Well I've made it to Rapid City, South Dakota which is farther than many people predicted the Bean to ever make it! I must admit though that tradgedy was narrowly avoided today. Earlier this morning, I came close to being killed when my alarm didn't go off. See, I knew that I could get in a good two hours of shuteye, and I decided to take advantage of it. I just set the steering wheel straight, the alarm on, and cruise control at 65mph and planned to wake up before the first curve in the road... Seriously the straightness of the roads of southern South Dakota is a little disconcerting. There should be a hill or SOMETHING, ya know? After you get across the Missouri river, the scenery changes to rolling hills, but the road still goes nearly arrow straight. Finally after several hours of driving, I made it to the Badlands.
I must admit the Badlands were a little different than what I expected. Somehow I pictured miles upon miles of barren desert, John Wayne and the whole nine yards just over the next ridge. Instead I got a miniature Afghanistan, with lots more green. Apparently the Badlands formed as erosion from wind, rain, and global warming started eating away at the prairie a few thousand years ago. Unfortunately, there were no former vice presidents around to champion the cause of the prairie, so it has slowly eroded at a rate of about one inch per year. The result is what appears to be towering hills of rock, ravaged by the winds of time. Among the jagged peaks and outcroppings are huge gullies and crevasses that would make the perfect backdrop for any of a dozen westerns. The odd thing however is that as you get closer you see
that it isn't rock at all. Essentially it's dried mud. The up close view reveals that the facade is very cracked from the arid air, just like a dry lake bed in the vertical. Some of the hills are still topped by green grass and scrub trees. I say this was like Afghanistan because of the jagged and rugged nature of the hills is similar. The main difference is scale. The hills of Afghanistan tower well over 10,000 feet, and these were but a few hundred. If anyone is ever curious as to why we can't find Osama, come to this park, raise the hills by 15 times, and multiply it into a state the size of Texas, and you'll maybe start to understand.
Anyhow, tomorrow I plan on terrorizing the Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore. I think I may feed the Rockstar some Gatorade to ensure he has plenty of marker in him to get every tree here. From there I hope to get to about Billings, Montana as I make my way up towards Glacier Nat'l Park! Sorry if this post has been a little lackluster, too, as I've been feeling a little under the weather today, so here's hoping the passes soon!! Check out the photo albums on my MySpace for lots of trip pics!!!
Well I've made it to Rapid City, South Dakota which is farther than many people predicted the Bean to ever make it! I must admit though that tradgedy was narrowly avoided today. Earlier this morning, I came close to being killed when my alarm didn't go off. See, I knew that I could get in a good two hours of shuteye, and I decided to take advantage of it. I just set the steering wheel straight, the alarm on, and cruise control at 65mph and planned to wake up before the first curve in the road... Seriously the straightness of the roads of southern South Dakota is a little disconcerting. There should be a hill or SOMETHING, ya know? After you get across the Missouri river, the scenery changes to rolling hills, but the road still goes nearly arrow straight. Finally after several hours of driving, I made it to the Badlands.
I must admit the Badlands were a little different than what I expected. Somehow I pictured miles upon miles of barren desert, John Wayne and the whole nine yards just over the next ridge. Instead I got a miniature Afghanistan, with lots more green. Apparently the Badlands formed as erosion from wind, rain, and global warming started eating away at the prairie a few thousand years ago. Unfortunately, there were no former vice presidents around to champion the cause of the prairie, so it has slowly eroded at a rate of about one inch per year. The result is what appears to be towering hills of rock, ravaged by the winds of time. Among the jagged peaks and outcroppings are huge gullies and crevasses that would make the perfect backdrop for any of a dozen westerns. The odd thing however is that as you get closer you see 
that it isn't rock at all. Essentially it's dried mud. The up close view reveals that the facade is very cracked from the arid air, just like a dry lake bed in the vertical. Some of the hills are still topped by green grass and scrub trees. I say this was like Afghanistan because of the jagged and rugged nature of the hills is similar. The main difference is scale. The hills of Afghanistan tower well over 10,000 feet, and these were but a few hundred. If anyone is ever curious as to why we can't find Osama, come to this park, raise the hills by 15 times, and multiply it into a state the size of Texas, and you'll maybe start to understand.
Anyhow, tomorrow I plan on terrorizing the Black Hills and Mt. Rushmore. I think I may feed the Rockstar some Gatorade to ensure he has plenty of marker in him to get every tree here. From there I hope to get to about Billings, Montana as I make my way up towards Glacier Nat'l Park! Sorry if this post has been a little lackluster, too, as I've been feeling a little under the weather today, so here's hoping the passes soon!! Check out the photo albums on my MySpace for lots of trip pics!!!
