Okay, trying to speed things up here and catch up to where we actually are.
Left St. Paul. Boondocked at a rest area. Headed toward Theodore Roosevelt National Park; I saw it on the map on the route we planned to take. Wanted to check it out, add another NP to our adventures.
Loved it. Loved it. Loved it. Hit the Painted Canyon, first. Like a small Grand Canyon, but different.
OMGoddess: What a Raw, Wild Beauty! Hills and buttes and outcroppings. Trees, creeks, grasslands, horses, bison, prairie dogs.
Rowan and I loved it so much, we stayed three days!
Our campsite overlooked the river. Absolutely breathtaking. At night, the stars filled the skies from horizon to horizon. On our second day, we were in the campground when I heard a snort and clopclopclop. One of the feral horses strode past our campsite, on his way to the river for a drink. We watched him all of the way down. He decided not to drink, then trotted back up and through the grounds. A while later, on the other side of our site, our friend was joined by two others. They played and rough-housed through the grounds. We walked over to get a better view.
Major cool. Our campmate, “John”, promised to send us some photos, as he took some really good ones.
A bit later, when we were leaving the campground (late as usual), we stopped at the camp host’s trailer to see if they had found Rowan’s camera. No answer, but I heard an odd growl, followed by several more, from behind the trailer. I stepped over, saying something like “I’ve heard that sound before … ” Rowan yelled, “Mom, it’s a bison! It’s a whole BUNCH of bison!”
Truth! A small herd (about 50, cows, calves and bulls of assorted ages and sizes) moseyed from the small meadow. Rowan wanted to run back to get John (he said the only thing he hadn’t yet seen was a bison). I told her to get in the car!
Good thing: Within minutes, we were surrounded! Bison to the left–the head honcho, huge, strode down the middle of the road. Occasionally, he would look back to see if the group was with him, which they weren’t.
The herd spread out over both sides of the road, enveloping the car. We sat inside with the windows open, safe enough, close enough to touch them. Took lots of photos, but nothing will show just how exciting and awesome it was.
Awed. I am.
Come back tomorrow for the next installment: Rowan and the rattlesnake.