Last week I did a one night, one day trip to Chicago for a meeting. I must say that I strongly prefer the vast openess of the northern plains traversed during our western expedition to the crowded, noisy, frenetic urbanscape which is Chicago.
I flew direct from Fargo, taking only a mostly empty backpack and no laptop with me. It was very freeing to be so light. My usual two carry on bags total about 30 pounds and then there is the hassle of dealing with the pair on a region jet. I had no worries about overhead bin space or delays waiting for plane-side checked bags to be unloaded and delivered. My internet access was via my iPod Touch. Personal email could be read on my cell phone as well.
The flight to O'Hare was on time and I stopped at the McDonalds in Terminal Two for a burger and fries before heading down to baggage claim to get a van to my hotel near Wrigley Field and the corner of Clark and Belmont. I waited at the nearly deserted lower level of Terminal Two for half an hour for the Airport Express van and then it was another hour before I was dropped off at my hotel. One way cost was $28 plus tip.
My hotel room was on the second floor, adjacent to an el train line and a stop. Every few minutes a train would come by and deposit some noisy passengers. There was also traffic noise from the street. I feared for a night with a small amount of disrupted sleep, but things settled down about 10:30 and I slept quite well.
I was up about 6:00 to shower and have breakfast before joining others from work who were staying at the City Suites Hotel for a brief car drive to the meeting site. When the meeting was done for the day, I was advised to contact Flash Cab for a ride to the airport. I was impressed with their use of texting to confirm my request and notify me when the cab was pulling up to the door.
It was $31 one way and I got to enjoy watching the ethnic shops and reastaurants roll by: hispanic, Korean, and places I hadn't heard of. I also didn't have to contend with navigating rush hour traffic or construction detours. The sidewalks seemed narrow and the buildings were only a few feet from the busy four lane arterial. It was blocks between patches of grass.
At O'Hare, I checked in and went through security in Terminal One. With three hours before emy flight, I wandered the food areas of terminals one, two, and three. The walking was nice, but I settled for a burger from McDoanlds at Terminal Two for supper. I found a quiet spot on the E concourse to eat and then do some reading. Northwest/Delta has really reduced its evening flights to O'Hare, so it was pretty quiet. The lack of flights was also one reason why I was flying United Express in spite of its lacklustre on-time reputation between Chicago and Fargo.
I was not disappointed in that last regard as we took off an hour and a half late, arriving Fargo about midnight. First we needed the crew to arrive, then for a plane to be found. Once we were loaded and pulled back from the terminal, we waited about half an hour for some ballast to be added to the full plane(!?). Fortunately there were a couple people from NDSU Tech Park neighbor Appareo Systems who helped pass the time in conversation. There were also half a dozen people who looked more at home with Ozzie Osborne than in Fargo. Turns out one of them was Joan Jett who was headed to Dakota Magic Casino, south of Fargo, for a gig the next night. I figured that out the following morning when her picture took up half a page in the Fargo Forum.
You can tell how far a rock star has fallen when ... they have gigs in Fargo and have to fly a commercial regional jet to get there. As one local pundit suggested, it goes from filling stadiums and arenas to performing at casinos in the middle of now where to singing in nursing homes.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
The Shuttle and The Space Station
It was a nearly perfect September evening. It was cool with a cloudless sky. The sun had set and the first stars were starting to appear. Jupiter shone brightly in the southeast.
I walked north from my house, noting the trees with leaves which would have blocked my view. I came to the parking lot at the El Zagel golf course, three blocks from home, and looked up to see the space shuttle keeping true to its trajectory. The international space station followed about a minute behind and was as bright as Jupiter.
I looked at them through my binoculars, hoping to make out details. Their small size, distance, and my jittery hands made that impossible. I settled for watching them continue across the sky, across the river, and into the earth's shadow, fading like small embers in the sky.
The shuttles will soon be grounded. I count my attendance at a shuttle launch in 1994 as one of a select few special geek days in my life. Seeing both the shuttle and space station glide by is also a unique and special experience. Ad astra per aspera.
I walked north from my house, noting the trees with leaves which would have blocked my view. I came to the parking lot at the El Zagel golf course, three blocks from home, and looked up to see the space shuttle keeping true to its trajectory. The international space station followed about a minute behind and was as bright as Jupiter.
I looked at them through my binoculars, hoping to make out details. Their small size, distance, and my jittery hands made that impossible. I settled for watching them continue across the sky, across the river, and into the earth's shadow, fading like small embers in the sky.
The shuttles will soon be grounded. I count my attendance at a shuttle launch in 1994 as one of a select few special geek days in my life. Seeing both the shuttle and space station glide by is also a unique and special experience. Ad astra per aspera.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
West-X Day 13 (8/13/2009) : Trail Ride and The Long, Hot Drive Home
We had an early start to the day since we needed to have the minivan loaded, check out of the hotel, and make the 45 minute drive from Sylvan Lake Lodge to Blue Bell Lodge so the girls could check in and be ready for their trail ride. The ride had been cancelled the day before due to rain. This day, however, the sky was clear, the bison which passed through the area were cleared out, and the trail ride was a go. While the girls were on their ride, Ilene and I went to Blue Bell Lodge for breakfast and a nice time of conversation. I had buffalo tips and scrambled eggs, continuing my practice of having a daily serving of bison while in the Black Hills. Bison was very available and not priced at a premium on the menus.
