cdc

We have returned from a lovely trip to South Dakota. It was everything that we had hoped for and we are so glad we went when we did (late April). Finding places to eat was a little bit tricky and required some planning as not everyone was open and not everyone was open every day. That said, we never felt crowded or rushed. We didn't have to deal with traffic (except for some road work) on narrow roads. The weather was simply perfect for us - not hot and not cold, plus no mosquitos. Tons of bison, sheep, deer, etc. and thankfully no signs of snakes.
Here is what we did:
Sunday

Travel to Rapid City SD

Arrive around 3:30

Rent car

Have Dinner in Rapid City – Murphys. Very friendly waitstaff. Wonderful burger and steak dinner.

Explore Art Alley/ City of Presidents

Art Alley was an alley behind buildings. Cool graffitti, not so good smell.
It was a Sunday evening before tourist season began so it was a bit slow and very little was open.

Drive 45 min to Custer State Park Lodge. We loved staying here. Downsides: It is a bit out of the way being in the park, the dining service was open yet (they did offer a continental breakfast) and the place is somewhat dated. Every one was so nice and helpful and the park itself was so pretty. We thought it was well worth it to stay in the park.

Monday

Drive to Crazy Horse

We splurged on a helicopter tour. Very lovely tour company and what a view! They are located just up the road from the Crazy Horse monument. Very easy to work with. It is expensive but a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the monument up close. They offer a few price points from a quick trip to see one or two monuments to a 50 min tour.

Visit Crazy Horse - museum first, then school bus ride out to the monument. This was a highlight of the trip for us. The museum was spread out with a lot of info. The video was really well put together. The school bus ride out to the monument was not what we expected, but you get out and can take a few pictures.

From there we drove up to Deadwood. The road was having work done so there was a lot of stop and go - that was stressful, esp because we were hungry for lunch. Deadwood was not yet fully open. The hotels with the casinos were all open but the touristy stuff was not open yet. We walked around a bit and got lunch to go from a cute place called Jacobs. We took the lunch up to Spearfish Canyon and had a nice picnic. It was nice to relax and my daughter spent some time sketching. We then did one of the hikes. There were bathrooms at the restaurant / hotel which was nice. The walk was hilly and a little muddy but not strenuous. Pretty falls at the top.

It was late in the day but we decided to go for it and drove to Bear's Ledge/ Devils Tower. This was probably one of our favorite places on the trip. We thought it was magical. The prarie dog village at the entrance was a fun start. We walked around a bit a the base and read about the history and spiritual significance. The sight of the tower is so impressive - driving in you can see it and it was breathtaking. Being a the base was even more awesome.

It was a long drive back to Custer State Park (about 2.5 hours), but all on the highway, which moved fast! We stayed at Bears Ledge for a bit and with the later sunset made it back to Custer in time to grab some food from the market and back at the Custer lodge right after sunset.

Tuesday

Jeep ride at Custer Park - morning time slot
So amazing! Do not pet the fluffy cows! So amazing to see these majestic creatures. Loved the Bison. Also loved seeing the differently types of deer, prarie dogs, donkeys, birds, etc. The park was not crowded and the animals were all awake and active - amazing!

The Iron Mountain road was closed in the morning due to repairs, so we decided to go out of order. This added some driving time, but there was no traffic and the speed limit on the highways is so much faster than the east coast - I really didn't mind it. Locals thought our route was a little excessive, but it is all what you are used to.

From the Custer park lodge we drove to Custer to get lunch to go and then drove to Wind Cave Nation Park. We picnic'ed by the info center. So many bison and prarie dogs on our way there. Then we drove about twenty minutes north through the park to do a hike to the fire tower. It was steep at times, but do-able for this middle aged mama. Again we were on the look out for snakes, but didn't see any. Thankfully minimal bugs!

After Wind Cave (we didn't go down into the Cave), we drove through the park down to Hot Springs. The entire town was under construction which is a shame. None of the spas / springs were open as they are only open later in the week. We only went to see the dinos and mammoths. This was a hit from my palentology loving kid. This would be a bust for most people. We liked it b/c it was very much in our wheel house, but I wouldn't make the trip for a different kid.

From there we hopped on the highway but cut west early to get back on the local road (36) and hooked into Iron Mountain Road. Not the most efficient route, but we were told that we had to view Iron Mountain Road. I am glad we did this, but we both got car sick driving it! It was interesting to see how the road was designed to view Mt. Rushmore but one and done. We also got to see a few more bison on this route. We got to Mt Rushmore later in the day - the gift shop and cafe was open but the visitor center was closed. My daughter did some painting in the ampitheater while I did the full loop walk. Lots and lots of stairs but some interesting views. Later I walked half the loop again with my daughter. We took 40 through Keystone back to 79 and then on to 36 to get back to Custer. I was done with winding roads by that point. Maybe a little more time, but easier driving for me.

We had purchased microwavable dinners and salad bags in advance- the lodge had mini fridge and microwave, so we didn't need to worry about grabbing food on the way back. Again because it was not full tourist season a lot of places were closed for the season still or were not open on Monday/ Tuesdays.

