Heads in the Mud

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Many years ago we did a family camping trip to the Black Hills and hit most of the major tourist sites with our 2 boys (son #3 hadn't come along yet.) The youngest at the time was about 3 years old and didn't quite grasp the idea of a sculpture so he referred to the four presidents carved into Mt. Rushmore as the "heads in the mud". Hence the title of this blog post. 

The AirBnb apartment where we were staying was an efficiency built above a large garage next to the owner's home. The upstairs space had been quite warm when we arrived the previous afternoon so when we went to bed I had left the windows open and the ceiling fans running. As the temperatures dropped during the night the apartment became cooler and cooler and by the time we woke up both Bob and I were freezing! 

Last year we didn't make it to Mt. Rushmore so this year it became a priority on our to-do list. We got an early start and as we were pulling out of the driveway our car showed an outside temperature of 47º in the valley. When we arrived at the Mt. Rushmore National Monument 45 minutes later the temp had risen to 67º!

Admission to the monument is free, but there is a fee for the parking garage. It was a bit confusing trying to figure out how to use the automated kiosk to get a parking pass. The regular fee is $10 (good for a whole year!) but the senior citizen rate is half of that...$5. It was unclear how we were to prove we were "old folks", but at one point a question popped up on the screen asking if we were 62 or older. There was no human interaction at any point in the process so I'm assuming it must be on the honor system. The machine spit out a parking pass which we would show as we pulled out of the garage. I doubt we get back to Mt. Rushmore anytime in the next year but if we do, our parking pass will still be valid!

At 8:30 am, the monument was already quite busy. After walking through the Avenue of Flags, we took the obligatory selfie from the viewing terrace. 

Homeward Bound

 Thursday, September 24, 2020

Our time in the Black Hills was over...a short visit compared to our other trips which are usually two weeks or more. Under normal circumstances we would have spent more time exploring the touristy areas, but this time it was all about the outdoors. It is sad that it took something like Covid to get us to re-discover such a wonderful place close to home, but we for sure will be back again sooner than later!

Most of the food we brought had been consumed so packing up didn't take long and we were on the road fairly early. Our most direct route to get to Interstate 90 was cutting through Custer State Park and it gave us a chance to see some more wildlife. Initially we thought we were going to put a check mark next to one more species on the Custer wildlife list...the mountain goat. Although the horns are similar it turns out these are female bighorn sheep. (The rams have the thick curled horns.) 

This what a mountain goat looks like...all white with a shaggy coat. Definitely not what we saw.
Credit: Wikipedia

As we passed by the State Game Lodge, tents were being set up for the three day arts festival scheduled to begin that morning at 10 am. This festival is held in conjunction with the annual Buffalo Round Up in Custer State Park. 

Credit: custerresorts.com

Traffic was heavy through the park and there were many signs showing the parking areas for the round up the next day. The roundup was scheduled to start at 9:30 am but people would be lining up by 6 am. Seeing the roundup in person would be an impressive event, but being in the crowd with thousands of people does not sound fun to me...even in normal times.

Photo of one section of spectators at this year's roundup.
Credit:  blackhillsbadlands.com

Two different viewing areas were set up on a hillside so spectators could watch as the bison were herded through the valley and into pens. Some of the buffalo would be auctioned off to keep the herd from growing too large and others would be vaccinated and released back into the hills to graze.

The event was live streamed the next day so we were able to enjoy it all on our big screen TV from the comfort of our family room. Here is a link if you want to watch the 2020 Custer State Park Annual Buffalo Round Up. 

The rest of our day was thankfully uneventful. Once the car hit Interstate 90 then it was smooth sailing across South Dakota. We lost an hour when we crossed back into the Central Time Zone but still were pulling into our driveway by 5 pm. 

No future travel plans for us at this time. Hopefully we will sneak in some day trips and even get to put that South Dakota annual state park pass to use before it expires next May. The warm weather we are experiencing now makes it easy to forget that cold and snow will be here soon and then we will begin our long winter of hibernation. 

Here is to hoping that by next spring normal life is beginning to make a return...

