John W
I am not sure if I posted this before, but
Thursday, July 23, 2026, 08:35

I wrote a story a while back on road trips with a focus on the Western states. Here it is and I hope I do not inundate you too much.

Why you should do a road trip. By Mr. Wieloch

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”- ― St. Augustine

As a child I was intrigued by stories of adventure and travel. I could imagine myself in the deepest heart of Africa untouched by any other person with a thirst for adventure. I was blessed to have a family that went on a number of trips in my youth. This created a thirst for adventure. In addition reading stories from various writers sharpened my imagination to see and experience the world that they have touched.

So why travel?

St. Augustine of Hippo ( that is in North Africa )said it best. “Life is like a book and for those who do not travel, read only but a page.” To experience it first hand you need to get out of your comfort zone. To experience life first hand you need to get out of your comfort zone. As the old gym adage, “no gain without pain” rang true for physical development It also rings true for the development of the soul.

In many ways, we are built for travel. Look at our earliest ancestors. They originated in the cradle of humanity, the Great Rift Valley of Africa. Our great ancestors moved northward into Europe, Asia and eventually across the Bering Land Bridge to North and South America. We followed the great game herds all over the planet eking out an existence. Soon we learned how to craft boats and started to sail the seas. Again we were born to be travelers in many ways.

I recall a number of years ago when domiciled in the Ocean State. One of the peculiar characteristics is that many people can become very clannish and provincial. There was a story about some residents of Portsmouth Rhode Island which is actually an island called Aquidneck that is connected by three bridges. I was rather shocked by the fact that in one interview there was a person who was born on that island and had never left the island once in their entire life! That is pretty sad when you really think about it. I thought to myself that I would never want to end up in such a situation.

How often have you looked at ads for a trip? When I was in college the halls were littered with flyers for SPRING BREAK. Some were very cheap. They covered a plethora of things from the flight to the motel room. We all have seen these things. The problem is that you get locked into the itinerary of the trip. You are at the mercy of the travel agent.
You are going where they tell you to go. You do not have much of an opportunity to travel off grid or off the main course. Say you take a trip to Disney in Florida. You fly down and take a shuttle to the Kingdom of the big rodent in short pants and you are more or less a prisoner behind the moat with the sound of “It’s a small world after all” ringing in your ears like tinnitus. Say you want to take a side trip to the Everglades( that is the REAL FLORIDA). It may not be possible.

So. I know you have many questions. How much will this cost? Where should I go? Is it safe? What about creepy people? I will do my best to address all of those questions. This will be an introduction to road tripping. In the future I will break down road trips to specific locations in the near future.

Cost: The biggest fear many have is needing enough money to do a road trip. Many fear the cost of the adventure. You can keep the cost down by doing what I did. Camp it .

Camping- Camping is low to no cost. In fact there are many places where you can camp for free. Many sites across the USA are government owned and operated. Some apps such as Dyrt will show you places to camp for free.

Planning is essential. Map out a route of things you want to see. You can calculate distance and your vehicle's fuel mileage to get a rough estimate of the cost. Also factor in an oil change if this is a cross country trip.
Planning: Where do you want to go? As a rule of thumb, places on the East Coast will be more expensive than in the Rocky Mountain West or the Great Plains. It is just a fact of life. The time of year can affect the cost of your trip as well. As an example, the state of Florida is a tourist mecca. The peak travel season for most of the state is between December and March. You can see many out of state cars escaping the chilly winter. So prices of everything from campsites to motels( believe it or not I do ‘motel it’ from time to time for a fresh hot shower and a soft bed once in a while) will go up. Also due to the popularity of the area in winter you may not find a vacancy. Now the northwest coast area of Florida is the cheapest except in the month of July. Why is the hottest month so expensive? That is the scalloping season. Florida scallops are a prize. People from all over the state go to that area and places to stay more than triple in cost.
Weather- We are blessed to be in a diverse nation. According to the Koppen Climate map, we have approximately 29 types of climates in the nation. Look it up yourself. You have to plan for the weather. As an example, driving down to Florida or the Gulf Coast involves going to a place that may be 20-30 degrees warmer than where you started.

Where do you want to go?

This is the $64 question. Now bear in mind that I am going by all of my experiences in my travels across the USA as well into Mexico and Canada. As you all know I am not a city boy. I am not really attracted to anything in the city. When I plan a route often it will involve going around a city if I can help it. Some cities are good and others are not so good. All of them involve traffic and have peak hours.

