Traveling with the Munschs: July 2020

A day after we would have left for our big western loop we instead headed out for a week in the Black Hills. It turned out to be a day of re-do's. We hooked up the truckster and left town on time. As always as you're rolling down the road random things pop into your head that you might have forgot. A few minor things were brought up before we got on the interstate, oh well few things missing no big deal. About 10 to 20 miles down the road I ask Luke and Marc if they had their sleeping bags... they both said no and I laid into them about how I asked them last night to make sure they had it and remember we planned on a night of back country camping in the badlands... well I guess they'll just have to use a blanket and welcome in the rattlesnakes, I'm not turning around. There were a few more pretty important things like a pillow brought up but we'd just make due. Now we're about 30-40 miles out of town, towing is rough as it's extremely windy and pushing us all over the road. I'm super frustrated that I can't see very well behind me, it was bothering me and I was getting pretty cranky when it hit me... I forgot the towing mirrors. Geez rookie move, haven't pulled the camper much with this only the 2nd trip out after fixing it up. So the mirrors was a bigger deal and we could get by but it's really a safety issue so we decided it was the final straw and we'd head back and then we can grab everything else we forgot. Turned around at the next exit and now we're really bucking the wind heading back into town. About the 229 exit the engine light starts flashing. Oh great. I slow down and start pulling over but it goes off and everything seems to be running ok so figured maybe it was the wind and kept going back home. So the mirrors were on our newer vehicle the suburban that we had planned to take on this years trip and had used on our practice run to big stone a couple weeks ago. We had switched back in the truckster a few days ago as a engine light had come on the suburban and Becky experienced a lost of power running an errand earlier in the week, it was something with the fuel mixture. We couldn't get it into the shop before we left so switched back to our old trusty truckster that got us around the rest of the country. Surely it could make it across the state. So we had a little debate on which car to take but since it seemed to run fine the rest of the way home we figured we'd be fine and stuck with the one we had. We pulled in and everyone jumped out and grabbed missing items. I switched the mirrors and we were off again. Pulling out we waved at our next door neighbors for the third time now and started down our street. At the end of the road the flashing engine light came back. So I shut it off and pulled the code and it's a multiple random misfire... that doesn't sound good. So we swing around the circle and head back home again. Wave for a forth time to the neighbors (who have to think we're nuts by now). I back the trailer into the driveway. Drop the trailer from the truckster, pull the suburban around, move the hitch over and then hook up the trailer. Kids help move all the stuff from the back of the truckter over to the suburban. The truckster was cleaned up and washed and ready to go for the trip. Suburban was filthy. But we got it switched and I remembered to switch the mirrors back again and we headed out waving to the neighbors for the fifth and final time. It's now about 4 hours after we left the first time.

The trip was fine from there still windy as all get out but the suburban actually was pulling the trailer quite a bit better than the old truckster, hadn't noticed that much before but going back to back on the same road made it pretty apparent. So we pull into the campground in the Badlands and pull up to our spot. It's right across from the bathroom on a pretty step downhill. We made reservations late so took what was open and made sense that it wasn't a great spot so not a big surprise. Pull into our spot and unhook the camper. I crank it up as far as it will go but it's not close to level. Need to get some boards or our taller stand under it. So crank it back down and now there's not enough to get the stand under it. So back up with some brace boards and a quick switch got the stand under it. Back up again and still not close to level. Figure we'll live with it but going into the camper it's really bad and worry how the slide would act. So back to the car and hook the camper up again. We think if we pull up a few more feet it will be enough to get us there. Hooked up we can't get the stand out from under it so just drag it forward to get it out. Should have left it in as we had use the bracing trick to get it on again. This time cranked all the way up we're almost level and call it good. The day of re-do's is over what a start to the trip.

The badlands were murder hot and we didn't have an electric spot. A big storm with 70mph winds ripped through that evening... shaking the camper and I couldn't help but worry about our camper being fully extended on it's jack. We weathered the storm fine but by the pile of tents in the dumpster the next morning not everyone was as lucky as us. The next day we checked out a few of the short trails. Hiking was going to be a big component of this trip but Samus hurt his leg and was advised to take it easy while they try to figure out what's wrong. But we got some light hiking in and Marcus and I went on the Notch trail in the afternoon leaving everyone else back at the camper. That night we had planned on attempting to pack out into the badlands to spend the night back country but by early afternoon the forecast wasn't good with more rain and wind, with the storm that had just plowed through we didn't want to be out in that so called it off early in the day.

After the badlands we made our way to Custer state park. We stayed the Stockade lake north campground just inside the park, Custer was cool so a welcome relief after the heat we had in the badlands. It was actually cold, but we could have a campfire and mostly hung around the camp site. We did go out and explore a bit. We did the stockade lake hike which is about a mile and a half and ended up being a little too much for Sam but he made it. We drove the needles highway and climbed around on some rocks at Sylvan lake (prompting us to watch National Treasure 2 in the camper that night, we streamed it as we had great data here and in the badlands). We also went to Mount Rushmore, we knew the museum was closed but thought the trails were open, when we got there the mall and everything was blocked off so you were stuck just past the gift shop with no way we could see to get on the trails. So we were there with way too many friends for our liking so we did a Giswald head nod, yep yep yep and got out of there.

Our next stop was up north a ways. Just south of Lead in a Black Hills national forest campground of Roubaix Lake. It was nice a little warmer than Custer but not too warm. Here we camped and went swimming in the small lake. It was nice but not a ton to do. We drove around one day driving up through deadwood to spearfish and back through spearfish canyon checking out some sites. The last day there we were pretty much out of things to do. We wanted to check out another lake in the area to go swimming but it was packed and couldn't park and we didn't want anything to do with crowds anyway so that was a no-go. Two of my nieces live in Rapid so we put a shout out if they would mind if we swung by to say hello. One was available and thought it'd be fun to come out to our campground so their family came out and we grilled out trying to social distance as much as possible, kids didn't do as well as the adults. But it was great fun and a highlight of the trip.

That next day we packed up for the ride home it was another windy one (I've been on some roads with these trips but I swear I-90 across South Dakota with it's wind is the worse). So overall the trip was just alright. I think Becky and I were still in morning of our month long adventure we had cancelled. It didn't help that we saw people from all over the country while in the hills. TX, NJ, NY, NV, CA, and so on. A group from TX approached Becky to take a group picture of them... she didn't make a big deal about it and reluctantly took the phone and took the picture, exchanged pleasantries and then drenched herself with hand sanitizer back at the car. It was wild, I feel we'll be past our normal vacation time and going somewhere less familiar on our next covid mini in July so hopes are high that it will be more of a adventure and less of the same as at home just in the camper that this trip was. Don't get me wrong anytime in the camper for me is a good time and the rest and relaxation with a change of scenery was very much welcome. Here are some pictures from our trip.

Badlands