Winter expedition in South Dakota

Saturday, November 30th, 2019 

Rapid City, SD

It’s 8am MST and I am jumping out of bed to see my first blizzard. I excitedly pull back the blinds to a completely deserted landscape. Everything is covered in a blanket of white snow. I can see buildings and parked cars, but it’s impossible to see where the streets end and sidewalks begin. Snow is blowing upwards, sideways and in every other direction but down. I think this is so cool. 

I get ready for the day and make a cup of coffee. I have nearly 30 minutes to stare out of the window before breakfast. I watch intently as snowplows start to appear, seemingly out of nowhere. Some are big and some are small. They slowly and methodically draw lines in the snow and I am reminded of Tibetan monks silently moving around a sand garden. 

At 9am I meet my parents for breakfast. We find a table next to a window and I continue to stare at the snow. Now we are on the ground level so I can see the full height of the snowdrifts, some of which are as tall as the cars. 

I order an omelet and more coffee for breakfast. We check the weather and it quickly becomes clear that we are not leaving the hotel today. Luckily there is a bare-bones staff and the electricity remains on. 

After a long breakfast, I come to the conclusion that I must go outside. It takes nearly 20 minutes to prepare for the trek. My Dad will come too, while my Mom takes pictures through the hotel window. At 11am I meet my parents in the lobby and I am literally wearing every piece of clothing from my suitcase. 

I look out of the lobby window and honestly, feel a little scared. The wind is blowing furiously and visibility is low. My Dad goes first. He ventures directly into the wind. Me, my Mom, and the lobby attendant watch through the window. He quickly returns and announces that the wind is strong. 

Alright, I will go outside too. I push through 2 layers of doors to the drop-off area in front of the lobby. I turn away from the wind but remain within 10 feet of the door. I take a few pictures and attempt to create a snowball. I only succeed in soaking my gloves and throwing a pile of powder back into the incessant wind. I go back inside. 

Now my Dad has an idea to venture farther; he wants to walk to Murphy’s, a closed pub located across the street. I’m not excited about this idea, but honestly, there is nothing else to do. I send my Mom to the top floor of the hotel to take pictures. I zip up my jacket and put on my Spectacles, which are sunglasses with an embedded camera. 

5 steps into the expedition my glasses are completely fogged over. I try taking them off, but the fast-blowing snow stings my eyes so much that I can not keep them open. I put my sunglasses back on and wipe them with my soaking wet glove. I can barely make out my Dad, who is a few paces in front of me. As I follow him, I snap a few pictures. 

The wind is loud and my ears are covered by multiple layers. We communicate with hand signals. The conversation goes like this: Me: No, no, no. My Dad: Yes, yes, yes.  Once we successfully touch the door of Murphy’s, I take the lead into the wind to get back to the hotel. I can see the hotel, but still find it scarier to be in the front of the line since I can no longer follow my Dad’s path. 

Eventually, we make it back inside the lobby. I take a few minutes to dry off my Spectacles and pair them with my iPhone to look at pictures. Only some of them came out as the camera actually froze after only a few minutes. 

My Dad wants to drive around the block, but me and my Mom refuse to go. He treks to the car and then comes back 10 minutes later. There is no way to move that car. I am relieved. 

Now it’s 11 am and there is officially nothing left to do. We agree to spend some time in our respective hotel rooms and meet for lunch at 12noon. 

At 12noon I am not hungry at all but head back to the lobby anyways. We learn that the lobby restaurant will not be open for dinner, so I end up ordering some crab dip in a purely defensive move. 

Around 1:30 pm, lunch is done and there is still nothing to do. We agree to take a break and then meet back in the lobby at 3 pm. For the next 1.5 hours, I sit quietly in my room, alternating between watching the window and the weather channel. 

At 3 pm we learn that the lobby bar has been opened. My prayers have been answered! The bar is small but full of stranded guests. I spend a few hours chatting with my parents and eventually, everyone agrees to play Heads Up. We spend most of the evening making a small scene as we all yell out clues. Eventually, we move to the charades version of the games, causing an even bigger scene. 

Around 6 pm we learn that the kitchen is closing and make an emergency order of all 4 available appetizers. We spend the rest of the evening finishing off a large portion of the bar’s cabernet and eating more crab dip.