As an example, if I plan a trip to Florida it will take me two days going South. I discovered over the years that the best time to leave my home is around midnight to 2 AM. That way I avoid the traffic jams of NYC, New Jersey, Baltimore MD and Washington DC. You can hit it just right and it seems you breeze by, so to speak.

If I am planning a trip to the Western or Great Plains States I will leave approximately the same time and plan for an overnight stay somewhere in the state of Indiana. Then I get up bright and early the next morning at 5:30 AM or so. Have a quick breakfast along with a good cup of coffee, full tank and point the nose of the vehicle west. The next stop will be around Fargo, North Dakota.

Food- Food is one of the biggest expenses yet can be one of the cheapest if you plan it out. As a rule I will eat “on the road” while traveling to my destination. If you eat out at restaurants the cost will start to go up. Even if you do the cheap ‘dollar menu’ at McDonalds it will start to climb up. Once I arrive at my main destination, I cook for myself. You do not need a huge camp kitchen to make quality nutritious meals. So how do you do it?

One burner stove. I have a one burner stove that connects to the top of a propane canister. My needs are simple. As a rule I like to make what are called “one pot” dishes. I affectionately call it bachelor cuisine. Simple yet nutritious. I put the main food groups into one pan or pot and have all that I need. I like to take some vegetables , a little bit of meat and some hot sauce. Cook it all up. Maybe add some filler like couscous or kasha.
Simple cookset. There is a company called Zebra which makes stainless steel cookware that is lightweight and can nest( stack into itself for storage) One pot, one cup and a simple plate. In addition, a simple set of for storage) One pot, one cup and a simple plate. In addition, a simple set of utensils and you are good to go. I like to use a titanium spork, although it is pricey for the tool.

Good Cooler- I have a couple of insulated coolers where I put in a variety of foods. I will have room for fresh foods from time to time. One of the best things to do is stop at a farmer’s market on your trip and get a few fresh items to try out.
Coffee- Ah. The elixir of life. I will admit that I need a good cup of coffee in the morning to get me going and ready for the day. I like to use instant coffee with some additions for my needs. I will make some in class one day for all to try. I view it as a health drink more than an energy drink. My absolute favorite is Four Sigma
Ok. Here is my go to coffee drink to jumpstart me in the AM.
You can use any instant coffee but I like the Four Sigma brand because it has the adaptogenic mushroom powders in it.

One packet of Four Sigma powdered coffee -
Packet of stevia -
Teaspoon( huge and heaping) of cacao powder-
Powdered coffee creamer. There is a natural creamer powder that is carried by Wegmans.

Put the ingredients in your cup, pour hot water over it and use a small battery powered frother and zhush it up.

You Smell - How to keep clean.

Belle Starr - Famous Oklahoma outlaw who had some hygiene issues.

“ I bathe twice a year, needed or not”.

So. How do you keep clean in the backcountry?

It is pretty simple. Castile soap is one of the greatest inventions so to speak, especially for the boondocker. So what do you do? Have you ever heard of Dr. Bronner’s All In One Soap? It is found in many places including Walmart. It is a Castile soap. That is a liquid plant based soap that can be used for everything from cars, dishes and you!

What is a B’s Bath? When I worked at a summer camp in New Hampshire I learned a few tricks from the hiker crowd. One of those things was what they called a “B’s Bath”. There are a couple of ways to do this. The most common is to take Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint soap and pour some in your hand. Rub it on your skin and other parts of your body. Then you rinse off. Most commonly by jumping into a lake or stream. It is very effective. Another method is to take some Dr. Bronner’s Castile soap and put it in a spray bottle. Dilute it and then spray yourself down. Then rinse off with a homemade shower system or again, jump into a body of water.

I will state that these methods work so do not fear.

What about laundry on the road?

“ I’m late again, oh,I’m so sorry. All the Ajax in the world ain’t gonna clean your dirty laundry” -Carrie Underwood.

Back in the day, the mountain men wore brain tanned buckskins and elk skins. Some cloth was incorporated but it did not last too long. Along with the furs they trapped, the trappers survived “winter count” ( this was winter camp when the snows were too deep to effectively trap) .

