Okay, so the job in Cody, Wyoming did not work out for us. Betty and Dave were going to work for the Black Hills National Forest near Hill City, SD and told us about an opening just a couple of days after we gave our notice in Wyoming. So long story short…I know, you can’t believe it…we applied, got accepted and arrived on June 14 to work at Sheridan Lake.
It is a beautiful area and we are hosting one of the loops in the campground with 39 spaces plus we work everyday at one of the day use areas that has fishing, picnicking and a small beach area. I figure we are putting in about 10 hours a day total with 2 days off. I don’t mind the day use area at all but I am not fond of being the police force in our loop. Most people are very nice but you always have a couple that want to buck the system. These are campsites with no utilities at all. Fortunately we have full hookups at our site except for the fact we have no phone reception, no internet and we just got Directv a couple of days ago. We have to drive into Hill City, about 6 miles away, to make a phone call.
Last Monday Bob and I and Betty and Dave rode the 1880 Train from Hill City to Keystone, SD. I have no idea how far it is in miles but the ride is only one hour and it goes really slow. Bob and I have done several of these types of trains before but I have to say this was the most pleasant. The train going from Williams, AZ to the Grand Canyon was so slow we threatened to walk back.
When we reached Keystone we went into the gift shop and a woman walked up and called me by name. What a small world…it was Rosalie and Larry…another couple we worked with at Adventureland and had not seen since 2005 or 2006…I can’t remember which. How funny is that. They are staying about a mile down the road from our campground and they work for the 1880 train but this was one of their days off. They had friends visiting so we all got a picture together. 
That’s Larry hiding behind Rosalie on the far left. Way to go Betty with the hat…cowgirl up!
Here are a few pictures taken from the train and in Keystone.
Betty was trying to mimic the way this dear old lady was shaking.
The next day we had to take Little Buddy, our Yorkie, to Sturgis for an appointment with an orthopedic specialist. Sturgis is where the huge motorcycle rally is held every year in South Dakota. It is a lovely little town that swells to thousands and thousands for the rally. This tree was at the florist shop…someone had carved it with a chainsaw I suppose.
Back to the train ride…it was enjoyable but been there, done that. Keystone is pretty much a typical tourist town. There are places everywhere selling Black Hills gold jewelry…the problem is that none of the gold comes out of the Black Hills anymore. The area is really lovely though.
Moving on.