Eventually, the bar closes, forcing us to call it an early night. I still have time to watch a few more episodes of Undone before falling asleep well before 10 pm.  

Another T-shirt of a monument I didn't see

Friday, November 29th, 2019 

Rapid City, SD

It’s 8am MST and I am waking up. Even though I went to bed at 10pm, I still feel groggy. I slowly get ready for the day and still have time to enjoy a small cup of coffee while staring out of the hotel window. 

At 9am I meet my parents in the hotel restaurant for breakfast. The restaurant is empty and the service is slow. We discuss the weather and decide to wait until 11am to attempt the drive to Mount Rushmore. A blizzard is supposed to hit this evening, so we need to be back in town before dark. After a slow breakfast, I find a seat next to a picture of a fireplace in the lobby. I call my Grandmother to chat while my parents finish getting ready for the day. 

Around 11am, we gather at the rental car. My Dad drives and the road to Mount Rushmore is perfectly clear. It looks like this town really knows how to deal with snow. I feel grateful. 

Soon we arrive at Mount Rushmore and it is beyond cold outside. I put on all of my winter gear and start the trek up the long walkway. Once we arrive at the end of the path, my parents start to giggle. Wait a minute, is this it? I am staring at a wall of fog. 

There is a viewing room with a fireplace, an extremely tall window, and a small cafe. I buy a cup of coffee and sit down to wait out the fog. We watch some kids play in the snow and are inspired to take some of our own pictures. Me and Mom go back outside and she makes several attempts to time a picture of me throwing snow into the air. Once we are both frozen, we return inside to stare at the fog some more. 

Eventually, we make the call to check out the gift shop and then drive to the Crazy Horse memorial. The gift shop is substantial and I pick out a T-shirt to take home. Just as we are starting to leave, the fog begins to clear. We trek back up the path and are able to catch a faded glimpse of the monument. I am surprised by how close it is.

The next stop is the Crazy Horse monument. My parents assure me there is no way to see the monument in this fog, but there is a robust museum and another cafe on site. As we enter the lobby of the museum, we learn they have stopped the shuttle service to the memorial but are encouraged to watch a free short film. The theater is freezing cold, but luckily I am well equipped with winter clothing. You know you’re not from here when your outdoor winter clothes are just sufficient for indoor activities. 

We learn that the Crazy Horse monument, which is still in progress, is being built by the same family that built Mount Rushmore. This rock sculpture will eventually be 563 feet tall, significantly larger than its Mount Rushmore counterpart, which is only 87 feet. This memorial was started in 1927 and so far 3 generations of the Ziolkowski family have worked on the project. There is currently no estimation of its completion. 

After the movie is completed, we spend 30 minutes or so browsing through the museum. We finish in the gift shop, where I buy another T-shirt of a monument that I didn’t see. 

The weather is starting to decline, so we head back into Rapid City. It’s around 4pm and we decide to find a restaurant for an early dinner. We try Tally’s first, but they are not open yet. Next, we go to an Ale House located across the street, but it’s very loud and there are slot machines interspersed with the tables. Finally, we settle on Murphy’s, which is located across the street from the hotel. This place is great. The interior is mostly wood and the chairs are extra comfortable. I start out with some wine and then eventually order the bison meatloaf, wrapped in bacon. It tastes as amazing as it sounds. I enjoy the long dinner with my parents and eventually head back to the hotel at 8pm.

We order a round of drinks in the hotel bar, but it’s incredibly loud and overrun by a local crowd. I wonder if the blizzard can account for the crowd or if this place is actually popular. By 9pm we decide to call it a night. 

I quickly get ready for bed and end up watching a few episodes of Undone on Amazon. Even though I am excited to witness my first blizzard, eventually I drift off to sleep. 

Why casinos don't have windows

Thursday, November 28th, 2019 

Los Angeles, CA and Rapid City, SD

It’s 3am PST and I am waking up for my 6am flight to Rapid City, SD. Today is Thanksgiving and I will be landing in Rapid City, SD by 11am MST. I am very groggy but willing to tolerate the early wake-up call in order to get the most out of Thanksgiving Day.

