These diary entries were written in September, 2025
September 22, 2025
This is our last long day of driving, and we made the most of it, driving through four states: Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina.
The main state I wanted to see was Kentucky. I had never been there. Tennessee as well, but we did go through Memphis at the beginning of this trip almost three weeks ago.
Kentucky was beautiful. Rolling hills. Green grass and trees. Mountains. Winding roads. I really like this landscape better than the rocky desert landscapes. Even though that was cool to see and I’m glad I went. Rolling into Kentucky really felt familiar and comfortable. We went past Churchill Downs in Louisville. We couldn’t really see anything, but we were yelling “There’s Churchill Downs!”
I finally made it to Kentucky! Photo by me.
Then, we went through the Knoxville area of Tennessee. We would have gone to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but we heard that dogs were only allowed in the parking area, and by this time we were worn out. The thought of another national park visit was unappealing, even though I could have gotten some more Bark Ranger tags, and we do have the senior pass to get in for “free” (cost = $80 — it paid for itself after visiting two parks!).Share
When we arrived near Asheville, North Carolina on Interstate 40 we were speechless to witness the damage Hurricane Helene had done just about a year ago. It will take ages for this area of the country to recover. It won’t be the same as it was. Entire sections of Interstate 40 are simply gone. Wiped off the face of the Earth by water. That’s how powerful water is!
Traffic had been re-routed on two lanes which used to be the westbound lanes of Interstate 40, but now are single west and east lanes with no divider or median. I-40 was wiped out even though it is on a mountain. Think about it — we associate hurricanes with coastal damage — large waves wiping out homes and so forth. This was from rain and flood waters coming down the mountain. It was a devastating, jaw-dropping sight to realize what occurred.
Two-way traffic on what remains of I-40 near Asheville, NC. Photo by me.
Our final hotel, just outside of Asheville on a hilltop was a chain that I won’t name. Other than the two of us and our dogs, the rest of the occupants were crew members working on restoring the highway, the town, and everything else around. We happened to arrive around 5:30, also the time the workers were checking in to the hotel. I didn’t have a problem on this whole trip, until this night, the final night! Wait… That didn’t come out right! It had nothing to do with the workers, it was a problem with the booking I had made online.
I had used the BringFido app to book all our hotels throughout the whole trip. I generally booked the reservations a day or two ahead of time, after carefully reviewing info and reviews about each hotel. We really had no problems at all to speak of. BringFido was great and I highly recommend this app to people traveling with dogs.
Each time I checked in to a hotel, it was a breeze. They had the key cards ready and waiting at the front desk. But not this time! The Asheville property had no record of us whatsoever. I had to go back to the car and get my phone and show them the BringFido confirmation. Both desk clerks were touching my phone screen (I’ll tell you more about that later). They kept looking at my confirmation, then their computer. Nothing! Meanwhile, a dozen tired-looking work crew people were standing behind me in line. My dogs and husband were waiting in the car. The manager called BringFido on the phone (which, it turns out is really Expedia!) and I suggested that he and I step off to the side, so the other desk clerk could check in the tired guests who needed accommodations way more than we did.
After about 15 minutes, the manager determined that there was a booking confirmed through Expedia/BringFido, but it never was sent to the hotel. I had proof of payment, and the vendor confirmed that as well. So, he said we have to honor this but he needed a few minutes to find a dog-friendly room on the first floor. It took him a while, but he got me the key cards for a first-floor room right next to the doggy potty area.
The dogs had a real treat that night because the room had one of these pull-out trundle beds that enabled them to lie down in a comfy place without having to climb up onto a bed or couch. Charlie really loved that. A nice way to end the trip for him. He had been sleeping on his grungy dog bed every night. His aching joints were definitely grateful.
The hotel property had a really neat walking trail through the woods, and we had about 90 minutes before the sun went down so we walked the dogs on that trail and it was quite pretty.
Charlie on the trundle bed. Photo by me.
The next morning, we drove the last 300 miles to home! But, the entire time, I kept feeling like I had a sore throat. We got home that night. I woke up the next morning with a really bad cold and was sick for two days. Thankfully it didn’t last long. Note to self: don’t let anyone touch your phone!
Both dogs on the trundle bed. Photo by me.
Next Monday: Epic Road Trip Epilogue
Thanks for reading! If you want to read more about my crazy life, you can pick up a copy of my memoir, Dear Hobie: Letters to My Heart Dog. It tells the story of my dog, Hobie, and me; and how through a series of major losses I reinvented myself and started over. The paperback is available wherever books are sold online. The eBook is exclusively on Amazon Kindle.
