sheridan Avenue. It was quite typical of other towns we had visited but more touristy. It wasn't overwhelming or showy but quite pleasant.

We followed the satnav instructions for leaving the town and headed on up to Laurel until... we got to the state border. Going along we had noticed that the scenery was changing; the hills were becoming flatter and more distant; the signs for road works that had been showing for 30 miles or more has disappeared. So, it was a bit of a shock when we were flagged down for road works at the state line. We were told it was going to be about ten minutes and we had time to get out and stretch our legs, which we did. The woman chatted with us. She was a Montanan but lived about 350 miles north and worked doing the traffic control for about a 10-12 hour shift! She had been brought up on one of the reservations so we guess that she was a real native American! The pilot car arrived and we headed off, followed by a long line of traffic. The work was extremely extensive. The road was being ripped up and replaced by new sections. This went on for about three miles. The pilot car pulled off ready to take the next group across avoiding the trucks and on we went. The road became normal until we realised that the works covered a much larger stretch, in fact they went on for 10 miles on and off. The authorities were widening and renewing the road in huge sections. This wasn't even a highway but an ordinary road.

It wasn't long after that we saw signs for Laurel and we could smell it too! As we hit town we could see that there was a small oil refinery and a large railway junction and sidings. It's the most industry that we've seen so far, not that we have been in areas that are likely to be industrial. We found the motel and settled in. As we had arrived quite early for once we headed up to the town of Billings for a look around. We picked up some groceries for our evening meal, including a bottle of white wine. To cool it quickly we get ice from the ice dispenser put it into the sink with some water and roll the bottle around. It gets the temperature down quite quickly.

Tomorrow it's off to Little Big Horn!