On the way into Deadwood we passed a sign for a small town called Galena. Ah.! I exclaimed. That helps to solve the riddle of how to pronounce the name of Deadwood’s sister township. Lead.

I had hitherto not known whether it was Lead or Lead. The metal or a control for a dog! Seeing the nearby town of Galena, which my recollection of O level Chemistry (Grade 3, when 1 was better than 6!) told me was an ore of Lead, led me to believe that Lead should be pronounced Lead and not Lead. I was, of course, proved completely wrong when in the Visitor Centre in Deadwood I referred to Lead (metal) only to be corrected that it is indeed pronounced Lead as in Leeds. Not that they would pronounce it that way in Leeds. If you get my drift. In fact drift is apposite as the town is named for the leads or lodes of the deposits of valuable minerals. The Hearst family, actually the father of William Randolph Hearst, of Citizen Kane fame, owned the gold mine here from which over $1 million of value in gold was mined each and every day for over 125 years! It was the largest, deepest and most profitable gold mine in the Western hemisphere.

Deadwood is famous for being at the heart of the Wild West. Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane were here as the Black Hills Gold Rush of the 1870’s took hold. Indeed, today the town lives off their notoriety much as Knaresborough does with Mother Shipton. I never thought I’d see those two juxtaposed!

As good tourists we visited the Cemetery on the hillside above the town to gaze upon and pay homage to the resting places of these two legends (Mother Shipton lies elsewhere!). Jane, real name Martha Jane Burke (nee Canary) got her wish to be interred next to Wild Bill, who, apparently, was so wild they had to put a fence round his grave.

For the purposes of touristic research, we spent a couple of evenings in the Wild Bill bar, site of the original Saloon Number 10 where old Billy boy was fatally shot on the night of 2nd August 1876. I had a couple of fatal shots on 23rd June 2022!

Pat and I also found a “restaurant”, Jacob’s Brewhouse and Grocery, which did other than American fast food. Even if it was just two basic bowls of pasta; Shrimp and Sausage Diavolo with Penne and Lemon Basil Penne; it was like being transported to another place for us.

They re-enact a shootout each evening on the street for the crowds, but it was extremely amateurish and more Dead Loss than Deadwood. I’m sure Alec Baldwin could come here and direct a much more realistic show. (too soon?).

As a major tourist destination, accommodation is highly priced and hard to come by. Pat, however, had secured us a hotel room with a mountain view. The alternative was a city view room. We were not disappointed. Honestly!

Deadwood was as far East as we would go on this trip and so we turned for home so to speak. Heading West to the sea and a date with a plane at San Francisco International in a months time. Can it really have been 2 months since we arrived in the USA?

Spearfish Canyon was yet another gem with dramatic limestone cliffs and waterfalls.

One such waterfall was reminiscent of Iguazu in Argentina. Well perhaps if it was recreated at the Model Village in Beaconsfield!

It was now time to make the long drive back across Wyoming to Cody, our gateway to Yellowstone. On the way we diverted to take in Devil’s Tower. This is an impressive outcrop standing tall in the plains of Wyoming and affording the opportunity to climb for the daredevils (on the ledge in the photo) or a genteel hike around the bottom for the rest of us.

The plan for Yellowstone was to attack the Southern part of the Park on the first day from the East (Cody). On the second day, enter again from the East and leave to the North (Gardiner) and the third day attack the Northern part of the Park from Gardiner. The best laid plans…

Yellowstone was hit in the days prior to our arrival by an intense storm, which took out bridges, led to landslides and collapsed roads and caused widespread flooding in the Park and in Gardiner. We had to revise our plans and skirt around this devastated area, cancelling our stay in Gardiner and re-routing via Billings.

The Park staff worked hard, and although the northern part remained closed, the south was reopened to traffic on alternate days depending upon your car registration (odds and evens). The south has the Lake and the majority of the geysers including Old Faithful, so we were able to get to see much of what we had planned.

Old Faithful is not the largest, most powerful or most frequent of the active Geysers but it is the most reliable in terms of frequency, going of every 75-90 minutes or so. Others are just as, if not more spectacular.

The last of the photos above shows the damage caused by fire. Believe it or not, that fire was in 1989! The growing season is so short here that the area has still not recovered.

What a Calamity!