September 23, 2007 – Lewis and Clark Lake

Our travels today took us into southeastern South Dakota and the countryside is still beautiful (and the wind is still strong).

We set up camp at Lewis and Clark Lake (SD state park) right on the lakefront.

Here is a picture of the lake:
We then traveled over to the visitor center at the Dam. There is a series of dams set up on the Missouri River to help in flood control as well as irrigation. This visitor center is run by both the Army Corp of Engineers and the National Park Service and had some great information and exhibits about Lewis and Clark and this area.

We spent some time talking to the two volunteers at the center and got lots of information on the Army Corp of Engineers camping areas throughout the country. (Many of the camping books and tour books that I have do not include these campgrounds and I am not sure why!) One of the volunteers saw all the pins on Andy’s hat and gave him an official park service pin on Lewis and Clark National Historic trail – that was so great!


Here is a picture of the dam:

And the Missouri River after the dam:

One of the things we learned is that there is a campground right by the dam run by the Corp. (for a lot less than we are paying at the state park.) So depending on the weather we may move there tomorrow.

We then traveled thru Yankton – what a quaint place. Maybe more exploring tomorrow???

One last note (and I am not usually a negative person) but the SD state parks charge a daily fee in addition to the camping fees. I have no problem paying a fee but I think it should be like the federal parks (good for seven days) especially if you are camping. Now you can buy a yearly pass but for those of us just passing thru, it is not cost effective. There are some parks in PA that charge a fee but it is waived if you are camping. So although the park we are at is beautiful, it becomes more expensive than one offering more amenities. (Enough said!)


Miles Traveled: 79
Routes Traveled:
South Dakota: MT-37; MT-50; MT-52

September 22, 2007 – The Corn Palace and Reset

This morning we finished our reset and went to the Corn Palace this afternoon.

The Corn Palace is decorated each year with a new theme with all of the crops that can be grown in the Dakota soil. There are 600,000 pieces of corn used (12 different colors or shades) and 3000 bushels of grains and grasses (Milo, rye, and sour dock). It is quite a sight.

Pictures of the palace with the designs:

You can really see the corn in this one:

Historic downtown Mitchell was also having a car show so we had a great time walking the street and seeing all the old cars.

Back at the MH we relaxed, watched football, got caught up with the blog and email, and finished charging all our batteries. Tomorrow we are heading south towards Nebraska.

September 21, 2007 – Wind, Wind, and more Wind

The wind started up during the night and woke us with the motor home shaking. NOAA radio had issued a wind alert (>45 mph) until 8 AM. It was wild.


We did decide to travel today even with the wind (they ranged ~ 20-30 mph) and Andy did a great job driving.

We crossed the Missouri:


And are camped at the R&R Campground in Mitchell. We will be here for 2 days for a reset (charging batteries, groceries, laundry, cleaning, etc.) This is a nice private campground with room between sites including grass and trees. Plus they have cable TV and free WiFi and the price was right with our Passport America membership.

So today was grocery and other shopping.

The wind did calm down tonight – YEA.


Miles Traveled: 243
Routes Traveled:
South Dakota: MT-44; MT-73; I-90

September 20, 2007 – More Badlands and Sightseeing

This morning we made our way from the campground to the north end of the park and made a few stops at the overlooks and did a short nature hike.

Here is a picture of the campground from one of the overlooks:
From there we went to the missile silo – 16 miles away. One of the things that I did not know was that these silos were not top secret. This one is about ½ mile from I-90 in the middle of a ranch. Here is a picture:

A closer picture:

The missile you see standing is a sensor and the glass is for observation only – it would have been covered by a thick block.

Here is the silo with the missile (unarmed):

It was an incredible tour. Next time we are here we will definitely make advanced reservations for the control facility. (The silo is 11 miles away from the control area.)

From there, we stopped at Wall Drug for lunch. Here is my hero (I just loved her boots and cigar):

And Andy’s new friend:

Then we did the loop road in the Badlands. The Badlands separates the upper from the lower prairie and is 60 miles long. It is known as the Badlands Wall (and that is how the town of Wall got its name). The Wall is constantly retreating as it erodes to the valley below. And in some of the stops we made, we could see where they have moved the overlooks due to the erosion.

