Kickoff Barbecue and Reed Timmer!

The DEN Team hosted a kickoff barbecue on the lawn of the university.  Reed Timmer (star of Discovery's Storm Chasers) was available for autographs and photo-ops. I took Sweetie to a nearby ranch to spend the night. A local Bozite lent me his horse to ride back to the barbecue. Thing is, his horses are herd bound. That means they don't travel well alone. I know what that's like! Sweetie and her buddies at home are like that, too. Well this cowboy just saddles up all three, rides one and ponies the other two. Anyway, he was giving two college students a ride on his other two horses, so he asked me to pony them along. DEN Stars seemed surprised to see me ride up on a horse other than Sweetie!

Rita's telling a story and amusing the crowd!

What are these DEN Stars looking at?

Reed Timmer and Kathy Schrock see something, too!

Me riding the Bozite's horse and ponying two other unknown college girls.

Me on the Bozite's awesome horse!!!!

Welcome to DENSI 2012!

Sweetie and I started our Journey on January 15, 2012 and we arrived at Montana State University in Bozeman on July 21, 2012. 1881 Miles in 188 Days and FINALLY I am at the Discovery Education Network Summer Institute!

I knew I was in the right place when I saw this sign!

Welcome to DENSI 2012 in  Bozeman!!!!!

Time to sign in. The DEN team is passing out some really cool keepsakes!

Check out the accommodations! I get a bed and so does Sweetie!

The highlight was Sweetie getting to meet Lance Rougeux

Learn more about the amazing Lance here: http://www.discoveryeducation.com/administrators/professional-development/our-team/lance-rougeux.cfm


The opening video for DENSI 2012 "The DENGO Games"

Our schedule for the first day!

Arrive, Paddle, Ride!!!!

 Sweetie and I arrived in Bozeman, Montana today, one day early! Other DEN Stars were here to greet us and sweep us away to Montana Whitewater for a day of Paddling and Riding! Below are pictures of highlights of the trip.

Here we are embarking on the paddle portion of the trip.

The rafts

Out on the water. Sweetie is a great swimmer!

The water's getting a little rough, but Sweetie has no problem!

The gang is ready to ride some horses!

Cheryl Woolwine gets to ride a sure-footed mule!

Here we are heading down the trail!

Judy Uhlrig's horse is eating on the trail! Bad horse!
Sweetie would never do that.

Connie Mulligan looks like a natural!

Ann Truger fell in love with her horse. Best Friends for Life!

Livingston, MT

Staying in Livingston tonight. Our next stop, the Discovery Educator National Summer Institute in Bozeman, Montana!!!!!!!!

Big Timber, MT

Spent the night in Big Timber. The people were very friendly! We're on our way again.

Columbus, Montana.

Back to civilization (kind of.) Just went through a small town called Columbus, MT. Only 100 miles to go!!!!!

The Wild Horses of Pryor Mountain

Sweetie and I cut across some wild country and tough terrain to reach the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range in Montana. We heard that there were some beautiful horses there, and we weren't disappointed!

Sweetie made lots of new friends once we reached the top of the mountain.

Watch this video about the wild horse on Pryor Mountain!

Video from Home!

 

Sweetie has been feeling homesick lately, so I asked my husband, Sam, to send a video of her best friends, Sophie and Spuds Mackenzie. Here they are kicking up their heels in the pasture. Sweetie seemed to cheer up a bit after seeing the video!

Happy 4th of July!

Wildfires!

The smell of smoke Sweetie and I have been noticing finally makes sense. When we reached Buffalo, we learned that the landscape of the west is being dotted by wildfires. Just 16 miles from where we are right now a fire is raging in Cato. So far 27,700 acres have burned and the fire is still not yet contained. Based on the map we attained, Sweetie and I have a tenuous journey ahead. We may have to change our route a bit, but we are not giving up yet! Below is a map of active fires burning right now. Click on the link to go to the site and learn more about the wildfires...and pray for the families whose lives are being affected by these terrible disasters.

http://www.space.com/16354-colorado-wildfires-space-satellite-pictures.html

Buffalo, Wyoming

Stopping for a cold drink before we reach Buffalo, Wyoming. Hoping to catch a rodeo tonight.

