Nebraska South Dakota Part 1

Nebraska South Dakota - Part 1

This is another trip that we have taken, that so far, hasn’t been written up and completed on the website. I started on it years ago, but due to the problems with the website builder at the time, it ground to a halt. After reading what I had written at that time, it was evident that I needed to start all over again. So here goes!

Souvenir Patches of the trip.

Beth’s mom Dorothy is originally from Crawford, Nebraska. She met Beth’s father at Fort Robinson while he was being trained there during WW2. Fort Robinson has been blessed to be tied to all sorts of U.S. history. Her dad spent most of his deployment in the war around and in Burma. From the Indian wars up to WW2, the museum at Fort Robinson covers all sorts of cavalry information. Beth loved the trips up there to see her grandparents when she was a young girl. That surrounding area is beautiful with plains, mesas, wild flowers, and buttes that look as if they came right out of the cowboy/ Indian movies. Very picturesque indeed!

During the 1950’s, there was still train passenger service from Dallas straight north up to Denver and then to Nebraska. Beth still talks about the enjoyment they had, with train rides, jeep rides, climbing buttes, and touring the Fort. You can still buy Buffalo Burgers at the Fort and they are super tasty. Lots of great memories, we wondered what had changed since she was there last.

We left early on Saturday July 11 and returned late Saturday July 18. My Grandad instilled in his grand kids the desire to travel and see as much of the world as possible through life. For me to drive down a new highway on vacation is one of the most relaxing, fun experiences of life. It rejuvenates your adventure spirit with anticipation of what to see, where to go, and the diversity of God’s creation. Oh, how we are blessed with all the wonders and scenic parks in America.

Day 1 - Saturday July 11, 2015 The first day of travel

How exciting to wake up the morning of the start of a trip. Having packed most of our food and travel items the night before, we just had to be sure we packed all our stuff that we would need before we actually left. We made sure we had our Garmin. It is great to have when we are trying to find food or go somewhere unknown to us.

Our daughter Michelle, my wife Beth, and I hit the road and drove up to interstate 20, and then headed for Lindale. There we turned onto Hwy 69 and headed for Greenville. Since we don’t go to Dallas that often, we try to avoid it with all its traffic. Greenville was a really nice place for our first restroom stop. The place we stopped at was one of those large truck places. Then back in the car up to Bells, then Hwy 82 over to Interstate 35 where we turned north at Gainesville.

Oklahoma

We stopped next in Ardmore, Oklahoma. What impressed me were the gas pumps. At the station where we stopped, you could buy gas with or without alcohol. Without is great for small engines like lawnmowers and weed eaters. Ardmore had grown much since Beth and I spent the night there in 1978. Our oldest daughter Karen was just 6 months old then. Ardmore has a Michelin Tire plant and is a stop for the Amtrak train. I have fond memories of this place.

As a teenager, my first job in the summers was working at a tire shop changing tires. Michelin tires were the best and also the most expensive. All the salesmen who drove a lot of miles wanted these on their cars.

Art Deco design was used with this depot at Ardmore.

After Ardmore it was straight north on I-35 to Oklahoma City. The city had major construction going on where all the big highways intersected the Interstate. It was a mess! We were rerouted around the middle of the city off the beaten path. We had to turn off the Garmin GPS for awhile because it repeatedly was trying to recalculate and confuse us. We relaxed when we finally drove out of the construction.

Kansas Highways are laid out straight and long in the flatlands. In East Texas, where we live, we are always winding up and down over hills and forests. You can make good time driving through Kansas. At Wichita I-35 changed to I-135.

We spent the night here at the Quality Inn in Salina, Kansas. It was just about dark, and we were happy to find a room available. There was a large group of bikers there who were headed on a trip up into the mountains. We enjoyed talking with them about where they were going and what they expected to see. At the motels you always meet people who have planned a vacation all year and are just busting at the seams to get out and go touring.

Day 2 – Sunday July 12, 2015

We woke up that morning with the weather nice and cool, wondering what the day had in store. We left Salina and then continued straight north on I-135. At Minneapolis, KS, I-135 changed to Hwy 81.

