(Click to enlarge)
Pulled out of Fargo on I-29 at about 9:15 a.m. Why so late? Because it was colder than a divorce lawyer's heart. Low this morning was 42°. When I pulled out on the road, a bank display board said the temperature was 57°. 57°my rear end! Maybe around 11:00 o'clock. Even later this afternoon there is a nip in the air you feel even above 70°.
It didn't dawn on me until I'd already crossed into South Dakota that I'd taken no pictures in North Dakota. To be honest about it, I saw nothing which caught my attention. It was just miles and miles of fields filled with corn, wheat, and soy beans. Further, it has a kind of brownish, dull coloration whereever you look. And a cue ball struck firmly will probably roll about a mile in any direction on the highway...it's that flat.
South Dakota started showing some changes in scenery and land elevations. You can see the start of large hills to the west.
And there was some green to the grass and the corn. I've decided that corn still green means it's not ready for harvest.
Pretty empty highway. Some find this boring. I find it great!
Nearing the small town of Baltic, SD I saw a road sign announcing "U.S. Geological Survey - EROS Facility" and indicating the next exit.
One of my heroes is Major John Wesley Powell, famous for being the first to run and survey the mighty Colorado River. Almost everyone knows he lost an arm in the civil war and later ran the Colorado. What few know is that he was the second Director of the U.S. Geological Survey and it is this role for which Americans truly owe him a debt of gratitude. For thirty years he ran the Survey and pleaded and cajoled and fought for the arid lands that are today's west. He understood better than anyone else that once west of the 100th meridian all bets were off in terms of land use and distribution.
Land-use and policy decisions were made in those days in eastern-centric Washington, D.C. (Ah...so little has changed, huh?) The people making the decisions were used to vast amounts of handy water, if not in a river or lake, available by digging shallow wells. Consequently, for example, 640 acres of land (the standard "homestead" by policy) generally had access to water for farming and livestock. This is not the case out west. One plot of 640 acres with a water source could conceivably control 50-75,000 acres in area around it. This meant, to Powell and his enlightened scientifically inclined supporters, homesteading policy needed to be different and allow for access to water.
My buddy, Bobby J., was the one who introduced me to Powell by giving me Wallace Stegner's 'Beyond the Hundredth Meridian.' I highly recommend that book and Mr. Powell to anyone truly interested in the west and the early history of this nation. It convinced me that any list of the ten greatest Americans would be woefully incomplete without John Wesley Powell on it.
So...given this penchant for the U.S. Geological Survey I had to check it out.
And "out" is the correct term. This place is out in the middle of no-damn-where-America.I turned off the interstate at Baltic and found the site ten (10) miles out in the middle of a corn field.
(Click to enlarge)
This is no chicken-feed operation. The ARMED guard at the gate told me there were over 650 people employed here. The "EROS" refers to Earth Resources Observation Systems, and not the Greek God of Lust, as I'm sure some of you thought. (Nah, probably not...I'm the only one who would think of that.)
The facility uses earth satellites to study natural hazards, global environmental change, and economic development and conservation issues. Only about 15% of the employees are federal civil servants, the vast majority are under contract with companies and other users of such data.
This area was selected because of its central location in the United States. While Sioux Falls is about 15 miles away and has about 150,000 people, this is still South Dakota, again proving that professionals (about 50% of the employees are degreed in earth sciences, remote sensing, or computer technology) will go where the work is.
In any event, I didn't get shot by the guard. He said I could go in and catch the 4:00 p.m. tour, but that I'd probably be the only one on it. I settled for a few pictures and back on the road.
Betsy-the-Kaw on the road to the U.S. Geological Survey EROS facility.
I told you there was nothing out here.
Took I-90W just north of Sioux Falls after having to detour around because the freeway entry and exit on this side of the city were under repair.This caused me to pass these guys calmly filling up on grass and water.
Good thing these guys didn't ride down the road another half-mile with me. There was a big sign announcing "Fresh Buffalo Meat." I could figure out where it was coming from.
Pulled into Chamberlain, SD about 5:00 p.m. and checked into a Best Western located adjacent to the mighty Missouri River. I'd like to say something more exciting about that, but, actually, I couldn't put it off any more so I found the local laundromat and did clothes.
NOTE: Riding was very tough today. A big low front coming in from the Pacific coast is sucking air (wind) into this area like a giant vacuum cleaner. Wind was constant at about 20-25 mph with gusts blowing to at least 45 mph at times.
Tomorrow: Further west to see if my carving has been completed. Last I checked they were out of dynamite and unable to blast out enough material to uncover my nose and moustache.
No comments:
Post a Comment