Well, I’m sitting in Badlands National Park waiting for the stars to come out. We got here shortly before sunset, so there wasn’t much in the way of photos tonight. However, my tripod is set up right now and I’m just waiting for more stars to come out in order to take some star trail photos, which should turn out amazingly given the fantastic scenery.

Our alarms are set for 4am so that we can break camp and be in place for some 5am sunrise photos. Hopefully I’ll be able to update again tomorrow night from the park with pictures. Current plans are to be in the Badlands Sunday and Monday.

Travel Distance: 656 miles

Spent the day hanging out with a couple friends from college. Betsy took me about 20 miles south of Cedar Rapids to a tourist attraction town called Amana, which was founded by German settlers in the 1850s. A brewery, a few small wineries and several small shops dominate the downtown district. Sadly, they allow cars through the downtown area, which does much to spoil the “old town” feeling they are attempting to cultivate.

After returning to Cedar Rapids and hooking up with Kevin, I called in the steak dinner he owes me and we’re now closing out a night of making plans, catching up and playing video games. In the morning, Kevin and I will hit the road for the Badlands and several other sights in South Dakota, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse and a couple caves.

Travel Distance: 48 miles

Not too much to report today, drove from Rose City, MI to Cedar Rapids, IA via Clare, MI for a stop at a sporting goods store. I ended up hitting Chicago around rush hour, which was an enormous pain. Considering I didn’t even stop for food the whole trip, it was a rough day.

Travel Distance: 594 miles