July 23, Thursday, After eating breakfast, we head downtown for the Big Cheyenne Frontier Days Parade. We find parking one block from where we want to sit..Free...some were charging $4.00 to park in their lots, but there was plenty of space on the side streets. We find a spot on the curb to sit on the shade side of the street. It is getting Hot today..high in the 90's. I walk around because we have time before it starts. I take pictures around town of the cowboys, trucks, buildings,etc. I find a bootmaker and he shows me his finished product, a beautiful red,white boot..$1,800.00 Wow...He said it lasts a lifetime(I hope So!). Then another cowboy sells me a chance on a Winchester Rifle...What am I going to do with it..I never owned a gun. Oh well I just made a donation.

Now the parade begins... Lots of cowboys...horse drawn wagons of the old west...antique cars..clowns..can can girls, firetrucks, Local & State government officals..even the Governor is here. The wagons were beautiful. Lots of horse riders all decked out in silver outfits. There was even an old car saying "Cheyenne or Bust!!" on the side, that was my favorite. There was a float with military wives and kids with big pictures and signs with tribute to their dads serving in Irag. No dry eyes here!! Thye parade lasts an hour and 15 minutes with no gaps..very well done as a tribute to Cheyenne Days!!

Back to camp for lunch and a quick nap...then off to the rodeo..we see cowboys in action ..you know the classes of competition..bull riding, bucking horses,calf roping, barrel racing, etc. That was a fast 3 hours , the stands were full of spectators, we had the shady and windy side,cool but hot sun. We then walked around the midway and had Sirlion tips dinner, it was made at one of those out door bar-b-que pits. It was very filling,tips,potatoes,onions, fried mushrooms,green beans...mmm good!

Then we walked over past the Chuck Wagon Displays..Looks like a Tailgate party from long ago? These people sure get into the western theme with out door cooking and baking competition. We then stop at the indian reservation to look at some crafts,then back to camp.I think the Heat is getting to both of us...still 90* here. Tomorrow we leave for Jackson Hole and the Tetons...till then .. http://picasaweb.google.com/AirstreamHobo/CheyenneFrontierDays#

See my Album on Cheyenne Days...its a lot of photos
God Bless ....AirstreamHobo and Carol

The Air Force ThunderBirds

July 22, Wednesday, This am we catch a bus at the local mall as there is no cars allowed on the airport fields. The buses run very fast and there is hardly any waiting, we arrive within 10 minutes at the Air Show. We are stranded on the bus because the ThunderBirds are moving soon on the runway...sucks..I wanted to take pictures. They change their minds(security) and let us off, but must stay on the field before the security tent..we all said ...Yes Sir !!! and Thanks for letting us see off the bus!

The ThunderBirds then cross the runway in front of us and prepare for take off..WOW!! Awesome Power!! We then go thru security.. very quick .. the airport is filled with all kinds of Planes on Display and Flight show at noon. I am dissappointed though...the ThunderBird show is 3 miles away at the Local College(less houses we are told) But we see them form here and can easily see them in flight. Also we get to see them take off and land back here with much fanfare here. I am told later that we see a much better show here. There is so much on display here..Navy..Air Force..National Guard all have stands. There is custom motorcycle here & even a Big Monster Truck( Both by the Air Force). The food stands are plentiful and good prices too!! We had Papa Johns' pizza for lunch, with sodas. It is HOT here so we load up on sun screen and wear hats and drink plenty of water too!! Did I tell you this Air Show was all FREE??? Hey, don't blame me!! They did this because I am in town..Thanks Frontier Days Celebration for the Free Show!!

Noon time ...The Show begins with parachute jumps..smoke and flags..impressive!! Then the vintage planes and jets give us a show. I don't know all the makes, just know they are fine running planes!! The show lasts till 3:30 and we bus back to the mall within 30 minutes...see I told you it was fast... Culvers for afternnon supper then back to the airstream to relax..Retirement is hard on our old bodies. Tomorrow is a fullday too!! Stay tuned, we will fill you in then ...Fun..Fun...Fun.. is plannned!! Can't wait ...
God Bless AirstreamHobo & Carol

Indian Dances at Cheyenne Frontier Days .....

