Adventure 465: FOMO Tour/ Day 3/Makoshika State Park to Wagner Campground/Barnesville, MN

Grassy, humid, and peaceful

Another painful start to the day. The Cager worked me over, scoring double figure hands seemingly at will, pegging my eyes out mercilessly, and she even managed to get away with actual verified cheating (Ignoring a card laid as a card played) as opposed to the pure conjecture that I did anything wrong (Which I didn't) the day before. Oh, the hypocrisy! I hope she feels as vindicated as the Republicans who now ignore the National debt. Nonetheless, I tucked my tail behind the driver's seat and we hit the road at six. It had rained hard all night, but there was a short respite as we left the park. That didn't last long. Soon, we were splashing our way toward Fargo, our original destination. The really fun part of driving in the rain is when the big rigs pass us. The wash from their wheels feels like the full power spray from a fire hose. Each time we travel about ten seconds completely unsighted. I merely hold the wheel straight, ask St. Christopher for guidance, let off the gas a little. We splashed the whole way across North Dakota. Fortunately, Interstate 94 is a well maintained road, and although all we saw was raindrops, we used the slapping of the windshield wipers as a metronome for listening to our favorite podcast, Freight Train Boogie, which is a show that features new artists mostly from the Americana genre. Bill Freighter, the host, plays a lot of "twangy" stuff, but he also mixes in a few eclectic tunes as well. We had planned on staying in Fargo, and had two possibilities. The first, Lindenwood Park, is a city run campground with fifty sites. It was full, and the lady in charge related, "I don't know what's  going on; we're not usually full." I figured it was due to the Father's Day weekend. Our other option, our ace in the whole actually, was the seventy-five site campground at the Red River Valley Fairgrounds. We've had much success in the past staying at fairgrounds. They're cheap, and while not particularly scenic, the're usually empty and convenient. Not so much in Fargo. Every site was taken by a long term RV. This must be a result of the energy boom that hit North Dakota a while back. Fortunately, my Bunny has become quite the internet sleuth. She found a county park (Wagner), thirty miles east of Fargo. We're settled quite nicely in site #8. We have all the amenities: power, water, sewer, and air TV. As an added bonus, the park is located on the very road we'll take tomorrow as we head to Ashland, WI. No more interstate driving for us on the way to Little Eden. It will prove to be both slower and more scenic, so, as usual, life is good, especially today.

 Judy was hoping to capture the streaking rain; instead, she took an art shot.

 Even this angle didn't catch the ribbon of visible rain in the distance.

 The largest Sandhill Crane in America.

 Subway stops on the interstate are surely thin gruel, but usually  very tasty. This one tasted especially good, since the world was righted after my significant victory.

 Home Sweet Home in site #8.

Selfie of the day: No ride today, but we sweated to the oldies by circumnavigating Wagner Campground.