South Dakota Chronicles: Day 3 and 4

Saturday was our third day in South Dakota.  We woke up with slight hangovers and to snow serenely falling from the sky.  As with any trip, late nights call for late to mid afternoon mornings, which meant we didn't even leave our hotel room until close to 11 a.m..  We moseyed down Main Street looking for a place for brunch.  The best thing about this town is that you do not need a car to get anywhere, everything is in walking distance.

We weren't sure what we would find, but down at the end of Main Street lies The Nugget Saloon with a sign that read, ""best Bloody Marys in town" so naturally we had to go in.  The Nugget Saloon is a quaint bar with s tore and a dinner attached through side walls.  We grabbed a table and Liam served us the BEST Bloody Marys along with a pizza, a few appetizers and a few too many beers.  Our entertainment came in the form of the digital juke box and the bachelorette party that was wasted by 2:00 p.m..  Sitting in the bar, watching the snow fall outside was the perfect way to spend the day.

After losing all day to The Nugget, we headed back to the Deadwood Distillery where we picked up our moonshine and souvenirs and listened to a few more of Paul's stories.  That man in and of himself is reason enough to go to Deadwood.  You will not hear more colorful and intriguing stories than those of Paul's life.  I told him he needs a blog or better yet, a book!

We dropped our loot at the hotel and headed down to the winery/brewery in the middle of town.  We tried a local selection of brews and were fascinated to hear how beer and wine are sold in South Dakota.  It is an interesting process and a bit pricey for the small guys to compete with the big guys.

Next we found ourselves at the Deadwood Social Club for dinner.  It was AMAZING!  We ordered the bruschetta and scallop appetizers, ribeye special and the seafood pasta.  Everything was delicious and the pasta was an absolute work of art.

 After dinner we found ourselves back at The Bloody Nose Saloon since it was our favorite.  The bachelor party from the night before and the tree of us were the only patrons and it turned into quite the hilarious evening.  Somehow the three of us decided a 4-legged race was in order.  I can tell you, all those boys from the bachelor party got pretty excited when we pulled out the tape... Pervs.  From the pictures it looks like I could barely walk, haha.

We headed back to our room as the bars were closing, made snow angles in the streets and were surprised by how much pizza Deadwood sells as soon as the bars close.  I am not even kidding, every singel place sells pizzas by the slice or whole.  For me, I was a bit behooved as I personally would take some 7-11 nachos at 3 a.m. after drinking all day long.  Thank goodness for our Walmart outing where we supplied ourselves with plenty of snacks.

Sunday morning we hit the road and ended up at Mount Rushmore.  It is still as breathtaking as it was the first time I saw it.  A person can't help but stand in wonder at how one man with a vision created one of our nation's greatest masterpieces.  I truly prefer ending my trips to South Dakota with a visit to Rushmore, because it feels like a great place to give thanks to America.

Not long after we were on a plane bound for home. 

South Dakota feels like home and I miss it immensely and I truly cannot wait to get back to that gem of a mountain town tucked away int he Black Hills.

South Dakota Chronicles, Day 1

My recent trip to South Dakota was more than amazing.  Here is part one of South Dakota Chronicles-

Day 1 was filled with travel.  In order to fly to Rapid City, we had to drive out to Vegas in the early morning.  We had enough time to visit the Healing Garden in honor of the 58 people who lost their lives at Route 91.  I cannot begin to describe the emotions that went through me.  I was thankful it was empty and I could stop and read each note, look at each picture and just feel the gratefulness I have to still be here.  Things could have been so different that night....

After the Healing Garden, we made our way to the South Point where we parked and took a Lyft to the airport, got checked in, ate and gambled.  Soon enough we were on the tarmac headed to our winter wonderland destination.  South Dakota is about a 2 hour flight.

Somehow the flight attendant thought it would be a marvelous idea to offer us doubles when we each ordered our vodkas.  Obviously we partook.  Have any of you ever been drunk at 38,000 feet?  It is weirdly fun.  Clearly I knew there would be a headache later, but at the moment I had the giggles and I am pretty sure every single person on that plane hated our group. #zerfucksgiven.

Once we landed, we grabbed our rental car and headed off to the Grand Rapid Hotel.  We love this hotel because of two things- there is a Perkins (Coco's of the Midwest) and a  karaoke bar named Cheers, where the people are friendly and the drinks are cheap.  We ate, drank and had a generally good time here.  It isn't a downtown bar, but it is friendly.

The only bad thing about Cheers is the fact that karaoke doesn't require the singer to sing happy songs.  Instead people chose the most depressing songs ever released to sing at the top of their lungs.  It was kind of a buzzkill.

At Cheers we met a bouncer.  I would share his name but there was a discrepancy in whether his name was Justin, Dustin or something entirely different.  Blame it on the booze.  He had been a Marine based out of  Camp Pendleton and was actually familiar with our mountains.  This is a strange occurrence if you are anywhere outside of the Inland Empire/ LA area of California.  