Winning the Wildlife Lottery

 Wednesday, September 23, 2020

I had turned off the alarm around midnight knowing Bob would need more sleep after his late night of "elk bugling". And with the alarm, my plans for an early morning visit to Mt. Rushmore were also shut down. If this had been a "must do" activity I would have been disappointed...but it wasn't. Visiting later in the day could still be a possibility, but I knew by then it would be quite crowded. I was determined to avoid being around a lot of people on this trip. I did not want to come home with a souvenir virus.

Even with no alarm, we were both up by 7 am. I think it takes more than 3 days to adjust to a new time zone and our bodies were still under the impression that it was 8 am...long past the time we needed to be out of bed. 

New plans were formulated for the day...a drive through Wind Cave National Park and then the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park. Bob had seen a big herd of buffalo late last night and was curious if we could find them again. We were in the car ready to pull out of the driveway when I remembered the bag of carrots I had brought along to feed the "begging burros"...glad I remembered!

The AirBnB where we were staying was right on the edge of Wind Cave National Park. We entered through a back road and right away ran smack dab into a giant herd of bison. Well we didn't literally run into them, but came close! It was just us and the buffalo and with them totally blocking the road, we had no choice but to stop and spend some time with them. 

We were surrounded on all sides!

There were a couple of opportunities where we could have "maybe" squeezed past the bison, but an hour later we were still sitting there enthralled with the opportunity to be in the middle of these awesome creatures! 

Driving on, Bob immediately spotted a coyote running across a field. He was pretty excited with his find since seeing a coyote is fairly rare. I could barely see the animal but with the zoom on my camera I was able to get a fuzzy photo. The coyote was running through a prairie dog town so it was a "two-fer" wildlife sighting!

While we were stopped watching the coyote, the herd of buffalo slowly started moving in our direction.

Our next safari encounter came soon after with an antelope buck and his harem of does. The group of 7 females was being guarded and corralled by the large male. His actions showed we were making him nervous so we got our photos and drove on.

With the annual Custer State Park Buffalo Round Up only two days away, I had worried that all of the bison might already be penned up and we wouldn't see any. But...as we drove through the Wildlife Loop we encountered two more herds. This road was quite busy with cars as well but at times the only option was to just stop and give the buffalo the right-away. They were not at all intimidated by vehicles and a couple of times we could feel them pushing on the car from behind and even licking it!

A bison car wash.

I had almost forgotten about the burros when we found them hanging out by the entrance to the state park. When one of them wandered over and discovered we were handing out carrots the whole gang followed! I was busy trying to do a video of Bob feeding them out the driver's side window when two more crammed their heads into my window and were nuzzling my neck trying to make sure they got their share. Even breaking the carrots into smaller pieces the whole pound was gone within a couple of minutes! 

And this is why they call them begging burros! 😂

I let out quite the scream when I turned around and had this staring at me!!!

Throughout the morning we munched on the snacks we had in the car but waited till we were back at the apartment to have a proper lunch. I was fighting a bit of a headache so declined the offer to go fly-fishing with Jim, the owner, but Bob jumped at the chance and the two guys took off. 

After a nap I was feeling better and went for a walk down the gravel road. I was just on my way back when the guys returned. Bob had brought back photos and videos to share with me. Jim was able to catch about a dozen fish while Bob watched. I was surprised to see that where they were fishing looked more like a ditch than what I would call a stream.

Tortilla soup was on the dinner menu...an easy dump & heat recipe. I had browned and seasoned ground beef in advance so all that was left was to add cans of tomatoes, beans, corn, etc. Topped with crushed nacho chips and grated cheese it made a great meal which we enjoyed sitting on the deck. 

It was still long before the actual sunset time, but when the sun dipped below the hills the temperature dropped noticeably. We decided to go out for one last drive to see if we could spot any more wildlife. Bob also wanted to show me something that he had discovered when he was out with Jim...an old school house and cemetery. The old log buildings were like visiting a scene from days gone by.

A two-hole outhouse! Not set up for social distancing!

