Day 63 - 6/16 -

South Dakota is big! Big and diverse. It is natural and beautiful but all kitschy and full of tourist road traps.

We entered South Dakota from Lancaster, Wyoming and headed towards Custer, SD. We opted against Wind Cave and Jewel Cave, both because we were short on time and because I don’t really like caves. We made our way, instead, to Custer State Park. The park had a high day use fee of $6/per person but the pass was good for 7 days, only one of which we would use. We headed South to the Wildlife Loop and enjoyed seeing the numerous buffalo, prairie dogs, pronghorn, deer, burros and pheasant.

After driving the Needles Highway with its twists and turns, single lane tunnels and abundant wildlife, we found our way to the National Forest campground and set up for the night.

The next morning we headed into Keystone, SD for 99 cent All You Can Eat Pancakes. We each only had one order as they were huge and very filling. After breakfast we made our way to Mount Rushmore.

Unfortunately our National Parks & National Monuments Pass did not work here - but oh well. We enjoyed walking around on the Presidential Trail and seeing the different views of the monstrous heads. We saw the sculptor’s studio with the mold and several tools.

We then headed back through Keystone and into Rapid City to catch I-90 E. We stopped in Wall, SD for Wall Drug - not quite our kind of place - a little too touristy and very hyped up by the hundreds of roadside signs. But Wall, SD is one of the exits for Badlands National Park, so we headed South into the park.

My goodness! Badlands National Park is wonderful. It is similar landscape to the Badlands area in the Petrified Forest but with less blues and purples. It was grassy with lush green prairies vs desert and desolate. We had a great time walking around and were quite blessed with gorgeous blue skies - for awhile at least, a dark storm rolled in after an hour.

After driving the loop, we headed North to connect up with I-90 E again. We made a quick stop in Mitchell, SD to visit the World’s Only Corn Palace. It was not what I expected. Inside the palace there were pictures of the previous years’ corn designs which were interesting to look at. We were not at the right time to watch the historical film explaining the importance of the corn palace - but we did hook up with a walking tour detailing the significance of the corn murals.

We set up at a campground half way between Mitchell and Sioux Falls. It rained - again - overnight. On a positive note though, I really enjoy sleeping to the sound of rain drops against the tent - it’s quite soothing.

Video: Clear Blue Day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxYgj5DsX_0