Four Presidents

Teri and I have made our way to Rapid City, South Dakota. The journey across the southern part of the state on IH-90 was notable because of what you pass through. Farmland. Lots and lots of farmland, and very little else. 

The South Dakota Vacation Guide tells us that the entire population of this state is just over 800,000 so it is no surprise that vast areas of the state are sparsely populated. 

We arrived in Rapid City on a gloomy, drizzly day but decided to head over to the main tourist attraction in the region, Mount Rushmore. We've seen images all of our lives, but wanted to see the real deal. As we approached from Rapid City, Teri suddenly said "Oh look, there it is". So we pulled over in a small pullout and took this picture. From this angle Lincoln's nose covers up quite a bit of Roosevelt's face, but it is a good viewpoint. 

Mt. Rushmore - First Look

We drove up to the designated parking area, only to learn that while the memorial itself charges no fee, parking is $11.00!!  Neat trick. Since the weather was crappy and we could see the monument just fine, we passed on paid parking. 

Mt. Rushmore

The view from the front shows all of the faces. We were surprised to see that Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln are set back into the rock a bit, with only the front of their faces carved. Washington is the only face that really projects from the rock. Driving a bit farther gives you that "profile view".

Washington Profile

A real treat as we drove back was a small group of Mountain Goats grazing alongside the road. They are looking pretty shaggy. I suppose that they are still wearing their winter coats, as the weather hasn't really warmed up yet.

Mountain Goat

We are finding that most of the tourist attractions are still "Closed for the Season" around here. I suppose there is no reason to open up if the tourists haven't yet arrived. In fact, the KOA that we are camped at opened only a couple of days ago. 

Onward...

Mark

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

We continue to make our way north and west, and have spent the past couple of nights near Sioux Falls, South Dakota. We are staying at the Big Sioux Recreation Area, which is part of their state park system. The sites are nice and large, but we have yet to see a staff member or ranger since we've been here.

You make your reservations on line, pay on line, and then just pull on in. The little office has been locked ever since we arrived and no one answers the phone. Strange...

We decided to visit Falls Park today, which contains the falls that the city was named for. The city was built along the banks of the Big Sioux River, and the falls were the center of a planned industrial area.

Sioux Falls

As waterfalls go these are pretty modest, The total drop is about 50', with the highest individual fall at 25'. The rock that forms the river bed is Sioux Quartite, an extremely hard and durable rock that was used to construct large buildings throughout the area.

Sioux Quartzite

The Queen Bee Mill was constructed at the falls in 1881 and was intended to be the centerpiece of the industrial area. The seven-story mill was capable of producing more than four times the amount of flour of a typical mill. Unfortunately it required large amounts of both high-quality wheat and water, and both of those things were in short supply. The mill went bankrupt in just two years, and burned in 1956. All that remains is the foundation walls.

Remains of the Queen Bee Mill

Onward we go!!

Mark

Morton Salt and Arbor Day

We saw two new states in about 10 minutes on our way to Nebraska City, Nebraska where we are spending a couple of nights. From Missouri we passed briefly into Iowa and then almost immediately into Nebraska.

Once we got set up in our campground we learned that the Arbor Lodge State Historical Mansion was nearby, so we headed over for a look. This was the estate of J. Sterling Morton and later Joy Morton. Joy Morton was the eldest of four sons and the founder of the Morton Salt Company whose claim to fame was adding a small amount of magnesium carbonate to keep it from clumping up in humid weather. Hence their saying, "When it rains, it pours".

Morton Salt Logo

Arbor Lodge

The building started out as a modest four-room cabin, but was expanded several times as it evolved into a 52 room mansion. There were numerous libraries, sitting, rooms, etc., and they even had a single-lane bowling alley in the basement. The bowling alley featured the original hand-carved wooden pins and wooded bowling balls. 

Bowling Alley with Hand-carved Wooden Pins

But what about Arbor Day?  I had originally assumed that Arbor Day came out of some sort of environmental movement, but the reality is that the first Arbor Day in America occurred April 10, 1872 when over a million trees were planted in Nebraska. The reason?  Settlers moving west were bypassing Nebraska because of the lack of trees and therefore wood. J. Sterling Morton sat on several land boards in the region, and felt that planting trees was the answer to attracting more settlers to the region. So he is credited with organizing the first American Arbor Day, and Nebraska is now "Home of Arbor Day".

Mark

West of the Mighty Mississippi

We continue to make our way from the Florida Keys toward Idaho. It has been rainy in the southeastern US, so we've been soggy.

We stayed in Chattanooga, Tennessee for a couple of nights. While we were there we visited the Tennessee State Aquarium, which was very nice. They had an amazing display of various sea horses and something called a Weedy Sea Dragon. We had never heard of these things before and they look like something out of a cartoon. We couldn't get a good picture through the glass, but here is one from the internet.