July 21, Tuesday, Rise and shine at 6:30 am Leave at 7:30 for Cheyenne. The parade starts at 9:30 and I would like to see it. Well we arrive at 9:30 and the parade has started, there is another one on thurs am. We went to the camp ground on the premises...no hook ups.. but close to everything. The charge is $25.00/nite and we can walk to the gate.

We walk over after setting up to see the sights. There is cowboys /girls everywhere. There is a western town strip mall(?)along the fence behind the Rodeo Arena, Shops are full of cowboy/western things, like a little flea market of crafts. We walk in and out of the shops and down at the end is an Indian Village setting. There is a free show about to start, the indains show us various dances and songs. After the 1/2 hour show they also have a craft row of indian things,pottery,jewelry,shirts,furs,and of course food stands. Then we have a Indian Taco Salad for dinner ..one plate was enough for two of us...mmm.. good.

It is getting hot and the locals tellus to keep drinking liquids because of the higher altitudes and the heat. We walk over to the midway to see more craft/junk stands and lots of rides for the kiddies/teenagers too. We are tired so we walk back to the airstream to catch a nap. I set uo the honda.generator so we have electric, we may run it from 6am till 10pm each day. That will keep the batteries up for the nights. Tomorrow the Thunderbirds have an AirShow for free, they were practicing fly bye's today...Loud!! Tonite we will relax to get ready for tomorrow..Air Show and the Rodeo too. God Bless AirstreamHobo & Carol

Bison ...First..Remember That!!

July 20, Monday, Today we pack up to leave for Cheyene,WY. But first I stop in at the Fire House in the campground. They have the trucks out in the yard doing repairs to one of them. I talked to one of the fireman and he says he has been to Calif. and also Alabama. They get calls for forest fires all over the USA. The trucks are mostly brush trucks holding 3 men and go!! Now we are ready to leave, we turn right out of the camp go 1/2 block and stop at another camp. Why? I wanted to see and ask about their set-up. This is a Horse Camp, people bring their horsetrailer/camper to this area and camp with their horses and go riding on the trails around here...cool ..the owner said this is a fun camp once you get used to the Smell.

Now we are on our way...well.. we run into a herd of Bison 200 strong..click..click.. traffic is at a stand still.. we work our way thru after about an hour down time. We head for Custer,S.D. then east on Rt 16 then in New Castle we head south on Rt 85.. We pass thousands of acres of deadly forrest fire damage. What a shame the hills are so barren and will take decades to recover. When we turn on Rt 85 south the sign says "no services' for 81 miles, and they ain't lying. Just a long highway passing ranches of thousands of acres. Not many neighbors to fight with? We arrive in Lingle and turn right toward Laramie to a RV park, We arrive shortley after 3 for the night about 190 miles today...thats my limit.... This is a Passport America park,so 50% off our total is $14.99 for 30 amp/water. This is an old KOA and is an old park but nice about 30 rigs are here. Even free Wi-Fi too!! Tomorrow we are leaving at 7 am for Cheyene for the morning Parade at 9:30, I hope we make it..Cowboys,Indians, and the Wild West!!! Maybe I will take a few pictures..Make sure you catch up on my albums..now downloaded ....Any Comments???

http://picasaweb.google.com/AirstreamHobo/CusterStateParkNeedlesHighway#

God Bless..... AirstreamHobo & Carol

Here is a Bison Road Hazard!!!Hundreds of them!!

July 18,Saturday, After hanging out around the camp this morning, we left at noon for the Custer Park Loop Drive. Carol packed a lunch and ice chest for a roadside picnic later. Driving down the road a short distance we entered the Park crossing many open rail bridges at the fences, I am told this is to keep the animals from leaving the areas. First thing we run into was a herd of mules & their colts.They used to be pack mules for hikers. They walked right out in front of us looking for food. They even poked their heads into the window and into a open convertible...fun..fun...click..click.

