adventure

Ric's Big Adventure Page!

Since moving to God's Country over six years ago, I have made a committed effort to discover the great outdoors. On this page are captured some of the "peak moments" from my forays into the wilds accessible from Aberdeen. If you are in this neck of woods, perhaps these photos and helpful captions may give you some ideas of what there is to do around here. I have arranged the photos chronologically from earliest to latest. To give this page some degree of order and brevity I have grouped photos from a given trip on the same side of the page, then the following trip will have photos on the other side of the page. Clear? No, well, so what. Enjoy!

My first adventure into the great wide open was enjoyed with the Mrs. in Summer 1996 in South Dakota's Badlands and nearby Black Hills. As Kimberly peered up this precarious ladder, her husband shouted down directions and (what he thought were) helpful suggestions to her. But how grateful she was for the help? She seems to be gesturing something with her hand. As you can tell from this shot, the topography of the Badlands is simply outrageous!

Fall 1997, the first backpacking adventure for the merry troupe of Blanchard, Rasmussen, and Dias, which we took near Wind Cave in the Black Hills. I was going to call us a "gay team," but I demurred; there are already rumors abuzz of us three men sleeping in just one tent that are circulating on our small conservative campus. Here Ken and Steve filter water for our jugs from a creek that disappeared into that rock wall in the background. Cool.

The intrepid band of Blanchard, Rasmussen, and Dias saw some beautiful stuff on this 1997 trip, including this gorgeous panorama from a high point adjacent to a sprawling prairie dog town. Abundant water, forest, grasslands, neat rock formations, and numerous grades to traverse on the trail make the Wind Cave area of the Black Hills great backpacking country.

Our second trip to the Black Hills, made in Summer 1998, was quite a bit more "civilized" because of a new member, Steve's wife Lys Benkert. She is shown here bending over, only her back end is really evident to the camera. It is my understanding that all women love photographs of them in which their posteriors are highlighted. And it is this keen understanding of women which, in part, explains my many years of marital bliss with Kimberly.

This is a stunning view from the highest point in South Dakota, Harney Peak. This popular spot is an easy day hike from one of many campgrounds in the area.

I would have to say that our Summer 1999 trip to the Bighorn range in north central Wyoming outside of Buffalo was among our most rugged, difficult, and spectacular. We had a mix of sunshine, rain and snow, plus the thin atmosphere of being a mile and a half up that sure tested us! Here I gauge the weather and determine that I'll just keep wearing my trash can liner a little longer. We had a cold rain falling on us most of the first day on the trail.

Ta-da! This is the best picture I have ever taken - part of that 1999 trip. As we came over the ridge and saw Twin Lost Lakes, our destination that day hiking from a base camp, we were simply blown away by what we saw. I believe Ken said it best: "Oh shit!"

Once on the first of the Twin Lost Lakes, it seemed like we were on a different planet. In the lake itself there were multiple layers of ice of different color and texture, surrounded by emerald green water, and bordered by jagged slabs of granite. Funny, but none of us were tempted to jump in.

This picture was taken on our quick Fall 2000 trip to northeastern Minnesota near Hibbing (Bob Dylan's hometown!). This surprisingly adventurous expedition took us to the Iron Range area of low mountains, mixed forests, and rocky terrain. Quite pretty! With a dusting of snow on the ground, we did not have to worry about overheating on the trail, being assaulted by Minnesota's state bird the biting fly, or having a boring drive to the trail head. To wit: While negotiating a pass of a slow vehicle (apparently driven by a wiser person than anyone in Blanchard's Honda) we hit a patch of ice, swerved, spun, and careened off the highway. My traveling partners remember a steady stream of expletives coming from the rear seat where I sat. Here Dias does a Fred Sanford "It's the big one! I'm coming to join you Elizabeth!" while Blanchard empties out his drawers on the road.

Displaying the kind of devil-may-care, plucky courage that made the Portuguese such great explorers hundreds of years ago, and the fear of falling down and hurting oneself that is probably behind the lack of serious Portuguese exploration for the last few hundred years, Dias leads Blanchard as they traverse a slippery, mushy, and precarious beaver dam, one of many we saw on this Minnesota trip.

