Continued from the previous page. 

EXPLORING THE BASE ON FOOT & BICYCLE

Ellsworth AFB covers almost 5,000 acres. It has one of the most intuitive layouts of any military installation where we've camped and tried to find our way around. It's easy to navigate and the entrance gates provide good maps (some posts and bases don't).

There are many miles of safe paved roads and paths that are suitable for walking, running, and cycling and we've taken advantage of that convenience in the eleven days we've been camping here.

Jims rides on the bike path.

The only area we haven't entered is near the flight lines; I doubt visitors are welcome there except during the air show or on guided tours of the base.

My favorite place to ride and walk is a large grassy park-like area with several ponds in the middle of the base.

There are sidewalks through here and a lighted, 1½-mile bike path that loops around the ponds from one end of the park to the other. The photo above shows the more reddish path on the left and two intersecting sidewalks.

Cody enjoys swimming in the ponds:

Cody-Gator

That picture reminds me of the alligators at Brazos Bend SP in Texas -- all you can usually see when they're swimming is their heads and part of their backs.

The grass around the ponds is grassland, not regular turf. This is the prairie, after all. The groundskeepers have left some of the grass high between the bike path and the ponds. With all the recent rain most of the grass is a beautiful emerald green; summer's heat and drier conditions will turn the grasses more brown in a month or two.

Tracks to nowhere in the high grass

I love the look -- and all of the huge rabbits that inhabit this area. I've never seen such large rabbits before. They move too fast for me to get their picture. Note all the dandelions in bloom, especially in the next picture below. They are easier to photograph than high-speed bunnies! ☺

Since the park area parallels the hangars, flight line, and runway it's easy to watch aircraft come and go when we're riding or walking nearby:

Front to back: dandelions in the grass, one of the paths, a fishing pier at the pond, and hangars.

This recreational area is a popular place for visitors and base residents to run, walk, cycle, fish, and have picnics. There are at least two fishing piers and a couple bridges spanning the ends of ponds where folks can cast a line. You can see one of the piers in the photo above.

There is a playground area near one of the lakes and 18 disk golf baskets:

I highlighted one of the baskets in the photo above. Most of them are near the ponds and not that close to the bike path where an errant shot could hit someone. We've never played disk golf but it looks like something I'd enjoy. I've seen the baskets at other places like Targhee Ski Resort on the west side of the Tetons; I have yet to see someone actually playing the game..

Good thing Cody isn't a "duck dog;" his mama was, but he always ignores ducks and geese (rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks are fair game, though). Jim and I enjoyed watching this duck family each time we were near the pond they preferred:

Four baby ducks and their proud parents

At the south end of the park area is a nice memorial to airmen and women who have lost their lives in performance of their duties (mostly during training, not war).

About a dozen handsome engraved stone memorials contain the date, place, and names of the aviators who died in air crashes dating back to at least 1942. This one certainly caught my eye:

Eleven men died when their B-17 apparently crashed into Sierra Grande Mountain, the highest peak in New Mexico.

Some of the deaths took place right here at Ellsworth AFB:

The memorial park is a very nice tribute to these airmen and women. I hope more names are added very, very slowly.

Even the roads and sidewalks that pass by all the various businesses, offices, and training facilities on base are fun to ride and walk. We see something new each time out.

Up the hill and across the road from the memorial garden is the large Rushmore Center, an administrative, training, and conference center:

 

We haven't been inside this building yet.

Nearby is the water tower with the iconic B-1 bomber symbol that can be seen from much of the base:

"Wings"

That's one of my favorite Ellsworth shots, with the juxtaposition of live birds and the man-made aircraft symbol.

And here's my favorite play on words at the base:

It helps if you understand that one of the definitions of "boneyard" came from the field of aviation -- the final resting place of old, discarded planes. The name fits this thrift store quite well (used clothing, toys, household goods, etc.) and plays into the B-1 bomber emphasis on base.

COMFORTABLE BASE HOUSING

Another area we like to ride our bikes is through the Black Hills Estate housing area on base:

Duplexes are arranged in loops on larger plots of ground farther out "in the country" than the housing in Rushmore Heights adjacent to the campground or in the development called Prairie View that is near the main entrance.

These three neighborhoods look much nicer than some other military housing we've seen around the country. Most of the frame or stucco houses have trees and fenced-in back yards. Many are arranged around loops or have cul de sacs that slow traffic down. There are sidewalks and several children's playgrounds.

Residential streets are primarily named for presidents (to continue the Presidential City theme), towns in the Black Hills area (Custer, Hot Springs, Deadwood, etc.), and people or places with local historical significance (e.g., Rushmore, Sitting Bull, Borglum, Norbeck, Mickelson, Centennial, Black Elk).

There are very few individual houses and those are awarded to the highest ranking military officers on base. Six colonels and the senior enlisted person live on Crazy Horse Drive in spacious one- or two-story houses with large yards. The current base commander is one of the colonels, not a general.

One of the colonel's houses; rank has its privileges!

If we walked or rode our bikes on every street and multi-use path on this base I bet we could get twenty-five miles by repeating only out-and-backs on dead end roads and cul de sacs. The terrain is rolling, not flat. The only thing we miss on base is dirt trails.

NEXT TIME

We've had a good time in the two weeks we've been in the Rapid City-Black Hills area. The time went by quickly and I didn't have time to do everything I wanted to do.

I've already got a list started of things I want to do next time we're here:

Rapid City:

• Ride and walk on the greenway bike path downtown
• Visit Memorial, Canyon Lake, Sioux, and other city parks along Rapid Creek
• Find the three formal gardens in town
• See the Berlin Wall exhibit at Memorial Park
• Find some more of the presidential statues downtown
• Check out Art Alley, a funky place where street artists can go wild
• Visit the Museum of Geology and the Journey Museum
• Drive on Skyline Drive above the city after dark
• Go to the visitor center at the Cleghorn Springs State Fish Hatchery

Black Hills area:

• Cycle and hike more of the Mickelson Trail
• Hike more of the Centennial Trail; maybe cycle some of it
• Visit Bear Butte State Park (northern end of the Centennial Trail)
• Visit Jewel Cave National Monument
• Hike to the top of Harney Peak, the highest U.S. peak east of the Rockies
• Spend more time in Custer State Park
• Drive the Iron Mountain Scenic Road again

If we are there in late September/early October:

• Attend the annual buffalo roundup at Custer State Park
• Drive some scenic byways in the Black Hills to see the fall leaf colors

There's always something more to do "next time" in any location we visit.

NOW WHERE?

Tomorrow we're driving about 275 miles west and north to the Foothills Campground in Dayton, Wyoming. The Bighorn Mountain Wild & Scenic Trail Runs are this coming Saturday. Jim is registered for the 50-mile race but plans to drop down to the 50K or 30K because his injured knee hurts.

We'll probably be there for only one week since there is still so much snow in the Bighorn Mountains and flooding in the valleys. 2010-2011 was an unusual winter in the Rockies. We may also have to modify some of our planned summer destinations and activities in Colorado due to mountain conditions.

Next entry: back in the Bighorns

Happy trails,

Sue
"Runtrails & Company" - Sue Norwood, Jim O'Neil, and Cody the Ultra Lab

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© 2011 Sue Norwood and Jim O'Neil