Bars in South Dakota close at 2 a.m., which was totally ok with us.  The Perkins is open 24 hours a day so we did what any group of drunks would do.... We went back to the Perkins for round two to try to sober up.  This was after we were pretty sure security was going to be called on us for being loud at 3 a.m..  Our impromptu jaunt to the Perks saved us the next morning, but more about that later...

Day 2 coming soon....

Travel Wishes

The past few weeks I have been talking with a couple of my friends about my need to go on a trip.  While my weekends are pretty much booked through summer, I have been researching and discovering places that I really want to explore.

Asheville, NC-  The bloggers of Two Drifters currently reside in Asheville, North Carolina and seeing as I follow them on all social media outlets, let's just say I am envious.  I want to go explore small coffee shops, festivals and the fall in this quaint city in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Boston, MA- BEAN TOWN!  For as long as I can remember, I have been a fan of Boston... The history, the sports teams, the glory, the legends, the Big Green Monster.  Everything Boston is awesome with me so it is high time that I plan a trip, maybe even to see my beloved Red Sox play a game.

Austin, TX- With Austin's live music scene (not just country, but rock too) and many bars it is a perfect destination.  Barton Springs is a beautiful swimming hole I want to dive right into.

Memphis, TN-  Known for blues and barbecue, Memphis has been on my travel list for as long as I can remember.  When I was in Tennessee four years ago I was so bummed that none of my travel group wanted to make the trek to Memphis.  I have a hankering for good food, live music and a bit of Elvis history as well.

Kalispell, MT- This is what I would refer to as an upcoming town.  In the beauty of Montana's mountain ranges lies Kalispell which is also surrounded my several smaller towns,  Glacier is close as is Flathead Lake.  Several people have relocated in recent years creating a cultural and travel experience unlike anything else.

Steamboat Springs, CO- This smallish ski town in the heart of Colorado has been on my list for a couple of years.  In fact I convinced a friend who had recently moved to Colorado to go check it out and report back to me.  They reported back with "it was amazing".  This is definitely a ski bums paradise in the midst of winter.

Jackson, WY- On the outskirts of Yellowstone National Park lies this upcoming ski town turned urban paradise.  Jackson (aka Jackson Hole) is a ritzier ski area these days with million dollar homes and condos.  I am not sure I could afford to stay, but it is a desire!

Which would you pick?

Utah Day 1-2

I am back home from my short, but totally worth it vacation.  I had every intention of going balls to the wall crazy and while I did on one day, the others were spent in down time and appreciating the beauty of nature.

Last Thursday night I took off on a road trip with a pit stop in Mesquite for the night.  Six and a half hours seemed way too long, but looking back if I were to do it again, I would so drive straight through.  Mesquite is a teeny tiny town on the Nevada-Arizona border north of Vegas.  While it might be ok to stop and pull a few handles and even fill up on gas, it was the most disgusting place to stop over for the night.  Maybe it was the fact that the hotel room smelled like Lysol and Old Spice, maybe it was the creepy leering men, or the fact that I narrowly avoided being vomited on, or perhaps it was all of those things combined, but I won't be back.  We stopped at midnight and were up and outta that gross room by 6:30 the next morning.  No showers and I brushed my teeth in the parking lot because I had a fear that the water was something Erin Brakovich would sign on for.

We had snowmobiling booked for 9 am on Friday, but we forgot about the hour time difference and were an hour and a half late because we had to stop for beer and breakfast on the way into Brian Head.  Once we go to the tour office it was smooth sailing.  Our guide, Jason, gave us a quick  how to course and we were off.  It was the most amazing, fun and extreme experience I could have asked for.  Jason was able to pick up on our abilities with the machines and push us to do more.  I was totally freaked out by the steep uphills, but by the end of the day I was taking those like a champ.  It was awesome to be pushed to limits and encouraged to let loose and just go for it.  There were jumps, street crossings and so many amazing things in between.  We all came back and decided we are including snowmobiles (if not purchasing our own) on all future winter vacations.

If you ever go to Brian Head, get the tour at Thunder Mountain with Jason, he was rad and definitely made out tour that much better!

Just below Brian Head Peak

Cedar Breaks National Monument

After a long day of snowmobiling, getting wind burnt and nearly peeing my pants from laughter it was awesome to unwind with a few cocktails.  This is where Utah gets tricky...  They have state laws mandating the alcohol percentages...  It kinda sucks, but I was still able to get a cider with 7%.

Alaskan Dreams

Since I was seven years old I have dreamed of exploring the wild that is the great sate of Alaska.  I blame my grandparents as they took my older sister (14 at the time) on a cruise through Alaska and I was promised I would be able to go when I was older.  As time went by I got more and more excited for my Alaskan adventure, but sadly things in life change and I wasn't able to go to Alaska.

VIA

I want to experience all that Alaska has to offer, from the whale watching to craft beers, to the wildlife to the glaciers.  I want to see it all.

