Summer vacation...

Can retired folks take a vacation?  Isn't "vacation" for getting away from something?  Since we retired 12 years ago, we have spent some summers traveling by boat, some summers working on (and for Joan: around) boats, and some land traveling.  We enjoyed our "fun summer jobs," and last year we had a great time taking the motorhome to the Northeast and generally wandering around.  This year, we were looking for a "getaway" - someplace cooler than the Tropical Tip, AND (this is the important part) some great scooter roads.

The Black Hills have been rated by the motorcycle press, Harley Owners Group, and others as one of the best places to ride in this country.  We used to live there - we know this.  We also have an ownership/membership in my favorite RV resort ever.  So, that has been the plan since we started talking about "What do you want to do this summer?" - the Black Hills.

The motorhome will be our comfortable casita.  The resort is in the middle of the Black Hills, meaning good riding can be had in any direction.  We talked about doing some touring around on the way to and from the Black Hills, but Mother Nature messed with our plans with the rain and flooding in parts of the Rio Grande Valley.  We knew we could still make it a leisurely trip north, and not have to be "driven" (pun intended).

We left northwest Nebraska this morning, with less heat - the weasels are calling for a cool front to be meeting us head-on as we head north.  It was absolutely gorgeous out when we got ready to head out.  Road construction played a small part today: we got stopped a time or two, but nothing major...

For those who think of Nebraska as flatlands, a look at the far western reach of the Sandhills...

We ran the a/c today, but it didn't have to be blasting to stay comfortable.  Rufus napped a bit - even his morning coffee wasn't enough to perk him up...

Snuggle time...

With a short drive to go today, we stopped for a leisurely lunch in Chadron, NE.  Bellies full for all three of us, we had less than 90 minutes to go for the day.  One more state for Rufus to add to his map...

It is a day early for our reservation at the resort, so the plan is to stay near there at a commercial campground.  Coming over a hill, we got our first view of "the hills"...

They got their name similar to the way the Smoky Mountains got theirs: the Smokies look blue(ish) from a distance, resembling smoke.  The Black Hills look... well, black.  It is mostly due to the Ponderosa Pines.  I enjoy seeing this from a distance as we approach...

We rolled into today's campground around 2:00 - plenty of time to kick back and relax.  This is the first time that we have disconnected the car and cargo trailer from the motorhome since we left home.  The site we are in is big enough that we wouldn't have had to unhook... but, this will be easy when we roll into the resort tomorrow.

I'm anxious to get the scoots out, but not today... too much work to put it all away to drive less than 10 miles.  All in due time, my pretty.

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On edit: The driving day was uneventful.  Mother Nature decided to stir things up: severe thunderstorms, large damaging hail, wind gusts to 70 mph, and 3 reports of tornadoes in this part of the state.  For the record, we lived here for a couple decades, and I only remember one circumstance where a tornado touched down in the area during that time.

The weather alerts on TV kept us apprised.  Breaks during local programming to show where the large line of storms were heading: from well south of us to well north of us, in a solid line.  Joan pulled up radar on her iPad; watching things build, we decided to pull in the slideouts on the motorhome.  Not long after that, the first gust front hit.

That view is looking to the west, the directions the storms were coming from.  Radar looked ugly.  Reports on TV about wind damage and hail the size of tennis balls!  "Expect damage to roofs, vehicles, and crops - for your protection move to a secure area!"

And everyone knows that RVs are a good place to be in severe weather, right?  After the strong gust front hit (it shook the coach), the rain started.  Ominous large, thick drops.  More hail reports on TV.  More checking radar on our own... it looked like the line of storms was solid, but the part that would be moving over us was thinner (from front to back) than most.  Green, yellow, red, and purple returns on radar.  Pulling the slides in was a good move - the wind howled and the rain pounded; with the slides in, the awnings over those slides are protected.  Thunder, lightning, but we lucked out with only a few "thumps" of hail.

That line of storms passed, but there is another building behind it.  Looks like we may be living in a "skinny coach" for the evening.

How'd Rufus do with the storms?  Thanks for asking.  He looked out the window with me, then sat beside me at the dinette.  No fuss.  He did great.

On the bright side: the thunder is crackling as the next cell moves through, but with no rain coming down, we have a couple windows open... it smells good, and the light breeze is refreshingly cool.

Just north of us on I-90, the heavy hail looked like this...

For those familiar with the area, that photo above is by Piedmont.  Road crews brought out snow plows to clear the road!  (Photo above from the local NBC affiliate).

There must be a rainbow somewhere - sunshine behind this current cell that is bringing us rain and lightning...