Picking up where we left off! These diary entries were written on September 17 and 18.
September 17, 2025
I didn’t write last night because it was a long day driving from Provo to Wyoming, with me driving about 3 or 4 hours because we were in a lower elevation so no lightheadedness. Huge thanks to my husband for driving almost this entire trip!
My view from the passenger seat. Photo by me.
Yesterday morning, we heard the news that actor Robert Redford had died. He died in his sleep at home in Sundance, Utah. Again, right near where we were! We drove past the exit to Sundance on our way out of Provo. Also, the day before that, we had driven past Butch Cassidy’s childhood home and I took a picture of it. This is crazy how much newsworthy stuff has been happening during this trip, right near where we’re traveling!
Butch Cassidy’s childhood home. Photo by me.
We went from Utah to Wyoming yesterday and basically just stayed overnight. We didn’t do any sightseeing. It was just a day of driving, stopping a few times for lunch and restrooms.
Our hotel in Casper, Wyoming was “meh”. I was a little disappointed because the room was substandard. We have had great luck with hotels on this trip, and this one was not part of a chain (which I liked the idea of) but I have to admit the chain hotels are much better.
In our room, the carpet was filthy and I don’t like my dogs lying on dirty carpet, nor do I want to put my own bare or even stockinged feet on there. So, I was kinda grossed out. The front desk staff were really super nice, so that made up for a lot.
In fairness to the hotel, they had booked us in a room on the second floor, but we were worried about Charlie doing stairs, as there was NO elevator. He’s afraid of elevators anyway, so it was a trade-off. But I don’t think he could have done the stairs several times a day. I am assuming the original room was in better condition. The entire hotel was under construction - it looked like it may have been a former assisted living facility or medical facility.
The room we stayed in, after I asked for a first-floor room because of my arthritic dog, was gross, dirty and outdated. The room was small. Only one electrical outlet worked, so we had to take turns charging our phones. The only good part was it was near the parking lot and the dog walking area. To get to the lobby for coffee in the morning, you had to go outside and walk through a windy parking lot. Not ideal.
Charlie with his head on the icky carpet! Photo by me, obvi.
The hotel is situated right on the North Platte River, which would have been nice, except it was on the neck of the river in a weird industrial area outside of the city of Casper. I didn’t realize the hotel was going to be on the outskirts of town. The hotel was placed there as if to say, “Hey look! a hotel by the river!” But it was a scary part of the river — it really seemed dangerous, to me.
Then, to top it all off, it poured rain. Be careful what you wish for! After two weeks of intense heat and desert conditions (only broken by the very, very cold nights while we camped in the Grand Canyon), we got rain, rain, and more rain. And it was chilly. Thankfully we brought all various kinds of clothing and supplies with us. Towels for the dogs, extra harnesses for Petey, raincoats, boots, gloves, hats, winter coats, umbrellas!
After hanging around in the hotel the first day, this morning we drove from Casper, Wyoming to Devils Tower National Monument. It kept raining, a lot, but at least we did it! We took photos of the rock formation, even though it was hard to see because of the fog. I got four more Bark Ranger tags for the pooches because Devils Tower had two different designs, so I bought two of each. We ate lunch in the car, and of course wouldn’t you know it, as soon as we were done, the rain tapered off.
I think our photos are unique though because most people go there when it’s sunny. We couldn’t walk the trail with the dogs, which was fine, we didn’t need to get right up to the monument. The dogs got soaked!
Devils Tower in the fog and rain. Photo by me.
After that, we continued on to Sturgis, South Dakota where we are staying for the next two nights.
Petey looking out the window of our hotel in Sturgis. Yes, 2nd floor! Photo by me.eSeptember 18, 2025
We got a pretty early start today and went to Mount Rushmore first. It took about an hour, even though it was only 37 miles from our hotel. It was a lovely ride going there, mountains, hilly, winding roads and it was cool outside so none of us would swelter like we had been in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
When we arrived it was difficult to figure out parking. It is FREE to get in, there’s nobody checking you in at an entry kiosk like at the other places where I had to use my senior park pass to get in. The pass wasn’t required at Mt. Rushmore.
But it was difficult to understand where to park. There are little “garages” and also outdoor lots.
Charlie is terrified of elevators and of course these last few days we’ve been having to use one at the hotel. Well, we had to use one at Rushmore as well. After dealing with that, it turns out dogs aren’t allowed anywhere near the monument. So, we had to wait outside. Dogs aren’t allowed past the pillars at the entrance after you park. They are allowed just right in front of that area. And of course, weren’t there a bunch of other dogs!? Petey goes nuts trying to protect me, so I had to walk way over to one side and hide near some trees.
