Greip Concert 2.28.2013

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

In 1901, Teddy Roosevelt said in regards to the Badlands of South Dakota and the park named after himself, “We get exactly as much in hunting with the camera as in hunting with the rifle; and of the two, the former is the kind of sport which calls, for the higher degree of skill, patience, resolution, and knowledge of the life history of the animal sought.”

I have a bit of a Theodore Roosevelt crush I guess you could say. He reminds me of a more vigorous version of my father, naturalist, hunter, outdoors man, scientist, preservationist. I have no doubt that if my father had been around when Roosevelt was, and they ever met, Teddy would clasp him hardily on the shoulder and laugh as he drug him onto a horse or train and went exploring.

I'd love to see the Badlands some day. It's on my very long list of places to visit, including Mongolia and the Azores. But for a trip to South Dakota, I'd take my father and go by rail. I think that would be the most appropriate.