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| From Drop Box |
When I say the name of a place, close your eyes and write down the first word that comes to your mind. South Dakota. What did you write? Flat, boring, unpopulated? Well, maybe in Eastern South Dakota, but in the West, you would be way off. Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Sturgis and the annual bike rally, streams and rolling hills with lush forest are just the beginning of what South Dakota has to offer. Take a hike, a bike ride, or even just a ride through the windy scenic highways and I assure you: your perception of South Dakota will be positively changed forever.
If You Go:
-Coming from the West on I-90, take Highway 16 exit toward Newcastle, MT. Along the way make a quick stop into Jewel Cave National Monument. Take a quick tour and admire the sparkling crystals in the cave, and hike around one of the trails based here. Back on the road, continue into Custer, SD.
-From Custer, go south to Wind Cave National Park and take a 2 hour long tour of one of the only caves in the world offering “box work” formations. These brittle rock formations on the walls can play tricks on your mind, and their true essence can only be captured in person. Wind Cave is a small park, but offers a campground, and contains the largest number of bison per acre of any park. Another place to set up camp is north to Custer State Park for more up to date facilities, and much more hiking and biking trails.
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| From Drop Box |
-North on HWY 89 leads you to the partially completed Crazy Horse Monument. Be sure to stop in and watch the sensational video of the man who single-handedly took on the project and his family who has continued his efforts. Just a dozen miles or so west, in Keystone, sits one of the most patriotic monuments in our country: Mt. Rushmore. Be sure to hike along the trail and get an up close look at our great presidents of the past. Here also is an informative visitor center and anything you would want to know on the historical background of this monument.
-Head back up HWY 89 through the windy roads towards Central City. Up here, people live life a little differently. Some might call them hicks, but they respect the beautiful land they live on just as the formerly abundant Native Americans of this great land. Explore the ghost towns, have a beer at an old tavern, and if you make it in August, admire the thousands upon thousands of bikers that migrate to Sturgis for an annual biker’s festival. If you pass by, don’t miss the Sugar Shack burgers right off the highway. They are to die for.
-Be sure to stop off the road at some point and find a stream to enjoy the lush areas of South Dakota people don’t realize exist. Crack open an ice cold soda, hike along a stream, whatever floats your boat. Just don’t miss out on the natural beauty of South Dakota by staying in your comfortable SUV the entire time.
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| From Drop Box |
My Experience:
I drove into Custer only to realize I decided to come on the busiest weekend in the Black Hills all year: the Sturgis Bike Rally. Among thousands of bikes, it is needless to say my explorer stuck out like a sore thumb. I saw Crazy Horse around sunset; a great time of day to beat the heat. The entire operation is privately run, including the visitor center and access to the best views.
After Crazy Horse I realized I needed a place to sleep. I ruled out sleeping in the car in any town nearby, as the biker rally encouraged some angry drunk people all night long. So I drove down toward Wind Cave NP. Luckily there was no entrance station to the park, and I found the campground open. Just as I was pulling out my tent a storm came through, shooting lighting across the sky and buckets of rain on the ground. There is nothing quite like a storm on the plains!
The next day I drove to Mt. Rushmore, then up through the black hills and “intermingled” with the bikers at the world-famous Sugar Shack burger joint. It was packed beyond belief with all sorts of characters. I saw a 50 year old woman wearing assless chaps (if you don’t know what those are, its worth googling them) and a fishnet shirt with nothing covering her oversized fake breasts but two big stars. Needless to say, I didn’t quite fit in. I took my burger and headed into the hills where I found a serene spot right off the highway to eat my burger in peace.
I proceeded through ghost towns and some great small towns such as Central City, until I hit the 90 and headed out through Rapid City. Between the caves, rolling hills, amazing parks and monuments, and the people, I was pleasantly shocked with what South Dakota has to offer. It’s one of those places where you gotta see it to believe it.
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