A picture of the upper prairie:

This is where the upper prairie meets the wall:

The lower prairie:

And more incredible scenery along the way:

It was so amazing to see all of this. We were here 10 years ago and this place still fascinates us!

Right by the park is a historic landmark – Prairie Homestead. This is an original home of people who homesteaded these 160 acres in 1909.

Here is a picture of the house:

And inside:

There was a lot of information there and in the Badlands loop on the homesteaders. What a hearty group of people!

And the current owners of this homestead have the only white prairie dog town in the world:


Aren’t they cute!!!

And another incredible sunset and moonrise tonight!

We had a very hot day today – 95 degrees. But at least the nights get cool!!

September 19, 2007 – The Badlands

Today we left the Black Hills and headed out into the prairie.

And of course no prairie is complete without these little guys:



(I am driving Andy crazy with pictures of prairie dogs and wanting to stop at every prairie dog town.) These guys were at a wayside park and we bought peanuts to feed them. (Looks like a LOT of other tourists also feed them. )

We are camped at the Cedar Pass Campground in the Badlands. After setting up camp, we went first to the Minuteman Missile National Park Visitor Center (right up the road from the Badlands). This is America’s newest NP and right now it contains a very small visitor center (new one to be finished in ~5 years); the Delta-01 Launch Control Facility and the Delta-09 Launch Facility. As the deactivation of the Minuteman II missile sites progressed, employees of the USAF and the NP worked towards preservation of a representative site and this is it.

In the visitor center, we saw a video on the launch control facility and had a really nice chat with the ranger. We were unable to get on the tour to the control facility (they are booked to next Tuesday) but tomorrow we will be able to see the launch facility. Since this is a relatively new park, they are still in the process of getting a permanent visitor center as well as more staffing to be able to run more tours. So we were disappointed on not being able to see the control facility. (Just a heads up for anyone heading this way – make your reservations early.)

From there, we went to the Badlands visitor center – some sites along the way:





Isn’t this incredible – it almost looks like another world!!


Back at camp, we watched an incredible sunset followed by an incredible moonrise. There is a lot of wind today also – 15 to 30 MPH. Only propane stoves are allowed outside – no campfires.

Such fantastic scenery!

Oh, I did find out that the howling/yapping we heard last night was from the coyotes. Eerie!

Miles Traveled: 114
Routes Traveled:
South Dakota: US-385; MT-44; I-190; I-90

September 18, 2007 – Tatanka, The Story of the Bison

Today we visited the place called Tatanka, The Story of the Bison. This was Kevin Costner’s dream and funded by him. The museum told the story of the bison and its relationship to the Plains Indians. It was wonderful.

We first saw the video on the making of Tatanka and why/how Kevin Costner did it. Then we went to a presentation by a Lakota woman on the customs of the Lakota people as it pertained to the bison.

Many of the items in the museum were replicas so we were allowed to touch them. It was amazing how each part of the bison was used.

Outside, there was a path to a replica of a bison jump. Here are some pictures:



The detail was incredible.

There were also replicas of a typical tipi with items inside:

There are many educational programs held here during the summer season and I am sorry we missed them.

This museum as well as Head Smashed-In in Alberta makes me want to know a lot more about the Plains Indians. Any recommendations on books please email me or leave a comment on the blog.

Some pictures from Tatanka of the Black Hills.

As you can see by the photos, today was a dreary day – on and off rain. But we were blessed that for everything we wanted to do outside, the rain held off.

Late afternoon, we took a walk around the campground, the closed loops, and the lake. We did see a number of white tail deer not only in our loop but the other areas as well. Here are some pictures of the lake:




The pictures were taken with my back up camera – not too bad although some are a little too dark. (Will have to work on that!)

Tomorrow we will be heading out of the Black Hills towards the Badlands. I really love this place and maybe one day, will do some work camping here.