Our time spent idling here in the Rapid City/Black Hawk area of So. Dakota certainly can’t be described as having been boring. The weather has been extreme, to say the least. Besides the near tornado strength winds that have shown to pop up on a moment’s notice, instant clouds with brief torrential downpours (rain & hail), wild lightning and thunder, but otherwise mild temperatures, particularly as compared to those both east and west of us, seem to be the norm. That guy Murphy, all I can say to him, as they say in the South, is “Bless his heart!” Gas heater in the kitchen starts making noise? Call out Toby of Land Roamer Mobile RV Repairs! One warped plastic blower wheel replaced and “Shazam!”, no more noise. Cha’-ching. Evidently during the lightning conflagration we got hit by a bolt or two and “Voila!”, no more shore power. No problem, call out Toby of Land Roamer Mobile RV Repairs, he knows where we are, we even have him on speed dial. Blown automatic transfer switch? Piece of cake, Toby even had the same make/model on hand. A quick swap out and “Shazam!”, shore power comin’ out our ears! Cha’-ching. We were very satisfied with Toby’s service and prices and recommend him to anyone with a need, it was just unfortunate for us that he is not equipped properly to address our slide grinding issue. That is why we have been stranded here for so long, our earliest appointment we could get at Dakota RV Repair was the end of June. And the hits kept-a-rollin’. Woodrow Wilson injured his neck pretty good struggling to yank himself out of his harness. Dog non-stop high pitched yipping? Off to find a vet in the area, landing at All Creatures Veterinarian Hospital. Exam, X-rays, Doggie Radiologist consult, pain meds, anti-inflams and a round of Prednisone taper and “Shazam!”, Woody got relief. Cha’-ching. Jeanne did some research on external, plug-in surge protectors and found one (at Camping World, yuck…) that she wanted to replace our old cheapy we have used from the beginning. And Camping World did not disappoint $-wise…Cha’-ching! So, Murphy, I’ll say it again, “Bless your heart!”

One cool, overcast day we loaded Woody into the Jeep and headed back to Badlands Nat’l Park. This day fell on the 62nd anniversary of the day of my birth, which just so happens to be the magic number to make me eligible for the old folks Lifetime access pass to the Federal Parks system. Yippeeeeee! The weather was mild enough that we could take short walks around some of the trails/points of interest while leaving Woodrow to guard the Jeep (dogs not allowed off pavement). We mainly wanted to do the basic northern loop drive which, if my math doesn’t fail me, was about a 93 mile drive. There are about 13 overlooks scattered along the north arc of the loop, as well as several trails/trailheads and other points of interest. There are also plenty of sightings of Bighorn sheep, tatankas, Pronghorn, and an understated “Roberts Prairie Dog Town” that is more like the size of an entire state! I’m not even going to attempt to properly caption as many photos as possible, my pea brain just not up to the task. So I will settle for non-captioned carousel mode for photo viewing.

On a clearer but temperate day Jeanne & I geared up for the 4 mile Sunday Gulch hike around Sylvan Lake inside Custer State Park. Sylvan Lake is a very scenic lake area, I think I posted a pic or two in a previous post, but you gonna get some more now! The hike itself is rated “difficult”, I would say it was more toward the upper end of moderate, but then all ratings tend to be matters of perception. It is of gravel/dirt/rocky surface, has 775’ in elevation change, there is quite a bit of rock scrambling much of which they have hand rails for assistance, and has some awesome granite formations along the trail. You might even luck out and encounter a bit of that good ol’ poison ivy! Now, the trail itself does not have GREAT trail markings, but there are blue tags on trees now and then to remind you that you are not lost (reminds me that “all that wander are not lost”). A big plus is that the  trail is heavily trafficked. In and among the granite points & peaks you may even get a glimpse of mountain climbers practicing their craft. Wear good hiking shoes/boots and carry enough water, even those temperate days. You will be “a-huffin-and-a-puffin” at various points.

While we parked here in SD, after some deep soul searching, we made a big life decision, at least one that will affect us for the next 3 years until I become Medicare age. We had dropped Jeanne from my county retiree health plan several years ago due to the outrageous cost to keep her on. Long story short (leaving the political bashing of Nobama Care out for your sake), we ended up covering her with one of the Christian health share ministries named Altrua Healthshare out of Austin, TX. During her time with them, we had very positive experiences with claims and EXTREMELY positive experiences with her $363-ish monthly “donation”. Recently, Jeanne found another health share ministry named Christian Health Ministry (CHM), I think out of Ohio. We researched CHM and decided I would also opt out of my county retiree health care and both of us moved over to CHM. Our monthly “donation” for the both of us, basically a non-networked PPO type of plan will run around $400+/- vs. what had been about $1,000+/- previously. This most definitely has become a true “leap of faith”. 

Our stay here at Three Flags RV Resort & Camp, freeway, railroad, wind noise and all has been great. Vicky the owner goes out of her way to help when Murphy acts up and I would recommend Three Flags as a base camp for the area just based on the service provided. 9484 Three Flags Ln., Black Hawk, So. Dakota (605) 787-7898

Also, repeating myself, I would recommend Land Roamer Mobile RV Repair and Toby if you happen to be in need. (605) 209-4644

Now you done be caught up! Until next post…