Day 2: Western Iowa and the Corn Palace

 We finally got to bed around  10:30 last night.  We received a text warning that the area was under a tornado watch.  About 11:30 a strong thunderstorm rolled through but no tornado.  We woke up to cooler temperatures which we all liked.  On the road by 8:00.  We will be staying here the last day of our trip in a couple of weeks.  It is a nice KOA and has lots to do for kids.

This is our camping spot at KOA Mitchell, South Dakota.  After leaving West Des Moines, we filled up twice. One time the cost was $4.29 and the second time it was $4.04...still lots cheaper than gas in Illinois.  This campground has a cattle farm next door so we will be going to sleep by the sounds of mooing cows!

One of the many signs Wall Drug uses to advertise for the store.  Of course, we will be visiting it.

The sky was partly cloudy in West Des Moines but it got steadily more cloud-filled as we drove north to South Dakota.  From 80W we took an interstate bypass called 880 (on map it labeled 680) and it was almost traffic-free which was a nice change.  Then we got on I-29N to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Again, we had never driven on this particular interstate.  We drove through a town called Sgt. Floyd.  I looked it up on the internet and found out that Sgt Charles  Floyd was with the Lewis and Clark Expedition.  Here on the banks of a small river that is a tributary of the Missouri River, they buried him on a high bluff and when a town was settled it was called Sgt. Floyd after this man.

The farmers use contour farming on these rolling hills.  

Saw several wind mill farms along with the contour fields.

Our visit to the Corn  Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota.

Every year there is a new theme and this year's is "Under the  Big Top."

A close-up showing the cobs cut in half that make up the murals.

A display showing the 12 different colors of corn used in the murals.

Farmer Keegan.

It was a great day to travel.  The scenery was very pretty.  We got set up by 2:00 p.m. and were able to visit the Corn Palace.  After finishing this entry we will eat a late supper and play some games before hitting the sack.  Below is a picture of how we found Keegan this morning.  We had to wake him up at 7:30.  I think if we had let him sleep any longer, his feet would be hanging off the mattress!

Keegan's Windy Wild West

Here we are ready to begin our big adventure.  Everyone was up by 5 (even Keegan).  However, we did not want to leave until 7:30 so we took our time packing up what little bit was left.  Our neighbor, Donna, was good enough to come over and snap this picture of the happy trio before we pulled out of the driveway at 7:30.  First stop was Iowa 80 a world-famous truck stop at Walcott, Iowa.  We filled up with gas at $4.23 a gallon which seemed like a bargain because gas is selling for $4.69 a gallon in Illinois.  Across the street from this truck stop, gas was $4.19 a gallon.  It cost $148 to fill up.  Last year the same amount was $115.  We think we will have to pay about $30 more per fill-up.

We stopped at 11:15 and spent about two hours eating and exploring the truck stop.  Back on the road and we discovered a strong south wind blowing against the side of the motorhome.  Yikes!  Carol's left shoulder really got a workout trying to keep the motorhome on the road.  The wind caused the cover on the driver's side slide to bang against the camper.  At first we did not know what the banging was so we pulled into a rest area to see if something on the top of the camper was loose.  Seeing nothing, we pulled back on the road and the banging continued.  Again, we pulled off and then noticed that the awning on the slide was loose.  We remembered that we had this problem another time so we kept on driving finally making it to the KOA on the west side of Des Moines around 4:30.  It is a nice KOA with only a few other campers.  According to weather forecast, this wind will lessen later this evening.  We could get some strong thunderstorms later tonight.

 
Keegan is a good helper.  Here they are hooking up the water to the motorhome.

 Keegan enjoyed swimming, playing basketball, and jumping on the jumping pillow.  He had been shut up in the motorhome all day so it was good for him to stretch his muscles.  

It has taken a long time getting my pictures downloaded.  I always seem to forget the necessary steps to downloading pictures after a few months.  Hopefully, tomorrow will be easier.  Tomorrow we should be camped outside Mitchell, South Dakota.  I think it will also be cooler.