Onward to Rapid City

Today's weather forecast was for rain; it started off sunny and cool in Sioux Falls but the clouds followed us as we headed west. By the time we stopped for lunch and some antiquing in Kadoka (Dick found another cool tool and I got my kitty fix. The resident cat took a liking to me and let me carry her around the store, purring and cuddling into my neck the entire time. I was in heaven), it was cloudy, windy and cold. Another thing that followed us across the plains were the billboards. I've never seen so many; at times they were so thick, on both sides of the Interstate, we couldn't even read them. 'World Famous' Wall Drug had the most, hands down. They started as soon as we left Sioux Falls and continued almost 250 miles across the state.

Our goal today was seeing the Badlands. Dick and I had both heard of them, but had no idea what they were. You're driving across flat prairie grasslands - and suddenly you almost drop off the edge of a cliff, into an alien landscape. The change is startling and dramatic. Beautiful sand and rock formations that go on for miles and miles. The visitor's center didn't really explain why the area is like this - the area was a sea bed during the dinosaur age, but so were a lot of other areas and they don't look like this. The wind - a constant, blasting force - continues to carve the dunes at an incredible rate. One of our favorite vistas was the Yellow Dunes - it's hard to capture the red and yellow hues, and the immensity of the entire area. Although the Badlands look barren, they are anything but. We saw more wildlife here than anywhere we've ever been. From cute bunnies that were inches from the pedestrian walkway - to mule deer - antelope - and want to guess what these are? Prairie dog dens. There were hundreds of the little guys running around. Including Fat Fred, who kept getting closer and closer to the car as I took pictures. I have absolutely no idea how those two cheez-its got out of the car and into his paws. But from the looks of Fred, it's not the first time something like that has happened.

The rain held off until we were back on the Interstate, headed for Rapid City. There are still patches of snow along the roadway, the first we've seen on this trip, which I take to mean it can still get pretty cold here at night.

Tomorrow we're off to Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, and more. The forecast is more rain. We're hoping for a repeat of today's weather but are prepared, just in case. On the down side, we'll be cold and wet. On the plus side, there will be fewer tourists around. Either way, I'm really looking forward to it.