Yes, we are still alive

Life is great in the Black Hills. We've been busy doing "stuff" and I have just been a slacker at keeping the blog updated. Last week, we did a lot of geocaching with Rick and Y. There was one that was a Did Not Find but the guys couldn't let it stand as the first defeat so the next day we went back and the cache was found.

We made a trip to Rapid City on Tuesday and had a hang out day on Wednesday playing cards/games as it was cold and rain threatened all day.

The number of campers coming in to the park has really slowed down so there really wasn't much to do on my work shifts. John work shifts included finishing up staining some decks and painting picnic tables - nothing to difficult.

We saw Rick and Y pull out this morning. It was with mixed emotions seeing them leave. We have thoroughly enjoyed their company these past two months so will miss hanging out with them but on the other hand, excited that they are off on new adventures. . . after all, that is what this lifestyle is all about. Safe travels you two! We will hopefully see you down the road in Colorado. Must admit, we are getting a bit of hitch itch what with Rick and Y leaving, Michelle and Steve are leaving tomorrow to head down towards the Ozarks, and the other workampers are all contemplating their departures. Unless the weather drastically changes, we will stay here for the Buffalo Roundup on Sept. 28 and leave on the 29th.

Had a nice chat with Melissa and then Rick and Y who gave us a call via Skype - amazing technology and it's free! A nice ending to a another wonderful day.

Geocaching, showers, rain and Marshall's medical emergency

As we had laid low while the Sturgis Rally was on, we decided we needed to get back to hunting geocaches. We set off on a beautiful morning for a cache that was near Crazy Horse along the George S. Mickelson trail (see those clouds in the sky, more about them later) near Highway 16. The "easy" cache turned into a 3 1/2 mile hike. The hike did lead us through some beautiful areas and the site of the Custer 1874 Expedition Encampment.

Rick found the cache and as we headed back to the Jeep, we noticed that the white fluffy clouds were now getting darker. As it looked like the clouds were over Hill City, we headed back into Custer for lunch. As we finished up lunch, Rick noticed that it was raining. Not a big deal right? It wouldn't have been except we have been traveling around topless (the Jeep, people). We thought about waiting the rain out but we had a feeling it was only get worse. So we piled in and got comments from people about "where are your umbrellas". We got drenched on the ride back to the campground. The cover was thrown over the Jeep and we all headed for our respective rigs for showers and dry clothes. That was a first and I must admit cold but also kind of fun.

The next day we decided to try our hands at another multicache. You are given coordinates for the first cache where you pick up coordinates for the next cache and on until you find the final cache location. We first headed off to Sunset Lode Mine to find the next clue that resembled the metal tag below. The metal tag had the coordinates for the next cache location.

At the final location, from the top of a steep hill, the view of Crazy Horse could be seen.

We then headed off for another find. Due to water and John being the only one wearing Teva's, the rest of us watched as John hunted for the cache after crossing a small stream and climbing up a rocky hillside. Another cache found!

Friday was a blowout as it rained almost all day long. John and I made a trip to the Post Office, John got his haircut, and we drove up to Hill City for lunch.

We were relaxing and just discussing where we might want to head when we leave Custer at the end of September, when Faye knocked on our door. Her husband, Marshall, was having some chest pains and difficulty breathing. She asked if I could cover her workshift while she took Marshall to the clinic. I told her to go ahead and I would be right there. I threw on socks, shoes, and grabbed my raincoat and John and I were out the door. Marshall was not looking at all well. He had been complaining all week that his acid reflux was bad and that his medicine wasn't working. To make a long story short, while at the Emergency Room and hooked up to an EKG, Marshall started having a heart attack. The hospital staff responded quickly and prepared him for a helicopter flight up to Rapid City to a waiting cardiologist. Faye came home to grab his medical records and then headed up to Rapid City. I had John check with her to make sure she was up to driving herself and she was. Marshall ended up having a stent put in due to a blockage and last we heard, sounds like he will be just fine.

When Faye returned home this morning for a short while to tend to their dog, I was able to speak with her. We are all so relieved that Marshall is going to be fine. Faye said that Marshall said he felt better than he has in days and was even sleeping better. I told her I felt so bad that she had to experience all of this alone. She said that she called family and friends and knew that we here were all thinking and praying for Marshall so that helped. She said she was really grateful knowing that we were all so concerned. Marshall was going to have an echo cardiogram sometime this morning and they will know more once they get the results as to what, if any, damage there was to his heart. The cardiologist said that the Custer hospital staff did all the right things in handling his condition. The good news is that Marshall may be able to come home tomorrow morning.

On another note, lately in the early mornings, we have had a flock of turkey's visit. They are enjoying the birdseed that gets tossed out of the bird feeders. We had been told that in August they start to show in numbers around the campground.

Laid low during Rally week

We laid low during Sturgis Motorcycle Rally week. We were very productive during our down time. We got both rigs washed, caulking checked and replaced as needed, and waxed. It took Monday through Friday to get both rigs done and boy, do they shine! It is nice knowing that other than "touch-ups", no major outside cleaning needs to be done for six months.