You could see a long way as you drove along. On one stretch, where you could see before and behind about 5 miles, we could only see one car way back in the distance. This was a beautiful isolated drive. Somewhere along this area the landscape changed and we drove through some red rock formations, very picturesque. This was sort of a precursor to the mountains. We drove through Concordia, and Belleville and then crossed the border into Nebraska.

We crossed into Nebraska near Chester, Nebraska on Hwy 81. Then we traveled north to York where we turned west onto Interstate 80.

One pleasant memory I have of this place occurred at the truck stop right at the intersection of the highways. Inside I ordered a medium size chocolate ice cream cone. The lady brought me the biggest ice cream cone I had ever seen in my life. I sat down at one of the booths there and ate it all. That ice cream was good, it tasted like homemade. After that I was refreshed, charged up with sugar and ready to continue.

Now when you get on Interstate 80 you see lots and lots of trucks. I remember the interstate was bumpy, I guess because of all the traffic that is on that road. It is a major travel artery all the way across Nebraska, and once we turned onto it I wondered if we would ever turn off of it. We drove a long-long way on that highway.

As I mentioned before, Beth’s mom was born and raised in Crawford, Nebraska. Beth has a lot of wonderful memories as a child visiting this area, so we were all in anticipation that we were nearing our destination. The first place that we wanted to stop was at Gothenburg, Nebraska, about 120 miles west of York on I-80.

At Gothenburg is an original Pony Express Station from 1860.

Michelle and Beth in front of the station

The Pony Express lasted only 19 months from 1860 to 1861. Telegraph poles and lines put it out of business and made it obsolete. In 1845 it took six months to get a message from President James K. Polk to California. By the late 1850s, a half million people had migrated West and they wanted up-to-date news from home. With the discovery of gold, followed by statehood, California’s population mushroomed, increasing the urgency for better communication. In 1857, John Butterfield used stage coaches to deliver mail in 25 days.

William H. Russell felt that a horse relay, a Pony Express, would be the best way to speed up the mail delivery and at the same time be good advertisement for this freight company. There were large stations every 100 miles and smaller stations every 10 to 15 miles (to provide riders with fresh horses). Mail was carried in four leather pouches on a knapsack that fit over the saddle. It took 10 days for the mail to go from St. Joseph to San Francisco covering 2000 miles.

Michelle

It was the Pony Express that carried the first news of the breakout of the Civil War and information of those times. The first ride began April 3, 1860, and the last ride finished November 20, 1861.

There was an air conditioner in the station where we relaxed and then headed west on I-80 again. We drove through North Platte, and stopped at Ogallala to get gas and relax. Then we turned of the interstate and headed up Hwy 26 to Bridgeport. There we took Hwy 385 to Alliance. Here we stopped at Carhenge.

I had written my senior English paper on the Stonehenge in England, so I was intrigued when I first read about this place. The whole monument is aligned towards the sunrise on the summer solstice. This occurs when one of Earths poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the summer solstice is the day with the longest period of daylight and shortest night of the year when the Sun is at its highest position in the sky.

The Stonehenge in England

The Carhenge in Alliance, Nebraska

Carhenge was conceived in 1987 by Jim Reinders as a memorial to his father. It consists of 39 automobiles arranged in a circle measuring about 96 feet (29 m) in diameter. There are also buried (unseen) cars replicating the underground stones in their present configuration of the Stonehenge in England.

This was the color of the Carhenge when we were there. They paint it different colors from time to time.

The Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas is crude compared to this.

Michelle stands near one of the dinosaur structures. There were all types of structures at this place.

This was a very windy day, so it was nice to get back in the car and head out on our way to Fort Robinson, where we would spend the night. Again, Crawford is where Beth’s mom lived and her dad was trained for WW2. They met at a dance at the Fort. We continued on Hwy 385 up to Chadron and then west on Hwy 20 to Crawford.

The Band Masters House at Ft. Robinson, Crawford, Nebraska.

