5th August - Badlands & Airforce/missile museum

Well I have to take it back about the Badlands. We went back (and took the correct road this time) and what we saw was quite spectacular. Picture the backdrop of a western movie, that is what it looks like. Or a mini version of the Grand canyon. In the middle of it all there were some yellow (I guess you can call them) boulders. It was a great difference to the surrounding.

At our last stop before leaving the Badlands Grant was going to take a photo of me, and a lady starting to walk past. She thought she was getting in the way and apologised. I said no problem and that anyone could join me for a photo so one of the men came up and stod next to me. So funny. He said: she is taking a photo with a biker.

Then the lady offered to take a photo of Grant and me which was great. So instead of having photos with only one of us in the picture we are both together.

On the way back to Keystone, we stopped at a airforce and missile museum. It was really interesting to see all the different airplanes from WW1 and WW2. We could have also done a tour of the airbase but we didn't have our passports with us. They do a background check before you are allowed onto the base, so we will go back before we go back to Sioux Falls.

We also had a chat with a biker who told us that he had been to New Zealand for the Ironman race in Taupo. I have to say he didn't look like he was there for the race. Way to chubby for that. 

He wondered if we had come to South Dakota for the motorbike rally and when we told him that we didn't know about that rally when we booked the trip he laughed. He thought it was hilarious.

We went into Keystone for tea and was sitting watching all the bikes riding past. There are some really amazing bikes that are illuminated with LED lights in all sort of colours. AND we saw a biker that had a silverfern flag on the back of his bike. I almost stood up to yell "Go Kiwis", but I controlled myself....

Mount Rushmore & Crazy Horse memorial

Before I talk about todays adventures I have to do a correction. Yesterday when I said that the Bad Lands were as  monotinous as the rest of South Dakota...well I wasnt completely correct. We discovered today that we took the wrong turn and missed most of the Bad Lands....Hilarious. We will go back and take the correct way.

I don't think either of us ever thought we would see Mount Rushmore with our own eyes, but today we did. The first time you see the faces of the 4 President (from the left - Washington, Jefferson, T Roosevelt & Lincoln) you say WOW then you think... they are much smaller than what you thought they were. That is until you stand right in front of them. It is amazing that someone sculpted them out of the rock. The sculpter made a plaster of what he wanted the heads to look and they were taken up to the site so that the people working there could use them as a reference.  They used dynamite and pnumatic hammers to do the sculpting.

Just imagine to get all that equipmet up there, and the enviroment that they had work in. Hanging down the side of the cliff on a rope. And also how they knew they were cutting (and blasting) in the correct place.

Half way through the work they had to change the design of the skulpturs due to the state of the rock.

When you walk up to the monument you go past pillars with 4 flags on each. They are the state flags and on the pillars it says which state they are from and when they became part of the union. The only flag we recognized was the flag for Texas (the Lone Star State).

We then went on to the Crazy Horse Memorial. The local Indians wanted to show the white people that they also have heroes. The sculptor started work on it in 1948 but there is a long way to go before itis finished. The sculptor died in early 1980's, but his wife and most of their 10!! children have kept going.

One story we heard while we was there was that when one the sons were moving some of the blasted rock away with a bulldozer, he went to close to the edge and it went over. He managed to jump of the bulldozer before it went down. His father thought he was dead until he saw him standing up dusting himself down. And as only a father could say he said: *Well you got it down there...you get it up from there*

3rd August - Sioux Falls to Keystone

Today we drove from Sioux Falls to Keystone. It took us about 6 hours. The roads here are very straight so when there is a bend in the road it is quite exiting. South Dakota is also very flat. You can see for miles. 

There is this motorcycle rally in Sturgis starting today and we saw several 100's of motorcycles on our trip. Mainly Harley Davidson's. And most of them ride without wearing helmets, and all of them without bike leathers. 

On Sunday when we were at the Army people told us to take the Bad Land byway because the views are fantastic, so we did... but apart for the first bit it was just as monotinous as driving on Inter State 90.

We hit 90 (33 C) while in the Bad Lands. Thankful that the car have aircon...

While in the Bad Lands we saw what looked like a mini sunflower. Cute and beautiful. Also got some photos at some really interesting rockformations (another selfie is coming...)

We missed an intersection and ended up in Rapid City, but we found another way to get to Keystone. When we arrived I saw the sign saying: Keystone population 327. I think for the moment that should probably read 2327...

