Spearfish to Buffalo

June 16, 2015:  We drove from Spearfish, South Dakota, to Buffalo, Wyoming.  Our reason for returning to Buffalo was to drive through Crazy Woman Canyon.  There are two legends as to why the canyon was named Crazy Woman.  The canyon was more amazing than we could have imagined. 

              On the way to Buffalo, we drove to Devil's Tower National Monument 

       There were hundreds of busy prairie dogs in the field along the route to the tower.

                      The view on the drive to Crazy Woman Canyon in Buffalo.

                    Crazy Woman Canyon: We took a short hike along the creek.

                                                Looking up from the creek.

                     Oops!  Evidence of bears in the canyon.  Did we bring the bear spray?

         Chuck named this tree "pot belly pine".  Evidence of stress sometime during its life.

                                    Wildflowers blooming all through the canyon.

                                      The canyon road is lined with birch trees.

                                Four wheel drive time!  A wash out in the road.

                                              The drive out of the canyon.

                          A few pronghorns on the run!  What could have startled them?

                            I think this deer was surprised to see us on his road.

Forest City, Iowa to Spearfish, South Dakota

June 1-14:  We spent a week at Winnebago Factory Service in Forest City, Iowa.  While they fixed our defective floor, we stayed in a nearby lodge.   Once finished, we headed west through the Badlands to Spearfish, South Dakota.

 While camping along the Missouri River in SD, we spotted a bald eagle fishing near the rocky cliff.

                          Camping in Spearfish, South Dakota along Sprearfish Creek.

                                                  The drive and hike through Spearfish Canyon.

                                                Lunch at Cheyenne Crossing

  While biking one of the many paths in Spearfish, we were spotted by two deer hiding in growth.

                                         Learning about the history of the area.

                                                   Local ice cream shoppe.

Surprise! They make gluten free waffle cones: coconut and dark chocolate ice cream with hot fudge.

Coralville Lake

May 29, 2015:  We stopped here for one night on our way to Winnebago Factory Service.  It's an Army Corp of Engineers Park.

                     This is a fossil bed that was exposed when a flash flood occurred.

                                                                  Fossils

                                                                    Iowa River

      What Skip does when we are out exploring.