Here we are enjoying a scenic and peaceful lunch during our Minnesota trip, wondering what could possibly happen to us after driving off the road, having a boot catch on fire, and accidentally drinking stove fuel, all on one trip. Wait, Ken spots an erratically flying airplane coming our way . . . you don't think it could . . .

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	My first adventure into the great wide open was enjoyed with the Mrs. in Summer 1996 in South Dakota's Badlands and nearby Black Hills. As Kimberly peered up this precarious ladder, her husband shouted down directions and (what he thought were) helpful suggestions to her. But how grateful she was for the help? She seems to be gesturing something with her hand. As you can tell from this shot, the topography of the Badlands is simply outrageous!
Fall 1997, the first backpacking adventure for the merry troupe of Blanchard, Rasmussen, and Dias, which we took near Wind Cave in the Black Hills. I was going to call us a "gay team," but I demurred; there are already rumors abuzz of us three men sleeping in just one tent that are circulating on our small conservative campus. Here Ken and Steve filter water for our jugs from a creek that disappeared into that rock wall in the background. Cool.
The intrepid band of Blanchard, Rasmussen, and Dias saw some beautiful stuff on this 1997 trip, including this gorgeous panorama from a high point adjacent to a sprawling prairie dog town. Abundant water, forest, grasslands, neat rock formations, and numerous grades to traverse on the trail make the Wind Cave area of the Black Hills great backpacking country.
	Our second trip to the Black Hills, made in Summer 1998, was quite a bit more "civilized" because of a new member, Steve's wife Lys Benkert. She is shown here bending over, only her back end is really evident to the camera. It is my understanding that all women love photographs of them in which their posteriors are highlighted. And it is this keen understanding of women which, in part, explains my many years of marital bliss with Kimberly.
	This is a stunning view from the highest point in South Dakota, Harney Peak. This popular spot is an easy day hike from one of many campgrounds in the area.
I would have to say that our Summer 1999 trip to the Bighorn range in north central Wyoming outside of Buffalo was among our most rugged, difficult, and spectacular. We had a mix of sunshine, rain and snow, plus the thin atmosphere of being a mile and a half up that sure tested us! Here I gauge the weather and determine that I'll just keep wearing my trash can liner a little longer. We had a cold rain falling on us most of the first day on the trail.
Ta-da! This is the best picture I have ever taken - part of that 1999 trip. As we came over the ridge and saw Twin Lost Lakes, our destination that day hiking from a base camp, we were simply blown away by what we saw. I believe Ken said it best: "Oh shit!"
Once on the first of the Twin Lost Lakes, it seemed like we were on a different planet. In the lake itself there were multiple layers of ice of different color and texture, surrounded by emerald green water, and bordered by jagged slabs of granite. Funny, but none of us were tempted to jump in.
	This picture was taken on our quick Fall 2000 trip to northeastern Minnesota near Hibbing (Bob Dylan's hometown!). This surprisingly adventurous expedition took us to the Iron Range area of low mountains, mixed forests, and rocky terrain. Quite pretty! With a dusting of snow on the ground, we did not have to worry about overheating on the trail, being assaulted by Minnesota's state bird the biting fly, or having a boring drive to the trail head. To wit: While negotiating a pass of a slow vehicle (apparently driven by a wiser person than anyone in Blanchard's Honda) we hit a patch of ice, swerved, spun, and careened off the highway. My traveling partners remember a steady stream of expletives coming from the rear seat where I sat. Here Dias does a Fred Sanford "It's the big one! I'm coming to join you Elizabeth!" while Blanchard empties out his drawers on the road.
	Displaying the kind of devil-may-care, plucky courage that made the Portuguese such great explorers hundreds of years ago, and the fear of falling down and hurting oneself that is probably behind the lack of serious Portuguese exploration for the last few hundred years, Dias leads Blanchard as they traverse a slippery, mushy, and precarious beaver dam, one of many we saw on this Minnesota trip.
	Here we are enjoying a scenic and peaceful lunch during our Minnesota trip, wondering what could possibly happen to us after driving off the road, having a boot catch on fire, and accidentally drinking stove fuel, all on one trip. Wait, Ken spots an erratically flying airplane coming our way . . . you don't think it could . . .