South Dakota
We were excited to visit South Dakota and it did not disappoint. We stopped at Sioux Falls early in our trip and circled back to the southwestern portion as we were heading towards home. Both areas were awesome, yet quite different.
Sioux Falls South Dakota
Sioux Falls is by far South Dakota’s largest city. For instance, Rapid city is next largest and is less than half its size. While we were there, daytime temperatures were quite comfortable, which was not true for most of our trip. We loved the city, but are not sure how we would feel about visiting in the winter.
Sioux Falls KOA
This was one of two KOAs on our journey and was by far our favorite. The staff was amazing and everything about it was great. We had a level, shaded site. While there, we utilized its heated pool, laundry, and dog park. So, we had a very comfortable stay!
Downtown
Downtown Sioux Falls was charming and offered lots of cultural entertainment. I especially loved Sculpture Walk, which features fifty different sculptures each year in the heart of downtown.
The Washington Pavilion is another cool spot downtown. It has art galleries, science exhibits, and theater performances. We walked around inside, but didn’t have time for anything else.
A landmark downtown establishment is Minerva’s and our lunch there was outstanding. I loved my salad with grilled salmon so much that I ordered the same thing at two other restaurants later in our trip. However, neither came close to the delicious dish at Minerva’s.
Falls Park
Falls Park was a beautiful way to spend an afternoon. We took our puppy with us and walked around the multiple viewing options for the falls. The park covers 128 acres and includes the 1908 Light and Power Company building. The building is now the Falls Overlook Cafe. We were able to take our dog inside to enjoy some delicious, locally made ice cream. My cherry cone was to die for!
Traveling to Custer State Park
We had an unusual situation at Custer. I booked it four months prior, but could only get three separate sites. That meant that we would have to move twice and did not have a lot of control over the time of day because check in and out time was noon. Also, as we traveled to Custer, we were fairly near some places we wanted to see. So, we decided to arrive later at Custer and make the relatively short trip longer because of side trips.
Deadwood/Lead
Firstly, we went through Deadwood and into Lead. We drove through the main street of Old Deadwood and it was hopping. Parking nearby was impossible because we were pulling the camper, but it was good to get a visual on the town.
Lead was very close and much less crowded. It is a very old mining town, dating back to 1876. Today it is a very charming town with many historic buildings.
Sturgis
Sturgis was next on our route and it is a much larger town. We had lunch at the Knuckle Saloon. It has a restaurant, craft beers, a gift shop, and an entertainment venue. We were interested in the covered outdoor seating because we had our dog with us. So, we had a nice lunch and were able to take in the atmosphere of this iconic place. I can only imagine what it would be like next week when all the motorcycle riders arrive.
Wall Drugs
Wall Drugs has been around since 1931 and is more of an attraction than a drug store. We saw about a dozen signs for it along the highway. Long ago, it received a big boost in sales by its offer of free ice water. Today it has a variety of gifts and souvenirs, the free ice water, ice cream, and fresh baked donuts. It also has a restaurant. Though it is in the middle of nowhere, it was as crowded as any place I have ever visited. The website says it has over 2 million visitors a year.
It was certainly hot the day we visited. Out SUV showed an outside temperature of 105 degrees. It was so hot that my husband carried our pup to the drugstore because we feared the road would burn her feet. We had ice cream!
Badlands National Park
I really wanted to see Badlands National Park, but wasn’t sure we could fit it in as it was quite a drive from Custer and having to be at the park to switch sites every day. We spent about an hour in the park, which wasn’t enough. But, it was the best we could do.
We were towing our camper and it made me quite nervous through the twists and turns of the mountains.
It was very windy at this beautiful overlook. This park has a completely different look and feel from the other parks on our trip. It is so vast and rugged!
Custer State Park
Custer State Park is certainly a South Dakota gem! It seems more like a National Park than a State Park. It is enormous, covering 71,000 acres. There are multiple campgrounds and lodges and a sophisticated Visitor Center. I wanted to stay there so much that I was willing to move to three different sites.
We arrived around six at the Blue Bell campground after our drive all over the area and did not unhitch.
After a delicious breakfast at the Blue Bell Restaurant across the street the next morning, we drove to our next campground, Legion Lake.
Custer State Park has such an abundance of wildlife.
Every time we left our campsite, we saw animals and birds.
The Buffalo were up close and personal when we were at the dump site right before leaving. It was a bit disconcerting.
Lastly, we made the drive through Needles Eye Tunnel. It is only 8 feet wide and going through it was very close in our big SUV.
Mount Rushmore
While at Custer State Park, we visited nearby Mount Rushmore. I have seen images of it for years, but it was great to see it in person.
Crazy Horse Monument
We also visited the nearby Crazy Horse Monument. It is enormous, but still a work in progress.
This model below shows the vision for the monument in the future.
In Conclusion
South Dakota was a whirlwind of activity for us, but it was such a great time! The three sites at Custer was not as much trouble as I feared. Check out other posts for states at States Visited, a Campsite Resource.
