Heading to Mexico - The Long Way
18 October 2014 | South Dakota
Ellen
Another summer has come and gone and now we are heading back south to the boat. This year we are taking a somewhat 'different' route. We left the boat on the mainland side in Guaymas (and are we ever glad we did given the hurricane season they had on the Baja this year) which means that our route is somewhat altered from what we've done on previous years. Also we bought a campervan which gives us more freedom to explore the U.S., something we haven't really done to date as its always been about getting back to the boat as fast as we can.
Every year we come home, I like to get myself over to Winnipgeg to visit with my dad. Usually I fly there by myself while Ian continues to work. This year we decided to give the camper a shake down cruise (what we boaters call working out the kinks) and so we drove to Winnipeg to visit dad. On our way we stopped and visited friends and family in BC and Alberta and then on to Manitoba. In those 2 weeks we really only stayed in the van 2 nights.
After a great visit with my dad and his spouse Kathy (who both look excellent for their ages), we set our sights south and headed out to really do some 'RV'ing. We have a week before we meet up with some friends in Utah on the 24th, so we are just poking along with no set ininerary. Our first night was in Fargo where we camped on the river in a park full of Oak trees. Most of the leaves have already fallen but there were a few still hanging on so we got some of the colour. Today we set out west on I-94 and we drove into a 'gale' for 4 hours. The winds were really blowing at what we guesstimate about 35 knots. There is the BIG difference between the boat and the campervan. If it was the boat we would have stayed put or turned around, but in a vehicle, other that the wind buffeting us around a bit, we made pretty good progress.
We stopped in Bismark, North Dakota for a couple of hours and checked out the Heritage Center and State Museum. It was really a good museum and since it is so cold and blustery outside, helped pass a few hours. Our next stop was about 10 miles west and south to Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park where we have set up camp for the night. I must say it's awfully 'chilly' out there. The winds are still up and they are cold. Brrrrrrrr.... It is supposed to warm up again next week and by then we will be a bit further south.
Tomorrow we will head south along this highway which is a 'Scenic Byway' called highway 1806. It will take us into South Dakota and we are planning on making our way to Mount Rushmore.