Gillette, Wyoming

Gillette, Wyoming is just over this hill. Really need to stock up on supplies. Haven't seen a town in days!

Key Hole State Park

Camped out in this beautiful park last night. Spent some time mapping out the rest of our trip. Trying to travel through civilization is not an option in this wild part of the country. Sorry, but we may not be able to post very often. The good news is, we're less than a month from our destination...Discovery Education National Summer Institute in Bozeman, Montana!!!!!

Devil's Tower

Devil's Tower is in the Black Hills. Sweetie and I just had to go see this monument rising 5,112 feet above sea level. That's almost a mile! Teddy Roosevelt thought this giant monolith was so cool, he made it the first United States National Monument in 1906.

Sundance, Wyoming

How cool! Arrived in Sundance Wyoming just in time to watch the Pig Wrestling show!

If you've never seen "Pig Wrestling" before, you have to watch this video!

Deadwood

Going right down Main Street, Deadwood, SD. We really need to stock up on supplies. The ride through the Black Hills was treacherous.

Black Hills National Forest

Heading up into the Black Hills to see Deadwood. These nights are cold in South Dakota. Thank goodness we got this big ole bonfire to keep us warm!

Crazy Horse Memorial

Told some people we were heading to see Crazy Horse, and they looked at us kinda funny! I guess they thought we was crazy, specially wearing these winter clothes in the middle of June! Don't they know it ain't even summer yet?

Signed,
Pittsburgh Horse (See Pittsburgh Dad)

Custer State Park

I'm not sure if all those people are gawking at the burro or me and Sweetie.

Mt. Rushmore!

Sweetie and I took some time today to honor our country's forefathers. Here we are in the Black Hills of South Dakota at Mt. Rushmore.

The BADLANDS!

Oh Yeah! We bad! Sweetie and I finally made it to the Badlands!

Buffalo Up Close and Personal!

Sweetie got her first view of buffalo up close and personal today. I thought she might be scared or at least curious, but she acted like she didn't even notice them!

Crossing the Missouri River

Sweetie and I have been traveling for days! One thing we have learned here in South Dakota, and that is stock up on supplies when you see a town, because towns are few and far between. Today we crossed this bridge. It's called the Chamberlain-Oacoma Bridge. On one side is Chamberlain and on the other is Oacoma. The bridge goes over the Missouri River.

The Corn Palace

Sweetie and I were trudging along and suddenly we saw the most amazing building. We thought it was a mirage, but it wasn't! It was The Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota. Sweetie thought the building looked good enough to eat, so I took her to the nearest farm market to buy her some corn!

The DENNY Awards!

Each year Discovery gives out special awards to the DEN stars for their support, leadership, or enthusiasm for the DEN. I knew we had to stop somewhere to watch the awards, because the big announcement for the Dr. Lodge Video Challenge was going to be made. Sweetie and I pulled over at a hotel restaurant and I asked if I could use their wifi. They were so enamored with Sweetie's beauty, I could have got them to yes to anything. I was sad for the Ponderous Pandas when I heard they didn't win, but then I thought about what a feat it was to just have made the finalists. I sent a congratulatory edmodo to them. What I really hadn't counted on was that Sweetie and I would win two other awards. One was for that fabulous trip we took to Chicago to see all the other DEN Stars and the other one is below.

Watch the DENNY awards below and see who else won an award.
Animoto created by: R. J. Stangerlin

South Dakota!

Sweetie and I just crossed into South Dakota and we are in the beautiful town of Sioux Falls. You should really take a trip to see this place. Check out the falls! Aren't they gorgeous? If you want to see more pictures of this town or maybe you want to visit sometime, go to this site to learn more: http://visitsiouxfalls.com/

Dr. Lodge Video Challenge Finalists!

Sweetie and I just got the most amazing news today!!!! The Ponderous Pandas (my fifth grade class) were named finalists in the Dr. Lodge Video Challenge!!!! Now we are asking all of you to please go to the site and vote for them.  Sweetie and I are making frequent stops today so we can vote.  Their video is called SHAKE, Abernethy PA. Here is the link:    Dr. Lodge Video Challenge

Cottonwood, MN

Still in Minnesota! Heading into the little town of Cottonwood to spend the night.

On our way here, Sweetie and I had quite a fright. We saw this moose and he saw us too. He didn't look very happy!