Nemo Road Trip

Saturday morning hubby and I drove to Sturgis for a breakfast Meet & Greet with the Black Hills Area Geocachers. We were just two of around 30 people in attendance. Pat and Frank (AZ/CV neighbors and friends) joined us for another afternoon adventure - geocaching along Nemo Road. Hubby had researched 3 interesting stops for the afternoon.


The first stop was the campsite of General George Custer.

This is the site of the August 13 Camp of the Custer Expedition of 1874 

which was sent to explore The Black Hills. 

The photo was taken on the morning of August 13.

This site is the second to the last camp in the Black Hills of the Custer Expedition of 1874. The group left Ft Lincoln, near present day Bismark, ND on July 2,1874 and headed south with over 100 wagons, more than a thousand men, and hundreds of mules and horses to explore the uncharted territory of the Black Hills. This camp is, it is said, where the second game of baseball was played in the Black Hills and where the only large group photograph of the officers was taken. The Expedition had been looking for a way out of this valley with it's towering limestone walls, and had discovered what is today known as Custer's Gap, just northwest of the August 12 camp, along Nemo Rd. As you view 'the Gap' one can just imagine the chaos that ensued while trying to move 100 wagons through that rough and rocky passage. The Gap area of Boxelder Creek is still enjoyed today by fisherman and locals alike, who come to enjoy the cool waters of the creek.

The second stop was the Nemo Cemetery.

This cache was my 100th cemetery find in one year.

There are over 160 grave sites here, the oldest of record dates back to August 6, 1901. Several military veterans are buried here as well. On October 22, 1989, the citizens of Nemo planted a "Centennial Time Capsule" in this cemetery, and is scheduled to be opened back up in the year 2039.

We enjoyed exploring the cemeteries the last two days.

I would certainly change my name if this was mine.

This was one of the most ornate tombstones I have ever seen.

Someone's pet?

We all were surprised to find that most of the headstones

indicated those interred are recent deaths. I expected this to be another 

'old' cemetery with folks from the late 1800s. Not so.

The third stop of historical significance: The National Christmas Tree.

But this is the rest of the story...

From South Dakota the cut spruce underwent many difficulties on its trip from the Black Hills of South Dakota. On the way to Washington the train carrying the tree derailed twice in Nebraska. On the weekend before the event, the tree toppled in the gusting winds and required new branches to fill it out. A few days after the opening ceremony, the electrical sockets that had been coated with fireproofing liquid spray caused the bulbs on the lower half of the tree to explode. The tree was decorated with 5,000 blue and green bulbs, and 750-900 yellow bulbs. The tree topper was a tear-dropped-shaped wire sculpture with a bulb encased within it.

A new tree was planted in its place as a symbol of renewed hope for peace world wide.

Hubby made the cache find on this one.

Boxelder Creek running through the canyon

Canyon walls along the creek

A cave 

Then it was off to the community of Nemo. We had not been on the road or to Nemo before so the trip was an adventure for all of us. Nemo is a major stop during the Sturgis Bike Rally. On Saturday there were many, MANY ATVers enjoying a refreshing drink and the trails in and around the area. The four of us decided to go out on a limb and have dinner at one of the several bars and eateries.

Thus ending another great day in the Black Hills

and geocaching adventure.

Thanks for being good sports Frank & Pat!

We enjoyed our time with you.

Friday with Pat & Frank

We took Pat and Frank to lunch at one of our favorite eating places in the Black Hills area, the Alpine Inn in Hill City.

The Alpine Inn was a hotel in its former life.

Its owner is from Germany, so the menu offers some very

tasty German fare.

Then it was off for some geocaching

We stopped at the Keystone Cemetery for a cache

This was the view from that spot. 

"Only cemetery with a view of Mount Rushmore.

 Mountain View Cemetery was established in the early 1900s 

and consists of approximately 100 graves, many of which 

contain workers who sculpted Mt. Rushmore." 

A concrete border around this family plot

An iron fence around this plot

This very small plot was along the fence

No headstone, only this small plaque

Maybe ashes scattered in this plot?

Coins lying on top of this headstone

And two small angels lying on the ground below

the coin covered headstone/bench

Very pretty, unique carving on this piece of granite (?), 

used as a headstone

Pieces of quartz embedded in this concrete fence

It looked like someone used a sharp tool to write

the name and date on this concrete block,

used as a headstone

In interesting ornate marker

Leo was the founder of Red Garter/Ruby House, a

hotel and eating place in Keystone

Quartz rocks marked this grave

Then it was off to look for another cache

Hubby giving some clues to the location of this hide 

It wasn't on the ground, but hanging in the tree!

