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Published: July 24th 2013
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Our first full day on the road! Check out our pics for a “tour” of the interior and its passengers. We are definitely going to enjoy this mode of transportation. Squeezing back into the minivan for our return trip is probably going to be pretty painful.
We kicked off the day with a veritable shopping spree at Walmart. Then we headed north to Cheyenne, where we had a delightful lunch at Sanford’s Grub & Pub – a model of interior decorating to which Todd aspires. There was not an uncovered square inch on the wall. The entire pub was adorned with pictures of sports stars, license plates, neon signs, pop culture items, classic toys and games, and all manner of knick knacks and memorabilia. If Todd could transform our playroom into this he would. But the fried sour dough bread sandwiches and the fruit smoothies lived up to every Yelp! recommendation that led us there.
Todd relinquished the wheel to Marcia in Cheyenne to take a well-earned rest and enjoy the comforts of RV travel. So, Marcia’s RV driver debut was a 4-hour (or so) jaunt from Cheyenne to Custer, SD, the last 30 minutes of which were filled
with hairpin, narrow lane, no shoulder twists and turns through Black Hills National Forest Park (I think that’s the name). Happy to report we made it safe and sound and all mirrors are still intact.
During the drive, we finally started getting glimpses of “the West.” The vast, immense, never-ending landscape. It certainly does remind one of just how insignificant we really are in the overall timeline. At one point, driving down the highway I could see (way, way off in the distance) on either side formidable cliffs that have clearly been standing and eroding for eons. And with their face-off to the left and right of our long, two-lane, straight traveling path, I definitely got the sense that where we were driving had at some point been a deep ocean between two coasts. It was as if we were driving along a dried up seabed. I could (and probably am) be all wrong, but I certainly had no problem picturing prehistoric giants roaming the plains all around me.
Contrast that to the steep uphill slopes marred with stumps leftover from a prolific forest and the change from WY to SD was abrupt and almost startling. From prairie
with virtually no trees to evergreens and numerous deciduous species, the changing landscape just reinforced how amazingly diverse our country is and continues to be.
We arrived at Flintstone’s Campground in Custer, and within about 5 minutes had the RV totally settled and hooked up. Beats the heck out of tent camping, that’s for sure! As I told Todd, I could get really used to this whole RV thing….What I may not get used to is a daughter who is turning 12 tomorrow and growing into a young lady before my very eyes. She'll be taller than me, soon. Thankfully, she's more eager to hang on to childhood than even we are for her, so at least we have a little more time to enjoy the sweetness of innocence. Feel free to email, comment, text or even call her tomorrow - I know she'd be thrilled to hear from folks.
Marcia
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The Other Baldwin Family
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Breaker 19-Breaker 19 -Happy Birthday Maggie!
Happy Birthday Maggie! Now that your Mom and Dad are seasoned truck drivers, have them pull on that big horn and let the world know about our favorite niece turning 12 today. Handling that big rig can be a chore, but tell them to keep the wheels on the ground and watch those rear view mirrors. 10-4 good buddies!!!