These men wore clothing bought at the Rendezvous until the items more or less wore off and rotted off their bodies. The articles were then replaced by skins.
Now in this day and age we have too many social norms to adopt such measures. ( I do recall a trip to the Black Rock Desert of Nevada and visiting a close friend in San Jose who admonished me to take a good shower. Of all the nerve!
So what about laundry? There are plenty of laundromats in the various towns but I use my own method for cleaning clothes in the backcountry that works rather well. It involves the following items.

an empty cooler
a toilet plunger-( preferably a new one)
Atsko sports wash -

Atsko Sports wash is a no rinse detergent option made in Orangeburg South Carolina. It is favored by hunters because it is scent and UV brightener free. You can wash your clothes without having to rinse them out.
Take a cap full of Atsko wash and pour it into an empty cooler. Then put in some water. Zhush it up and then drop your clothes into the solution. Take the toilet plunger and plunge your clothes for 10-15 minutes.
Hang to dry. In the arid West it will not take long.

Local Knowledge - Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Most people who live in an area will let you know about what to do and what to look out for. On my first trip to South Dakota I was worried about tornados. The people who lived in that area told me what to look out for and what to do if you see the signs of dangerous weather. One lady told me what a wall cloud looks like. She said if you see a wall cloud you need to get out of there fast!

I recall the first time I drove across the state of North Dakota. In my honest opinion that is a sleeper state for a road trip. It is a tad less commercialized than say South Dakota( You will not see WALL DRUG signs for 200 miles on Route 90!)

When I came to the town of Medora I started to look around. I had breakfast at the Boots Bar and Grill for some nice bison steak and eggs. I asked the server a question about prairie dog hunting( Oh. Horror of horrors. How can you shoot those cute little things? Well. They are a pest and carry bubonic plague. Many ranchers tend to dislike them ,thus obtaining permission to shoot them is pretty easy to do.One mule rancher gave me permission to hunt varmints in his place without question.)

The young lady told me to drive down the “scoria road” ( it is a reddish clay like dirt) and off to the right is a huge prairie dog town that you can shoot at.

Anyways I had my fun with my TC Contender pistol in 22 WRM and then proceeded to explore. I drove for many miles into the Badlands. They are called Badlands because it is “bad” land. Once an ancient sea bed it is now a desert- like area with low lying prickly pear cactus and other prickly plants.

My Go To Set Up in the West:

I’ve always loved handgun hunting especially with the Thompson Center Contender. This unique single shot firearm allows the user to change grips and barrels for different lengths and calibers to suit your needs. I have taken deer, black bear, moose, wild boar and a variety of other game with this simple platform.

Here I have a Redfield 3-6x scope on a 14 inch 22 Winchester Rimfire Magnum barrel.

This is a fun gun for varmints like prairie dogs. I have taken them out to 150 yards with this set up.

I stopped at the Chamberlain Ranch. The people were nice and offered me a cold drink on a hot summer day.

Lady Chamberlain gave me advice on the backcountry of the Badlands.

Again many people in the heartland of our great nation are wonderful and very helpful, and she wanted to ensure that this teacher from New England would make it out alive from the Badlands of North Dakota.

“ You need to make sure that you have plenty of water in your truck. All of the water that you see on the surface is bad and it is undrinkable. You will get very sick.”
“ When it rains, you need to immediately pull off to the side of the road and wait it out. The Badlands were an ancient sea bed and when it rains we get “gumbo” mud. It sticks to everything and you will get bogged down and possibly slide off the road. “

“ Temperatures can swing from the 40’s to over 100 in July. So you need to have a good sleeping bag as well as some warm clothing for the overnight”

I can state that is very true. When I camped out in the Badlands it was quite warm at the end of the day and into the early evening. I would find myself having to crawl into my bag around midnight or so as the winds whipped up and it became downright cold.

Water. Water everywhere but not a drop to drink.
Taken from the poem titled,”Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Colerigde, it indicates that there may be water but you may not be able to drink any of it.
As a rule you can buy bottled water but that adds up in cost. One thing I have discovered is that water quality varies across the nation. I have seen and drank water that looked like dental cleaner. Yeah it was filled with minerals but it was the only game in town. Keep in mind that you need to drink one half your body weight in ounces of water. As an example, I weigh 238 lbs. So I should drink 164 ounces of water per day for proper hydration in an active and dry environment.