Then down the road we stop to enter the park, a $15.00 window sticker is required, good for a week. We follow the wildlife drive thru the park. Around the curve we see Bisons grazing in a park rest stop. Several are here, the ranger volunteer tells us we can stay on the water bridge but no further. He is carrying a bull whip to push them back if needed. We see them rubbing their back along side a tree..snorting loudly..grazing, feeding their calves, and just moving slowly across the park. The volunteer tells us he is from Alabama and comes here every year to volunteer in the park. He works 3 days and gets 4 days off, he loves it and it gets him out of the HOT south!! His wife works in the ranger info station.

We chat with 2 Motorcycle travelers, they are going to Sturgis,S.D. for the biker rally. They are from Illinois and make this trip each year. They tell us to go down the road and there is a herd of Bison, at least 200 strong. Off we go...WOW... there they are . Traffic is tied up both ways. The Bison are all over the road ..click..click..people are hanging out the windows to take pictures. It takes us at least 45 minutes to get thru the traffic jam. Then off to the grand open prarie winding roads up and down tru the hills..click.click.. Beautiful!!! We even see Antelope again!! The prarie drive is nice but a little boring if you don't see animals.

Then we arrive at the beginning of Needles Highway, what a difference, winding thru pine trees then into rock formations. Every turn out has a new look, we pull off at some and click,click. I take a picture of a couple from Wilkes Barre,Pa. what do you know they have an Airstream motorhome and pull a motorcycle trailer for touring. At the next turn out people are looking UP!! Way up the needles rocks are rock climbers yelling at each other instructions, we count 5 on the sides of the rocks. We even get out the binocculars to see them close...thats not for me?? Too High!! Then thru some more rock tunnels, I don't know how the motorhomes get thru, they must suck it in..mirrors and all. It was tight for the van. Then we arrive at the Needle Rock, lots of people taking pictures...Darn Tourists!! Everyone must have a digital camera because we all take numerous shots. The Needles Highway is one beautiful drive , but take your time ,lots of curves and outlooks . 20 miles takes us 3 hours to cover.

After a brief rest at the camp, we leave again for the night light show at Mt.Rushmore. More curves up and down and switch backs 1/2 hour to do 7 miles. We arrive to lots of people already sitting in the stone arena(at the base of Mt.Rushmore) with a stage down front. We are greeted by a Ranger with a 10 minute quiz then a history lesson then a 20 minute movie which ends with all of us singing "The National Anthem". Then the Ranger asks that all Veterans come down to the stage. At least 100 come down, a small boy even carries a big picture of his daddy(who is in Irag) onto the stage. We all clapped for the Veterans...Then the Ranger takes his microphone to each and everyone for them to say their name and branch of service, what an awesome Tribute to All Veterans....Standing Ovation to All....

Back to Camp..zzzz...morning comes..Sunday already..We have to move our site is reserved. So we pack up the airstream,electric and water hose thrown on the back bumper. I pull out to the left ..stop...back up past 3 spaces and into the 4th...#45 down to #41..My shortest move yet?? I unhook and plug in electric,water, level the rig. Carol starts breakfast of sausage and eggs.. we move in less than 15 minutes... It is Hot here already at 9 am the Air is on!! Camping is rough ain't it? Well we will relax for the day then tomorrow tear down again and head for Cheyene, Wyoming..This week is Cheyene Days..Lots of Cowboys and parades....I love Parades ...Don't You? See Ya and God Bless...AirstreamHobo & Carol

Mt. Rushmore ...Awesome sight !!!!

July 17,Friday, Slept in till 9am, I needed that... went to the office to check in and get travel maps of the area. I missed it last night at 5pm one of the cabins caught fire and burned out, luckily all got out and the Fire trucks are housed in the campground. The owner told me that he contracts out to the National Forrest Parks to fight fires under contract on Federal land. The campground is full of campers, lots of motorcycles because of the Sturgis ,S.D. Rally in a week!! Some pull a tent trailer behind their cycle..sharp looking rigs Too!!

We then leave at noon to go to Mt. Rushmore only 11 miles from the camp. The roads are very sharp curves and switch backs..7 miles of 300 curves they say. No campers should try these roads. We stop at overlooks and pull offs to see the sights and the 4 presidents on the rock. We arrive at the lot, $10.00/car pass good till the end of the year. You may enter as many times as you like with the pass. We have a Ranger Walk as he takes us along the Presidental pathway to explain the History of Mt.Rushmore. He was very good speaker and held the crowds attention. We made about 4 stops along the way getting closer to the heads on the rock. Many tibits were shared with us.

