Day 16: Leavenworth

John-Arne fell ill with flu symptoms the previous night in Grand Coulee, but recovered a bit the following morning and was ready for the drive to the coast. Our main stop for the day was in a mountain town called Leavenworth.

There are quite a lot of Leavenworths in the US, but only one Bavarian Leavenworth. The place used to be a down-trodden town in the hills in the Cascade Mountain Range in Washington, but transformed itself in to a full fledge Bavarian town in the mountains in the sixties. Today it even has an Oktoberfest.

We parked downtown and went for a stroll. Although somewhat misplaced, there was even a Danish bakery in town, which overjoyed Jan (like Solvang in California). We also took a look at the other stores, but ended up eating lunch in a bierstube. There Jan got a bratwürst and JA only had a bretzel (pretzel as the Ami's call them).

After our small intermezzo in the Cascades, Jan drove across the mountains and to the coast, where we found a motel for the night, where JA got get some rest and sleep, hoping that the day after would be better.

Day 13: Northbound through Big Sky Country

After a marvellous day, with loads of pictures taken stored on the hard drive, we left Yellowstone through the north entrance into Montana. Also known as big sky country.

Before getting that far we had a few smaller things left in Yellowstone. We saw a petrified tree (from ages far in the past, then buried in ash and hot soil and transformed in time into stone). Yet another proof that we were in a very volcanic active area (there were actually 77 small earthquakes in the park during June 2009, even increasing in July 2009. It might be that the global killer volcano is waking up ... puha as the Danes put it.). Luckily we did not get petrified during our short visit.

We also saw more travertine formations, said to be the biggest ones in the world. They were quite dry though, although some parts of it showed life as the hot water allowed thermophiles (heat loving bacterias) to thrive. They produce brilliant colours for humans to watch.

After the park and some lunch we headed for the state capitol of Montana, Helena. It's not the biggest state capital, but it's on the Missouri River and had a cosy vibe to the historic downtown. Someone needed their caffeine supplement of the afternoon, so we had a coffee and something sweet in a cosy bakery (selling Danish rye bread and Norwegian farm bread).

The last part of the day, we drove up to Great Falls and settled down at a camping site up there, preparing ourselves for Glacier National Park the following day. The reminder of the day were spent next to a nice camp fire Jan fixed (after all he is an old scout) to provide some western moods under the clear Montana sky.

Day 11: Into the Wild (or Yellowstone National Park)!

The motel was a pleasure to leave, although the alternative was worse, as it rained a bit during the night. Eager to get started with a hot bath, we headed for the thermal springs north of Thermopolis. The only reason the city is were it is (as the surroundings are not very inviting). The baths were really nice and after the bath we felt the detour to Thermopolis was worth it. We also took a walk through the park to see the travertine formations and the spring itself (see pictures above and below).

Next stop was the western town of Cody, to have lunch and to have a look at a museum. The city presents itself as the gate to Yellowstone, but is also known for being named after Buffalo Bill. The museum was great, as it housed actually several museums. We saw the one on Buffalo Bill (where Jan was urged to sit on a saddle, below), one on the natural history of Yellowstone and one on Lewis and Clarke (more about them when we get to Montana). Although Buffalo Bill probably was a huge celebrity and all that, the natural history museum was really great. A nice preparation for the park itself.

We arrived in the park in the afternoon and drove to Canyon Village, where Jan had booked a cottage in advance (a good idea, as it is quite crowded in the summer). We decided to explore the immediate surroundings of Canyon Village, and drove for the nearby waterfalls. Quite impressing, at least for a Dane. Going to bed that night we were eager to explore the park the following day.

Day 9: Mt. Rushmore and Custer State Park

Having left the Badlands, after a rainful and stormy night (thunder and lightning!), we drove for the Black Hills. As the naive Scandinavians we are, we trusted the car's computer when it said that we had enough petrol to drive to Rapid City. When the petrol gauge suddently fell and it got kind of scary. Finally, we found a old store/bar in the middle of nowhere South Dakota, who also sold petrol. Luckily we avoided the cumbersome process of stopping a car on the road, getting a lift into Rapid Cty., and returning with a can of petrol in a taxi.

The Black Hills had a kind of German or Austrian feel to it, with lots of green trees and lush mountains. We stopped for a quick lunch in Keystone, a city that mostly functioned as the entrance to the more fameous Mt. Rushmore. Mt. Rushmore was really wicked, mostly because it was just as we had imagined it. It was carved between the great wars and the sculptor was a Danish-American, namely Gutzon Borglum, so here in the heart of the US, all the Danes can pride themselves of having contributed to American identity and pride.

After the mountain we made camp nearby, and drove south towards Custer State Park. Mostly to see the wildlife. And we saw elk/white tailed deer and bison, but also minor creatures along the road. After the long day in the car it was nice to relax with meal in the nearby town of Custer, before heading back to camp zero.

