Road Trip Adventure Part 3

Day 3 was more of a review day than anything else, but probably the funnest day our whole trip!  We left the hotel at 8 and went straight to the badlands because we still had to get our passport stamp.  But this time we didn't just look at the Badlands; we were able to walk around INSIDE the badlands!  It was the best part about the whole trip!  Olivia even loved it too!

See.  IN it!

And if I were homeless, I would live here:

John and Olivia climbing to the top

Next we took a tour of the Minuteman Missile Command center area.  We didn't take any pictures except of this cute donkey!

Next we toured Jewel Cave which is the 2nd longest cave in the WORLD!  It is over 160 miles of mapped passage ways, but there are many different depths of the cave.  Looking at it from a surface, it only takes up about 3 square miles.  It is 18 miles away from Wind Cave, but completely different!  This cave had big huge rooms and openings.  Google it and go to it.

Next we did the most spontaneous thing our whole trip!  We went to the CENTER OF THE NATION!!!  We left our hotel early in the morning and started driving up HWY 85 when we saw a sign that said CENTER OF THE NATION!  It was just 7 miles off the highway, so we turned on a little dirt road, found this sign made by a 6year-old, and took some pictures!

We squoowzed through some barbed wire to this flag just a few feet off the road.   This was the official center marked with a geological survey marker.

I was there too.

We got back into the car and a few miles later:

Yep!  NORTH DAKOTA!!!!!!!!!!  Our first (and probably last time) in the ND.

After a little while of driving, knocking on random doors, and off roading in a minivan, we made it to our first North Dakota Destination: White Butte.  Elevation 3,506 ft

The road up the the butte was closed, so we walked it: a whole mile.

Hay!  So we took a picture.

This is where the real trail begins.  Jessica got stuck in the mud and got a mud tattoo.

Papa always takes the lead, mostly because we just can't keep up with him.

Crazy Ol' Maurice, always good for a laugh.  He's at the summit waiting for the rest of us with Olivia on his back!

Proof:

At the top there is a pile of rocks with a plaque of a guy's name.  I think it's a dead guy buried there, but John disagrees. 

At the top, there was an old tin lunchbox with pens and a notebook.  Each person who made it to the summit wrote their name, date of submitting, and hometown.  

Next was the Badlands of North Dakota.  Not as cool as the other ones.  Only worth one picture.

And then a visit to Teddy R's house.

(Theodore Roosevelt: The dead pres.)

Then we went to Montana, slept in Billings, went to Little Bighorn Battlefield (Custer's last stand): and a marker where Custer died in the battle:

Then we went to church, went to a gorge that we didn't really see, then drove home!  That's all!