Silver City, South Dakaota

We saw some great sites on our trip to Silver City, SD on July 24 including lots of cattle. We stayed at Whispering Pines Campgound. 

On July 25 we drove to Mount Rushmore. This was our first glimpse on the road to the monument.

 This was our view while we were having lunch.

Had to take a selfie with the presidents!

It's a very impressive sculpture!

I didn't know Thomas Jefferson wrote the first recipe for ice cream. His ice cream is sold in the Cafe and it was delicious.

Took a quick trip to Sturgis where they were getting ready for the famous motorcycle rally.

Then on to Deadwood SD home of Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane.

Saw a gun fight in front of the Franklin Hotel.

Had dinner at Miss Kitty's Gambling Saloon while watching the Red Sox game.

Our next stop was the monument to Chief Crazy Horse. The monument has been a work in progress for 68 years and only the head is finished. The head is 90 feet high 30 feet bigger then the presidents on Mount Rushmore.

There is a Native American Museum at the site. 

Back to Mount Rushmore in the evening for the 9 PM Illuminating Ceremony. We sat in the amphitheater and watched the sunset.

There was a presentation by the rangers, a short movie about the monument and the singing of our national anthem. In the middle of the Star Spangled Banner the monument was illuminated.

Mitchell, South Dakota

Part of our route to Mitchell, SD on July 22 was on Johnny Carson Blvd in his home town of Norfolk, NE. When we crossed over the Missouri River into South Dakota we drove on Tom Brokaw Blvd in his home town of Yankton, SD. The speed limit on the highway in South Dakota  is 80 mph!

We stayed at  the Famil-E-Fun Campground in Mitchell, SD

To our surprise the World's only Corn Palace is in Mitchell, SD. It was built in 1892 as a way to prove South Dakota had a healthy agricultural climate. The Palace has a new theme every year that consist of 12 different colors of corn and native grasses.

Nebraska

Traveling from Iowa to Nebraska on July 20 we saw numerous windmills and at least a dozen crop dusters. When we crossed into Nebraska the speed limit went up to 75 mph.

We stayed at the KOA campground outside of Omaha. We had a patio, lawn furniture and a fire ring. We ate at a chain restaurant called Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen.

On July 21 the temperature was 100° with a heat index of 110° to 120°. We visited the Strategic Air Command Museum.

They even let Chuck take one for a spin!

In Omaha we visited Boys Town started in 1917. It is now the Village of Boys Town with a Family Home program.

Father Flanagan's home were he lived until his death in 1948.

"He ain't heavy, Father, he's my brother" statue.

Iowa

We crossed the Mississippi River and arrived at the Little Bear Campground in West Liberty, IA on July 16. 

We went to Le Claire on July 17 to visit Antique Archaeology. It is the home base of one of Chuck's favorite TV shows, American Pickers. Le Claire is right on the Mississippi with a walkable downtown. There are shops, antique stores, a brewery, a distillery and quite a few restaurants. 

On our July 18 drive to the Amana RV Park in Amana, IA we saw Keith Urban's tour trucks. We went into Iowa City to eat at the Bluebird Diner. After dinner we drove through the University of Iowa campus, a beautiful campus. Then on to Hy-Vee, an employee owned grocery store. Iowa is another state where you can buy liquor in the grocery store.

We visited the Amana Colonies on July 19. The Amana Colonies were founded by a religious sect from Germany. They first settled near Buffalo, NY then moved to Iowa. Their way of life was communal. Families had their on living space but eating, working and child care was communal.

One of the homes turned into a museum.

This large pond was completely covered in lily pads that were in full bloom.

One of the homes turned into an antique store. 

The Land of Lincoln

On July13 we drove from Crawfordsville, IN to Chatham, IL, 20 minutes out of Springfield. 

Driving through Indiana and Illinois there are corn and soybean fields as far as the eye can see. I have never seen such enormous fields. The picture doesn't do them justice.

Once we arrived at the Double J Campground on historic Route 66 and got settled in, there were severe thunder storms with 70 MPH wind gusts. The motorhome was shaking!! They have a storm shelter at the campground which I think is in case of tornado warnings! There were power outages in Springfield but not here. In the middle of the night we woke up to the loudest thunder I have ever heard but not the strong winds of the earlier storm.

On July 14 we went in to Springfield to do the Lincoln sites.  We went to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library to visit with the Lincoln family.

Mr. Lincoln joined us in the cafe for lunch.

Next stop was at Union Station where there is an exhibit of sets, props and costumes from Steven Spielberg's film Lincoln

We took a tour of the only house Mr. Lincoln ever owned. It is a 5 bedroom house that is 80% original. When you hold onto the bannister as you climb the stairs it is the same bannister the Lincolns held!

Mr. Lincoln's bedroom

Last stop was Lincoln's tomb. Above the tomb are the words "Now he belongs to the ages" spoken by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton when told of Lincoln's death.

Into Springfield again on July 15 to tour the Dana-Thomas house, a 35 room 12,000 sq. dwelling designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1902. It contains most of the furniture, light fixtures, windows, doors and sculpture designed by Wright.

A drive by the capital building in Springfield.