After the girls returned from their two hour ride, we headed east and then north, exiting the Black Hills. Lunch time was approaching as was Rapid City. People were in the mood for a Wendy’s, so we consulted Mavis, our navigation system, noted one eight miles ahead, and told Mavis to get us there. Unfortunately it was a fair distance off the freeway, something we wish Mavis had told us about. We got there, ate, and eventually were heading east on I-90 about noon.
It is over a nine hour drive from Rapid City to Fargo with an hour time change against our favor. The previous night I had checked the weather along our Google maps route of I-90 to Sioux Falls and then north on I-29 to Fargo. Across I-90, temps were to be near 100 F. Due to the time spent with the trail ride and lunch and the heat, we opted to not drive through the Badlands. Wall Drug was never firmly on our itinerary (too touristy); the Minuteman missile site historic site only got one vote as a stop; the 1890 town didn’t make the list. The plan was to just get home with maybe a stop at Chamberlin, SD where I-90 crossed the Missouri River and the first McDonalds in 205 miles from Rapid City was located (a billboard in Rapid City noted the “last chance” there and we confirmed the distance).
While the I-90/I-29 route from Rapid City to Fargo didn’t require Mavis’ navigation services, we did use her as an MP3 player with navigation active. A ways out of Rapid City, she advised us to turn off of I-90 onto US-14, taking us on a route through Pierre, SD which on a 100 F day would likely be 105 F. It is a hot spot in the Dakotas and in the summer can reach 115 F. Ilene checked the map, we discussed the recommendation in light of some Mavis’ other recent recommendations, and opted to stay on I-90.
Several hours passed and we reached Chamberlin were we stopped at McDonalds for our afternoon snack. We also stopped at a state wayside there which had a Lewis and Clark exhibit including a keelboat replica. We arrived a few minutes before the museum’s 4:30 closing, so had to rush through. We then resumed our drive east, but after a while ran into construction and our speed dropped to 60 mph. Mavis had been urging us to head north at every major interchange. With the speed limit on South Dakota two-lane roads at 65 mph and I-29 doing some backtracking from Sioux Falls to Watertown, we opted to head north to Huron and then to Watertown where we would join I-29.
Our cross country route worked out OK with a gas and potty stop in the metropolis of Woonsocket and supper at Arby’s in Watertown. We enjoyed the sunset to our west as we crossed into North Dakota and then arrived home from our epic western expedition. Our cat warmly greeted us and it was nice to be in our own beds after nearly two weeks on the road.
Day’s driving mileage : 642 miles Total driving mileage : 3493 miles
After the girls returned from their two hour ride, we headed east and then north, exiting the Black Hills. Lunch time was approaching as was Rapid City. People were in the mood for a Wendy’s, so we consulted Mavis, our navigation system, noted one eight miles ahead, and told Mavis to get us there. Unfortunately it was a fair distance off the freeway, something we wish Mavis had told us about. We got there, ate, and eventually were heading east on I-90 about noon.
It is over a nine hour drive from Rapid City to Fargo with an hour time change against our favor. The previous night I had checked the weather along our Google maps route of I-90 to Sioux Falls and then north on I-29 to Fargo. Across I-90, temps were to be near 100 F. Due to the time spent with the trail ride and lunch and the heat, we opted to not drive through the Badlands. Wall Drug was never firmly on our itinerary (too touristy); the Minuteman missile site historic site only got one vote as a stop; the 1890 town didn’t make the list. The plan was to just get home with maybe a stop at Chamberlin, SD where I-90 crossed the Missouri River and the first McDonalds in 205 miles from Rapid City was located (a billboard in Rapid City noted the “last chance” there and we confirmed the distance).
While the I-90/I-29 route from Rapid City to Fargo didn’t require Mavis’ navigation services, we did use her as an MP3 player with navigation active. A ways out of Rapid City, she advised us to turn off of I-90 onto US-14, taking us on a route through Pierre, SD which on a 100 F day would likely be 105 F. It is a hot spot in the Dakotas and in the summer can reach 115 F. Ilene checked the map, we discussed the recommendation in light of some Mavis’ other recent recommendations, and opted to stay on I-90.
Several hours passed and we reached Chamberlin were we stopped at McDonalds for our afternoon snack. We also stopped at a state wayside there which had a Lewis and Clark exhibit including a keelboat replica. We arrived a few minutes before the museum’s 4:30 closing, so had to rush through. We then resumed our drive east, but after a while ran into construction and our speed dropped to 60 mph. Mavis had been urging us to head north at every major interchange. With the speed limit on South Dakota two-lane roads at 65 mph and I-29 doing some backtracking from Sioux Falls to Watertown, we opted to head north to Huron and then to Watertown where we would join I-29.
