Entering Badlands South Dakota by Dennis vanEngelsdorp

This panorama was taken about 2000 miles into our trip from Allentown, Pennsylvania to Chico, California. Rob and I were moving to Chico for a chance to work with some of the best beekeepers and scientists in the country. We left Pennsylvania Monday June 13, 2011 and planned to be in Chico, California 7 days later.

We packed the car to capacity and then started for California. The first three days were pretty uneventful and boring. We decided we needed a change of scenery so we drove three hours north from Omaha, Nebraska to Sioux Falls, South Dakota where we picked up Interstate 90.

Once we left Pennsylvania we didn't see mountains again until we arrived in the Badlands. It was refreshing to see a change in landscape after driving through the mid-west on Interstate 80.

The park ranger that greeted us at the entrance noticed the Pennsylvania tags and asked what part of the state we were from. After talking to her for a few minutes she explained that she was from Pennsylvania as well and that she worked at Dickinson College in Carlisle. I completed my undergrad at Dickinson College during the same time she was working in the schools admissions' office.

Looking back on it now it’s strange to think that meeting her in the park was probably not the first time our paths had crossed…

Mike Andree