Pine Grove Camp - Greenwood, Nebraska

August 28

Our day started windy and cool and it started to sprinkle as we were hooking up the car. It kinda rained most of the trip.

We had to cross through a small part of Iowa near Sioux City on I-29 to get to Greenwood, Nebraska. Fort Dodge isn’t close, but the turn off to head in that direction was on the sign. No, we weren’t even tempted to turn….. I missed getting the border sign into Iowa since the windshield was so streaky. I borrowed one online:

I did manage to get the one of Nebraska. (had to aim for just the right spot on the windshield.) 

 wind turbine blades being transported

 Mormon Bridge over Missouri River

 crossing the bridge

We heard on the radio that the Beartooth highway that we took a couple of times to & from Cody and Yellowstone was closed due to snow. Monday it was predicted they would get 2 – 7 inches for the highest portions of the scenic highway. Snow is expected to fall at elevations of 9,000 feet and higher. I don’t think it was a deep snow, but it’s August and it’s one windy and twisty road. The road was closed to clean off the snow. It was 33* one morning in Yellowstone when we were there.

We arrived at Pine Grove Camp and it's still windy and cold, but the rain has slowed. The sites here aren’t very level and we had 2 wheels off the ground and had to move the coach a bit and use leveling pads, but finally got it level.

It’s too cold and windy to go for our evening walk for the obligatory RV Park photos. Tomorrow should be much nicer. Tomorrow, we are going to visit the SAC Museum. (I'll have a separate post for the museum)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/AFY7tbZVVArwLzVw9

August 29 - after the museum we walked the grounds:

Today we walked around the RV park, which is pretty good sized and they have a large area for storing boats and RVs as well. It's a bit of a "resort" as it has a pool, volleyball, tennis, bar and some food and lots of play areas for the kids. 

the office

 the office

 a marine lives here - maybe the owners

pool area

 volleyball

 tennis courts

our spot - we face the corn field

 around the park

 interesting....

there is one small cabin for rent - yes, that's a corn field in the background

Calumet Bluff Trail - Crofton, Nebraska

August 27

From South Dakota to Nebraska:

We did return to the Calumet Bluff Trail this morning. No turkeys greeted us this morning, but a Baltimore Oriole was singing loudly and begged to have his photo taken. 

 Baltimore Oriole

We saw a ton of birds, but few wanted their pictures taken, so this post will be short. We even found a new bird to add to the “life list”. (the Warbling Vireo) We spent a couple of hours along the trail and there were 3 areas that had huge clusters of mixed flock birds. 

 Warbling Vireo

 Downy Woodpecker

 White-bellied Nuthatch

 White-bellied Nuthatch

 White-bellied Nuthatch

 immature Cardinal

  immature Cardinal

  immature Cardinal

 Yellow-throated Vireo

 Yellow-throated Vireo

  Yellow-throated Vireo

  Yellow-throated Vireo

 House Wren

 Warbling Vireo

We got back to the car just as it started to sprinkle. We grabbed some lunch and shopped for groceries before returning home for the day.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/VX2Nwdx6JrSUVySK9

Tomorrow, we leave for Greenwood, Nebraska for 2 days and 3 nights. Hopefully, we will have satellite, phone service and better water pressure. This park is the worst of any of the parks we have stayed in, for poor water pressure. (can't even flush the toilet using the small amount of water required and showers have been miserable.....)

Calumet Bluff Trail, Gavins Point Dam, Lewis & Clark Vsitor Center - Crofton, Nebraska

August 26 

Today we drove over the border to Nebraska to hike the Calumet Bluff Trail. Lewis & Clark spent time there on their journey. 

On our way into the parking lot, we passed a couple of turkey hens with 5 or 6 young ones. The trail was a moderate hike with a few hills and a creek crossing. Lots of wildflowers along the way as well. We saw quite a few birds as well. 3 Yellow-billed Cuckoos, one of which was young. I was scanning the trees with my binoculars and this huge red gaping mouth came into my sight. The parent was below it on a branch feeding it. Cuckoos don’t sit still very long and are hard to photograph. (or even see clearly) There were quite a few Catbirds, House wrens, Brown Thrashers, Nashville Warblers and a couple of hawks. One was an adult in the forest and the other was a juvenile flying high overhead.

 turkey hens & young (we saw 2 males in the woods

 Nashville Warbler

 makeshift bridge over the little creek

 Yellow-billed Cuckoo

 Yellow-billed Cuckoo

 trail

 House Wren was taking a dirt bath

 Catbird was hanging out with the House Wrens

 House Wren

 view of the dam from the trail

 Broad-winged Hawk

 golf course 

 Broad-winged Hawk - juvenile

 mating insects

 After our hike we went to the Lewis & Clark Visitor Center. Great views of the Dam. It was a very well done Visitor’s center and we watched 3 films. One on the Lewis & Clark expedition, one on the building of the dam and the other on the 4 seasons of the Missouri River. Then, we toured the small museum there.

If you want a refresher course in Lewis & Clark & their Corps of Discovery Expedition: “The Lewis and Clark Expedition began in 1804, when President Thomas Jefferson tasked Meriwether Lewis with exploring lands west of the Mississippi River that comprised the Louisiana Purchase. Lewis chose William Clark as his co-leader for the mission. The excursion lasted over two years: Along the way they confronted harsh weather, unforgiving terrain, treacherous waters, injuries, starvation, disease and both friendly and hostile Native Americans. Nevertheless, the approximately 8,000-mile journey was deemed a huge success and provided new geographic, ecological and social information about previously uncharted areas of North America.” 

It was lunch time and we went to the Dam Fish Shack which was a food truck, a separate bar, a bait store and an indoor and outdoor seating area. After you order your dam food, they call you up by yelling your dam food is ready or your dam order is ready. Yeah, it didn’t get old. Food was fast and very good. Greg had a Walleye basket and I had a shrimp basket. Both were dam good. 

 Dam Fish Shack

 Dam Bar

We then drove across the Dam and saw it from the other side which put us much closer to it. Lake Yankton is below the dam and Lewis & Clark Lake is above the dam.

 driving across the dam

Then, we wen to the Gavins Point Fish Hatchery and Aquarium. They had about 50 kinds of local freshwater fish and turtles, frogs and toads. We went inside the hatchery, but not much was going on this time of year. Then we walked around the outside ponds. 

 cone flowers

 fish hatchery

 fish ponds

 ducks of some kind....

 Spotted Sandpiper

 there were tons of blue dragonflies

 Cliff Swallows

baby swallow

https://photos.app.goo.gl/D2QYDdF8QUNQuiNN9

Tomorrow, we may return to the Calumet Bluff Trail, as it was a pretty nice hike. Then, we get ready to move to our next stop in Greenwood, Nebraska. (near Lincoln)