Day 9 Sundance WY, to Buffalo, WY

Day 9    6/30

About 220 Miles driven (experienced mechanical problems)



Since I almost ended up without a place to sleep last night I decided I would book a hotel first thing in the morning to avoid being stranded. I booked a place in Cody, WY, which is basically the last town before entering Yellowstone National Park's East entrance.

I packed up and got my bags back on the bike and was ready to head out when I realized my chain was real loose again. I decided to just keep an eye on it and ride on becasue it was not as loose at it was the last time.

Leaving Sundance, WY I rode on US-14 West and then turned off onto WY-24 (State Route 24) to head to the Devil's Tower. As I rode up a small mountain and crested the top of it I could see the Devil's Tower off in the distance.

Devil's Tower off in the distance (right)

Entering Devil's Tower National Park (cost $5)

 By the time I reached the front gate I was ready to get off the bike. Riding in all this gear I just keep sweating and losing water so I constantly have to make sure I am re-hydrating (drinking water) my body. Outside the front gate was a convenience store & gift store.

I rode into the park to get a better view and to check out this amazing rock formation. Inside the park along the way up to the base of Devil's Tower there was a large area of grasslands. I saw a bunch of people taking pictures and couldn't figure out what they were looking at... Well on the way down I stopped and realized that there were little Prairie Dogs everywhere.

I can't imagine climbing up this but there are some people that do

Notice the prairie dogs and the mounds of dirt that surround the
burrows they dig in the ground to live in.

close up of a praire dog

Tractor Trailor Billboard trying to get visitors of Devils Tower
to turn onto US-14 East towards South Dakota

After leaving Devil's Tower I had to ride back to US Route 14 West.  Just as I was getting to the intersection I saw quite the billboard.. Rather than the billboards we see on our highways and that I have seen constantly on this trip this one was the old tractor trailer that was painted to act as a billboard....

I continued riding back towards I-90 and just before I got there I stopped for lunch at a small local diner. Met a really nice older gentleman and had some great food and conversation before I headed back out on the road. I asked him about the animosity towards the Native Americans. He explained to me how local Native American tribes are trying to go to court to own the rights to Devil's Tower and they are trying to make it illegal to climb it. I know this is very sacred land to certain Native American tribes so I can understand why they don't want visitors coming and potentially ruining their land... However, I feel that there must be some sort of compromise... Devil's Tower and  the hiking trails are beautiful and should be allowed to be enjoyed by all Americans. As well as the Native Americans should be able to have religius cermeonies there as well...

At this point my chain was definately looser than when I started the day and was hitting my back tire at times... I continued on and go onto Ineterstate 90 West (I-90W) towards Buffalo, WY. It was on this trip that theRocky Mountains came into view. I could see them off in the distance and they seemed like they were never going to get closer.. They were amazing even from a distance! One thing about driving on relatively flat ground is that you can see everything.. Even the harmless white clouds forming over the mountains get bigger and bigger and blacker and blacker.... As I was driving I could see strorms forming over the mountains and was hoping to not get stuck in one as I was going up them.. Even from a distance you could see 

where it was raining. 

Notice the rain coming down (where you can't see the line between the ground and the sky

Finally getting closer to the
Bighorn Mountain Range

So by the time I got to Buffalo, WY it was already getting to be after 6PM and from Buffalo, WY to Cody, WY was about another 3 hour drive and you have to go up and over the mountains on windy roads.. SO I was already worried about driving in the dark in the middle of nowhere with tons of animals roaming. What made things worse is that I new the chain was eating up my tire every time the chain hit it..If the tire gets chewed up enough it could easily blow... and that would probably mean I would be crashing pretty hard too. So I checked my tire again and despite better judgement decided to try to get throught the Big Horn Mountains and on to Cody before nightfall.  Well... I was about 20 miles into the Bighorn Mountains and these roads just keep winding back and forth up steep hills. I could feel and hear my chain hitting my tire, as well as I started to smell the rubber burning from the friction... SO  I stopped and turned back, called the hotel and had to cancel, and then find a hotel in Buffalo. After that I had to search for the nearest motorcycle repair shop.. Cloesest one - Sheridan, WY about 50 miles away.