Day 7: Minneapolis to Sioux Falls (!)

The exclamation sign above signifies that Sioux Falls was not quite a part of our plans. We were actually supposed to end up in Bismarck, ND. Why, you might enquire?

We started out on an otherwise perfect day, after a perfect breakfast by our splendid host, by taking a stop a Luther Th. Seminary, as John-Arne really really wanted to visit their bookstore. As we parked the car, Jan noticed an error message from the car computer. Something was wrong with the tire pressure. Hoping for the best, we pulled over at a petrol station and checked the tire pressure. One of the tires actually had a problem with the pressure, and fearing a tire puncture, we filled the tire with air and drove on to Alexandria.

In Alexandria we visited the (alledgedly) fameous Kensington Rune Stone Museum. A somewhat quirky museum, bearing quite a lot of resemblance to the Thor Heyderdahl Museum in Oslo (or Ripleys believe it or not, for that matter). After the museum, we checked the tire pressure again and alas, it had fallen again. So after a lot of hassle at a car shop, calling the car company and going to a car dealership, we started driving again delayed by several hours. After a while we got a new error message, and not taking any chances we headed back to the car dealership. They assured us that everything would be fine. Needless to say, after all this hassle we decided to alter our plans, and took the freeway down (after barely driving through the corner of North Dakota) to Sioux Falls in the southeastern corner of South Dakota. We arrived late, quite exhausted.

Conclusion: When on a three week vacation with a rental car mishappenings are prone to happen. Luckily our problem, although frustrating enough, was a minor thing. It only caused a change to the itinery. And we did get travel through North Dakota ...

Day 5: From Milwaukee to Minneapolis

Those of you who have been following our blog for some time, knows that Jan really wanted to see the Wisconsin Dells. Therefore we decided to stop there, when driving between Milwaukee and Minneapolis. It is allegedly the water capital of the world, with loads of resorts and entertainment options. We decided to take one of the classic duck rides (which also included a goofy driver/guide). And the scenery on the trip was actually quite beautiful, but that's more or less what's worth seeing there.

Jan was really impressed with amphibious ducks ...

But the drive really needed a break, as it is quite a distance to cover on one day. And we also opted for a more scenic rouite after the Dells, as we drove west to follow the Mississippi River a bit, north up to the twin cities. We also made a stop in Red Wing. A little town with a Scandinavian touch (formerly the headquarter of the Haugians in the US, we later found out).

In Minneapolis we arrived in the evening at Karen, who we where to stay with and who is a true pleasure (including her grand-dog Ginger), but more about her and the dog in the next blog. :-)

We're a bit behind with the blogging, but it's kind of hard to fit it into a busy schedule, but we'll try to get some more done (although camping without wi-fi might seriously delay it a bit).

Day 4: A trip down Memory Lane

Monday morning, we picked up our rental car in downtown Chicago and headed north to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee may not be among the top destinations for tourists but Jan spent almost half a year there as an intern at the Milwaukee Public Museum back in 1997 and wanted to go back for old times’ sake.

First, we went to the museum where we met up with Jan’s internship coordinator and after that we toured the museum. Then we went over to the Grand Avenue Mall, which proved to be a bit disappointing, mainly because there no longer was a Cinnabun-store…However, we bought a cup of coffee and relaxed a bit.

After coffee, we strolled through downtown Milwaukee and ended up at the lakefront where we saw the new and uber-cool addition to the Milwaukee Art Museum. Unfortunately only from the outside as the museum was closed. On our way back to the car, we walked a little bit of the Milwaukee Riverwalk. Then we were off to Jan’s old “home village” of Shorewood where we had a very pleasant dinner with his host from back then. Ah, sweet nostalgia….

Day 3: Chicago Skyline & Taste

Chicago has an impressive skyline. After having been on a great architecture trip Saturday we wanted to see the buildings from the highest point possible: the Sears Tower. Apart from the long wait to get in, it was worth the buck or two. We also got to try the new skywalk (ledge on the side of the Sears Tower). Very impressive and quite a chilling experience, although Jan just laughed in the face of perril. :-)

After the Sears Tower we visited a festival called "Taste of Chicago", where we tried all kinds of local (ethnic) food. Yummie! The sun was shining and after the taste we headed for the art museum. Aircondition really makes a hot day bearable.

For dinner we tried a real chi-town speciality - a deep pan pizza. Kelly took us to probably the best place in town. Wow.. all that cheese... Great days in great Chicago with a great gal!

Day 1: Arrival in Chicago

We stayed (basically) up all night before leaving for the airport. The trip itself was uneventful, and we arrived around noon in Chicago. Kelly, who we are staying with here in Chicago, picked us up in the airport. It's really nice to have good friends to stay with.

Late in the evening we went down to the lake to watch the fireworks, that are held for July 4. So I guess we are off for a very good start.