We went down one of the roads that the guys had been on to go fishing just a few hours earlier and SURPRISE...we found ourselves in the middle of a herd of bison again. The buffalo had not been there in the afternoon but now they were grazing and once again blocking the road. If you are counting, this was the 4th time we had gotten in the middle of a herd! 

With no one else around, we just stopped in the middle of the road, turned off the engine and watched and listened to the massive creatures. Grunts, growls, chomping…all around us! Here is just a snippet of what we heard. Turn the sound up and listen...

We watched until the sunset. Not wanting to be on the roads after dark, we reluctantly said goodbye to the bison and started back to the apartment. 

On the way we noticed a couple of cars parked at the pullout where we had seen the coyote and antelope earlier in the day so we stopped. A man in one of the cars pointed out a herd of 17 elk…a large buck with huge antlers and 16 does. They were off in the distance but with the binoculars and my camera zoom, we were able to see them. How exciting! 

Taking a photo at such a long distance with low light did not give good results...but it at least preserved a great memory!

As we were cleaning and packing up back at the cabin, I glanced at a Custer State Park travel guide that we had picked up. A double page spread highlighted all of the wildlife common to the park and I was happy that we had seen all but two species (although technically a couple of the animals we had seen in the Badlands rather than Custer.)

What we did see:

• birds - several different kinds
• bighorn sheep (Badlands)
• prairie dogs
• white-tailed deer…an abundance of these were always in the valley near the apartment
• mule deer…(Badlands)
• elk
• burros
• pronghorn antelopes

 What we hadn’t seen (at least yet!)

• Mountain lions
• Mountain goats

All in all a great day of wildlife viewing!

Puerto Madryn, Argentina

Sunday, February 17

Weather: 92º F, Sunny

The alarm went off at 6:30 am as the Zaandam was approaching Puerto Madryn, Argentina. Bob hadn't slept well and said his cold was one of the worst he has ever experienced...even his eyeballs hurt. But...he isn't one to let a cold...even a bad one...stop him from doing what he wants.

We had breakfast in the buffet. Kent and Laurel came a few minutes later and it was so packed that we couldn't find four seats together. There was a small note on each table advertising that it was Asian night in the buffet tonight.

The gangway was being set up right outside our window so as soon as we saw people leaving the ship we left our cabins and without even thinking walked down the stairs to Deck A. No gangway there so we thought perhaps it was on Deck 3. Nothing there but we could see the ramp one deck below. Deck 2...Bingo.

We were off the ship before the announcement was made that the ship had been cleared...so much easier than when we have to tender. Large buses were lined up on the dock for HAL tours and just past those was a large group of independent tour operators. Right away I spotted a woman who had a sign with my name. Rita, who would be our guide, was waiting for two other people who would be on our tour and once they arrived we walked the length of a very long dock to where a minibus was waiting.

The gangway was set up right outside our cabin window.

Falkland Islands - Penguins, penguins, penguins!

Friday, February 15

Weather: 57º F, Cloudy

The world's southernmost capital, Stanley is located in the Falklands archipelago, which consists of two main islands, East and West Falkland, along with smaller islands nearby. Stanley is proud of its British heritage, evidenced everywhere from its red telephone boxes to its pubs. The Falklands were first claimed by the English in 1765; over the centuries the Crown has had to abandon, reclaim and defend these far-flung islands from invading nations—including an Argentine foray in 1982. During the early years of their colonization, the Falklands were used as a base for ships hunting sperm whales for oil, followed by those hunting seals for fur. Today in this remote British territory, fishing and tourism are what drive the economy. [Source: hollandamerica.com]

Click here for a video of our tour to Volunteer Point.

The alarm was set for 6 am and I woke up a couple of minutes before it went off. I had heard Bob coughing during the night and wondered how he would feel today. He announced that he thought his cold had settled in his chest, but the tummy troubles seem to be better. He wasn't feeling perfect, but he was a "go" for our adventure in the Falkland Islands.

