Most of my life, I've wanted to visit South Dakota. I know, right? You'd think that there's not much going on there, because it's not one of the more talked about places. Sure, I want to see Yellowstone to the west, and Yosemite and most of California. We all know about that. We all know about Seattle, the volcanoes of Washington, the mountains of Oregon, the beauty of Idaho and so on. Why is it that so few people talk about South Dakota? Merle asked to put this on the list, and I thought that particularly this time of year, it was a great subject.
Most people associate the Dakota's with cold. I get that. In the winter, North Dakota in particular, can be frosty and windy. However, I think that maybe that weather that's so discussed a lot of the year, gives South Dakota a bad reputation.
Therefore, I'm going to do the best I can to bring some of the amazing things about South Dakota to light. There's a lot to talk about, so I might miss some things. Bear with me.
Let's just start with the obvious and get them out of the way. Yes, Mount Rushmore sits in the Black Hills of North Dakota. It's one of the most famous places you hear about when you're young. Let it be known, that not far away is the unfinished Crazy Horse Monument. Donations are always appreciated with that one.
Every August there's a bit of a party in the otherwise unknown town of Sturgis. It's the most famous motorcycle rally in the world, and draws more people than I ever want to encounter in a single town. What most people don't realize is that Sturgis is a perfectly pleasant small town to visit on your roadtrip through South Dakota at any time of year. So, just because you might avoid the rally, don't avoid the town the rest of the year. It's lovely.
And third on the obvious list; there's a Corn Palace. It's the only one on Earth. It's in Mitchell and it's a popular tourist attraction. They have displays, things to do, lodging, food. It's the whole package. However, it's not all there is to do in Mitchell. Mitchell is a lovely town to visit with many things to do, and they have one of the most visited lakes in the state. It's a great place for outdoor activities and of course any paddling, water skiing, boating, camping, paddle boarding or swimming you can do at a lake.
One of the things South Dakota is known for is being part of the wild west. The Lewis and Clark Trail runs right through the state. Custer State Park is one of the most popular parks in the state and is in memory of the General's famous last stand. There's a ton of history in South Dakota. Several Native American tribes are represented in the state. There are several reservations. There are also several casinos. If you like the casino style, you'll have no trouble finding entertainment in South Dakota.
South Dakota is something that I never realized it is. It's the geographic center of the country. Who knew? But, if you like strange monuments, there's one in Belle Fourche that marks that very geographic feature. Had to work that in.
Directly north of all of that is Deadwood, one of the most famous historic old west towns in the country. Deadwood is most definitely a tourist town, and a resort town. It's also a casino town, so breathe in the ambience, enjoy the entertainment, and take part in gambling which is one of the very things Deadwood was once famous for.
One of the things that is simply presumed about South Dakota is that because it's a prairie, midwestern, farm state; it's flat. If you've ever heard of Mount Rushmore, you should know that's not true.
Whether you're cruising the Badlands, the Black Hills, the spires of the land of Custer, or the city of Sioux Falls; it's not flat. There's cliffs, spires, waterfalls, rocks, hills, formations, and so much more. There's gorges, and river valleys. There's more hiking, rock climbing, ballooning, flying, and biking than you'll know what to do with. It's a naturally scenic state with numerous scenic drives as well.
One thing South Dakota is, is rocky. There's tunnels along the scenic roads. There's some very famous caves. Wind Cave and Jewell Cave are the most famous and are must sees. If you didn't watch National Treasure II, you may not know, but Wind Cave is right at Mount Rushmore and is part of the experience.
Most of the rocks you see in the state are remnants of volcanic worlds and glaciers gone by. The granite and quartz in the area shines in the light and sparkles in the sun.
Wildlife is prominent in South Dakota both past and present. There are wildlife parks and drives, as well as a dinosaur parks and archaeological digs going on in several areas. Mammoth remains are prominent in the area, but there are several exclusive dinosaurs that once lived in South Dakota, and you can learn all about them at parks and museums dedicated to the subject.
Arts, culture, and events are abundant in South Dakota. As I said, it's not flat, so they have skiing! If you like the winter, they're here for you. There's theater, some dating back decades. There's rodeos, ranches to stay on, gold mines to visit, and some of the largest monuments in the country. The sky is big in South Dakota, so you can even get listings for some of the best places in the country to go star gazing. It's hard to describe how much there is to do in a state that you hear virtually nothing about on a regular basis.
Not everything is in the boonies in South Dakota. They have beautiful modern cities and charming small towns with food, culture, events, parks, international flair and history.
Sioux Falls is probably the most fascinating of the cities. Not only does it have a large waterfall park in the middle of it, but its airport has a fascinating history, and if you fly to South Dakota, you'll probably be there. The airport was commandeered in WWII to be used as a military air base. It was returned to the good people of South Dakota afterward, but just like the rest of the history in the state, they embrace it and celebrate it. The devil's in the details. Always learn as much as you can about the places you visit. You might just be surprised. South Dakota still has active military and space locations and programs. Some of them you can tour.