Wed
Jewel Cave - we headed east to a 9am Jewel Cave tour. It was as cool as people said. It is a very long tour, a lot of walking and stairs. I didn't mind the distance/ stairs, but being underground for so long was a bit strange. We both have allergies and felt like our sinuses were going to explode.

We checked out of the hotel and headed to Rapid City for a nice lunch at the Fire house. I wanted to have a good meal before we drove to the Badlands.

From Rapid City it was a long but fast drive to Wall. We shopped around Wall Drug which reminded me of the ultra indoor flea markets of my youth. We got a donut - thumbs up! and took some silly pictures. We drove through the town to get a picture of the large wooden Jack-a-lope. LOL.

We then went to the missle museum. As someone who grew up during the Cold War I found this very interesting. My kid also was interested in the assured mutual destruction mentality and has some interest in the nuclear non-proliferation so liked it - but we didn't spend that much time there.

From there we went into the Badlands from the eastern entrance. We stopped along the way to the park lodge to take photos and climb (well some of us did climbing while others watched). We checked in, refreshed and my daughter had some time to draw We had some food in the park cafe. Very limited offerings but it did the job. It was about an hour or so before sunset so we took off around the loop - again stopping when the mood struck us. We made it nearly to the western entrance to the park before sunset. We stopped at some great vantage points to view the sunset - it was a little cloudy- bummer. Still amazing! Driving back to the lodge after sunset was fine. There was still the after glow and a moon. We had to be careful of deer and animals in the road; we made it back fine.

I was grateful that we booked in the park. There are placed in Wall and Interior where people stay. Because we were in the park we were able to go out and do a few things, and come back to the cabin. We also woke up to an amazing view in the park. It allowed us to drive the loop at sunset - highly reccomend.

Thursday
I would have liked to have spent another day in the park, but it would have pushed a lot of driving into Friday, so we woke up early and got a lot in. We did two short walks - one of the prescribed walks on a boardwalk/ trail and another we drove down a side road and jumped onto one of the trails through the prairie and went out and back for a bit.

We had a simple breakfast in our room (the cafe had very limited offerings) and then went back to do some climbing and hiking.

It was a fun time, but very warm so we were done after a few hours.

The Badlands were the top highlight for both of us. We were both intimidated by and loved the open hiking concept. At first we tried to only do the "easy" hikes listed in the park info session. Then we realized we could do "out and back" - we started a few of the hikes and then walked back when it got too much for me. I could not scramble up the pillars like my little one could! We did not see any snakes, but were mindful in our prarie hikes that they might be around. I had read so much about the Badlands and nothing could have prepared me for them. It was out of this world. I tried to describe it as something from another planet - it really was like nothing I had every seen before. I would not have enjoyed a visit in the summer- with extreme heat and crowds. Late April was a perfect time to visit.

From Badlands we drove what seemed like forever. I had filled up with gas in Rapid City and then again in Mitchell. We went to the Corn Palace in Mitchell. It is neat and artistic, but if we didn't need gas we probably could have skipped it. It had started to rain and the wind was quite aggressive. There was no traffic and the roads are nicely paved - but it is a long drive.

We went to the Best Western in Sioux Falls because they have a restaurant attached and a wonderful pool/ slide/ indoor water park. The hotel was dated and our room literally was falling apart. It was clean and the staff was lovely - that is all we were looking for. The bonus was the amazing pool/ water park which was a fun treat.

Friday
We walked around Sioux Falls park. It was pretty but it started to rain so we didn't stay long. We thought about going to the aquarium or other fun sights but were eager to visit our friends in Minneapolis, so off we went. It was a tough drive on local roads in windy/ rainy weather but moved quickly enough. We made one stop for lunch in Mankato. A super cute down town area as well as some outdoor sculptures.

We have visited Minneapolis before so we spent time with friends and did not do any sight seeing.

Overall an amazing trip with my daughter - one we will both remember. Many people would find the driving too much. I drive a lot and on the East Coast, traffic makes short distance drives gruesome, so I didn't mind the driving (except for some of the windy roads). I liked that we stayed three nights in Custer State Park. We found it was a good base and loved the peacefulness of it. I imagine during high season it is not that peaceful. If I could change anything - we would have spent more time at Bears Ledge/ Devils Tower and another night in the Badlands. Thanks everyone for the great advice!

oldemalloy

This sounds like a great trip. We are on the east coast so I totally understand what you mean about the driving in this part of the country. It is so nice to drive for a couple of hours and be a hundred fifty miles down the road and not have had one driver cut you off trying to be one car length ahead while going twenty five.

Thanks for the report, I hope your kids continue to travel with you and with their kids in the future.

Clousie

Thanks for your Trip Report CDC. I could relate to much of it as we especially loved Custer State Park and the Badlands. The scenery is amazing! We stayed overnight at Devil's Tower, which was special, too. Glad you discovered interesting places to explore and hike. Sure your daughter will have good memories of this special trip.