Our RV Travels: Devil's Tower and Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota

"Eight children were there at play, seven sisters and their brother. Suddenly, the boy was struck dumb; he trembled and began to run upon his hands and feet. His fingers became claws, and his body was covered in fur. Directly there was a bear where a boy had been. The sisters were terrified; they ran, and the bear after them. They came to the stump of a great tree, and the tree spoke to them. It bade them climb upon it, and as they did so, it began to rise up into the air. The bear came to kill them, but they were just beyond it's reach. It reared and score the bark all around with it's claws. The seven sisters were borne into the sky, and they became the stars of the Big Dipper" This was told by the Kiowa Indians to explain Devil's Tower. The name came from some old dude that felt it "engendered an awful quiet in the heart of man" I, personally, started feeling it's energy from miles away. It pulled me and felt very, very scared. I was in awe and I know my mouth was probably hanging open, too!

There is a trail that goes around the base of it and I really wanted to hike it, but we were concerned over a few things 1) and foremost, Lisa's ability with her lungs, 2) my 100 yr. old knees and 3) Alan's 100 yr. old hip and feet. It was only 1.3 miles, but the base of it was pretty steep. We talked to some people and they assured us it wasn't as bad as it looked......off we went!! I am SO glad we did!!! It was totally beautiful and I had this awesome, peaceful feeling the whole time. In June, the trail is closed because the Indians do ceremonial rituals. They hang the trees with colored cloth and you can still see some 11 months later! The little prairie dog was just one of LOTS! And they weren't afraid of us at all..It was a great day!!

Yesterday, we went to see Mt. Rushmore. Another incredible (tho man made) accomplishment! Gutzon Borglum wanted something that... would last forever ....something that people would see thousands of years from now. The faces were great! There were mountain goats running around and so close you could have reached out and touched them. There were pillars lining that walkway with each state and their flag and when they were admitted to the Union.