South Dakota. I still grapple with the thought that I didn’t actually see the whole state as I had the previous week in Wyoming. But instead, I immersed myself into one of its national forests, the Black hills, and two of its towns, Custer and Rapid City. My whole week only spent in the south west corner, I still enjoyed it, the many new people I met, and the great places I got to see. The pace of the week felt much more relaxed, though I did front load the first few days with jam packed schedules, the latter half was a much slower pace.
Black HillsI spent nearly my entire week in and out of the Black Hills. Visiting cities within and around it, as well as many hikes and two cave exploration trips. My only regret that my few attempts at finding a climbing partner proved futile. It was a beautiful slice of the country to explore. With endless trails to wander, and stunning views from each, I would definitely recommend this place as its own vacation to anyone in the area or passing through. The scenic drives were all worth it, with Spearfish Canyon feeling a lot like Boulder Canyon in Colorado.
Jewel Cave, was breathtaking and even offered a great new friend, Jess, to meet up with later in my travels, if she isn’t on her own. Wind Cave was another great visit, and a drastically different cave than Jewel. Though if I had to pick, I would say that the tour and visuals of Jewel were much more spectacular and worth it more than Wind Cave.
Mount Rushmore was a great tourist trap that I enjoyed much more than I initially thought. Though it was heavily packed, it didn’t feel as condensed as other places. The carvings were astonishing from all levels of view and the whole place built around it felt normal. Fun fact, the original idea was to have Native American leaders carved into the rock, but the artist decided to do a piece on America and freedom instead.
BadlandsI’ll draw some parallels between the Black Hills and the Badlands as they are similar to the Grand Tetons and Yosemite of last week. The Badlands just didn’t feel all that spectacular to me. Sure, it was beautiful, but every single look out had the save view. Only 30 miles end to end, it felt like it was over hyped by many people. Also, like Yellowstone, it was a lot of pull offs, see it, cool, get back in the car and move on. With people frequently stopped in the middle of the road to gawk at whatever wild life was close, I just wasn’t a fan of the place.
Yes, definitely stop by, as its worth rolling through. But the whole park can be lazily seen in a morning, or a day if you’re really trying to soak it in and do some off trail exploring. Just keep an eye and ear out for rattle snakes.
CusterAnother small town with just a main street and there to support the local tourist attractions, but it felt like so much more. The hospitality from everyone felt genuine, not just contrived to get my money. The town, located in the middle of the Black Hills, was a great escape from the wilderness, but recognized that people spend lots of time there. They offered cheap showers and laundry facilities, as well as public clean water. Not to mention the local burger joint was voted best burger in America! It was indeed quite delicious, though they say hunger is the best spice.
I wandered through Custer multiple times, and each time it felt just as welcoming and quaint. A great place to stay for a day, a week, or maybe more.
Rapid CityWith free Thursday night concerts, a great walk-able downtown, beautiful artwork of all mediums, and the sanctuary of a Walmart parking lot, Rapid City was a blast. Not big enough to feel like a full blown city, but not small enough to only have a handful of traffic signals and one road, it feels like a town in a category of its own. The free public wifi a great help, ambiance of a refreshed city center all the more enticing, and free parking to boot, what’s not to like? Good cheap food, a slice of the Berlin Wall and an open canvas for an alley way, the list goes on.
I loved Rapid City for all it had to offer and embraced its small-not-small-town vibe. With just enough to explore for a day in and out of the city, the local bike path made life all the more easier.