Back to camp for supper, afterwards we took a drive towards Custer's Park Loop. We saw antelope..yes they do play!! we saw them play with each other in the fields. We then came around the bend and there it was .... A Bison standing in my lane!! Just licking the water puddle in the road, then we saw several more up the bank. Down the road we saw hundreds grazing off in the pasture. We even saw a mother feeding her young calf,there was another nearby close , we think she might have had Twins. We then returned to camp because of darkness and did not want to hit any animals after dark. Tomorrow we will continue thru Custer Park...Till Then ..
I have 4 albums to down load, but the wi-fi is slow here so you will have to wait to see the pictures of the past 4 days!!!
.God Bless...AirstreamHobo & Carol

Here we are at the Badlands,S.D. Beautiful Drive thru the Park!!!

July 16, Thursday, We pull out of Mitchell,SD. for Mt Rushmore with reservations there tonite...300 miles to go. We see signs for 1880 Town, an old west town put together as a replica for all to see. We keep seeing signs for it and it look like a good stop at noon,so we pulled off the interstate.

Admission is reasonable only $9.00 each to enter. The first building is lots of old saddles, western outfits, old buck board wagons and lots of pictures. Then out into the yard, oops I mean street of dirt and old buildings on each side representing an old west town. We walked thru some old buildings then saw a comotion in front of the old hotel, 2 cowboys bothering the tourists mostly the kids. Having a good time we stopped and took in the short comedy show. These guys sure have fun picking on the crowd. We went in the old hotel for a look. There was an old bar room with bar and stage even a balcony to watch the show.

In the back room there was thousands of cowboy/ lady outfits even some for the kids to dress up. I thought it was for those old time picture get ups. But I was wrong...again... You can for only $5.00 yes I said $5.00 dress up as an old west cowboy/lady or kid...this outfit was pants,shirt,boots,guns,holster, cowboy hat...girls wore frilly dresses,some look like Laura Ingles from "Little house on the Praire" after a while the whole town was filled with Old West look alikes!!! This was Cool.. You get to act out your cowboy/girl fantasy for the whole day for 5 bucks!! That is a Deal!! I saw whole families dressed up, I ask one mother about it, she said they come here every year so the kids can dress up & Love It!!

We sat a table and ordered sasparilla bottle and watch the indoor stage show..same cowboys did this too. Boy could they sing and tell stories. We then continued on thru the town seeing..the homestead,church,one room school,fire house,blacksmith,jewelry store,bank,post office, salloon,store,train station, and the town boro hall. Great little town to bring back memories and dress the part too!! I should have dressed up as a cowboy, who knows Carol could have been Annie Oakley???

We finally left there at 4pm and headed for the Bad Lands 30 miles down the road...WOW!!! What a difference in flat land to the awesome towers of sand mounds and deep canyons everywhere. We took the 40 mile loop thru the park stopping every turn out to take pictures...This is COOL!! I loved the rocks and scenery, We even saw Mountain goats on a far cliff just standing there, there were 13 of them. They sure gathered a crowd of sightseers. You have to see this place ...bigger than life...What a act of Nature...Beautiful!!

Then we left the park and headed for Wall Drug Store for our free glass of Ice Water..big deal a 6oz. cup of ice/water. This town is a Glorified Dollar Store!!! But much higher prices. One big building on the inside but the street frontage was made to look like 10 stores in down town. I got my bumper sticker and water and left town, good place for a walk break but then hit the road.

It is getting dark and we still have 2 hour drive ahead of us. The horizon is beautiful with the red sunset. We finally arrive at the campground at 10pm. The road here was twisty and curvey thru the mountains ...15-20 mph was the top speed thru the hills. We got our site #45 on the door and headed for the site. The neighbor/from Calif. Dave, backed me in with a flashlight, he told Carol.. he couldn't believe I backed in one try, she said yes he can!! I was tired and hooked up the electric, left the van hooked up till morning. ZZZZZZZZZZZ
Good night...it's 11pm here and I am Tired 330 miles today!!
God Bless..... AirstreamHobo & Carol