Day 9: Not a Bad Day in the Badlands

 July 4, 2021

Vanlog, Badands National Park

Despite the 100 degree weather yesterday, it cooled down quickly after dark and there was a nice breeze at the Big Buffalo National Grasslands (Nomad View) boondocking site. It reached as low as 66 degrees. If you cant beat them, join them. So I wound up joining my neighbors at their campfire and shared my s'mores with their youngest. I slept well despite the other neighbor's generator and woke up at 4:45 AM for the sunrise. It was (in a word) ridiculously incredible. OK, so that's two words!

As they say, the early bird gets the worm. Here's five reasons to get up early on vacation: (1) best golden hour lighting for photography, (2) wildlife are active, (3) the temperatures are much cooler, (4) there's no traffic or other people to contend with, and (5) it's like you own the park all to yourself. Less than a mile into the park, I was greeted with a bunch of very active prairie dogs. Just a tenth of a mile further, there were a dozen bighorn sheep just grazing alongside the road. A mile or two farther and I found a small herd of bighorn sheep perched on a ledge with the badlands in the background. I was totally blown away by the beauty of it all and it wasn't even 7 o'clock yet! 

And that's not even mentioning the awesome scenery along the Badlands Loop Road.

At the end of the loop, I did a trail called the Notch Trail. You hike in amongst the formations, climb up a wooden ladder on the side of a hill, walk along a ridge with steep drop-offs and then emerge (in my case to a rowdy crowd of people cheering everyone who made it) to a natural opening in the rock wall known as the notch. 

During the middle of the day while it was overcast as a storm went through, I took a brief detour north to visit the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, where I watched a film, toured the museum, and then drove out to see one of the ICBMs in it silo at Delta-01.

After a late picnic lunch and during the 99-100 degree part of the day, I took a well-needed siesta in the van before driving back the loop road to my campsite in the evening as the lighting became better and I was chasing some sunsets views. 

I would have to say that this, my third trip to the Badlands, has boosted this national park at least into my top 15 parks. It was one of those days you will remember for a long time. Don't mind me--I'm just out here living my best life. 

Day 8: Devil's Tower, Wall, and Nomad View

 July 3, 2021

Vanlog, Boondocking site at Buffalo Gap National Grasslands

Well, it had been a couple of days since my last shower, so I woke early (5:30 AM) and showered out the side of the van using the sink hose at my boondocking campsite at Little Missouri National Grasslands. I would have to say this campsite was a 10/10. I enjoyed two nights of a nice cool breeze on top of the hillside with beautiful sunsets and good company only a few miles from the entrance to Theodore Roosevelt NP. I highly recommend! 

I left early and drove 3.5 hrs to Devil's Tower NM in Wyoming. The roads through Montana and Wyoming were 70-80 mph, straight as an arrow, and without a soul in sight. There was so little traffic on this route that I may have seen 5 cars pass me in an hour's time. I arrived at Devil's Tower around 9:45 AM. It was already crowded because of the Fourth of July weekend. Here are some photos from my 2.8-mile loop hike around the base of the monument in 100-degree weather. I did not do so well in the heat, struggling with nearly passing out on several occasions despite adequate hydration.

They also had a cool prairie dog colony at the park.

Then I drove another 2.5 miles to Wall, SD and had some fun (all masked up) at the Wall Drug tourist trap. 

Another 7 miles on from there was the entrance to Badlands NP. I drove in just to get my brochure and see some bighorn sheep, but then I settled down in my boondocking campsite in the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. This is a popular free camping spot among boondockers known as Nomad View or the Wall because it literally sits on the edge of a cliff overlooking some badland-type formations just a mile from the park entrance. Getting a spot here on the edge on Saturday of the Fourth of July weekend was a dream come true for me. Here are the views from my campsite. I also sent the drone up to get some aerial videos if you check out my YouTube channel in a couple of days. Not all that happy with some of my boondocking neighbors. Two campers up was running a loud generator and the ones who just pulled in behind me have a bunch of kids who collected rocks to build a fire ring (violating Leave No Trace principles) and are having a campfire (despite drought conditions and this being a grasslands). But apparently the forest ranger said it was OK. Who am I to judge? I'm just happy for the views. 

