Dakotas Trip Day Three, Tuesday, September 10, 2019

The hotel in Keystone was the same place I stayed in 2006, but the cost was NOT. Notice the price at that time - $49.95. The times, they are a-changing.

We ate breakfast at the adjoining restaurant called "The Front Porch". Obviously, I was already tired of the usual breakfast fare, so a meager offering.

And we're off to The Badlands. We stopped to watch the movie at the visitor center and checked out the museum. Looks the same as before. Interesting reproductions of extinct animals who lived here.

I love seeing The Badlands by way of a movie. I didn't want to get up close and personal. Here's why.

Next stop, some tourist time at Wall Drugs. They got a boost when they started by offering free ice water. They still do. Remember the old pointed-bottom cups? You can also get a cup of coffee for 5 cents.

We had lunch here (with free ice water).

Many dining rooms with original paintings and Tiffany style lights.

Walked around to see the tourist stuff - Wall Drugs is now a square block. Lots of photo opps.

Kids can pan for gold.

Love this alligator cowering from the grizzly.

This guy is huge and on a timer - lights flash, he roars, and opens his mouth and reaches over as if to bite off your head.

Off to North Dakota, and right in the middle of the trip we ran into the road to try one's nerves. It was already dark, pouring rain, suddenly signs which signaled road work and one which said "Unpaved Road". I'm surprised my tires weren't shredded. Loose gravel everywhere, no shoulder, two-way traffic, and it went on and on for miles and miles. Then I knew why I had the little niggly feeling that I shouldn't make this trip alone. Bill talked me through it all, reminding me to slow down, telling me to move a little to the left. Not a drive I'd like to repeat, but we survived. I had to drive 25-30 mph part of the way, so by the time we got to Medora, all the restaurants were closed. As always, I had a food stash. And for some reason I made a sandwich of my roll from lunch with butter and roast beef. I wasn't very hungry, so Bill ate the sandwich, and we had cheese sticks, salami sticks, pretzel sticks, trail mix, apples, grapes, tangerines, power bars, breakfast cookies, instant oatmeal, tea bags, and hot chocolate mix. Obviously we did not go to bed hungry. Still raining when we went to bed. I love the quiet in the plains states. Slept well every night.

Tomorrow we'll see Teddy Roosevelt National Park