Looks like Day 10 is going to be all about getting my bike fixed....

Picture from the parking lot of my hotel in Buffalo.
I was staring at the mountains dissappointed I couldn't make it..
& wondering how long I might be stuck in the next town waiting for my bike to be fixed

You can kind of see how  the chain is chewing up the outermost side
of the tire

Notice the sag in the chain.. that shouldn't be drooping so much.
In fact it was rubbing/ grinding on my exhaust pipe too

Day 8 Rapid CIty, SD to Sundance, WY

6/29/13 As you'll notice on the map I did not move much further west than where I started. The day prior I had been riding to Rapid City and just made into town at night fall. While I was riding I could the badlands off to the north and they looked amazing and that was from a distance so I couldn't help and ride back to them in the morning. It was about a 80 mile drive to get back to them but it was SO worth it.


View Day 8 Rapid City, SD to Sundance, WY in a larger map

I had to drive east to Wall, SD, which is home to the oldest pharmacy in the U.S. I should have stopped  becasue literally every half mile or so I felt like there was another Wall Drug billboard. They seem to be  pretty popular in the midwest becasue I had been seeing billboards for different Wall Drug stores I think all the way back in Wisconsin... Regardless, I didn't feel I had time so I stopped for gas because there are no gas stations once you get inside the Badlands National Park.

While I was at the gas station a gentleman and I sparked up conversation which lasted for a while. It turns out this mans name is Tuffy Morrison and he is a member of the Sioux Nation (Native American Tribe). I asked him about life on the reservation because I have heard about the awful suicide rates, poverty and drug abuse. He told me it was all true. In his tribe of about 20,000 there were back to back months with 20+ suicide attempts and on month there was 21 attempts and 21 deaths... I was given an invite to spend a day on the reservation which I am hoping I can find a way to make it happen. He did tell me some interesting things related to how any services they need on the reservation they typically have to pay more for than non-Native American.. For example, if an Native American needs a parking lot to be paved they will end up paying a much higher price than a non-Native Americans. In my travels since this day I have spoken to a lot of other people and noticed that there is definitely a fair amount of animosity between Native Americans and non-Native Americans.

Well.... Eventually I did make it to the badlands and thankfully because they are amazing....

Entering the Badlands - Cost $10 per motorcycle

Notice all of the different layers of rock and how erosion has shaped the land

Yes it is really hot in my "spacesuit" & yes that is a Puma shirt underneath

This was amazing.. becasue of the different organisms that lived here
at varios times (millions of years ago) distinctive colors were caused when
they decomposed

All of the roads through the Badlands were extremly windy as they went
through the mountains

Erosion from the wind and rain has created such an
amazing landscape

After leaving the Badlands I took Tuffy Morisons advice and rode back towards Rapid City on  South Dakota SR-44 (SR= State Route). As driving through the scenery was great. It was flat grasslands with an amazing backdrop of the Badlands to my right. After another hour and a half I made it back to the Rapid City area and turned onto SR-16 towards Mount Rushmore. The roads became windy and at times went through tunnels that cut through the sides of mountains. Then I looked to my right and saw the faces of four of our past presidents. It cost me $15 to enter and as you can see this must have been a massive job to carve these faces into the rock. Despite the dangerous nature of carving the rock that high off the ground not a single live was lost depsite having 400 workers between the years of 1927-1941.

If you look up you may see a profile (side-view) of a face...