Day 7: Hot as Hell in Theodore Roosevelt National Park

 July 2, 2021

Vanlog, boondocking site in Little Missouri National Grasslands

I left my boondocking site around 7 AM and arrived shortly at the south unit of Theodore Roosevelt NP near Medora, ND. The park was named after Theodore Roosevelt who came here to hunt bison in 1883. He returned a year later after his young wife Anna died in childbirth and his mother died of typhoid on the same day (Valentine's Day) in 1884. He came to grieve and to connect with nature. He built a ranch, the Maltese Cross Ranch and later a second ranch known as the Elkhorn Ranch along the sides of the Little Missouri River. The original Maltese Cross Cabin has been relocated to the visitor center site. Roosevelt's writing desk and other belongings are included inside. 

In the morning, I drove past several prairie dog colonies and listened to their shrieks and watched them stand on their hind legs and scurry around. I also saw two bison, a jack rabbit, and a mule deer. 

Along the south unit scenic drive, I made stops at Boicourt overlook, Buck Hill (which I hiked up), and Badlands overlook. Along the drive, I saw a herd of wild horses and on my one walk I saw a western bluebird. 

Along the return drive, I stopped at the bautiful Wind Canyon Trail overlooking the Little Missouri River far below the cliff's edge. Then at the visitor's center and the Maltese Cross Cabin. 

After that, it was a long 1 hr 30 min drive up Rt 85 to the north unit in sweltering hot temperatures that reached 99 degrees. The north unit has a 14-mile scenic drive. I stopped for the cannonball concretions, a herd of bison, teh River Bend overlook, and the Oxbow overlook.

Finally, I returned to the south unit, stopping at the Painted Canyon Visitor's Center just before they closed at 5, the town of Medora, and finally back to my boondocking site in the Little Missouri National Grasslands, where I made friends with my fellow vanlifers and watched another amazing sunset.

Day 6: A Long Drive and a Beautiful Sunset

 July 1, 2021

Vanlog, boondocking campsite on the Little Missouri National Grasslands

This morning, I drove into the nearest town of Washburn, WI and found free Internet and spent the first 45 min of my day updating my blog and uploading my YouTube video of the Upper Peninsula. Then it was a long day of driving--a total of over 11 hrs (including stops for gas and food) and 595 miles from Washburn, WI to Medora, ND. The temperature was 61 degrees when I left my first campsite and 93 when I arrived at my site for this evening. About an hour after arriving at the boondocking site in the national grasslands, I took a stroll up a nearby hill for some views of the amazing sunset. Wow! God's Creation is amazing! And I praise God for keeping me safe on the highways today. 

Day 5: Porcupine Mountains and Apostle Islands

 June 30, 2021

Washburn, WI

In the morning, I drove about three hours to the Porcupine Mountains in northwestern Michigan, still int eh Upper Peninsula. Here, they have a wilderness state park. There are several sites to see. The first is the #1 rated (according to TripAdvisor) thing to do in the UP: Lake of the Clouds. A short climb leads to a beautiful view of the lake and surrounding mountains. Farther along int he park on t he South Boundary Road, there is a trail to Summit Peak, the highest peak in the park. There, you can climb a watch tower for 270 degree views. Finally, in the southwest corner of the park is the Presque Isle scenic area, which features a number of waterfalls, cascades, and a rickety suspension bridge. 

In the afternoon, I drove to Bayfield, WI, where I parked at the ferry dock and tookt he 5:30 sunset cruise of the grand tour of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Sure enough, my friend from the Pictured Rocks cruise was also on board. The weather was beautiful for this cruise, perhaps the best they had all year--sunny with a breeze, calm waters, about 78 degrees. We had hte low angle lighting on the sea caves at Devil's Island, which were created by wind, wave, and ice over the eons, as well as glacial retreat uplift. They stretched ont he shore of Devil's Island for miles and it was truly spectacular and breath taking. The lighthouse on Devil's Island was also cool. 

The cruise continued past Raspberry Island and its amazing lighthouse. It was a rare perfect day and time to catch photos of the lighthouse without any shadows on it. There was even a partial rainbow ont he ride back to Bayfield. I then camped in the Big Rocks campground in the Chequamenon National Forest.