I did what I needed to do in South Dakota, including turning in my Ohio license and getting a new one. Kinda weird but yes it does seem I am a SD resident... but still I'm gonna just say I am traveling through no matter where I may be at the time. It's better that way.
I drove through the Black Hills and that was without question the highlight of the SD visit. Pretty hills and not too much of a grade anywhere, so I can see why the scenic byway is popular with bikers. I stopped at Deadwood, bought a shirt and the most sparkly belt I've ever had.
It happened to be their Octoberfest celebration, though there weren't too many tourists out drinking so it took me a while to actually pay attention to this. I suppose if you like to drink and gamble, SD and little historic towns like this might really do it for ya. I'm neither of those things, so I was just biding time.
I tried to visit Mount Rushmore but the fog was too thick to see anything more than a faint ghostly image even from the pathway, up as close as allowable.
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| Mount Rushmore through the cloud cover |
With my BMV tasks completed, I headed SW quickly and arrived in Fort Collins, CO the next day. It was funny to be a stop at all, because years ago I'd lived there briefly and hated it absolutely. There were no dispensaries back then, and it had never been a friendly town in my experiences. It was nice to be able to hit n run it for supplies and food.
Then I headed up the hill, into those beckoning mountains, towards Hot Sulfur Springs Resort & Spa. I didn't really think about it, but let the navigator take me via the most direct route... which happened to be through the Rocky Mountain National Park! It had been the mid to late 90s since I'd been through the park, so I went ahead and got a 7 day pass (I COULD still go back tomorrow if I wanted but will refrain for gas costs!). The RV wasn't too terribly happy with me for pushing us on through the park as fast as I did. I should have taken more breaks for all the grades and hard work the engine had to do. I did stop at the highest point to take a pic of the sunset and the Continental Divide on the horizon. Very pretty!
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| at the highest point in the drive thru Rocky Mountain National Park |
I'd been to Hot Sulfur Springs once before last year and it was a great stay of more than 3 days. I didn't realize it before, but there is a public park/campground (no hookups) right on the other side of the train tracks from the resort. That was brilliant as all I had to do was walk a few paces and go soak or come back home in a flash. I bought a 2 day pass so I could relax properly. And by the way, I like the train though most folks complain about it cause they don't know of it in advance. It comes along often and sometimes it takes quite a long time to pass by (3.5 minutes on one count!).
While there, I worked on a few costume pieces for others but mostly tried to get my foot to heal... the poison oak I'd gotten 2 days prior to leaving my Mom's was a terrible companion to bring along! It was a lovely visit and would have been improved upon only by taking a 2 hour trek further NW into the mountains to Strawberry Park in Steamboat Springs... but I could not justify the extra expense so instead headed back towards the front range.
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| if you look closely you can see the rainbow that happened at dusk |
I passed through Central City, Blackhawk and Idaho Springs on my way to Nederland and then to Boulder. All of these are places I like to pass through and this trip was no exception as the day was clear, sunny and warm. There was a Stain Wise dispensary in Idaho Springs that I happened to drive by, so I stopped and looked them up and walked back to it.
Stain Wise Site:
http://strainwise.com/
Nice place, but almost out of flower save some high CBD stuff which I had never tried before - it's specifically for pain relief, not a head high. My neck, head and back thanked me very much for trying it out! I'll be sure to always have at least a little CBD strain around from now on.
I stopped at Silver Stem Fine Cannabis in Nederland and finally found a product I'd been wanting to try for a long time but had never had access to before called Foria. 2 ingredients: coconut and cannabis. I bought the bigger bottle cause who knows when I might run into it again but I wasn't taking chances. Anyhow, great product - does exactly what it claims to do.
Foria Site:
http://www.foria.com/
Foria Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/foria
Silver Stem is a wonderful little dispensary right by a coffee shop with a great patio to sit and take in the day. And I believe their special was the best deal I've gotten so far this trip, and excellent product as well.
Silver Stem in Nederland Site:
http://www.silverstemcannabis.com/
Of course, I'm always littering my business cards at dispensaries and offering my services as a PR person or someone to make appearances for them at festivals and places where they'd have a booth or want to flag down people. Ya never know.... I could come up with some fun gigs later from it, as most shops are happy to get the card.
The last few days, I've spent in and around Boulder. One of my favorite local spots up the hill has been a home site for me of late, though I've been a prudent girl and not tried to press my luck and stay after dusk (though in prior years, without an RV, I was able to sleep here all night several times). It's a special spot, though right off highway 119 and heavily traveled by tourists, fisherman and rock climbers. It was peaceful enough for me to finish the sewing I had to do and enjoy the mountain. At night, I found a spot to park in town that is right by most everything I need... who knew it could be so easy!?!?
I am in Colorado Springs again and am happy to see my Zodiac extended family!
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