Room service was delivered on time. Bob had some granola and OJ and I had ordered an omelet which was supposed to come with toast. Instead I got a plate full of butter and jelly...but no toast. I didn't want to bother someone to bring me a piece of toast so just ate the eggs. Now if they had messed up my coffee order...that would have me on the phone immediately! 😄

Shortly after 7 am we met up with a large group from our Cruise Critic roll call in the Wajang Theater. One of the members, Alex, had been instrumental in arranging multiple tours for our cruise and had make arrangements for those of us doing a penguin tour to get an early tender.

Our tour today was arranged well over a year ago with Patrick Watts to go to Volunteer Point to see a huge colony of king penguins. I had worried that our day in port was too short to make the long trip from Stanley and knew it was very important that we get on one of the very first tenders. Because of Alex's special arrangements we were on shore before all of the other independent tours and even before most of the HAL tours. Thanks Alex!! I checked my watch and it was 8:08 am when we stepped onto our tender to leave the ship.

On the tender.

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Click here for Puntarenas Video

Saturday, April 21

The alarm was set for 6:45, but a little before 6 am the sun came streaming through a crack in the drapes and we were awake. I had ordered room service breakfast thinking I would be too rushed to get to the buffet, but there certainly would have been time. 

  

Instead, I grabbed my phone and sat outside on the promenade deck and texted the kids. (It was reassuring to get a text from T-Mobile when I turned on my phone that said…”Welcome to Costa Rica! Your T-Mobile plan gives you unlimited data up to 2G speeds and texts at no extra cost!! Calls at 20 cents/minute. Enjoy your stay!”

My early morning view.

While I was texting, Bob was walking laps around the ship. Breakfast arrived a little after 7:00 and at 7:45 we walked off the ship. A guy from Gio Tours was waiting right at the end of the gangplank holding a sign with our names and directed us to their bus on the pier.

I was surprised that we were in a full size coach bus since the email confirmation had mentioned that no more than 20 would be on the tour. Turned out to be 28, but by the end of the day, I was actually glad we were on the bus with comfortable seats, great AC and huge windows.

Once out of the dock area, the bus driver pulled over and we picked up our guide for the day, Jesus, and we headed out of town towards our first stop…to see the white-faced capuchin monkeys. On our way, we passed through Puerto Caldera…a large shipping port.

The monkeys were on a private farm and getting there required driving down some dirt roads. There were other groups of people with the monkeys when we arrived and were feeding them to get them to come down from the trees and pose for photos. Jesus had told us ahead of time that we would not be feeding the monkeys OR holding them. He also warned us not to wear hats or sunglasses when we got out of the bus.

Cattle & egrets.

 Jesus took our group away from the others and we had a great view as he told us a little about the monkeys. As we were standing there, they would come down and run around our legs. A couple of coatimundi were also nearby begging for the food that people were feeding the monkeys.

Because we had gotten an early start, we reached our next stop (a fruit stand) before any of the ship tours arrived. We were given skewers with bites of watermelon, pineapple and papaya and also a small sample of sugar cane juice. Many flavors of fruit smoothies were available to purchase and also roasted cashews.

Leaving the fruit stand, we drove on to where we would board boats for a trip down the Tarcoles River. Restrooms were available and while we were waiting to board the boats, Jesus poured a little water on a teak leaf that he had picked. He crushed the leaf and rubbed it in his hand and the water turned blood-red and dripped down his arm.

A crocodile was swimming by in the river as we went down a very steep ramp to the boat…the first of many more crocodiles that we would see.

The boat ride lasted a couple of hours and whenever Jesus or the boat captain spotted some type of wildlife, we would slow down or stop to get a better look. Besides the crocodiles I can’t even begin to remember all the other birds, iguanas, lizards, etc. that we saw.

A few of the birds we saw...

This was just one of several crocodiles laying on a beach...and most had their mouth open!

We followed the river all the way to the mouth where the wide river had large waves as it flowed out into the ocean. The day was hot, but it was comfortable on the covered boat with the breezes blowing.

Climbing the very steep ramp after our boat ride. 

Back in the bus we dove up into the mountains to a point where we could look out over the river basin and beyond to the ocean. The twisty, curvy road  up the mountain had sheer drop offs and was just a bit scary given the large size of the bus.

