Badlands National Park

CHI TO SEA

First Stop: Badlands National Park

The latest journey of mine took me 2,300 miles across the United States- in a 12-foot  moving truck. If you have driven one before- you know how miserable it is… in the wind… or storms… or through mountains (we had all of these). My best friend was moving from Chicago to Seattle- and our crazy asses decided we were going to DRIVE.

Gas stations were for filling up all the tanks and emptying other kinds of tanks. This was my first trip where nothing was planned- we had a tent and camping gear with us, that was the plan.  We would just drive as far as we could each day and set up camp when it got too dark or we were too tired to go further.

It was a 12 hour drive from CHI to Badlands National Park. We left Chicago bright and early to avoid traffic (we still hit traffic).  The first leg of the trip (850 miles) was just as difficult as we anticipated: the plains states. ZzzZzzZ

It felt like we drove through a lot of nothingness for a very, very, long time. By the time the sun set we were just a couple hours outside of Badlands. We decided to push forward, and accepted the fact that we would be setting up camp in the dark that night… (again).

The next morning, we woke up and looked outside our tent, seeing Badlands for the first time in daylight. The dried out plains we had become used to seeing had turned to rock formations bursting with color. Eager to explore more, we had a quick breakfast, packed up our gear, and hit the road again.

We drove through the park for a little over an hour and made our way through winding mountain roads as we explored the vastness of Badlands.

Enamored by the Adorable Locals

Obsessed with the Yellow Mounds

CHI to SEA

Next Stop: Mount Rushmore National Monument; Drive Time: 1.5 hours; 85 miles