Mt. Rushmore & Other South Dakota Fun Stuff

You couldn't have asked for a better day to drive across South Dakota.  The sun was bright, the grass was beautiful and green and the speed limit is 80 mph.  What's not to love?  Plus, there are the weirdest tourist traps ever that advertise at least 500 miles in advance.  It's so hokey I love it!

I got suckered in by the signs for the Old West Trading Post and their many, many signs for 10 cent soda.  I was mostly intrigued by what that could even mean, and it was a good excuse for a bathroom break.
Come to find out - this is what they meant by 10 cent soda.  Haha!  It was in the back of this really old and bizarre flea market.  Brian wasn't going to go near it, but I loved it and so we bought 2 whole cups, no refills, and we haven't died yet.  Let's not talk about the bathrooms though...
Next tourist trap was Wall drug.  This is the biggest draw in South Dakota.  It was packed and went on forever.  We even made friends with a random couple that liked Brian's hat (until they realized the D was for Delaware, not Detroit.)  We were too tired to really care and it was a zillion degrees out so we left and went to Subway and got back on the road.  

We got off the highway to explore the entrance to the Badlands.  It was beautiful and I just fell in love with the blue sky and green flowing grass.  
 


 

After we walked around for a bit we headed towards Mt. Rushmore.
 Grant and the classic nose picking picture.
 There is a dude on top of Roosevelt's head!






It was fun to learn more about how Rushmore was built in the museum.  It was a kinda genius move to get more tourists to the area, as originally planned.  I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have gone to South Dakota on this trip had it not been there.  

We took the long way out through the Black Hills and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.  Between the pretty plains and the pretty mountains I became a fan of South Dakota!  Who would have guessed.

Since I goofed up the trip by leaving a day early, I let Brian choose what to do with our extra day. Since we couldn't switch our campsite reservation on Saturday night in the Bighorn National Forest we cashed in some Hilton points and stayed at a beautiful Hampton Inn in Buffalo, Wyoming.  I have to admit I was not a happy travel buddy those last few hours of this day's drive.  We passed lots of Hampton Inn's and I was ready to stop but he had chosen to drive all the way to Buffalo to be closer to the mountains to hike the next day.  I grumbled with each Hampton Inn we passed on the highway.  BUT...once we arrived in Buffalo and saw this abnormally beautiful and new Hampton Inn, I was all smiles.  It had a pretty creek and patio and a huge salt water pool.  Plus, warm cookies and hot coco.  Oh, and not to mention A/C, showers, a real bed, and it was free!  We all loved our unexpected oasis in Buffalo.  


 We didn't have time to swim until the next morning, but that night we soaked our feet in the hot tub. Ahhhh.  Thank you Hampton Inn.   

Comments

Jennifer's Kitchen said…
I agree--I wouldn't have ever gone to South Dakota without Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands being there. But both are so impressive!! I love that area.
July 15, 2015 at 11:26 AM
Amy said…
I love your enthusiasm for all of the hokey tourist traps. I'm the same way! Kind of nice that you had an extra day and got to sleep in a hotel (even though Brian kept driving and driving. Reminds me of Eric).
July 17, 2015 at 1:30 PM
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