Travelling on

Posted on Mon May 2nd, 2022 @ 6:27am by Jaclyn Morrison

Mission: Tales of the Unawakened
Location: Various
Timeline: Current

K Bar S Lodge, - The K Bar S Lodge, Ascend Hotel Collection, brings you charming, upscale accommodations and stunning Mt. Rushmore views in Keystone, SD. Our hotel is nestled right in the heart of the scenic Black Hills, which makes it easy to visit the region’s most famous attractions. Our hotel is 5 minutes from Mt. Rushmore National Memorial, 30 minutes from Crazy Horse Memorial, and less than an hour from Deadwood and Custer State Park.

The brochure Jac had found online showed that the place was reasonably priced. She could afford one night. It had laundry facilities as well. To be able to wash her clothes properly was something she rarely got to do. The sink in the van got a work out and she had strung a line across the van to dry clothes. And it was fun to keep them out of Artemis's reach. The puppy had taken over the second bed in the back of the van during the day and curled at Jac's feet at night. She planned her trip, they were only a few hours out now and she booked a room and paid the extra amount for pets.

Then she would need to find a place to stay a few weeks or months to get a job. She could not live off her savings and trust forever. A job delivering stuff would work, and allow her to keep Artemis with her. Shop work or serving at cafes and such would require her to leave Artemis somewhere alone. And Jac didn't like that idea at all.

Climbing out of her bed she ran a hand through her hair. They had set up camp that night off the highway in a rest spot. No other cars or trucks were there. As had become her habit, Jac always checked outside the van and finding it clear she grabbed the leash and deftly attached it to the bouncing puppy. "Come on you" Jac laughed and slid her feet into her shoes and took Artemis out to go to the toilet.

A short time later they were both fed and Jac had showered and dressed. And with Artemis in the passenger seat, Jaclyn pulled carefully onto the road and they continued on their journey.

4 hours and 2 stops later, Jaclyn booked into the K Bar S Lodge with Artemis. They had a double room, on the ground floor, and it was perfect. Jac settled into the room and keeping Artemis on her leash, hunted down the laundry room. It took quarters and she had enough of those and enough laundry liquid.

Returning to her room she was glad she had packed all the clothes that needed washing. Jac and Artemis spent two hours doing laundry and drying the clothes. The last load was the two blankets Artemis slept on in the van. Dogs had needs too.

After the laundry was done and repacked into the van and suitcases, Jac and Artemis walked to a nearby fast food place and purchased dinner to take back to the room. They settled in for the night, planning to get an early start the next day to visit the Mount and continue on their way.

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Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore National Memorial is centered on a colossal sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore (Lakota: Tȟuŋkášila Šákpe, or Six Grandfathers) in the Black Hills near Keystone, South Dakota. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum created the sculpture's design and oversaw the project's execution from 1927 to 1941 with the help of his son, Lincoln Borglum. The sculpture features the 60-foot (18 m) heads of Presidents George Washington (1732–1799), Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) and Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), as recommended by Borglum. The four presidents were chosen to represent the nation's birth, growth, development and preservation, respectively. The memorial park covers 1,278 acres (2.00 sq mi; 5.17 km2) and the actual mountain has an elevation of 5,725 feet (1,745 m) above sea level.

It was, in a word, magnificent. Jaclyn had gotten up early, ate the breakfast that was a part of her stay and then packed up and loaded everything and Artemis into the van for the short drive to the Mount.

Now they were there standing at the viewing platform, which was one of the few areas where pets were permitted due to it being right next to the parking lot.

Jac looped the leash around her belt loop and pulled out her camera. It had been her mother's and Jac had managed to save it from being thrown out by Yasmine. She knew how to use it. Holding it up, she adjusted the lens and took several photographs from different angles.

They wandered the areas where they could go and there was a vendor window where Jac purchased several post cards and two souvenirs.

Sitting on a bench while Artemis rolled around on the grass, Jaclyn wrote several quick postcards to friends back in Chicago. And as an after thought, she sent one to her father which read.

Dear Father,

Having a wonderful time. Hope you enjoy your life without the children of your first wife. I know I am enjoying mine without you.

Jaclyn

She applied the proper postage and dropped them into the mailbox.

Then they were back on the road. And Artemis loved it, sitting up in the seat looking out at the scenery as they drove along.

*******

Edgerton, Wyoming

Edgerton is a town in Natrona County, Wyoming, United States. It is part of the Casper, Wyoming Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 195 at the 2010 census.

The Internet was a wonderful thing, Jac considered as she researched the upcoming town. They were not far from it. It might be the best option for now. Though it was small... she would see how it was when she arrived.

Pulling into the local caravan park, she paid for a powered site for two weeks which was a cheaper option and dogs were welcomed which helped.

After setting up her Van she wandered the park and found the notice board. She studied it carefully. There were several notices around jobs. One caught her eye.

Haven of Rest-food bank Help wanted.

She took note of the number and added it to her cell. The hours were afternoons, and the pay seemed reasonable.

She would call them first thing on the morrow, as it was sunday afternoon and they would be busy. So she and Artemis went on a walk around the town to get their bearings and find out where things were.