Thursday's Sunset

Living in town, it is rare we actually see the colors of a sunset during the summer. I have often mentioned that is one of the things I miss most when not in AZ...the sunsets. Because we live in the desert, away from the city, and because the kitchen window, the deck and the patio door are on the west side of the AZ casa, we see awesome winter colored sunsets.

We were driving through Rapid City around 7:00 last evening and as we headed south out of town to Hart Ranch I had a view of the awesome orange and purple colors of last night's South Dakota sunset in the Black Hills.

And the full moon rising in the east.

But the best part of the evening was getting hugs from AZ/CV

friends Pat & Frank when we arrived at the campground.

We shared stories, wine, and enjoyed delicious carrot cake, 

compliments of Pat. YUM! 

Looking forward to a couple of days enjoying their company

before they continue their journey east & south and THEN

back to the southwest.

Twine Ball

Yes, a ball of twine. Not just any Twine Ball though, the World's Largest Twine Ball Rolled by One Man. 

We were in Darwin MN looking for a geocache at this location. I know I have mentioned to Hubby when passing through this community, we should check out the largest twine ball. Well, we finally did check it out because of geocaching!

The town's pride and joy rests under a roof and between plexiglass walls.

"Francis A. Johnson was a quiet man who spent his entire life in Meeker County. For reasons that are lost to time, he began rolling a ball of twine in his basement in 1950. Francis rolled twine four hours a day, every day. He eventually moved the ball onto his front lawn and used railroad jacks to ensure proper wrapping; Johnson cared as much about his ball's roundness as its diameter. For 29 years this magnificent sphere evolved at Johnson's farm, and he eventually built a circular open air shed to protect it from the elements."

"Johnson didn't stop until 1979. By then his ball weighed almost 9 tons and was 12 feet wide. He died of emphysema, and the town figured that nearly thirty years of twine dust killed him. 

But Darwin was also proud of Johnson, and somehow rolled his big ball next to the water tower. It's known as "World's Largest Twine Ball Rolled By One Man" because a rival twine ball in Cawker City, Kansas, is regularly added-to by visitors and townspeople. Darwin feels that this is cheating."

The 'gift shop' was closed on Sunday when we went through.

Notice the benches.

Do people sit and watch the twine ball grow?

Do they contemplate why Frank rolled a big ball of twine?

Hubby signing the guest book.

The bell from a school is also in this little park by the Darwin water tower.

Weird Al Yankovic wrote a song about

"The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota"

The things you learn from our geocaching adventures...

Cold Springs

We were in the southern Black Hills doing some geocaching and stumbled upon Cold Springs School and Cemetery. At first I thought it may have been a community at one time and now a ghost town, but that is not the case. Luckily pamphlets were available to share the unique story behind Cold Springs School and Cemetery. 


From the Cold Springs Historical Society brochure...

"In 1887, local homesteaders and ranchers recognized the importance of obtaining an education for their children and the practicality of having a community building. neighbors erected the hand-hewn log structure in the summer of 1887."

"Imagine a school building guaranteed to last over 

100 years and costing only $200.

Add to that a teacher whose salary was $40.65 a month.

According to the annual report of the treasurer of the 

Cold Springs School from July 1887 to June 1888, 

the total expenditures were $240.65 with cash on hand of 64 cents."

"School was in session 120 days that first year, 1888-1889.

37 unmarried persons of school age resided in the township:

26 boys and 11 girls

The first teacher was Maude Drew."

"The school had a double privy."

"The last year of classes was 1948-1949.

The building was abandoned after the blizzard of 1949."

"The Forest Service planned to demolish the building in 1965.

A group of local residents met in Pringle to discuss efforts to save the school.

The Historical Society was formed.

Membership has grown from the initial 13 to over 400 members."

"The Pioneer Cemetery adjacent to the schoolhouse, was established 

by the families who homesteaded the area and built the school."

"Many of the early residents are buried here.

The first burial was Thomas Jefferson Raver who died in December 1888."

"The cemetery is maintained by the historical society.

On Memorial Day and Labor Day, all graves 

are decorated with floral tributes. Additionally,

veterans' graves each display the flag of our country.

Memorial services are conducted on Memorial and Veterans Day."

"It (the school) is a fine example of a single structure serving

many important functions in early frontier life.

It served not only as a school, but also functioned

as a meeting house, church, and dance hall." 

Birdhouses were attached to every fence post on the grounds.

There were a lot of fence posts!

The 'bird boot house' caught my eye.

"Today the schoolhouse displays numerous antiques of an 

educational nature in a museum-like setting. It is

available to school classes who wish to experience the 

classroom atmosphere of the 1880's period."