After leaving here I really wanted to drive to Custer National Park but was running behind becasue I spent so much time in the Badlands.. So I did drive through the Black Hills but not through the most beautiful portions... :( 

One said thing to see is that so many pine trees are dead in the Black Hills. Apparently there is a bark beetle that is killing all of the trees. This is truly an epidemic. Literally entire mountain sides were covered with dead trunks of trees. It was a real sad sight.. So what can be done?? Another sad thing is that many towns really on certain industries. For example there was a gold mine in Lead, SD which supported the town of Deadwood. Unfortunately the mine closed about 12 years ago an left a lot of people without jobs. So many people left. Now the town is filled with bars and casinos and is now solely dependant upon tourists. The mine was abandoned and is now home to undergound scientific laboratories about 5000' ( ' = feet) deep.

As I was riding through Deadwood it was nightime and I wanted to get a hotel because there is so much wildlife in the area that driving at night is sketchy... Unfortunately the cheapest hotel in town was $150, which was out of my budget. So I drove another 30 to next town of Spearfish, SD and checked five hotels and they were all booked... I continued on for another hour to the next town, Sundance, WY. This drive was nerve racking because there weren't many people on the rode and all I could see is what my lights lit up. I nearly hit a fresh roadkill (looked like a dear). I missed it but ran over its fluids and felt my tire slip a bit.. It definitely shook me up a bit and I was glad to finally get off the highway.Unfrotunately the Best Western was also booked but the lovely lady called around and found me a room at a local motel!!! I was so thankful!! Time to lay my head on a pillow and relax.

Day 7 Sioux City,IA to Rapid City, SD

6/28/13

I drove 430+ miles today. That is equivalent to driving from Lowell, MA to Washington DC



View Day 8 in a larger map

The first 1/2 of this drive was awful.. The wind was wipping me back and forth. I was hunched over my gas tank most of the day and having to constantly be gripping the handlebars. This is now the second day in a row like this my shoulders are tense and tight, my neck is sore, and my wrists hurt from having to be gripping the handle bars securely waiting for the next gust of wind that I have to react to.... NOT FUN.... I can usually ride for atleast 90 miles if not 150 without getting off of my bike... I was going 30 to 40 miles and just getting off to relax (both yesterday and today)

2/3s of the way to the Missouri River I started seeing sign for the worlds only Corn Palace
 I couldn't help myself and I stopped in Mitchell, SD to get a look at whatever a corn palace is.. It turns out it is a giant building and the entire facade (exterior of the building) is made up of corn plant parts, either the stalks, the corn itself, leaves etc...

Whoops! I put it on the wrong day! Again here you go but in the correct spot this time...

Entire facade made of corn (excluding the bricks that are exposed on the bottom portionof the building)

After about another hour and a half from Mitchell, SD I started to approach the Missouri River... No bear in mind that literally the entire day has been going through flat windy farmland... and I mean flat.. I feel like you can see for days!! 

Notice the land is flat

Suns going down... Still flat

Yup you got it... still flat

....and it's still flat.....

My neck was getting whipped around so much that I turned the video on myself Dont Mind all the bugs you see on my hemlmet, jacket etc... its just part off life.. Definitely don't breath through your mouth!! I try to ride with the visor up sometimes for air flow (it's hot) and I had a bug explode in my nose!! it was disgusting... I took my glove finger up to my nose to wipe anything away while making sure not breath in... It was a nasty sulfur yellow... ughhhh gross!!!!

I was so thankful my good friend Sean got me some bluetooth headphones cause I am pretty sure I would have lost my mind a long time ago on the road.. Especially with all this repetitive flat farmland... there are only so many corn palaces in the world to stop at to break up the monotony... :) How much more flat land becomes the question???

Eventually the road starts to climb slightly, and I am figuring like every other time I've climbed a slight hill that I am going to hit the crest and again I'll see miles upon miles of flat farmland... This time was different though! I crested the hill and all I could see is this river in the distance and the most amazing looking rolling hills! It was gorgeous.. Now I am not sure if it would have been as amazing if I hadn't been riding for over 2 days of basically flat farmland... Regardless, I thought it was amazing.. It was at this moment that everything changed! 