Had a buffalo burger for tea. It was nice. A man chatted to us tellijng us that he and his wife have come for the bike rally 31 years. He asked if we lived in US. When we said no he said England... When we told him NZ he said ohh that¨s nice. He then wished us a safe trip and to enjoy ourselves.

Ended the day having a lazy evening at the hotel.

2nd August, Sioux Falls

After a short (and very warm) night, we woke up just after 8am. We had breakfast at the hotel, and that was a really interesting experience. They had a sign saying 'Wait here to be seated'. Well we waited and waited and in the end we just sat down. There were a couple that probable waited 15-20 minutes befreo the waitress acknowledge them (and at one stage she was there right in fron of them). She did thank us for our patience and that she was really busy.....

after that we drove to the Sioux Falls Corps for the Sunday morning service. There was about a dozen people present. We were warmly welcomed, we even had to stand up and say our names and were we came from. One lady told us that she had been to New Zealand with her mum. Another lady was a childhood friend of my cousin Valerie. And to top it of, the DC was there and when we asked him if he knew about the Hellstrom family and that I am related to them, well, he almost fell backwards. Randy is his Divisional Secretary, Aland went through Training College a year before him and Valerie the year after. It's a small world.

The service was interesting. The Mrs Major palyed the piano (one handed) and for the worship songs they used a backing tape. It just make you appreciate what we have back at City.

After the service we went to the actual Sioux Falls. An old man told us a bit about the place. The rock is a special type of granite that is so hard it is really hard to cut. There is an old mill at the falls that a politician built in the late 1800. He needed investors to have it built so he made a dam further up river, told them that the river was really strong and just before they turned up they broke the dam. The investors were so impressed with the strenght of the river so they all invested. Then at summer time the river dried up......

Then we went to have a look at the USS South Dakota ( a ship from WWII). It is just the outline of the ship with a few guns, a propeller and a anchor, but you get the feel of how huge it was. It was only in service for about 4 years before being taken out of service. It saw battle in Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima and Okinawa just to mention a few places.

Then before we repacked in preparation for travelling to Keystone we went back to the falls to see them ¨by night¨. It has been a great day. I have attached a couple of photos from the falls as well one of Huka falls. Note the difference in colour.

Day 1 part 3

Boy were we glad that we had organised the hotel in LA. The 3 hours or so of sleep helped with the rest of the trip.

When we came back to the airport, going through security was an experience. You have to take your shoes of and you go through an x-ray machine. At least one of the guards were friendly and had a chat with us.

It seems to be common practice here for the airlines to overbook all the flights. While we were waiting for the flight they kept calling for people to come to the desk. For us it all looked like a shamble but it all seems to work. 

Minneapolis airport is huge! I think we had to walk from one end to the other to get to our flight to Sioux Falls. And to make it even further .... When they started to board us they discovered that they had overfilled the plane with fuel!! I wonder who did that mistake`? So we had to walk to another gate and board another plane. I was amazed that in the end we were only 30 minutes late leaving.

And to make  it even better, all 3 suitcases turned up in Sioux Fall with us. 

We got the car upgraded for free from a Corolla to Malibu, because they didn´t had a small car. What a beauty.

So off we went on our first drive in US. Missed the turnoff but it was ok. Took the next and managed to get to the hotel. All of 10 minutes drive. It felt so odd being on the other side of the road. Hopefully we get used to it really quick.

Time for bed.

Day 1 part 1

It is 4.50am and here we are at Wellington Airport ready to start the adventure. We have been up since 3am this morning and it is 22 hours until we reach Los Angeles (halfway). So it is an early breakfast today....

So the flying today is... Brisbane, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and finally Sioux Falls. 

We are both feeling a bit nervous, but also exited. Looking forward to see things we have read and heard about, like Mount Rushmore, Sioux Indians and especially to meet my cousins for the first time.

Day 1 part 2

25 hours since the alarm went off and we have finally arrived at Hilton Hotel. We have to wait 25 minutes before our room is ready. It will be so nice to have a shower and to stretch out on a bed, before we continue on our journey to South Dakota. The flights have been really good with good company. The lady I was sitting next to on the flight to Brisbane was going to visit her daughter that 7 years ago was diagnosed with bowl cancer and just recently with a brain tumour. At the same time her daughter was diagnosed with cancer 7 years ago, her husband was diagnosed with cancer as well. She said to me to take every opportunity to do the things you want todo, because you never know what is around the corner.

I  prayed to God for them and asked him for healing.

To follow is a photo of the foyer at Hilton Hotel