Coast-to-Coast in the Mooney M20J
| << Leg 2 - Bardstown, KY to Ames, IA | Trip Home | Leg 4 - Deadwood, SD to Cody, WY >> |
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Leg Stats
- Time Enroute: 4.3 hrs
- Distance (direct): 470nm
- Distance (actual): 521nm
- Fuel Used: 44.9 gal
Picked up IFR on the ground and set out west again. Mostly the same endless stretches of farmland until crossing into South Dakota and getting to the Badlands. Canceled IFR and went VFR, did a little sightseeing over the Badlands (amazing) and did an orbit over Mt. Rushmore, before continuing on to land in Spearfish. Spearfish is in a bit of a valley and the field is around 4000 ft MSL, so that was a new experience for me. Quite bumpy coming into the valley and very windy on landing but nothing too dramatic. It was starting to rain in places near Spearfish, so we definitely got there just in time, and in fact it rained on us as we were unloading the airplane. Got a taxi, booked a cheap hotel (one of the better values of the entire trip), and spent a few days in Deadwood. Deadwood is definitely an interesting town, but very touristy. We had no car so we stayed directly on the main street. Finding good grass for Magic turned out to be a challenge, and many places were closed for the season (season apparently ends around Labor Day) or due to lack of employees. We ended up eating hot dogs at an outdoor restaurant in an old gas station called Sassy Sally's at least twice. We both worked from the hotel all 4 days in Deadwood, with Katherine enjoying working from the outdoor patio area. I intended to gamble in the Casinos but never did. We hiked up to Mt Moriah Cemetery at one point with Magic but couldn't go in, as it was not dog friendly. On the final day we took a bus tour that also took us to Mt Moriah, which was not a whole lot to see. We also watched a couple Old West re-enactments and had an Old Fashioned cocktail in one of the old "Number 10 Saloon". (Not the original location) Overall, I'd say Deadwood is interesting but 4 days was too much here, especially after the season ends.
Trip Leg Navigation
<< Leg 2 - Bardstown, KY to Ames, IA