I cant find that portion of the video but here are a couple pictures from a bit past that...

Cattle grazing in the grasslands. The further west I went in South Dakota the more all of the land became just grasslands!! NO MORE CORN !!

As you can see in the right hand side there is rolling terrain that goes on for miles!!
It was gorgeous.. The shadows that were cast on the land were unreal!!

Thankfully I changed time zones and that bought me some more time before sunset.. Now where I am it is two hours early than what it is in Lowell, MA. 

I eventually got to my hotel in Rapid City as the sun was completely behind the mountains that are west of Rapid City... Biggest downside of driving west is that every afternoon the sun just gets more and more in my eyes as the day goes on!!

Day 6 Lacross, WI to Sioux City, Iowa

6/27/13
Distance traveled 370 miles.

Drove nearly straight across the entire state of Minnesota but instead turned south in order to go to Sioux City, Iowa... Funny thing is that I really meant to got to Sioux Falls but when I asked a man (Larry Potter) how much further to Sioux City he told me and had me follow him some of the way... Whoops I said Sioux City not Sioux Falls (Potato Patato) It was an extra adventure.... & an extra state I got to explore...

States I've been through- NH, MA, NY, OH, IN, IL, WI, MN, IA

After crossing the Mississippi River I entered some hilly, heavly wooded areas along the river and for about 30 minutes on I-90... It didn't take long though for the terrain to completely flatten out and I entered mostly flat farmland... At this point the winds were unbelievable.. I had to lean my bike just to go straight and then a gust of wind would come and I would have to lean even more in one direction... then the gust would pass and I would have to lean my bike the other way to stop from getting out of my lane... I couldn't rest my hands by taking them off the handlebars at all.. too sketchy!!! 

After experiencing the wind I can see why there are wind turbines all over the place... 

I noticed while driving that there seemed to be a lot of brown, unplanted farmland where you could see the old stalks (stems) of corn plants from last years crops. I was wondering why these hadn't got planted with new corn plants this year??? Later on I did get the answer to my question from a man I met named Larry Potter who owns a truck stop out in western Minnesota.

Below is a short slightly edited clip showing some of the brown, unplanted cropland. Larry explained that it had rained nearly the entire month of may so the ground was so wet that they couldn't plant and by the time things dried out it was too late to plant corn.. Plus the ground consists of so much clay that when it dries up the soil becomes rock hard and the seeds cant sprout through it.

The rest of the drive consisted of very lightly rolling terrain (mostly flat) farmland either corn or grasses. Luckily the speed limit through much of Wisconsin and all of Minnesota on I-90 was 75mph and the flow of traffic was 85mph..Just trying to get through this state and on to more exciting terrain...

 Eventually I arrived in Sioux City... Once again at night fall...

Day 5 Milwaukee, WI to Lacross, WI

Distance 266 miles

From the eastern border of Wisconsin (Lake Michigan) to the western border (Mississippi River)

I noticed when I was driving through Chicago that my chain was so loose that it was rubbing against my tire every time I would turn one direction.... It was literally eating up the side of my tire. So before I left the Milwukee area I found a bike shop to fix the problem... All they had to do was extend my axle back (the axle is what holds the wheel/tire to the bike)...






After being stuck at the bike shop until about 1ish I hit the road and decided I should go through the Madison Wisconsin, the capital. On the way to Madison was a lot more farm land mainly corn, dairy farms, and wind turbines (giant fan looking structures that use the wind to make electricity).
To get to Madison I got off of  I-90 and got onto the state route SR-151 and then on SR-10. SR-151 was like driving on Daniel Webster highway (Pheasant Lane mall road at Christmas time... I swear I had to stop at every light and there were probably 20+ lights to get to Madison... The whole time I could see the giant state capital building, which is the tallest in the country.

