Dining – Page 4 – ON THE ROAD with Maria + Stephen

Sheridan, Wyoming

28/09/201806/09/2022 by Maria+Stephen, posted in Camping, Cities, Coffee, Dining, Museum, Scenic Drive

Enjoying great weather as we journey west towards Yellowstone National Park. We spent a couple of days in Sheridan. This is truely cowboy country. Saloons abound along Main Street along with sellers and manufacturers of everything related to horses – saddles, bridles, bits, blankets, etc. This is ranch, horse and rodeo country.

We were fortunate to be able to stay at the Sheridan Inn while in Sheridan. The Inn first opened in 1893 and was home to Buffalo Bill Cody for a number of years. Cody would audition potential new acts for his wild west show on the large expanse of front lawn at the inn.

Western towns typically have alleys and narrow lanes running behind store fronts. We have learned to wander around in these spaces as they often are art spaces and living spaces. Sheridan proved productive in that regard. 0050,0051

980BDF34-C545-4737-812A-224FFB41FCA4 — **Kings Saddlery**

FE392CAD-1DE3-470F-9E58-F563ED118B23 — **Sheridan Inn**

Rapid City, South Dakota

22/09/201806/09/2022 by Maria+Stephen, posted in Art Museum, Cities, Coffee, Dining, Museum, Scenic Drive, Shopping

Dahl Art Center

Dahl Art Center is a small art museum located in downtown Rapid Center. We were fortunate that one of the current exhibits at the center is the photography of Chuck Kimmerle. This exhibit consists entirely of black and white photographs which are all depictions of the prairies and and grasslands of the west. His work creates stark images of landscapes which lack notable features. The second exhibit was a water color exhibit featuring notable regional artists.

1A2D2FC5-766C-4FC9-A637-DE1C61440B69 233711E8-7C0D-4D4C-A283-6E25E04769A0

South Dakota Air & Space Museum

Yes one of us is an airplane geek! Nice collection of Air Force aircraft predominately consisting of bombers. The museum is adjacent to Ellsworth AFB which is the home of the B1 Lancer long range bomber.

45DC4962-8EED-41F9-B67F-0444E368ABB7 — **B1 B Lancer**

DB5677B9-DE63-42AC-AE62-5677C21AE980 — **Boeing B29**

Fika & Wine

Rapid City played well with three local roasters producing quality beans delivered well in their own cafe, I highly reecommend you visit The Essence of Coffee, Harriet & Oaks and Pure Bean on your next trip to Rapid City. In the event you wil not be in the vicinity any time soon you can order their beans online.

We also had a fun time at the Firehouse Winery. There reserve cabernet is made using 100% Napa cab sav grapes and proved to be worthy of the purchase of several bottles to support the next segment of our journey as we prepare to push west into Wyoming cowboy country.

Black Hills, South Dakota:

18/09/201808/03/2021 by Maria+Stephen, posted in 4WD Drive, Bike Trails, Biking, Boondocking, Camping, Coffee, Dining, Hiking, Kayaking, Scenic Drive

Iron Mountain Road and Mount Rushmore

Route 16A , also known as Iron Mountain Road, is a very exciting drive on a narrow winding road which climbs through and over Iron Mountain. The drive presents distant views of Mt Rushmore as you exit tunnels and from overlooks along the way.

Iron Mountain Road is only 17 miles long but has 314 curves, 14 switchbacks, three pigtails and three tunnels (pigtails pictured below).

Seeing this monument is far more impressive in person than the photos you have seen all your life. The history is just as fascinating as the entire genesis was to boost an ailing economy by creating a tourist attraction. During the 1920s the mining based economy in the area was ailing. Initially this effort was completely a private endeavor until President Coolidge became a supporter and pushed funding through Congress. Today the monument draws three million people annually so I would have to say that it was a heck of an idea. Fourteen years in the making and not a single worker fatality (obviously a former insurance underwriter)! 0040

Custer State Park

CSP is the largest state park in the United States and would stack up well against many national parks in regard to scenic beauty, wildlife and opportunities for recreation (hiking, biking, horseriding, kayaking, canoeing and ohv). 0038,0039

Mickelson Trail

Mickleson Rail Trail

This 109 mile trail runs through the heart of the Black Hills NF. The trail is the former Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad which came about as the result of the gold rush which started in the 1870s. This particular line was abandoned in 1983.

We biked several sections of the trail and were treated to many spectacular views and the opportunity to bike through rock tunnels and across numerous trestles. 0037

Bismarck, ND

09/09/201806/09/2022 by Maria+Stephen, posted in Cities, Coffee, Dining, Museum, Shopping, Yoga

After four days of camping, hiking and dusty back road driving we rolled into Bismarck for a couple of days of hotel living. In addition to attending the International United Tribes Pow Wow, we were hoping for the opportunity to practice yoga, and enjoy a couple of excellent dinners, great coffee and tea. We are happy to report that Bismarck excelled on all fronts. Butterhorn provided a great dinner while Terra Nomad won the cappuccino and chocolate chip cookie portion of the program.

Additionally, we spent several hours at the North Dakota Heritage Center and Museum which had a remarkable special exibit, “The Horse in North Dakota”. The museum traces the history of the area now known as North Dakota from pre-historic time through to North Dakota today through a series of chronologically ordered galleries. As such, the also museum provides a rich history of the native american nations that once claimed North Dakota as their own prior to the arrival of Euro-Americans.

The pow wow was a new and fascinating experience for us. The pow wow runs for three days. Much of the pow wow is in the form of contests relating to various dance forms such as traditional, fancy and grass dancing. The music is provided by 16 drum bands. The costumes are a beautiful and incredibly colorful.

We continue to meet many friendly and interesting people along the way. More on that in future editions. 0030,0031