I enjoy a quick coffee and meditation before my Lyft picks me up for the airport. The first flight to Salt Lake City is smooth and I make a quick connection to the next plane. The Salt Lake City airport is built like a bus terminal and I am very charmed by its minimalistic aesthetic. The next flight boards right on time. The airplane is teeny, tiny and I can barely stand up in the aisle. I wait patiently through an hour delay before the plane is able to leave the runway. 

After about 2 hours in the air, the pilot makes an announcement that weather conditions are making it unsafe to land but he is going to try anyway. My immediate reaction is laughter. I think he could have communicated better, but am happy to hold on to the hope of landing. The pilot makes an attempt but ends up ascending back into the sky. He makes a second attempt with the same outcome. At this point, the plane does not have enough fuel to continue to circle the airport and we are diverted to Casper, WY. 

30 minutes later we are on the ground as the crew refuels. The plan is to wait for a break in the weather and then try again. Because of the rapidly changing nature of the situation, the pilot asks that all passengers stay on the teeny, tiny plane. 2 hours later, we are back in the air. 

As the plane approaches Rapid City, the pilot announces that conditions are still not good and the last plane was unable to land. He announces that he will try again. I truly love this guy. 

As the plane descends I can feel the whole plane holding its breath. I stare out of the window and can only see fog. Suddenly the wheels touch down. We have arrived! We all exchange high fives with the pilot and crew on the way out of the plane. I overhear the gate attendant say this is the only plane to make it into Rapid City today. Wow, I feel lucky. I almost spent Thanksgiving alone in a regional airport in Wyoming. 

By 3pm I am meeting my parents at their rental car in front of the airport. I am only 4 hours late.

My parents inform me that the Thanksgiving buffets have closed for the day and there are only 2 hours of daylight left. A group decision is made to use the daylight to see Sturgis and then eat a regular dinner later. I am starving, however, so end up buying a couple of beef sticks and some black coffee at a gas station. This is not the culinary experience that I expected. 

Sturgis, which is famous for its summer biker rallies and motorcycle bars is completely empty. We drive around the town center, but the only thing open is another gas station. Dad asks if I’d like another beef stick and I politely decline. 

It turns out that we are not far from Deadwood and there is still some daylight left. We make the drive around a small mountain and end up in a quaint town that looks like a deserted version of the log ride at Disneyland. As we get closer to Main Street, I can see that the road is lined with motels and casinos. Some dedicated gamblers sit at slot machines next to the smudged-up windows. They look kind of sad. I suddenly realize that I’ve never seen a casino with windows before. Maybe this is why. 

It’s nearing 5pm and the sky is darkening. We drive back to Rapid City to try the 3 restaurants that are supposed to be open. The first one, Minervas, is clearly closed for the day. The second one, called Menards, turns out to be a very large hardware store. While it’s technically open, they don’t do dinner service. We pass by a Perkin’s, which is open, but my Dad refuses to eat at a chain on a holiday. I silently think that beggars can’t be choosers, but I hold out hope for the next and final option. Marlin’s is in the parking lot of a large truck stop and, hallelujah, it’s open. I have never been so excited to eat Thanksgiving dinner at a truck stop. 

I order a large glass of their only white wine and proceed to embark on a 3-course meal of fried cheese sticks, taco salad, and a brownie a la mode. This meal is great and I am so happy that I made it here. 

My parents landed in Rapid City from Austin, Texas yesterday and had almost an entire day to explore before I arrived. I casually ask what they’ve seen so far. There is a pause that lasts a beat too long; I know something’s up. They went to Mount Rushmore without me. They promise to go back tomorrow, but to be honest, I really can’t blame them. Weather conditions are deteriorating fast and it’s possible the roads may be closed tomorrow. 

After dinner, we check into the Rushmore hotel and are very happy with my room. It’s starting to snow outside, but my Dad still somehow manages to find a bar across the street for an after-dinner drink. As soon as we enter, we realize the bar is in fact an Indian food restaurant. We order a bottle of wine and add a few appetizers to be polite. No one touches the food, but we enjoy the wine together. Around 9:30pm the restaurant closes and we have no other choice but to call it a night. 

I crawl into bed and say a little prayer that the weather holds for tomorrow.