Fort Smith NHS

Life on the Edge of the Frontier:

Explore life on the edge of frontier and Indian Territory through the stories of soldiers, the Trail of Tears, scandals, outlaws, and lawmen who pursued them.
From the establishment of the first Fort Smith on December 25, 1817, to the final days of Judge Isaac C. Parker's jurisdiction over Indian Territory in 1896, Fort Smith National Historic Site preserves almost 80 years of history.

Sept 27, 2024

We made a return trip to take in the Visitor Center that was closed for renovation our last visit. The Visitor Center was very well done with so much to take in that you can spend a couple hours going through it. Daisy also tagged along to get her BARK Ranger Tag, and she enjoyed her time taking in the grounds. 

Sept 25, 2021

Lots of interesting history. Fort Smith was the last fort before the Indian territory of Oklahoma. It was here that Judge Isaac Parker held the bench. While not a strong supporter of capital punishment he sentenced 160 men to death due to the sentencing guidelines during his time on the bench, resulting in the Judge earning the nick name "The hanging Judge". 86 men met the gallows under his tenure. The Visitor's Center was closed for renovation during our visit, so we plan on a return trip later. We got to take in the rest of the unit including the rebuilt gallows and a nice trail that takes in most of the outlying areas of the unit. We spent a few hours here this visit and look forward to a return to take in the Visitors Center and Court room of Judge Isaac Parker.    

Click here for photos of our visit 2021

Click here for photos of our visit 2024

NPS Website

Our 148th NPS Unit

     

Minuteman Missile NHS

 

Hidden in Plain Sight:

During the Cold War, a vast arsenal of nuclear missiles was placed in the Great Plains. Hidden in plain sight, for thirty years 1,000 missiles were kept on constant alert; hundreds remain today. The Minuteman Missile remains an iconic weapon in the American nuclear arsenal. It holds the power to destroy civilization but is meant as a nuclear deterrent to maintain peace and prevent war. Minuteman Missile National Historic Site protects two facilities that were once part of a Minuteman Missile field that covered the far western portion of South Dakota from 1963 through the early 1990s. There were 15 Launch Control Facilities that commanded and controlled 150 Launch Facilities (Missile Silos) holding Minuteman ICBM's. The park preserves two of these facilities in their historic state—Launch Control Facility Delta-01 with its corresponding underground Launch Control Center and Launch Facility (Missile Silo) Delta-09. These two sites, along with the Minuteman Missile Visitor Center, comprise Minuteman Missile National Historic Site.

17 Sept 2024

This is a great Park to double up with Badlands NP. We took in the Visitor Center first. The movie was well done and explained why sites like these had to exist and still do but now in much smaller numbers. After taking in the movie and exhibits at the Visitor Center we headed west to Delta 09. Delta 09 lies about 15 miles west of the Visitor Center and is a self-guided tour. We dialed the recorded program and listened to an informative nine-part description of what we were seeing around the Delta 09 site. We then stopped at Delta 01 to get pictures. We had missed out on getting tour tickets for the unground tour at Delta 01. This was a great unit to take in. Plan well ahead if you want to try and get tour tickets for Delta 01. We will have put this unit on our must return list when we get our tour tickets. You can do all three sites in a few hours and add an hour if you get tour tickets for Delta 01. Be mindful of hours and days closed for the unit, currently closed on Sundays and Mondays. 

Click here for photos of our visit

NPS Website

Our 179th NPS Unit

Badlands NP

                                                                   

Good Times in the Badlands:

The rugged beauty of the Badlands draws visitors from around the world. These striking geologic deposits contain one of the world’s richest fossil beds. Ancient mammals such as the rhino, horse, and saber-toothed cat once roamed here. The park’s 244,000 acres protect an expanse of mixed-grass prairie where bison, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets live today.

16 Sept 2024:

We did this return visit to take care of the must return list to get in a sunset and sunrise in the park. We spent the first day taking in the park loop road, but in the opposant way we did in 2016. Not much in wildlife except a couple of Buffalo and a bunch of Prairie Dogs. The turn outs offered breathtaking views that make this such a spectacular park, we took in most of the turnouts. We then spent the evening at the Big Foot Pass overlook for the sunset and was treated to an amazing sunset. Up early the next morning and a stop at the Cliff Shelf Nature Trail turnout for the sunrise. We got to watch this amazing sunrise lighting up the valley below and cliff walls around us. We then took in the Visitor Center to take in the exhibits and movie. Ensure to stop by the Paleontologists room to watch them working the fossils found in the park. We highly recommend this Park for a two-day visit and taking in a sunset and sunrise. 

8 July 2016:
This was our first visit to the park and with a name of Badlands we were curious and excited to see just what made this park so special and it only took a few moments of driving into the park to see this would be a great park, the views are amazing and stunning. We stopped at each turnout and was amazed how different each vista was. We have plans to go back for a sunrise or sunset (maybe both). Lots of wildlife to be seen, even Bighorn sheep. We were lucky to spot 3 sheep as we were leaving the Park. This is a park you can do in a few hours or a couple of days depending on how much you want to see. This Park will go on to the must return list.

Click here for photos of our visit of 2016

Click here for photos of our visit of 2024

NPS Website

Our 118th NPS Unit and 17th National Park

Little Bighorn Battlefield NM

 

Little Bighorn, A Place of Reflection:

This area memorializes the US Army's 7th Cavalry, Crow, and Arikara scouts and the Lakota's, Cheyenne's, and Arapaho in one of the American Indian's last armed efforts to preserve their way of life. Here on June 25 and 26 of 1876, 263 soldiers, including Lt. Col. George A. Custer and attached personnel of the US Army, died fighting several thousand Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors. 

NPS Reading

14 Sept 2024

Taking in this unit is like reading the final pages of a long and bitter chapter of our history. We all have read or heard of George Custer, but what lead to this ending involves going back many years and many battlefields with our war against the Native Americans. We decided to take in this unit with a walk up to Last Stand Hill were Custer, and his command meet their final demise. The Visitor Center is closed right now for remolding so this site will go on our return list. This site is very dog unfriendly, and dogs are not allowed out of your vehicle. Be aware also that this is one of the few National Monuments that have an entrance fee.

Click here for photos of our visit

NPS Website

Our 178th NPS Unit