Autumn Road Trip '23

 Sunday, September 24, 2023

It is getting to be a tradition...a road trip at the end of September. Last year we went to the north shore of Lake Superior but for the third time in four years, this year we traveled to the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota. Yesterday was the first official day of fall and my fingers were crossed that our timing was good to see the beautiful colors of autumn.

The temps were in the upper 50's as we left our home in SW Minnesota. Scooters Coffee was offering free coffee every day in September (National Coffee Month) so we made a tiny detour through the drive-thru on our way out of town. Conditions were foggy but by the time we reached the South Dakota state line the clouds had cleared and some blue sky had emerged. However throughout the morning the weather mainly alternated between overcast and drizzly rain. 

The tops of the wind turbines were in the clouds!

Dark clouds above the newly harvested fields.

Fortunately it was dry when we pulled into the rest area on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River at Chamberlin, SD. That gave us a chance to get out and stretch our legs a bit. Besides the great view overlooking the river, the Dignity statue is impressive to see. The visitor center had many displays about the Lewis & Clark Expedition and very friendly staff to provide tourist information for travelers to the state of South Dakota.

Ordinarily we might have eaten a picnic lunch at the rest area, but we were conscious of our travel time. Three months ago I was able to score two tickets for the Delta-01 Minuteman Missile Silo tour. Only six spots are available for each of the few tours offered daily and they are quickly snatched up when they become available 90 days prior. Our 2:00 pm tour time meant we had to make sure we didn't dilly-dally on our drive. So...instead of stopping, we ate sandwiches in the car as we traveled. 

The backside of the Dignity statue.

The first of MANY prairie dogs.

After lunch I dosed off (I always struggle to stay awake when riding in a car!) and when I woke up we were getting close to the Badlands. The Minuteman Missile Historical Site Visitor Center is at the same I-90 exit as the eastern Badlands entrance. We were just a few miles away when the "low fuel" warning light came on in the car. Oops. Bob thought we would have had enough fuel for the full trip, but the strong headwinds had caused us to burn through the gas faster than he anticipated. Why wasn't he watching the fuel gauge? Who knows. Google maps showed there were no gas stations coming up ahead so we turned around and headed back in the opposite direction. We only had to backtrack about 7 miles. Crisis averted.

Passing from the central time zone into mountain time zone gave us an extra hour so we arrived in plenty of time for our tour. In fact, we were early enough that we were able to first stop at the visitor center and look at the museum displays and watch their video before driving on to the next interstate exit where the Delta-01 silo was located.

Minuteman Missile Visitor Center

Displays at the visitor's center.

For the tour, our instructions were to wait outside the locked gate of the silo facility until the National Park Service employee came to get us. We waited with the four others who would be sharing our tour. The missile in the Delta-01 silo was just one of 150 missiles located in South Dakota during the Cold War. Mark, our tour guide, took us down into the silo in an elevator just large enough for the seven of us to squeeze in. 

The elevator shaft leading down to the command center in the silo.

Artwork painted on the 4 ft. thick door leading into the command center.

The missile silos were purposely placed in a desolate area, away from any large cities in case of attack. If launched, the missiles would fly over the North Pole to reach the Soviet Union. The location of the silos in the upper Midwest put them closer to their target.

The command center where two people would be on duty around the clock.

The deputy commander's chair. 

The book with the secret authenticator codes and keys to launch the missiles. 

And contrary to what I thought, the location of the missiles was not secret. The missiles were meant to be a deterrent to a nuclear attack and the only way that would work is if the Soviets KNEW what was awaiting if they initiated an attack on the U.S. It was quite sobering to hear and see how a possible attack on the United States would have set a series of unimaginable events into motion.

The National Park service has recently just released a video tour of the Delta-01 Minuteman Missile Silo if you would like more detailed information.

Thanks to our excellent tour guide, our 45-minute tour actually lasted for an hour and 15 minutes and then we were off to the Badlands. Just before we entered the park we made a couple of stops to see prairie dogs. First at the Ranch Store. There you can purchase peanuts to feed the tame and obese prairie dogs living in the prairie dog town (yes...it is referred to as a town) right outside the store. We only spent a few minutes there and didn't bother to buy any peanuts since there were many just laying on the ground. It was clear that these guys were very well fed and by late in the afternoon they weren't particularly hungry.

A very short distance down the road we pulled in at the Prairie Homestead. A colony of white prairie dogs lived near the sod house on display. We were anxious to get into the Badlands so other than a quick walk through the gift shop we didn't stay (or pay) to tour the homestead grounds. Our hometown has a recreated pioneer village and we have been in the sod house there numerous times.

With our America the Beautiful pass, entrance into the Badlands National Park was free. Near the entrance is a series of three marked trails and we went to the first one...the Door Trail. There is a short boardwalk leading out into the Badlands formations and that was as far as I went. Bad knees and unstable footing is not a good combination. Bob continued on and followed the yellow poles that marked a somewhat vague trail through the rough terrain. The sun was starting to get lower in the sky and the light across the Badlands was beautiful

Our home for the night was a cabin inside the park. I had called Cedar Pass Lodge a week earlier and requested a cabin with a back porch. There are two rows of cabins and all have a front porch, but the ones on the eastern side (#101 - #115) also have back porches. These look across a field and have a great view of the "Cedar Pass". We checked in at the visitor center and I was happy that we were assigned #104. Our cabin was a king duplex and had a connecting door to an adjoining unit. Single cabins are also available, but the cabins book up far in advance and when I made the reservation the duplex was all that was left.

When checking in, we were told that none of the TV's worked in ANY of the cabins (some sort of reception issue.) And oh, by the way, they no longer offer a free bag of ice as they did before. The cabins are great for location, but for $230/night you don't get much else in the way of amenities.

Our supper was BBQ pulled pork sandwiches with fixin's that I brought from home and heated in the microwave (the room also had a fridge & coffeemaker). We enjoyed the meal sitting in the Adirondack chairs on the back porch. Afterwards, Bob took off through the wilderness on his own. He climbed one of the highest peaks in the area while I took a shorter walk and enjoyed the sunset from a lower elevation.

Dinner on the porch.

The view from our back porch.

We met back up at the cabin and enjoyed some more "porch time" as daylight faded. It was completely dark when Bob and I walked to the park amphitheater for the 8 pm ranger program. They had high powered telescopes set up where we could gaze at the moon and Saturn. The main program was a slide show of photos taken from all of the national parks in the U.S. and people cheered whenever they saw a park that they had visited. Afterwards all of the lights were turned off and the rangers took turns identifying and pointing out stars in the dark night sky with a laser pointer. 

Evening ranger program at the amphitheater...under the moonlight!

Telescopes were set up to view the moon and Saturn.

Walking back to our cabin after the program gave me a chance to practice some nighttime photography with my iPhone. I am slowly learning some of the more advanced settings!

Can you see the Big Dipper?

Back at the cabin there was no TV to watch so Bob read a bit while I worked on some blog notes. Our bodies were still on Central Daylight time and it felt an hour later than the clock indicated...time for sleep.