We ventured out to lunch and were able to get these pictures. The locals said that there weren't as many motorcycles as in the past. From what we heard and saw, we were pretty darn impressed. None of us have ever seen so many motorcycles in one area at the same time. When we headed home from playing cards at Rick and Y around 11 p.m. or so, the campground was quiet. Come around 7 a.m. it was another story as motorcycles were started up and then headed out for their rides. Sleeping in was not really possible this week.

Here is a shot of how motorcycles lined the center of the street through Custer.

Thousands of Harleys, Hondas, etc. were on display throughout town. The sweet little number that caught my attention was called Stallion by Thoroughbred Motorsports. It even had a cute trailer to match. This little number can be yours starting at $32,995, Too bad we don't have a way to tow it (just kidding). For those that like this kind of information, I found the following information on the trike from the web "The trike is powered by a 2.3-liter Ford four-cylinder engine. The engine produces 155 horsepower and 160 ft-lbs. of torque, according to Motor Trike, which Thoroughbred says will give the Stallion the power-to-weight ratio of a Mustang GT. " I guess you can say it has got some get up and go!

Faye and Marshall decided to take the drive up to Sturgis to check the Rally out. They said it was so crowded with no place to park that they didn't stop. It took them 30 minutes to get to the other side of town (normally a 5 minute drive). The most risque thing they saw were scantily clad girls in bikini's offering to wash motorcycles. Faye and Marshall said it was one of those been there, done that kind of things. They were amazed at all the motorcycles they saw coming and going. Faye said it was in the thousands and I believe it.

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally

For days, the number of motorcycles in the Black Hills has been growing. The official Sturgis Motorcycle Rally began 8/3 and will run through 8/10. Our campground is not full of campers but we do have a lot of motorcycles in the park. I hope to get a picture of what downtown Custer looks like with all the motorcycles parked in the middle of the road.

The campground is on Sylvan Lake Road (Needles Highway) and is a popular scenic route for cars and motorcycles alike. We are treated to the sights and sounds of motorcycles going past the campground all day long. There is no sleeping in once the Harley's start up and head out between 7 and 7:30 a.m. While Harley's aren't the only motorcycle in and around the rally area, they do outnumber the other brands. The Sturgis Rally has quite the reputation for being whild but here in the park, it is quiet at 10 p.m. All those that want to party hearty are up in Sturgis while the rest who want a good night's sleep fan out throughout the Black Hills.

We decided to just lay low during this period. In order to make good use of our time, we've decided that it is time to do some maintenance on our rigs. Rick and John are going to wash, check caulking, replace any caulking as needed, and wax on both rigs. Once Rick and Y's rig is waxed, they will start on ours. It is always nice having a sparkling clean rig and the comfort knowing that the caulking has been checked.

Tomorrow is Rick and Y's 32nd wedding anniversary. Congratulations on the many years and we wish you many more.

What we've been up to this past week

It has been a busy, fun-filled week and quite honestly, I haven't felt like blogging. So here is a quick recap:

Rick and Y took the roof off their Jeep so we have been riding around topless (the Jeep, not us). We were going to head out to do some geocaching in the Jeep when we felt sprinkles on us as we headed into Custer. We headed back to the campground, covered the Jeep up with its rain cover, and headed out in the truck for lunch and to see what the weather was going to do. Good thing we changed vehicles because it down poured. We spent the rest of the day playing games while it rained.

We have spent a couple of afternoons doing some geocaching and even did a multi-stage geocache that took us to Broken Arrow Campground where we spent a month last summer. It was nice visiting with the owners, Larry and Geri Gustafson . . . they are such nice people. It was also nice seeing and hearing that their campground is doing well. A multi-stage geocache is one where you locate the first cache with the coordinates provided, then that cache gives you the next coordinates and a hint that then leads you to the final cache (sort of like a scavenger hunt). We didn't have any problems locating either of the three caches. Time to increase the cache difficulty level!

Here is a shot of Rick at one of the geocache finds:

One of the geocaches took us up to the Needles Highway near the Eye of the Needle. John took these interesting shots of some large boulders that makes you wonder how exactly they got where they did.

The campground has a resident cottontail that seems to live in the bundled wood box. As he/she is getting older, it has expanded its horizons. Rick and Y has seen it around their rig and it likes to hang out around ours as well. It doesn't seem to get to concerned when we are out and about but it certainly doesn't like kids! A few days ago, while we were trying to catch some sun rays, the bunny visited us. He/she got itself comfortable in our shoe cleaner tray that was about three feet from where I was sitting. Soon it stretched itself out and took a bit of a snooze. John and I both enjoyed the fact that the bunny felt safe enough around us to nap. When it woke up, it got within inches of John's feet and went under his chair before headed under the rig.

Melissa sent me some beautiful orchids for my birthday. With Rick and Y, we did some geocaching and had lunch out. As the area is starting to get busy with motorcyclists, I decided that I just wanted to pick up a couple of pizzas to share with Rick and Y as my birthday dinner. Y made up a salad and a very tasty apple and cranberry dump cake. We then played two hands of Shanghai (I won one, John won the other) and three games of Pegs and Jokers (The guys beat us on all three games. However, the girls won two out of three games the night before.). By the end of the day, I had received several phone calls wishing me a very Happy Birthday. Thanks everyone; it was a wonderful birthday.

Last but not least, we got the call on Monday that John's 51 year-old brother, Gene, had passed away. Gene's health has not been good for many years. RIP Gene.