Day 83
We packed up and headed west in a light rain most of the way. At one of the exits along I-94 is a 32 mile road which is called the Enchanted Highway. Along this highway are 8 huge metal sculptures which the North Dakota Visitor Center staff informed us is a must see. So we exited the interstate and looked forward to be enchanted. The sculptures were pretty neat and large but not being a loop required us to go and return the same way. So I have mixed feelings as to whether it was worth the 90 minute drive. Back on I-94, we continued west to Medora, a tiny town at the southern end of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, South Unit (“TRNP”). We checked into the Medora RV Campground (FHU 50amp) and changed our clocks to mountain time. We then drove the car to the TRNP which was 2 minutes from the campground. TRNP consists of a 36 mile driving loop through the North Dakota Badlands. It wasn’t long before we started seeing wildlife. Prairie dogs by the hundreds, four white tail deer, 15 bison, a pheasant, a bald eagle flying over us, 7 wild horses, and a wild turkey with her brood of 8. More wildlife than we had ever seen at a National Park. We also hike the Buck Hill trail and the Wind Canyon trail. The scenery was spectacular. We had entered TRNP at 2:00 and we did not leave until 6:00. It was an absolutely thrilling day, the kind of experience that leaves you feeling excited and that you can’t wait to do it again. We had dinner at Badlands Pizza and Saloon. They had 12" and 16" pizzas so we each ordered a 12" pizza. I had the “Janie Got a Gun” which was a non-meat pizza lover’s dream, mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, pepperoncini, pickled onions, chipotle & red bell pepper, garlic oil, balsamic vinegar and cheese. Rosemary had a mushroom pizza. These were the largest 12 inches I had ever seen. Cut into 8 pieces, I managed 5 while Rosemary had 3 which meant a whole pizza to take home. I washed my pizza down with a Moose Drool Brown Ale from Montana Brewing. No leftover Moose Drool!
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