Our cross country route worked out OK with a gas and potty stop in the metropolis of Woonsocket and supper at Arby’s in Watertown. We enjoyed the sunset to our west as we crossed into North Dakota and then arrived home from our epic western expedition. Our cat warmly greeted us and it was nice to be in our own beds after nearly two weeks on the road.
Day’s driving mileage : 642 miles Total driving mileage : 3493 miles
Friday, September 4, 2009
West-X Day 12 (8/12/2009) : Ascending Harney Peak and Visiting Mt Rushmore
After breakfast in our room, our first activity of the day was to ascend Harney Peak, the highest peak between the Rocky Mountains and the Pyrenees at 7244 feet. We did a short drive to the trail head at Sylvan Lake, elevation 6175 feet, and were walking by 8:30 AM. The two hour walk up went from Custer State Park into the Black Elk Wilderness Area with most of the climb in the last third. The trail material had large amounts of the glass-like mineral mica which made it shimmer and even appear wet from its glimmering in the morning sun. Some of the mica flecks were up to several square centimeters in size.
We stopped to rest as we desired and spent half an hour at the top before our descent. The view from the 1930s era CCC fire tower was great, but a little diminished by the humidity in the air. We had wondered how they had transported the building materials the 3.25 miles we had come, but later learned there was a road that came very close to the tower. Another thought morsel was the fact that Ilene’s parents had honeymooned at Sylvan Lodge, where we were staying, and had hiked to the peak some 63 years earlier.
We had lunch in our room and rested a bit before heading down to Blue Bell Lodge where the girls were scheduled to go on a horseback trail ride at 3:30. About 3:15, rain and a little hail began. The ride was cancelled shortly thereafter and we rescheduled the girls for 8:30 the next day. The rain ended and it was clear by 4:00.
After the ride was cancelled, the only time weather caused a cancellation on our entire trip, we continued on with our itinerary by taking the Iron Mountain Highway with its tunnels and pigtail turns to Mount Rushmore. Ilene and I were shocked at the renovation of the site which had occurred since we were there in 1994 and since I had visited in the mid-1960s. The narrow winding road was replaced with a new three lane highway (2 up, 1 down) coming to the monument from two directions, there was now a parking ramp instead of a lot, there was a palatial entrance, etc. It felt less intimate and more sterile. Ilene and I preferred Mt Rushmore as it had been.
We got our pictures taken and walked around, getting much closer to the faces than was easily done in the old days. We considered supper there, but ended up just getting ice cream.
Our route then took us to Keystone which was another tourist town. We stopped at a rock shop where Ilene got some rocks for the garden, but didn’t find a restaurant to our liking and convenience there or at Hill City. We ended up eating under the stars on the patio back at Sylvan Lake Lodge, very satisfied with our choice.
Day’s driving mileage : 79 miles Total driving mileage : 2851 miles
Day’s estimated hiking : 7.5 miles
We stopped to rest as we desired and spent half an hour at the top before our descent. The view from the 1930s era CCC fire tower was great, but a little diminished by the humidity in the air. We had wondered how they had transported the building materials the 3.25 miles we had come, but later learned there was a road that came very close to the tower. Another thought morsel was the fact that Ilene’s parents had honeymooned at Sylvan Lodge, where we were staying, and had hiked to the peak some 63 years earlier.
We had lunch in our room and rested a bit before heading down to Blue Bell Lodge where the girls were scheduled to go on a horseback trail ride at 3:30. About 3:15, rain and a little hail began. The ride was cancelled shortly thereafter and we rescheduled the girls for 8:30 the next day. The rain ended and it was clear by 4:00.
After the ride was cancelled, the only time weather caused a cancellation on our entire trip, we continued on with our itinerary by taking the Iron Mountain Highway with its tunnels and pigtail turns to Mount Rushmore. Ilene and I were shocked at the renovation of the site which had occurred since we were there in 1994 and since I had visited in the mid-1960s. The narrow winding road was replaced with a new three lane highway (2 up, 1 down) coming to the monument from two directions, there was now a parking ramp instead of a lot, there was a palatial entrance, etc. It felt less intimate and more sterile. Ilene and I preferred Mt Rushmore as it had been.
We got our pictures taken and walked around, getting much closer to the faces than was easily done in the old days. We considered supper there, but ended up just getting ice cream.
Our route then took us to Keystone which was another tourist town. We stopped at a rock shop where Ilene got some rocks for the garden, but didn’t find a restaurant to our liking and convenience there or at Hill City. We ended up eating under the stars on the patio back at Sylvan Lake Lodge, very satisfied with our choice.
Day’s driving mileage : 79 miles Total driving mileage : 2851 miles
Day’s estimated hiking : 7.5 miles
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