Colorado, South Dakota & Nebraska

Itinerary

Aug 15 (Tue) Saint Charles - Lincoln, NE

This is the trip Brittany and I took to drive her to her new school for Sophomore year!! We had to drive, of course, as we were moving her into the dorms and needed to bring all her stuff. We took the Armada for the room. The distance from Saint Charles to Fort Collins is almost 1000 miles so, we decided to break up the drive into two days stopping in Lincoln, NE at about the halfway point.

I decided to extend my return trip by making a route up into Wyoming, crossing over into South Dakota and seeing some sights and then dropping back down into Nebraska.

I timed things so I was in the right place to view the total eclipse of the sun. Then finally back to Saint Charles.

Packed up car. Had to take Kathryn’s bike because bike rack needs crossbar to mount. Drove from Home to Lincoln, NE (480 miles). I did all the driving, brief stops for food, gas up, restroom.

Dinner in Lincoln, NE – just went to Perkins

Stayed at the Quality Inn in Lincoln, NE. It was the worst. Very run down and in disrepair. Halls and rooms smelled of stale smoke even tho the hotel is now smoke free.

Pool drained with mud on the bottom. Ceiling stains, doors nicked, concrete cracking, etc. etc. Oh well.... we toughed it out for the night.

Aug 16 (Wed) Lincoln, NE - Fort Collins, CO

Happy to get out of the Quality Inn. Drove through Nebraska (more boring than Iowa) and was going to have a late lunch in Cheyanne, WY. We drove downtown, which is quaint, definitely feels like cowboy country. The Diner I had picked was not open. We drove around a bit looking for another restaurant but decided to just go the rest of the way to Fort Collins. Ate at restaurant 415 in Fort Collins. Good. Stayed at the Super 8. Much, much better than the previous night. Clean, Maintained, comfortable.

Aug 17 (Thu) Fort Collins- Brit Move In

We moved Brittany into the dorm. We both liked the dorm better than at ISU. It has lots of light with three glass windows, and the middle one opens for fresh air. The side walls are brick which is really nice. Brit’s bed is about 3’ off the ground which is perfect. She can store stuff underneath and still be at a comfortable height. She says the closets are much bigger than ISU too. Then we went to lunch and shopping for supplies and food. Around 2:00 I dropped her off back at the dorm. She preferred to be with her new friends that evening so, I just went back to the Super 8 and watched a movie. Texted Brit later in the day asking how she was doing. She said... Great!

Aug 18 (Fri) Fort Collins - Black Hills - Crazy Horse - Mount Rushmore - Rapid City, SD

Before leaving Fort Collins I went to a dispensary and picked up some stuff.

Then traveled straight north on Hwy 25N up the Eastern border of Wyoming. Not much there, miles and miles of not much. Which... I liked actually. Made it up to Newcastle, WY later in the afternoon but the diner I planned to eat at was closed so, settled on subway.

Then headed east into SD and the black Hills national forest. The black hills are named because the pine trees have a very dark / black bark. So, from a distance, the hills look black. Had planned on hiking in Custer state park but, the fee to enter the park was $20 so, for a 1 hr. hike I thought that was not worth it.

Crazy Horse

Stopped at the Crazy Horse monument. The visitor center was actually really cool. Learned a lot about the sculpting of crazy horse which started in 1949.

Just Crazy horse's face is 22 stories high and is as big as Mount Rushmore and taller than the pyramids. The final sculpture with the horse and all will be huge but, no way of knowing when it will be done, just the face has taken 70 years.

Mount Rushmore

Stopped at Mount Rushmore. The entrance to the park is really cool. Took a bunch of pictures and that was about it.

Headed to Rapid City, SD Ramada Inn hotel. Ramada was fine. Clean, comfortable.

Aug 19 (Sat) Rapid City - Ellsworth Air Force Base - Badlands - Wall, SD

Ellsworth Air and Space Museum

First stop was Ellsworth Air Force Base and the Air and Space museum. I loved it. Lot’s of cool airplanes, B1 bomber, B29, etc. plus minuteman missile.

Badlands

Then, drove the scenic route through the badlands. Amazing geology. Stopped at all the vistas and took lots of pictures. Did a short hike (Notch Trail). The temp was 103deg so, pretty hot for hiking. Did more driving and picture taking.

Badlands Notch Trail Hike

Wall, South Dakota

Headed to Wall, SD. Downtown is only a couple of blocks long and dominated by Wall Drug. Took some pictures. Wall drug itself is just souvenirs and a restaurant. Not too exciting.

Stayed at the Travelodge Hotel. It is fine. Clean, comfy bed, sparse. Just fine for me.

Aug 20 (Sun) Wall - Minuteman II Silo - Badlands - Mission, SD

Delta 09 ICBM Minuteman II Missle Silo/h3>

Stopped at Delta 09 ICBM Minuteman II missile silo. Amazing and sobering. 1.2 Mton bomb mounted on an ICBM. Capable to launch in 1 min, 15,000 miles per hour, can hit most of the globe.

Badlands Castle Trail

Then went back to the Badlands for a long 10.7 mile hike. Phenomenal. Geography is amazing, like you are on the moon. No shade. Hot 90 – 100 deg. At times I could see in all directions for miles without a sole in site.

Drove to mission, SD on the border of SD and NE. About 120 miles from Stapleton, NE which is in the eclipse totality. Hoping for clear weather.

Aug 21 (Mon) Mission,SD - Stapleton,NE - Total Eclipse - Omaha, NE

Stapleton, NE Total Eclipse 0821/2017

Left the hotel in SD Got to the Stapleton, NE rodeo site about 10:00 am. They had people on horseback parking the cars which was kind of cool.

Just hung out until the eclipse. Weather was iffy. Fog when I left the hotel early. Slowly clearing fog and clouds as the eclipse time came closer. Perfect for the total eclipse. Total Eclipse was amazing! Lasted about 2:22 (one of the longest durations in the U.S.). Took off the glasses and witnessed the corona. Will plan for next eclipse. If you have not seen a total eclipse, make your plans to be in the path of totality on April 08, 2024.

Stuck in 3 hrs of traffic to get 30 miles down to North Platte, NE, then onto Omaha, NE and stuck in traffic again when I got close. I guess all eclipse traffic.

Aug 22 (Tue) Omaha, NE - Saint Charles

Didn't do anything in Omaha before hitting the road. Stopped for lunch in mid Iowa at good BBQ place. Returned home in the evening.

Home Sweet Home!

Summary

This was a really fun trip for me. It was a little sad saying goodbye to Brittany again but, I was glad we at least got to spend a couple of days together on the road. And, very glad she settled in quickly with her new friends. I really liked extending my trip back through South Dakata. The Black Hills were pretty nice ***, Crazy Horse**** and Mount Rushmore *** were very cool to see and the Badlands were amazing *****. Finally, getting to watch the total eclipse in a tiny town in Nebraska was an incredible experience *****.

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