Two Black Hills and a Rattlesnake Sunset

There was really no way of avoiding the interstate today. We were definitely looking forward to getting off that usually wretched confluence of speed, population, and careless drivers as quickly as possible.  Ultimately, it turned out to be not quite as bad as we thought it was going to be, with expedience the only concern, and that being more of a blessing than anything else. 

The Bighorn Mountains quickly faded into the distance as we crossed the Powder River Basin at high speed, quickly arriving at the exit we still longed for that would return us to the peaceful pace of two-lane highways.  The "Home of the Bear" appeared not long after that, standing tall against the horizon with its less recognized sisters, the Missouri Buttes.

A crimson landscape surrounded the volcanic plug known to most these days as the "Devil's Tower," and made more infamous by Spielberg movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  Standing at the base of this laccolith kind of ruins some of the intrigue of that performance though, bringing a lot of actions into question.  The journey around the base is quite interesting though, offering views not usually seen and vistas stretching in all directions.  It did not seem to matter that the government was shut down, for us or anyone else. There were plenty of anyone else too, and overflowing trash containers, and this only 2 days into the problem.

The Beautiful Fork called to us from these Black Hills of Wyoming.  My comrade had demanded the diversion to the current point of interest.  I thought that since we were in the area, we might as well make a stand at the center of the known United States universe too.  Quite a bit more than just a marker greeted us at this location.  That was all that had been expected.  An interesting museum, hosting a variety of artifacts stood by its side to amuse and entertain guests on the history of the immediate vicinity.

Departure instigated a discussion ensued regarding the route to our destination for the evening.  One side of the argument extended the journey by an hour so, through a location from a previous visit.  Roughlock Falls would have to wait for another time though. The sun was beginning to fall out of the sky more quickly than originally noted.

As reward for passing through the regime of the Pactola Reservoir, we were treated to a bit of off-road adventuring.   The state had quite a little length of US-385 ripped entirely from its bed. It proved too much for the GoPro, whose battery life threw in the towel shortly after.

The decision to push and avoid the Roughlock diversion proved a wise choice after all.  We arrived at Ben's Cabins in Custer just as the sun began its descent below the horizon.  It offered occasion to unload and decide upon the next intended target that would enable sustenance enough to carry us into the next day.

The Mount Rushmore Brewing Company was found to be the most endowed to enable completion of the quest.  Watching the sun complete its descent from their back deck, a sample of their local distinctions, followed by some deliciously prepared salmon and rattlesnake topped off a nearly perfect day.