I want to walk down the streets of Anchorage from pub to pub

Alaska has been an item on my travel bucket list for awhile now and seeing as I am going to be the big 3-0 next July I figured that is the perfect time to go.  Now comes the tricky part... Cruise or a land adventure?  A week or two?  June, July or August?  Who do I take with me?

The easy part was seeing that one cruise line offers unlimited cocktails and beverages as long as I book before October 31st so you can bet your pretty behinds that I will be booking said cruise, if that is what I choose, by the 31st of next month.  Additionally, with a cruise you do a down payment and make monthly payments up to 75 days prior to embarking.  I don't know about you, but that sounds like an excellent idea to me.

I guess I should quit dawdling and start planning and researching more!

Storybook Fall

There is something so final about Labor Day and it makes me feel as if it is the last holiday of the year.  It really isn't, I mean I live for November and December and the holidays upon holidays of those months.  Maybe it is because it is like saying good bye to summer, but even that feels wrong.  Summer in the Southwest aka Southern California goes year round sometimes.

Labor Day also signals it is time for fall decor, football, hot apple cider, leaves changing colors, crisp air and pumpkin patches.  All of these things make a perfect story book fall to me.  However, there is that wonderful Southern California weather again that isn't too keen on making for a storybook fall and has me longing for destinations that are beautifully fall.

- Boston- I have always been intrigued with the fall colors of the East Coast along with the rich history just screams "perfect fall" to me.  Salem is near by and you can brush up on your Salem Witch Trial history while there.

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- Nashville-  I was fortunate enough to spend five days in Nashville during the fall of 2012 and let me tell you it was absolutely gorgeous.  I think my favorite part was visiting The Hermitage (Andrew Jackson's plantation) with all of the trees changing colors.  If you ever get the chance, Nashville in the fall is the perfect place in my book.  

- Montana-  I drove through the corner of Montana on a bender in November of 2013.  It was absolutely gorgeous and the weather perfect (it then snowed the night and next day).  The colors were perfectly golden.  I have since wanted to trek back and enjoy more time in the Montana fall.

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So while some of you are enjoying crisp weather and leaves changing, please snapchat those images over to me and know that I am extremely jealous.

Third Thursday Travel- Cruises

It's here!  The first ever Third Thursday Travel link up!  I am really excited about this link up and I hope y'all feel inspired to join us on the third Thursday of every month where all things travel related are posted about.

I hear cruises are all the rage and some days I think, "hey, why not?  It's a floating city and you get to get off and explore the port cities."  Other days I don't think that.  I wish I wasn't so indecisive.

I mean, after all of the illnesses, that sinking cruise ship, oh and the broken down ones, is anyone else scared of going on a cruise?

I don't want to come back with a salmonella meets influenza illness.

I don't want to grab a life jacket and look for a life boat and end up on a wooden door a la Jack and Rose.

I don't want to be stranded for days at sea with no working toilets and contaminated drinking water.

I don't want to be told what time to eat.

I don't want to be told what time I have to be back from a day excursion... I don't like rules...

But I do want:

A floating casino!

Drinks, drinks and more drinks!

Lazily laying by the pool with an ocean breeze.

Experience the cruise party life.

Have a relaxing vacation with no worries.

Are you a cruiser?  

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To Make Suitcase Weight Or Not....

As I sit here making my list for my tropical getaway that is coming up here in the next two weeks I have to laugh at the list of items I want to take but know that I won’t need them.  I am also laughing about the things I am going to bring to the “paradise” locale I am going.  On one hand the complete irrational girl in me is on my left shoulder saying “Don’t forget the blow dryer, the curling iron, the straighter, and 4 things of hair products.  All summer dresses and multiple sandals.”  While the rational traveler on my right shoulder is saying, “it’s warm there, how much do you really need a pair of jeans?  Yes bring one maxi dress, but mostly shorts and capris and don’t forget sunblock, bug spray and tennis shoes.”  Ugh!

Here is what my list looks like thus far-
capris
tank tops
tankini
baseball hat
maxi dress
swim covers
beach towel
bug spray
sunscreen
after sun lotion
toothbrush/paste
shampoo/ conditioner

Not too bad if I may say so.  However, anyone who knows me, knows that I should have started this list last month and that I am bound to over pack if I don't get my head out of my butt and start looking at what I really need.

Going to another country has me thinking that I had better be prepared for every single situation that could potentially come my way, while I also know better.  After all, when I headed to Cozumel 8 years ago I brought my own bottled water, fruit snacks and granola bars (this was before the strict regulations on suitcase weight)  Blame it on my parents and their disaster preparedness attitudes.  I also have my boss saying I just need a swimsuit, beach towel and sunblock.  Decisions, decisions.  Either way, this time in two weeks I will have been in tropical paradise and I don't need much more than what my boss suggests.  That and the fact that I have significantly downsized on my suitcase size (oops- that was a stupid idea)  Here's to hopefully packing light!


What would you or have you taken on a tropical getaway?