Culture is amazing in South Dakota. While unfortunately, Native American gatherings, known commonly as pow wows have declined in some other areas, South Dakota still has many of them. It's a great educational experience for any age, but if you have kids; it's perfect.
South Dakota is also the location of one of the largest music festivals in the country. However, if you're looking for questionable topic music, you won't find it there. They have the largest Christian Music Festival in the country in South Dakota. It's one of the largest events of the year.
Let's discuss some practicalities. One of the reasons that I've never crossed South Dakota, one of the most fascinating states I've ever learned about, off my bucket list is because of the logistics of it. If you don't live within driving distance of it, things can get expensive and complicated. A lot of what you go to see in South Dakota is in the middle of what us northeasterners call nowhere. You will have to drive, even if you fly. There's no way around it. You won't be able to stay in one location and visit the sites. They're flung too far apart. You will put a lot of miles on whatever car you drive. Because of the location, flying is rather expensive. You won't want to visit in the off season unless you like to ski. You will want to go in the summer when it's the most expensive and the lodging, car rentals, and tours are hard to book. I do intend to do this one someday, but certainly not while it's difficult to find a rental. If you live within road trip distance, I would say don't miss it. Everything is huge and historic, beautiful and entertaining in South Dakota.
So, that being said. If you ever wanted to visit someplace that you could see some of the most magnificent art in the world, soak up a one of a kind culture, experience the wild west, learn an abundance of history, see the stars as they should be viewed in the sky, and feel like you've gone back to the days of the dinosaurs; South Dakota is for you. There's so much to tell, that I recommend checking out the links on this entry. There's so much to learn that I can't talk about it all in one entry.
I swear, this place is on my bucket list and someday I will get there. If you can, go, see and enjoy!
https://www.visitrapidcity.com/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g28962-Activities-South_Dakota.html
https://www.touropia.com/best-places-to-visit-in-south-dakota/
https://southdakota.com/attractions/
https://www.nps.gov/state/sd/index.htm
https://nationalparkobsessed.com/national-parks-of-south-dakota/
https://greatplainstravel.com/national-parks-south-dakota/
https://www.planetware.com/south-dakota/best-national-state-parks-in-south-dakota-us-sd-58.htm
https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/mount-rushmore-1
https://www.blackhillsvacations.com/things-to-do/mount-rushmore-national-memorial/
https://www.blackhillsbadlands.com/
https://www.travelingmom.com/things-to-do-in-south-dakota/
https://crazyhorsememorial.org/
https://www.thetravel.com/will-crazy-horse-monument-ever-be-finished/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/arts-entertainment/mines-gold-panning
https://www.casinos.us/south-dakota/
https://native-americans.com/south-dakota-indian-reservations/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/Tribes
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g28962-Activities-c57-t54-South_Dakota.html
https://worldofcaves.com/the-best-list-of-caves-in-south-dakota/
https://gfp.sd.gov/parks/detail/lewis-and-clark-recreation-area/
http://southdakotatouristinfo.com/sturgis/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/trip-ideas/photo-essay/land-dinosaurs
https://www.thoughtco.com/dinosaurs-and-prehistoric-animals-south-dakota-1092100
https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/south-dakota/dino-fossil-dig-sd/
https://www.familydaysout.com/kids-things-to-do-usa/south-dakota/major-theme-parks
https://www.atlasobscura.com/users/ebriellebooks/lists/south-dakota
https://www.sfairport.com/about-our-airport/history
https://www.kayak.com/South-Dakota-United-States-Car-Rentals.159.crr.html
https://www.travelocity.com/Destinations-In-South-Dakota.d243.Car-Rental-Destinations
https://www.trafalgar.com/en-us/destinations/north-and-central-america/united-states/south-dakota
https://www.intrepidtravel.com/us/united-states/south-dakota
https://www.austinadventures.com/destinations/north-america/south-dakota/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/trip-ideas/story/15-must-do-adventures-south-dakota
https://rootsrated.com/stories/15-must-do-adventures-in-south-dakota
https://activeadventures.com/destinations/north-america-tours/south-dakota/
https://southeastsouthdakota.com/outdoor-adventure/
https://rushmoretramwayadventures.com/
https://www.undercanvas.com/camps/mount-rushmore/
https://explorationvacation.net/mount-rushmore/
https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/south-dakota/iconic-foods-sd/
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g28962-Activities-c47-t126-South_Dakota.html
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/culture-history/native-american/powwows-celebrations
https://www.blackhillsbadlands.com/special-event/black-hills-pow-wow
https://www.blackhillspowwow.com/
https://www.alltrails.com/us/south-dakota
https://southdakota.com/trails/
https://gfp.sd.gov/csp-trails/
https://www.travelsouthdakota.com/trip-ideas/stargazing-south-dakota
https://go-astronomy.com/dark-sky-parks-stargazing-state.php?State=SD
