Got to Jewel Cave this morning. It was different from Wind Cave in that the areas we went into were more open. We went down 380 feet as we were guided by the ranger through the 80 minute Scenic tour. She explained as with the Wind Cave that depending upon the pressure outside, the wind blows inward or outward through the opening. If the Jewel and the Wind Cave are ever found to be connected, it would be the 2nd largest cave in the world. It was an interesting and fun experience, and in both caves, there are so many pathways that veer off to other locations. Both tours turned off all the lights to show us just how pitch black it is without lights. The early explorers only had candles in a bucket to explore. They were pretty brave!

Then we went to Deadwood which is the town Wild Bill Hickok lived for less than a year but was killed by some guy. They never found out why he was shot, but Wild Bill gambled alot and made alot of enemies. We took a bus tour and he explained that the killer was found not guilty by his peers, and then left the town. He bragged about killing Wild Bill and was eventually re-tried and hung. We went to Mount Moriah (Boot Hill) and saw Hickock's grave as well as Calamity Jane (who I used to watch on tv saturday morning as a child). The tour guy told us the HBO special Deadwood filmed some scenes there and alot of their TV facts were untrue. Deadwood was also known for the many bordellos (houses of ill-repute). Presently, Kevin Coster is a big fan of the town -- has a restaurant and a museum of sorts there.

We drove through Sturgis which is well known for it's motorcycle rally every August. It was quiet today and we just rode through.

Shel: Nice having 70-75MPH speed limits on the highways and no trailer in tow :) But back to hauling the camper around tomorrow. Due to errors in time / mileage calculations, we are going to head toward Montana, to the Little Bighorn Battle Ground. Will first check in Devil's Tower in Wyoming.

Sturgis is so big compared to Laconia. A nice 4 lane drag through town with the business district off to one side.

Deadwood was almost dead broke until gambling was legalized. The cemetary was not kept up at all and many other town fucntions weren't happening. Since gambling has been legalized, the town has been cleaned up and is functioning well. The cemetary has been fixed up and is being kept up.

The days get up to 90 degrees and the nights are in the 60's. Doesn't go low enough early enough to cool the camper without A/C. So it looks like most nights will be spent in campgrounds with electricity. Of course, Geni feels comfy at any temperature and wonders why I want A/C.