Blue tanks. You can buy five gallon plastic tanks for water storage. As a rule I will fill one up for a trip and have plenty of water.
Water filters. Sawyer makes a great water bottle/filter combination that allows one to drink from most sources of open water.

Weather again? : The picture on the left is a wall cloud. It forms below a supercell storm and is a good sign that the next thing you will see is what is on the right.

This is a wall cloud. As a rule, if you see this the next thing that may emerge is a tornado. Take cover!

Flash Floods.

Much of the Western USA is high altitude desert like climate. When I lived in Riverton Wyoming I saw it rain five times in one year. The area averages 10-12 inches of precipitation per year. Contrast that with say the state of Maine which can see anywhere from 48 to 60 inches per year depending on where you are standing.
So how does this affect you? The soil is very dry and compacted. Rain has a tendency to run off rather than soak into the ground. So you are more prone to having flash flooding. You need to avoid areas that show evidence of flash flooding. Look at a road. Do you see any furrows cut across it? Do you see any washouts? Those are clues to show danger.

Snow.

The early mountain men ( Rocky Mountain Fur Trappers) said there were three seasons in the Rockies,” July, August and Winter”. Well there is some truth to that. The mountains are high. Much higher than what you will see on the East Coast and they have an effect on climate. Often you will see roads posted closed for the season. I know Beartooth Pass in north central Wyoming closes from late October to Memorial Day or so. Granted you can traverse it with a snowmobile but if you are on a road trip and happen to be there in late Fall you will be out of luck.

Animals -

In the wild areas, you need to be aware of your surroundings. Some states like Wyoming have animals that can attack humans.

Always carry a canister of bear spray with you as it is better than nothing.

In addition to the bear spray, I do carry a firearm. This is a very personal decision but it could mean the difference between life and death. For the backcountry there has been a movement towards high capacity autoloaders chambered in the 10mm Auto cartridge. The logic behind this is that such a round is much more controllable than say a large bore revolver like a 454 Casull or 500 Smith and Wesson magnum. I like the Glock M40 which has a 6 inch barrel chambered in 10mm Auto. It is one of the most reliable autoloading pistols made today. I can comfortably shoot it with “bear loads”. I like Velo hard cast 200 flat point bullets at 1200 fps out of my gun. In addition I have a Holosun optic mounted on the MOS plate of the slide. When I draw Winona( that is the name of my gun. Ok. I know it is weird but it reminds me of the pulse pistol used by John Crichton in the old Australian Sci Fi series FARSCAPE whom he affectionately called Winona) I am able to look down the optic and see a green circle with a 2 MOA dot in the center. All I have to do is center the circle on the head of any attacking animal and start shooting. I have fifteen rounds to bear down with a total of 9600 foot pounds of energy coming out of that thing.

I know that a shotgun with slugs is a better defense firearm but the pistol set up on a tanker style chest rig assures the person that you have it at hand all the time. Often a long arm will be left at camp or against a tree. When you need a gun you REALLY NEED A GUN. You need it in less than five seconds. People are finding out that you can grab the gun and start firing quickly. The chest rig helps if you are knocked down to the ground by a large animal like a grizzer bear.

I know that if you do some research there is a lot of pressure to forgo a firearm in place of pepper spray.

Well. that is a decision that you will have to make yourself.

When I moved to Wyoming I met some very wonderful people. I’d say some of the finest in the nation. One of my coworkers told me to always be armed in the back country and carry bear spray. She told me that not all bears will respond to bear spray and that some bears that have been sprayed are developing a tolerance to the spray. So this is some food for thought. You may want to rethink the whole issue regarding firearms.

Safety and Security -

“ This is an instrumental, I meant-okay.

Can Mary fry some fish, mama?
I’m as hungry as can be.
Oh Lordy, how I wish, mama?
That you could keep that baby quiet, cause my head is killing me.

I saw my ex again last night, mama.
She was at the dance at Miller’s store.
She was with that Jackie White, mama.
I killed them both and they’re buried under Jenkin’s sycamore”

Jack Kittel-"Psycho ".

Ok. That is a really dark and weird ballad by Jack Kittel. But it does highlight one of our innate fears. That of other people. How safe are you when solo traveling in remote areas of the country? Are there any weird,” Hills Have Eyes” like people waiting in the buttes and hoodoos like predators waiting for unsuspecting tourists?

