American Road Trip Day 2 - Hill City, SD to Casper, WY

Waking up this morning after a good night's sleep I have just one thing on my mind: getting some miles under my belt. I'd like to do some more preparation. It would be nice to complete my Couch Surfing profile, and perhaps sort out a bit more work before heading out - but more than anything I just want to drive. So off I head.

I'm heading west, with a rough end point of Casper, Wyoming in mind. After 2 weeks in South Dakota I'm in no mood to hang about, despite the hospitable people and great time I've had. So I blast off early, at about 7:30, saying goodbye to Shayla and Sarah.

Within an hour or so I'm approaching the Wyoming boarder. Car is semi-content. I'm regretting giving her some stick last night. Whoops.

A few miles more and I see the sign: "The Devil's Tower".

For those of you that are unfamiliar, the Devil's Tower is the surreal and quite fake looking mountain that features in Close Encouters of the Third Kind


So I decide this needs to be seen in the flesh. And off I go. It's really rather vast, and completely odd. It juts out of the ground in a surreal and awkward fashion. Deciding it needs closer inspection, and discovering that you can climb up a fair part of it before it's too steep and is off limits, I start scrambling about it a la monkey.

This does not go down well with my American diet (eat everyone you see) and American exercise regime (my remote control clicking finger is strong as an ox). Add to that the 40+ degree heat, and I'm soon drenched in sweat. I get about a third, no, maybe a quarter of the way round and give up and return to the path. Only to find a woman shrieking as a man tries to coax a rattlesnake out of a log. Hmm. I decide it's time to go.

The rest of the day is less eventful, and after a rather gross sandwich I eventually role into Casper about ready for bed.

Food: $35
Gas: $71.77
Motel: $57.13

Todays Mileage: 319
Total Mileage: 459