Heading out across Ohio and into Indiana was a ride of little inspiration or pleasure. Although the weather was good, the trip was rather mundane. We left Dover Ohio and jumped on Interstate 70 west heading for our next stop which would take several days to get to, Rapid City, South Dakota. So, we sucked it up, set the cruise control and headed into the sunset.

Dealing with the city traffic and construction is always a real joy (heavy on the sarcasm), but outside of the cities like Columbus, Oh. and Indianapolis, In. we did have some pleasurable riding. The temp was bearable with no real wind until… Missouri. We caught a 30 to 40 mph crosswind that didn’t quit for two days. Can you say 29 MPG on a Goldwing!! Ugh.

The wind, however, does “power” all the windmills throughout the area… Yes, ALL the windmills… so many windmills I actually coined a new phrase… “Scenic Pollution”. You all remember, noise pollution, then light pollution? Well now we have Scenic Pollution. All these windmills for miles and miles and miles littering our scenic landscapes. When will the insanity end?

As we pulled into Southwest South Dakota we were still dealing with a strong headwind but found relief talking with Parrie Dogs in the Badlands. After that it was simply trying to guestimate if we had enough gas to get to Rapid city with our reduced milage due to the winds.

Getting into the town of Keystone and pulling into our hotel we found that our reservation….   YES!!! Had be upgraded at no charge to a small suite and a balcony that has a view of mount Rushmore. What a DEAL!! The manager of the hotel who upgraded our reservation pointed us to an awesome restaurant. We stopped by and were in heaven. So after a “Wild Game Sampler” consisting of Elk, Buffalo, Bison and Quail, we settled down for a nightcap enjoying the view of Mount Rushmore from our balcony.