We were looking for a motel in town, but they were all booked up. Finally we found a place to stay at Ft. Robinson. They still had a vacancy in the Band Masters House at the Fort. This was an interesting house, with lots of history. We pulled in just before dark and then started walking around the Fort as the light dimmed. It had been hot during the day, but as the sun set, the temperature cooled off fast. The Band Masters house is centralized in the middle of several parade grounds. There was lots of space for horses to maneuver.

Day 3 – Monday July 13, 2015

We woke up that morning eager to get started. This day we planned to tour the Fort, then drive to Crawford and tour around town. Finally, we would drive to Chadron, toured the college there and head up to Hot Springs, South Dakota to spend the night. Beth’s mother graduated from Chadron State College. We were in high gear trying to see just as much as we could in that area.
Fort Robinson began in 1874 and was active until 1948. Many of the activities concerned the Indian Wars and training of mules and horses for WW1 and WW2. There was also a K9 training unit here.

We parked at the back of the Band Masters House.

The first thing we saw that morning, after stirring around, was this rabbit, a welcome visitor.

Michelle’s Grandad swam here.

Beth taking pictures in front of the main building.

Beautiful flowers near the main building.

This is the main building at the fort. It contains a gift shop, a restaurant, and a museum. There are rooms throughout the different buildings to spend the night. You get your room to spend the night in this building near the gift shop. They give you a map of what is available when you ask.

This is the Headquarters building. The rock pyramid in front is where Chief Crazy Horse was killed in 1877.

Monument to Chief Crazy Horse

Beth

Michelle

The other side of the Headquarters building. This is now a history museum and gift shop.

Just across the street from the Headquarters building is a large parade ground with the flagstaff.

Horse rides are available.

Waiting for riders.

Buggies for rides.

Stagecoach

Buffalo Soldiers

Looking across the parade ground.

Water towers with buttes in the back.

View of the buttes from the fort. The fort was set in the middle of some beautiful scenery.

We left the fort and headed into town of Crawford where Dorothy grew up.

Crawford is where Dorothy, Beth’s mom, grew up. Her parents owned a grocery store in town and had a farm about 10 miles out.

Downtown Crawford, Nebraska.

This is where Beth’s parents and grandparents went to church. It is also where Hayes and Dorothy were married.

Frank and Dora’s house at 118 Paddock St. We could not find this while we were there in 2015. This picture is from a visit in 1979. I'm glad we did not find it. I remember the quote: "I had learned one of the bitter lessons of life: never try to regain the past, the fire will have become ashes."

The backyard.

Newly restored classic truck near the train yard.

Downtown was the train yard where 8 BNSF engines were idling. In the past three major railroad lines converged here and this was a busy place.

Mike

Beth and Michelle. Love the colors of BNSF rolling stock.

Grave site of Dorothy’s parents Dora and Frank Uhl near Crawford.

Leaving Crawford, we turned onto Hwy 20 and headed east to Chadron. The wildflowers, buttes, mesas, and plains were just beautiful. We felt we just had to pullover here and look around.

Wow! The striking beauty of these plains just grabs you! The colors from the wildflowers pop and are more vivid when you are there.

Beth taking a picture.

Interesting History of this area.

This area is just beautiful when the wild flowers bloom. The world is full of beauty when you look for it. After the Civil War General Douglass MacArthur spent time in this area. His father was a Major in the cavalry after the Civil War. Douglas and the first lieutenant's son, Billy Hughes, were 12 years old. They accompanied their fathers as they patrolled. Some of Douglas’s most fond memories are from this period. Here Douglas learned tracking, shooting, and command skills from his father and the cavalry. If you would like to read more, see Douglas MacArthur’s autobiography “Reminiscences”. Reading a biography is like living in another persons life!

Sunflowers

Dorothy graduated from here in Chadron.

Mascot

Michelle in front of old administration building.

We left Chadron and turned north onto Hwy 385. It was exciting to see the landscape change into the Black Hills.

The native Americans referred to the Black Hills based on their hue. Seen from a distance, the pine tree covered hills looked black.

Beautiful Karamursel