I left Madison on SR-10 and drove towards Sauk City, WI. The majority of the ride was past farm land, mainly corn again..The terrain is rolling, no mountains around but definitely a bunch of rolling hills, and windy roads. By the time I hit Sauk City I was starving.. I prefer to stop at family run small restaurants... Why eat at a chain if I don't have too.. and thankfully I stopped here @ Turn It Luce because this is where I met Bob & Mary & i had fried cheddar cheese curds (basically taste like mozzarelle sticks but better)

Since I'm dressed like an astronaut I am a walking conversation piece.. It doesn't take long for people to realize I am not from around here.. Between my accent (I don't think I have one) and the camera strapped to my helmet I stick out like a sore thumb. Bob  & Mary gave me some great suggestions on roads to take and things to see.. Like taking the car ferry across Lake Wisconsin... and when I get to Lacrosse my end point for the evening he told me I had to get to Old Grandad Bluff which overlooks the Lacross, WI and the mighty Mississippi River.

So I took the ferry which was pretty awesome to be on and then rode through a bunch of farmland to meet up with Kelly who was camping out in Lodi, Wi. Said goodby and rode off through a ton of farmland to get back to I-90 westbound for Lacross, WI.

Thanks for the free ride! Crossed Lake Wisconsin on the ferry.

On the way to Lacross I passed the Wisconsin Dells which is mile after mile of indoor and outdoor waterparks.. I believe someone said there are over 60 in the Dells area.. I must have seen atleast 10-15 right from the highway alone.. but before and after the Dells I rode past farmland after farmland. Luckily the terrain isn't completely flat here like in parts of Indiana.

By the time I hit Lacross it was almost 12 at night.. Once again riding in the dark stinks.. Stopped to get food and went on Hotwire.com to find my hotel for the night. I learned early on to not book my hotel to early in case I didn't make it far enough and so I could make sure it was close to things I wanted to possibly see in the morning.

In the Morning I took Bob & Mary's suggestion ( Thank you both for the awesome conversation, suggestions & the map of Wisconsin). Old Grandad Bluff was awesome plus there was an awesome hidden gem of a reastaurant 3/4's of the way up the bluff.

Overlooking Lacross, WI and the Mississippi is in the background before the hills

Gotta Represent...

On the way down the bluff I stopped at the Alpine Inn Grill

for some food & refreshments..

Homemade Chicken Cordon Blue Niggets (filled with ham and cheese) :) 

I love Chicken Cordon Blue so I couldn't help myself

Off to Sioux City, Iowa now and once again I am not leaving town till after noon.. Gonna be a long drive again probably at night...

Oh the people you meet..... (Shout Outs to People/Places)

This trip has reminded me that... 

 everything you see and everyone you meet all have a story to tell....(all you have to do is want to know/ask)

there are so many great people in the world (despite what the news and newspapers show us)...

Whether it is....

- Leaving Niagara and stopping along the Niagara River Corridor Parkway and meeting this really nice guy who was on his motorcycle too... we talked for over a half an hour (Day 2)

-Riding through the grape country of NY & Pennsylvania and you see the abandoned old headquarters of Welch's Grape Juice Co. in Westfield, NY (Day 2)

-Meeting the lovely lady who works at the Johnson Estate Winery and after she found out what I was doing came running out to me to tell me that I had to drive up through the vineyards to get a great shot of the vineyards with Lake Erie in the background... FYI It was a sketchy ride on the dirt road (Day 2)

-Checking out of the Comfort Inn in Downtown Cleveland and talking about life and children with Sheila and another beautiful woman who were both working the front desk there. You were both awesome!! Keep on being amazing! (Stay active in the community they need you Sheila) (Day 3)

- Driving through Cleveland and seeing all of the remnants (remains of) all the steel factories - reminds me of why we should try to buy American made products when possible. (Day 3)

- Stopping to get postcards to mail out to all of you (Wang Students) in downtown Cleveland and I had no change for the parking meter :( Luckily I saw the Officer who was giving out tickets and we talked... He rocked! He put a blank ticket on my bike so that if another officer came by they would think I already got a ticket!! (Day 3)

