Claeys Road Diaries
“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt" ~John Muir
Crossing to the Badlands #nps #badlands #roadtrip
We headed north along the border of Iowa on the western edge with sights on our first National Park in South Dakota. The Missouri River runs between the two states but eventually runs west into SD. Before we crossed over though, we needed to stop for a laundry run and some other necessities which brought us to Sioux City Iowa. Mailed my first soil sample package to Ramapo, went to the post office, did a couple loads of laundry, and stopped to load up on groceries. The thing about this area of the country is that it seems that everything is named after the Sioux, and not just Sioux City. Seems like every corner of the city had a business that incorporated the Sioux name. North of Sioux City is Sioux Falls. I suppose it’s good to pay homage to the Native Americans who originally settled this land but I can’t help feeling like there’s something wrong with this. OK. I don’t want to climb up on my high horse here but it’s not an understatement to say that we stole their land and then slaughtered them. Now we pay homage to them by recognizing the tribe? It really is beyond a blemish on our history what we did to the Sioux. Wounded Knee where several hundred of the remaining Oglalla Sioux were slaughtered, including women and children, is about 60 odd miles south of where we are here in the Badlands. They were and are the original “Americans”. I can’t help but to admire the American Indians relationship with nature and their approach to only use what is needed. They worshipped the natural world that provided them with sustenance. It’s interesting in a way that we, that would be us “white people”, are now coming around to what they were doing several centuries ago. We call it the environmental movement. Hope we’re not too late to the party.
We put a few hundred miles on once we crossed over into SD, battling a lot of severe cross winds as we headed west across the prairie on Rt. 90. Decided to stop in a small town along the freeway and splurge by going out to eat. We hadn’t been seated for more than 10 minutes before the skies darkened, the winds started causing the trees to bow to their power, and the skies opened up in torrents of rain. That lasted for about an hour and then it stopped. That was our break to head back to the RV and just in time as the second wave came as soon as we made it.
By morning it had cleared and although it was breezy, the sun was shining. After taking care of our morning chores (bed making, dishes, cleaning up, etc.) we hit the road for the final 75 miles to the badlands. Sites weren’t available at the one campground in the park so we secured one just outside the entrance.
Claeys Road Diaries 
hey Laurie this is TJ Louise and i love you and we miss you and grandma and i are keeping an eye on your sienna please say hello to jackson and david i will be thinking about you and dave and say hello to jackson love you and miss you and we enjoyed your blog see you next week hugs and kisses to you
LikeLike