To be brutally honest, our imagination is the greatest enemy. Statistically speaking, camping solo or boondocking the West is far safer than say a vacation or trip on the East coast or staying in an urban area such as the South Side of Chicago.

The best tactic in the world regarding personal safety is avoidance. If you see danger the common sense tactic is to go in the other direction. Here is a short list of what to avoid.

Indian Reservations at night- Many reservations have high crime rates. I am not saying to not visit but do so in a town and in daylight. What is that old saying, nothing good happens after such and such time?

Urban areas - As a rule, the crime is in the cities. I lived in a town where there were two murders( and one suicide associated with the two murders) in a three hundred year history. It is a small town. That rings true throughout the West. Many small towns are incredibly safe.

Railyards- Railyards can have some unsavory characters. There are a lot of transients that ride the rails. Also there is some evidence of serial killers using the rails to “disappear” from an area.

Keep your nose to the wind, there are big predators -

Distance and your vehicle:

One of the things that can boggle the mind of the traveler is the size of the western states. As an example, the state of Wyoming is 3.1 times bigger than the state of Maine with 580,000 people in it. There is an awful lot of empty space in that state. So you can find yourself in a situation where you do not have enough fuel or if you break down it may be in a dead zone.

“If you are caught at night. They will kill you”.

Those were the words of this one shopkeeper in a small South Dakota town regarding the Rose Bud Reservation in South Dakota. Sadly there is some truth to what he stated.
Although there are some unique cultural sites and destinations on many of the Indian reservations, the sad fact is that many are hotspots for crime and poverty.

When I lived in Riverton Wyoming the only place I could find to rent was a mobile home at this one trailer park that abutted the Wind River Reservation. The Wind River Reservation encompasses approximately 2.2 million acres of land in Fremont County. The reservation is home to two different tribes, the Shoshone and the Northern Arapaho. There is some friction between the two peoples .

Sadly, the Reservation has a murder rate that is approximately 249% higher than the national average. In fact, one of my native students informed me that Wind River is the second worst reservation in the US. In addition there is an inordinately high number of women and young girls that have gone missing on the reservation. When I left Wyoming, six teenagers were missing that week in the local paper. I have been told that there are approximately 1100 missing women.

With the poverty and substance abuse issues, it has a tendency to bleed over into the local town of Riverton. There is friction between the residents of the city and the reservation itself. The natives that wander into town and are what you can class as homeless are called “the park rangers”. That is because a number of them congregate at the city park. In fact there was a case of a man who in 2015 shot a couple of them. Again there is friction between the town and the reservation.

So. What would I give for advice in this area?

I believe it was the first weekend in Riverton that I was the victim of property crime. I forgot to lock up my vehicle and in the middle of the night it was ransacked. I had a day pack with a hunting knife and a GPS in it. All of that was gone. I decided to report this issue to the local police department Sunday AM.

I was greeted by Officer Christian Amos. He is a Native officer working for the city of Riverton and gave me a lesson that you could title,Reservation 101.

When I told him of the theft, the first thing he asked was if there was a gun in the pack. I told him no. He had a look of relief on his face. Coming from Massachusetts you just cannot leave a firearm in a bag unattended. It has to be unloaded and locked. Wyoming is different.

Officer Amos explained that I was living in a touchy area. He said that Wyoming is a constitutional carry state. So I can carry in the town and on the reservation. In addition the state has stand your ground laws and a strong castle doctrine. He advised me to carry and to keep a gun near my bed. Needless to say, I heeded his advice.

You need to make sure that everything is locked up. Double and triple check your doors, windows as well as your vehicle.

Keep on your toes.

I was walking out of the Super Walmart in Riverton when I noticed a Native woman in the foyer. I had seen her before. She had the same scraggly hair and missing front teeth. She looked at me and said,” I am feeling sick. Can you give me a ride to the hospital?” My immediate response was ,’NO!” and I walked out. I called the Riverton PD and told them about it. They wanted a description and they were going to check it out.
The next day I talked to a friend who worked at Walmart and told her the story. She said, “Good thing you did not give her a ride. She probably had a boyfriend just outside to hit you over the head”.
Just a side note, theft is such an issue that the state of Wyoming passed a law that is rather harsh on shoplifting.