- Going to Walmart to get a portable hard drive because my computer couldn't fit any more video (didn't think about that happening BUT I should have) & I ran into the SOULS OF MISCHIEF crew!!!
I don't think they were too thrilled when myself, dressed as an astronaut, approached them but they warmed up quickly! Thanks guys and have a great tour! (Day 3)

- after getting scared to death in an awful storm I stopped under a bridge.. When the storm passed I went to a truck stop and met a family who was at the truck stop with their kids because they lost power... You know your not in Mass or NH when a family goes to the truck stop for a night out when theirs no power... Obviously not a lot of stuff around there.. (Day 3 - Indiana- East of South Bend)

- Patrick & Reggie from the Days Inn in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.. Patrick owns the hotel and he was working the front desk when I arrived. He was such a genuinely great person.. Super helpful, and caring.. When I wanted to go to the store he told me not to walk "that" way but go "this" way. I wanted to grab a bite to eat and he told me he would have Reggie give me a ride..  & Reggie - I think the best thing to say is "Reggie Rocks"!!! There are some people in life that go out of their way to care (Patrick & Reggie) and I was walking down the hallway when I first got there and Reggie beat me to saying hello & asking how I was doing.... At one point I was thinking about going to the store and he pulls out his keys and says you got it!! I'm rambling now so in closing Thank You ALL and tell that lovely young lady that was late to work to show up on time and then I'll give her a ride on the motorcycle!

Still to come 

-Man at gas station outside Madison WI
-guys at the Ducati Shop
-Mary & Gary of Sauk City
-Larry Potter of Minnesota
- hairdresser on Main St. Sheridan WY
- Ken Weber of Honda Valley Motor

...... more will be added and eventually a final video will be made

Day 4 Michigan City, Indiana to Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Going into this entire trip I promised my self I wouldn't ride at dawn, dusk, or at night.. too dangerous... Well I have found myself riding at dusk and at night too much... Everything takes longer on a bike... Every time I stop everything has to come of my bike unless I will be really quick or can keep an eye on my stuff... I've gotten better and quicker - I park near shopping carts in parking lots and put my stuff in... Went to return the external hard drive I bought becasue I forgot to look for whether it was compatable with a Mac..  It wasn't so....

to see where I am now click here

The weather took a turn for the worse so I stopped in McDonalds to let the storm pass and met a lady who gave me some pointers for going through Chicago. Skyway Highway and Lake Shore Drive here I come (after driving though South Side Chicago)

Chicago is Boston on steroids the skyline is just the first row of really tall buildings behind them there are more!! In addition Lake Shore Drive is similar to Storrow Drive but instead of 2/3 lanes it is 4/5 lanes (in each direction) and rather than looking at the Charles River, Lake Shore Drive overlooks Lake Michigan (which looks more like an ocean)








Unfortunately since I was not able to take all of the videos off  my video camera the night before the cameras memory filled up... So the next 2 1/2 hours were spent downloading the video onto my NEW external hard drive... 2 coffees / 3 waters and a sandwich later I was leaving Chicago and just made into Milwaukee Wisconsin by night fall.
In between the two cities I didn't have to look at as much corn fields and other crops.. but there were still  some... I did however pass an outlet mall and since I'm running out of clean clothes already I decided to stop and find my favorite store........

notice the Puma store in the background :)

Then it was off to Milwaukee... just made it into town by nightfall but I'm having some motorcycle issues. My chain is expanding so much that it is rubbing and ripping up the side of my rear tire.... Gotta find a shop tomorrow!

I met a lot of amazing people in Milwaukee between Patrick Reggie and Kelly its been a real awesome trip and I'm loving Wisconsin so far.










I'll add more later ( I know I am behind)

 As of writing this I am broken down at the base of the Rocky Mountains but my parts got overnighted (1 day shipping) from Texas to Sheridan WY so they should be arriving any minute now!!