Weedy Sea Dragon

They have a huge Alligator Snapping Turtle that we enjoyed seeing. These guys are apparently getting pretty scarce due to hunting and habitat issues.

Alligator Snapping Turtle

They also have a variety of rays, including this Cownose Ray. 

Cownose Ray

Overall it is a very nice aquarium.

From Tennessee we moved on to Paducah, Kentucky. We arrived in heavy rain and it rained much of the time we were there. Today we drove into Illinois and then crossed the Mississippi River into Missouri. 

St. Louis Arch through the gloom. 

We are staying in Columbia and it is again raining. It is supposed to clear up tomorrow and we look forward to sunny days. 

Mark

IDGC

IDGC

Carolyn was close with her guess. The International Disc Golf Center (IDGC) is the headquarters for the association that oversees the rules, scoring, tournament ratings, etc. for Disc Golf. The center includes a pro shop, the Disc Golf Hall of Fame (yep, there is one...), a museum (many old Frisbees) and best of all, three different 18-hole courses.

The center is located within the beautiful Wildwood county park outside of Augusta, Georgia, and they have RV sites!  So for $20 a night we camped in a lovely forest next to the "largest man-made lake east of the Mississippi" and I got to play disc golf until my arm about fell off.

Since these courses are the showpieces of the PDGA they are very well designed and maintained. Spring is just coming to this area, so we were treated to the trees leafing out, birds singing, dogwoods blooming, and wonderful cool weather.

The three courses are each named after a famous disc golfer. The course that I am standing at above (WR Jackson) is the longest and toughest of the bunch, with 18 holes stretching out nearly 2 miles. Imagine throwing discs a couple of miles!!

Here is the view from the tee of the 18th hole. You are supposed to hit that little open tunnel in the trees ahead. Seemed easier to hit a tree...

I did treat myself to a new disc from the pro shop. Unfortunately that very disc (the red one) now resides at the bottom of Clarks Hill Lake. Did I mention that there are several drives across water on these courses??

We stayed four days in this area. On the last day we headed over to a private disc golf course that is known for "fun" basket placements. It included a basket buried in the ground, a couple hanging from trees, one back in a "grotto", and the largest disc golf basket in the world.

The World's Largest Disc Golf Basket

The Grotto

Buried Basket

Gallows Basket

Basket in a Bull Pen

Enough Disc Golf for a few days. On to Tennessee...

Mark

Merritt Island NWR - Part II

Just a few more from Merritt Island NWR.

Have you ever wondered where the Double-crested Cormorant got that name? From the side you can't tell.

Double-crested Cormorant

But head-on you can see the two little breeding tufts. Sorry, crests!!

Double-crested Cormorant

To round out our Heron/Egret sightings, we found these two species perched up in trees.

Green Heron

Great Egret

And we saw this Reddish Egret doing the crazy dance while it was feeding. They do like to run around!!

Reddish Egret

After seeing nothing but White-faced Ibis for years in Texas, we have enjoyed seeing the other dark ibis, the Glossy Ibis. 

From Florida we are on to Augusta, Georgia. For golfers, it is the home of the Masters. For disc golfers, the home of the IDGC. What is that?? Stay tuned...

Mark

Heading North!!

After leading our final Wild Wednesday Walk and assisting with the last Saturday morning Rockin' Refuge Rangers, we packed up and headed north out of the Florida Keys.

Our first stop was in Titusville, Florida just east of Orlando. The drive up IH-95 was amazing, as we noted that about 75% of the license plates were from northeastern states and Ontario. The Snowbirds are migrating home for sure!!

We paid a visit to Merritt Island NWR, since we are always on the lookout for places to see and volunteer. This refuge reminded us of Laguna Atascosa NWR, with a lot of oceanside wetlands, plenty of birds, and a very nice wildlife drive. Many of the birds were showing their "high breeding" coloration and displaying.

One of the first birds we saw was this beautiful Bald Eagle, perched high in a snag.

Bald Eagle

Waders were the most common.

Great Blue Heron

This Tricolored Heron was showing off its blue bill and tan-colored plumes. You only see this during breeding season.

Tricolored Heron

Snowy Egret

Less showy was this Swamp Sparrow. They tend to be sneaky, so I was glad to get a clear picture.

Swamp Sparrow

The Roseate Spoonbills were very bright.

Roseate Spoonbill

And they have one of the "good" grackles! Unlike the pesky urban Great-tailed Grackles in Texas, the Boat-tailed Grackle is a resident of coastal areas and isn't considered a pest.

Boat-tailed Grackle

Our most interesting observation was a large male Alligator "bellowing" at another male in an adjacent pond. This loud, rumbling noise will really get your attention if you are nearby to hear it. This big fellow would arch his back and project both his head and tail up out of the water and then sink as he bellowed. Impressive.

American Alligator bellowing

Next stop, Georgia...

Mark