Taken from the Cowboy State Daily:
Fremont County Assistant Attorney Ember Oakley, who is also a state House delegate representing Riverton, has charged Beatrice Monroe, 48, with two felony, repeat-theft charges.

Passed into law in February and active in July, the new law allows for a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines for accused thieves with four or more prior theft convictions.

When that law was passed I learned that the woman is the mother of a girlfriend to one of my students. Such is life.
So you need to be very aware of your surroundings. Again local knowledge goes a long way. A good friend told me what places to avoid in the area on a map.

Know where you are at and where you can go.

A very good friend told me to be aware of who owns what. Wyoming ,like other western states, enacted very strict trespassing laws. We are used to having very lenient trespass laws in the northeast. That is not the case in much of the country. I recommend that you get an app called OnX hunt. It shows property lines on your cell phone. I pay about 100 dollars a year for the subscription. I call it my 100 dollars to stay out of jail money.

Now along with that, you need to bear in mind the issues with reservations. Reservations are lands that are in the hands of a particular native tribe. They determine what goes on. Some tribes are more open than others.

I learned that if I wanted to go fishing or hiking on the Wind River Reservation as a non native it required a $100 permit. If you are caught trespassing on the Reservation it is an arrestable offense and punishable by a 1000 dollar fine. They do not play around. One of my former students told me that his dad is a BIA police officer( Bureau of Indian Affairs) who told me they are very strict about trespass. Just don’t do it.
Where should I go?

This is somewhat subjective. It really depends on what you want to do and see. In the past I worked as a teacher in the public schools. So one thing I had an awful lot of was time. When the bell rang on the last day of school my truck was almost ready to go. I would take off with my Ford Ranger with all of my survival and camping gear and come back in about six weeks. So I had the opportunity to visit every single US state except Oregon and Hawaii.
But most of us are not in that situation. We have at best, two weeks to do what we want to do. So. If you are limited in time, where should you go? Keep in mind that I am writing this from the perspective of someone living in New England.

South Dakota - This is an easy trip, so to speak. You can make it to the center of the state and the Black Hills in about three days of driving. I would recommend going to the capital of the state, Pierre. The city is on the south edge of Oahe Dam which impounds the Missouri River into a lake that covers over 370,000 acres and 2200 miles of shoreline. Most of it is public land thus you can hike, camp, fish and hunt much of the area. It is stunningly beautiful. I will state that the Army Corps of Engineers has a great campground near the dam. So you can save a ton of money in lodging.

Also nearby is the Roy Houke Ranch. The 55,000 acre ranch was the film site for Dances with Wolves.

Down the road you have Badlands National Park. Northwest of that area you have the Black Hills and Mount Rushmore. The Black Hills are covered in Ponderosa Pine thus they stand out in stark contrast to the golden plains of the Midwest. In addition you have the historical town of Deadwood. When I was younger the attractions were much cheaper. Now it has become more trendy. I recall having a beer in the infamous Saloon No.9 where Wild Bill Hickok was shot in the back by a teenager while playing cards.

Bike Week - There is a huge motorcycle rally every summer in the Black Hills. The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is held for ten days at the start of August every year. In a nutshell, the population of the state almost doubles. Getting a place to stay, even if it is boondocking in the middle of nowhere ,can be tough. People make reservations years ahead. Please keep this in mind.

In the Southwestern portion of the state you have the Rosebud Reservation. I have been there and you can visit the site of the Wounded Knee Massacre. Again. Bear in mind the things I said about reservations. They can be a great source of cultural knowledge and experience but just take extra care.

North Dakota - This is another state that will take about three days to get to. Much of the driving is on open highways and usually not a problem.

In all honesty, the western part of the state has the most stark beauty.

Medora is one of the larger towns in the west central part of the state and south of the Teddy Roosevelt National Park. You will see wild bison and elk near the town as they graze the open grasslands. The town also has a western show at an outdoor amphitheater and you can get tickets for the Cowboy Fondue at the Chamber of Commerce. You can rent a golf cart at the golf course at the western edge of town. I don’t play golf but you can tour the grounds and observe the wildlife at ease. It isn’t too expensive.

Now for me, the big attraction is hunting prairie dogs. I know it sounds weird but you can get a lot of action for a couple of days. For me I loved roaming the Badlands with my truck and looking at a landscape that seems to have not changed in centuries.