As we were driving, the bus driver pulled over and pointed to a couple of howler monkeys in a tree. We have "heard" these monkeys before but had never seen any!

We also saw some wild scarlet macaws, but my attempts at a photo were poor. Basically just indistinguishable bright patches of color in the trees.

It was about 1:15 pm when we reached the restaurant where we were to have lunch (which was included in the price of the tour.)

The food was set up buffet style and we had salad, rice, beans, a delicious potato dish, fried plantains and a choice of fish or chicken. Bob and I both had the fish which was delicious. Some sort of sweet juice was offered to drink and very delicious coffee. For dessert we were given a small, bar-type dessert made from coconut.

We ate under a large outdoor pavilion and as we ate it began to thunder loudly. The back of the restaurant looked out onto a jungle area and with the sounds of birds combined with the thunder, Bob commented that it was like being in Jurassic Park! Bob is a squirrel lover and he got excited when we saw a group of very small, red squirrels playing in a tree next to where we were eating.

The bus stopped at a large souvenir shop but before we went in, Jesus told us that unless we wanted the really high-end coffee to wait until we made a stop at a grocery store downtown to buy any coffee or hot sauce. He also handed out small packets of Costa Rican coffee…a gift from Gio Tours.

At the grocery store, not everyone got off the bus. Coming from a community that has a very large Hispanic population, much of what was in the store looked familiar, but I was most intrigued by the different types of packaging. Mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard…all were sold in the squeeze-type packages similar to how baby food is packaged. Also, milk…non-refrigerated and sitting on the shelf.

Our day in Costa Rica had turned out to be a great one. We have done a lot of tours and in my opionion our guide, Jesus, would rank right at the top of all the guides we have had. I especially enjoyed seeing all of the wildlife, but having the stops for shopping and lunch added a nice variety to the day. Two thumbs up for Gio Tours!

The bus dropped us all off at the gates to the pier around 3:30 pm which gave u some time to wander through the many, many stalls where people were selling crafts, t-shirts, wooden products, jewelry, etc. Through the noise, I could hear the sound of something like a flute and as I suspected, it was the animal shaped whistles that the EXC host on the ship had mentioned. They are pottery-type material and are made to look like many different animals depending on which way you turn it. The little melody that the vendor was playing sounded so interesting that I convinced Bob it was something our grandkids would enjoy. They were $5 each or 2 for $9 so we bought 2. (Back on the ship I attempted to play one of them and could only get squeaks and squawks. Guess we should have paid closer attention!)

The music sounded so good when the vendor was playing. When I try, it is just noise! :( 

A note was waiting at our cabin saying that the port of Corinto, Nicaragua was being skipped the next day due to political unrest. A few minutes later, the captain made the same announcement explaining that the rioting that had been taking place in the capital had spread throughout the country and they decided that it was not safe to stop there. The Nieuw Amsterdam had also cancelled their stop there as well.

Just a couple of weeks prior to the cruise, I had found another couple via Trip Advisor who were looking for someone to share the day with a private driver named Reynaldo Romero and that was to have been our plan for the day. I quickly emailed him while I still had cell service to let him know that we would not be stopping in Corinto. Even though I can’t speak from personal experience, the reviews I read online for Reynaldo were outstanding and I was impressed at the promptness which he would respond via email to my questions.

After a little last-minute texting to our kids, the phone went back on airplane mode. Feeling very sticky and sweaty, I took a quick shower but just didn’t feel like getting dressed for dinner. (Even though we didn't make it to the dining room, here is the menu!) 

Instead we stayed very casual, watched the sail away and then went to the Dive-In for dinner. I had a hot dog and fries and Bob had a hot dog and a hamburger…all were great!

The sun was setting and I couldn’t help but run outside and get a few photos.

The entertainment in the main theater was several video segments from BBC Earth called “Frozen Planet.” The soundtrack for the video was a live performance by the ship musicians. We had seen the same production on our fall cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam and I loved it just as much the 2^nd time.