Brad and I had to go separately to see the monument and look at the shops. He got some souvenirs and gifts, then it was my turn. I used the restroom first, obviously, and then went to the monument and took a ton of photos. I went into the gift shop AND the bookstore, both of which did not have the Bark Ranger tags. A nice employee told me to go to the visitor center “National Park Store” which was at the bottom of the stairs near the monument. Well, lemme tell ya, remember the movie, “Rocky”? Where he runs up the steps? It was five times more steps than that, way way down to the base of the mountain. There was an elevator, but I thought by the time I get all the way down there, look through the store for the tags, which are not easy to find at any of these stores, and go back up again, Brad will have been waiting with the dogs for like a half hour. I didn’t want to do that, so, no tags from Mt Rushmore. That means no tags from Rushmore or Zion. I did get tags at Grand Canyon and Devil’s Tower. I hope I can get some at Badlands, too.
Looks like everyone else’s photos of Rushmore, but… Photo by me!
After Rushmore, we took the 20 minute jaunt to nearby Crazy Horse monument. Unbeknownst to us, the monument is nowhere near finished. It’s going to take like 20 more years lol. And you can’t get close to it for a decent picture unless you take one of the bus tours where – surprise, surprise – dogs aren’t allowed. It also costs $30 to get in, and no pass covers the fee and there’s no senior discount or any other kind of discount. We love helping out organizations, so the money went to a good cause, but it was a pretty steep price and unexpected.
Parking was once again a debacle, but we figured it out.
Once again, we had to go in separately. Brad went first while I walked around the parking lot with both dogs. And, true to form, Petey went nuts when he saw another dog.
When Brad returned, it was my turn to go inside the building. Small dogs that can be carried are allowed in – no nails on the beautiful hardwood floors, please. So I carried Petey in with me and we walked around inside looking at all the cool stuff and reading all about Crazy Horse and the monument that was created by a Polish guy whose name has way too many consonants for me to remember how to spell! Brad and Charlie stayed behind walking around the parking lot. It was great to be able to bring Petey inside somewhere for a change. Worth the $30? Hmmm…
The never-finished Crazy Horse Monument, with crane. Photo by me.
We trudged back to the car, and away we went — next stop Deadwood, South Dakota.
The ride to Deadwood took us down the other side of the mountain road, which was under construction and all torn up down to the dirt, which by then was mud because of all the rain. Workers had each lane of traffic take turns. While one lane stopped, the other lane was escorted by a “pilot” vehicle that had a big sign on the back that read “Pilot Vehicle Follow Me”. So, we did. Miles and miles of construction and mud, probably not great for the car.
We got through that and arrived at Deadwood. It is not a national park or anything, it’s just a town. Well, once again, parking was a hassle. They have kiosks and also an app. You’re supposed to be able to scan a QR code but the damn code was SO SMALL my phone couldn’t recognize it, so Brad ended up paying at the kiosk along with 50 other people who were trying to get to Deadwood in time to see the street shootout – a performance that’s put on several times a day through the summer. We were there during the final weekend of the performance.
Stagecoach and street actors in Deadwood, SD. Photo by me.
Well, the dogs were barking at the horses, other dogs, and so forth. I had to take them to the back of the crowd. Then, the starting gunshots went off to announce the beginning of the reenactment and Petey was shaking so bad I thought I could make a milkshake using him instead of a blender! Charlie was ok, until the real reenactment began and then he all but dragged me down the street in the opposite direction. I waited outside the Hard Rock Cafe disguised as a casino (it’s called the Hard Rockasino) and Brad found us and we left. The reenactment was a pretty cheesy tourist trap and there was no place to eat either. There were nothing but casinos up and down the streets. At least that’s all we could find. So, we ended up leaving, and yes, paid another $4 for parking that we barely used.
After that, we came back to the hotel, watched TV and I did another load of clothes in the guest laundry!
Next, we go to Badlands. I sure hope that it won’t be a debacle!
Next Monday: Wall Drug, The Badlands, on to Iowa, and the long way home
Before you go: If you have picked up a copy of my memoir, Dear Hobie: Letters to My Heart Dog, thank you SO much! If you have a moment, a review wherever you purchased the book would help me out. If you haven’t picked up a copy yet, you can search the title and my name (Kathy Mandell) on any search engine. Beware not to purchase for more than the standard $9.99 set price (some sites are over-pricing books to make an extra profit). Thanks in advance for buying and for your review!
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