For 18 months now I have been suffering from an unstable (non-existant?) income situation and the pressures of that have weighed heavily on my mental well-being. My wife and I decided that it is time for me to go on a "mental health trip" someplace all by myself and with the Lord. I'm leaving late Sunday night for points north or west. I've drawn a 12-hour drive circle around central Iowa and looked for anything that could be of interest to this burned out brain. I'm looking for "fresh territory" that I can explore and learn. East would include Michigan, which I know inside and out, south would include Arkansas which is one adventure I really don't need right now. (The sounds of bangos echoing through the woods--a long story I won't go into now). That leaves north or west. North would take me to the boundry waters of Minnisota or even farther north into Canada. This is, unfortunately, the worst time of year to go there though. I'm looking at going west to the Dakotas and maybe even into Wyoming. It has been a zillion years since I've been to the Badlands and the Black Hills so that just might be a good destination for me. The thought of drifting northward up to North Dakota interests me as that is one of just four states I haven't visited yet. But sneeking over to Yellowstone is awefully intruiging. I will take my Mountain Bike with me along with a ton of camera equipment and as much film as Karen and Visa will let me buy. I'm packing the tent, camping supplies and even the backpack in case a dayhike won't cut it. All this will go into my trusty Jeep Cherokee which is more than ready to battle non-pavement routes looking for free campsites on top of some butte or mountain ridge. I've got a week to go get my braincells realligned and this trip has been long past due. Any advice on favorite "off-the-beaten-path" spots in SW South Dakota or northern Wyoming is sought. I'll drop off the face of the earth for a few days and get plenty stinky before returning to civilization. In preparation (really short notice as we agreed on this last night) I'm veg-only until I leave which will help with the stink and stool part of things. I hope to get my photographic vision back again too. I have been really concerned in that my stress level has highly interferred with my ability to compose pictures. I've got a major shoot coming up that I am in no way ready for. Anybody who has suggestions on things to see/do in the Black Hills region (and northern Wyoming) feel free to contact me offlist. The computer stays home. Ken (They're coming to take me away ha ha.... wait a second--that's not funny) Norton Newton, Iowa _______ To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe rangernet" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Eat the hay & spit out the sticks! - A#1's mule" RTKB&G4JC! http://rangernet.org Autoresponder: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
