Thursday, August 30, 2018

Wilma's birthday!  Sorry we couldn't post yesterday from Akaska, SD but the site was "self-registration" and very isolated, with no wifi. (see picture below)

Wilma's Birthday
How blessed am I to celebrate my wife's birthday, alone, in Akaska, SD with nowhere to go within 30+ miles to celebrate...just she and I. What a wonderful wife,  nurturing and influential mother of five children, sincere, serving neighbor and friend as well as MY best friend and fellow follower of Jesus. I actually thought of celebrating her birthday by hiring a guide and fishing together for walleye in Lake Oaha "nearby", but..... We plan to go out for dinner this weekend in Minot (My-not), ND. 

Chamberlain, SD Visitors Center

From our Mitchell, SD camp we drove to Chamberlain, SD to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Keel Boat and Dignity. When Wilma, Renee and I drove Cheryl from Grand Rapids, MI to Shoreline, WA in August 2012 we stopped there, but it was late and closed. 

Dignity (Native American Woman) 26 mph winds
and 32 mph gusts when picture was taken.  The statue
won an American Architectural and Engineering Award.

We left Mitchell at 9:30 with 19mph winds; at 8:00am, temps were 58 degrees and sunny with 13 mph winds.  Hmmm, we noticed the large number of wind farms on the plains and sure enough, on SD Rt 90 West at 10:30 winds were a steady 26mph with 32 mph gusts. The winds were exceptional.  We viewed the small number of L&C exhibits and outside viewed the "Dignity" statue. After wards, driving west I noticed the strong winds affect my miles-per-gallon estimates from 11 to 8.  This tank of fuel I got 8.7 miles-per-gallon for 69 miles uphill and windy.  There were whitecaps on the Missouri River as we drove along.  We also noted hundreds of acres of sunflowers growing, some with the leaves off and ready to be harvested.  As we drove, we noted the Great Plains, with rolling hills and plains for miles and miles and flat, clumps of green trees spotted here and there.  Granary silos everywhere. 

D&S Campground, Akaska, SD

We arrived at our very remote D&S Campground in Akaska, SD, at 3:15pm, 86 degrees, hot and humid but a very nice steady breeze; 

Lake Oaha, SD Swan Creek Recreation Area.
19 bird species

After dinner, we headed out northwest about 10 miles "for a ride to the Missouri."  Well, the Missouri River was dammed down river in Pierre, SD so the "Mighty Mo" on this stretch is now Lake Oaha, SD. The place is a campers and fisherman's paradise (Lake Oaha, Swan Creek Recreation Area in Selby, SD. The lake is beautiful blue-green water great for for walleye, crappie, northern pike, white bass and catfish. We drove and parked and walked the shores and fields and 19 separate bird species with three lifers: Western Meadowlark, Orchard Oriole and Eurasian Collared Dove.


After a beautiful sunset, temps cooled down and we enjoyed a great night's sleep. Wilma got Birthday Greeting calls from the kids, grand kids, sisters and brothers and in-laws... very nice. Tomorrow we are planning to drive north through Bismark, ND and camp in Minot, ND Friday, Saturday and Sunday.