A Photo Tour of The Badlands NP

It's raining today, so it's a good day to catch up on what we've been up to lately. We were feeling a little sorry for ourselves this afternoon after seeing Facebook posts of everyone back home in shorts enjoying warm weather while we're still wearing our fleece, but then we remembered what we're experiencing and how lucky we are to be having this adventure.

Yesterday we arrived in The Badlands NP early in the day. It was a beautiful, blue sky day, so we took advantage of every minute until dark. These photos will give you a glimpse into what we saw as we explored the park. It is truly a magical place!

This area, called the Yellow Mounds, is colorful all the time.

Big-Horned Sheep (Ewe above, lamb below)

We branched off the Loop Road to the unpaved Ridge Road, which took us along the prairie where the prairie dogs dig their tunnels and the bison roam free.

The welcoming committee at the first overlook on Ridge Road

The bisons all looked a bit shaggy because they were shedding their winter coats.

A push-me-pull-you (apologies to Dr. Dolittle!)












Prairie dogs really do bark!

We returned to the campground to await sunset. This killdeer was roaming in the grass.











We went out on the Loop Road later in the evening to watch the changing color of the rocks at sunset.

The night scenes as we returned to the campground

Despite the rain today, we did manage to get out for a little while. As a bonus, we came upon a group of big-horned sheep.

     One was nice enough to pose for me!

Although the sky was very gray, the colors were enhanced. 

Off to the Black Hills!

....and Badlands

After scraping a couple of hundred pounds of black, gooey mud out of the wheel wells of the truck we headed west for a short drive to our first multi-night stay at Badlands National Park. As we rolled into the park the topography changed dramatically from flat/rolling grass to sandstone spires and canyons.

Our spot in the NP campground has some of the prettiest views we've had yet.

 To the south:

To the north.
The structures in the pic are covered picnic tables at each site.











Due to an early start and a time change along the way we got to the park early and had the rest of the day to explore.

The park road wanders in and out of canyons up onto the rim and back again.







There's lots of wildlife....

....and even a wildlife photographer!

More to follow from the Badlands.

Wildlife in Ft. Pierre National Grassland

Grazing Cattle

The Ft. Pierre National Grassland in central South Dakota is an expanse of land owned by the government, but much of it is used by farmers and cattle ranchers. Dirt roads run all through the land, so if you have a sturdy vehicle, the patience, and a keen eye, you can spot all sorts of species. It's a birdwatcher's paradise.


Here are some of the birds we found. I'm just getting used to my new 500 mm lens, so these are far from perfect, but I'm having a blast discovering all of this amazing wildlife!

The first was the Wilson's Phalarope. This was a fascinating bird to watch because it spins around in circles to stir up potential food. I thought this behavior was odd until I searched my field guide to ID it.

Notice the little whirlpool that he's creating as he spins around.

These ducks are Blue-winged Teal

This Yellow-headed Blackbird wouldn't sit still and I was shooting from a bouncing car! But none-the-less, I was excited to spot it! 

At this point, we were up to our wheel wells in mud, but I had to try to get these two.

Marbled Godwit

This Ring-necked Pheasant wanted nothing to do with me and I wasn't about to chase him!

Cowbird

Bird on a Wire (don't know this one)

Off to The Badlands next!

Grasslands.....

After many miles of road, some
bad concrete and cloudy skies, and some smooth asphalt with beautiful skies, we arrived at Presho, SD. Presho is just a few miles from the Ft. Pierre (pronounced "peer" by the locals) National Grasslands.

National Grasslands are preserved prairie lands crisscrossed by farm and park roads some gravel, some mud. We found out about the mud the hard way, thank you 4 wheel drive!
The grasslands are home to numerous bird species and are a great place for nature photography.                                                                                                                                                                                              


          

Our Home Away From Home

Those of you who are not familiar with RV's may wonder how we can spend months in that box on wheels. To answer that, here are some pics of the inside our Home Away From Home.

This is the "street" side of the trailer with the slides extended.
With the slides out the 8' wide living area becomes 12' wide and the rear room about 10 feet.  

This is the living area with sofa/futon and dinette. This area has the big slide that makes the room liveable.
Max is moving into his favorite spot for "critter" watching.

This is the kitchen area directly opposite the above picture. It has a sink, 3 burner gas stove, microwave/convection oven and 6 cu. ft. refrigerator/freezer, and plenty of storage.
We also have an outside kitchen that has a sink, dorm fridge and hookup for a small gas grill. I cook out on the gas grill often.

Here's the "master suite" with queen bed, two closets, overhead cabinets, under bed storage and Max, the "Travel Cat".

Looking back through the living area to the entertainment center with 26" flatscreen TV, dvd/cd player and radio.

The is the back bunk room that has a large wardrobe with drawers, sofa/futon and two bunks. I converted the bunk on the left for bikes. But truth be told this is actually Max's room.                                                                              

One of the nice things about RVing is your OWN bathroom!                                              

                                                 ....and shower                














I hope this answers some of your questions about how we can live in a trailer for extended periods of time. We have all the amenities of home truly making it our Home Away From Home.                                    

Day 2: A Birthday Surprise

Sometimes things happen when you least expect them! This morning Lee and I were preparing to leave the campground in Ohio to head for our next stop in Indiana. We each have our routines down--I pack up the inside of the trailer and Lee takes care of the outside chores. I was just about finished when I heard Lee call me to come outside quickly. When I opened the door, he pointed to the top of a tall spruce tree just across a field from our trailer and said, "Go get your camera!" To my surprise, there was a beautiful bald eagle sitting atop the tree.

It turned out to be a pretty amusing show. The eagle was being harassed by a very brazen crow. I'm not sure whether the eagle was intimidated by the crow or just pissed off, but he finally flew away. The crow immediately claimed the spot on the higher branch, but only for a moment before flying away himself. I guess he just wanted to prove a point.

I expected to see lots of eagles when we get to Alaska, but the last thing I expected was to see one sitting in a tree in my Ohio campground on our second day. Since today is my birthday, I decided that it was a sign of good things to come.   Tomorrow we head for Wisconsin. I wonder what's in store?