Writing Prompt: Starry, Starry Night

 Prompt: Write about travel.

Starry, Starry Night

I believe it was 2008 when my husband and I took off on our first road trip together out West. I had frantically run all over Columbus buying camping supplies, including a cheap Coleman tent for $50 bucks, an inflatable queen size mattress and a small, portable cook stove. We had quite an impressive itinerary, drive through the Midwest out to South Dakota, into Montana then down through Wyoming and Colorado then back home. Ah, to be younger with wanderlust again.

After packing our Volkswagen station wagon to the seams, we set off with me at the wheel. I did all the driving back then, I was fearless, and I had also made the somewhat reckless decision to stop taking my antipsychotic medication, which made me feel fatigued and unmotivated. So I was plenty jacked up, and my husband was excited too. That first day we did twelve hours straight of driving and made it all the way into the far eastern side of South Dakota. I remember pulling into a gas station and buying a six pack of beer and trying to drink one in the car before we got to our motel. My husband lectured me though, so I screwed the lid back on the bottle.

Now, South Dakota is a very looooong state to drive, if you didn’t know. And it’s mostly barren and flat, the only thing you see along the interstate is the repetitive billboards advertising the Wall Drug Store located out near the Badlands National Park where we were spending a few days camping. We must have spent seven or eight hours traversing through South Dakota, with me uttering in frustration, “When will we get there?!” and “Wall Drug Store better have something for me to buy, dammit!” But I remember squealing with joy when we finally approached the utterly majestic Badlands mountains. Striped rust and tan formations almost too difficult to describe, that absolutely gleamed in the setting sun. 

I had made us a reservation at a quirky little place called Badlands Ranch and Resort, located just outside the park in a town called Interior with spectacular views of the area. It was a little run down, but there was space for RVs, tents, and there were small cabins you could rent. It wasn’t too crowded so we set up our tent next to an electric outlet typically designated for an RV so we could plug in a small CD player we had brought with us. I remember my husband setting up our flimsy, cheap Coleman tent and inflating the mattress, then he fired up his “Best of Ray Charles” CD and we toasted each other sitting on a picnic bench. I probably cooked us up some awful canned chili or something like that—I hadn’t mastered gourmet camping cooking yet (that would come later).

The two things we hadn’t planned for was the heat in the region in August, and that the owner of Badlands Ranch and Resort kept horses on the property for trail rides, which attracted huge, biting horseflies. Our poor little Coleman tent filled up with the flies so we had to make a run to a small neighboring town to get a fogger to clear out the tent. We cracked another beer and just laughed about it, with Ray singing “Georgia” and “Stella By Starlight” and other memorable classics. We had hoped to perhaps hike around Badlands National Park, but with temps hitting 105 degrees we had to suffice with driving around the park in an air conditioned VW, snapping photos out the window. 

We had an absolutely magical experience late one night when we crept out from the “resort,” walking down a dirt road for a bit until we found a dimly lit light post and a grassy knoll to sit down upon. We stretched out on our backs and stared up at the sky, taking in awe the vast black sky filled with countless stars, some of which were shooting towards the ground below. I wove my husband’s fingers through my own and told him it was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever seen, and he softly kissed me. We lied there for awhile, just taking in the starry splendor, enjoying the moment.

Yes, we did make it to the Wall Drug Store, where we stopped before leaving the Badlands and heading to Mt. Rushmore. I bought a way too overpriced Western leather purse, which I still have and occasionally use. We continued on into Montana and then Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, which I loved, but our experience at the quirky Badlands Ranch and Resort remains a treasured memory. I Googled whether that place is still around, but I think it may be closed now. What a shame. Who knows, maybe my husband and I may go out West again but I think this time we will fly there. I’m feeling too old for 12-hour driving shifts. I just fired up Pandora and started playing some Ray Charles tunes. Ah, memories.