After leaving Hansen Dairy Farm, (Friday 05May2023) we headed on to west Iowa and found a small local park, Hillview Recreation Area, to spend a few days. The first night we camped in the area that had a heard of elk that we got to see and in the next morning we’re greeted by a spotted towhee and wild turkey. We also enjoyed hiking the recreation area and spotted a number of birds and turtles along the way. It was a good few days to unwind and relax some.
Sunday (07May2023) we headed into Sioux Falls stopping first at local coffee shop Coffea. Then we headed to the namesake park Falls Park. From the park we walked downtown to check out some of the shops, grabbing some beers from WoodGrain Brewing Co. I also grabbed a local kombucha to go, brewed by Songbird Kombucha to go; it was very solid kombucha! We explored the Falls Park late afternoon/evening before spending the night at Cracker Barrel.
Monday (08May2023) we got breakfast from Cracker Barrel and then our coffee and tea from Coffea (again). We found a small free park a little ways off I-90 called Byre Lake Park (Kennebec, SD); a very peaceful and free spot for the night. We were pretty much the only ones there and we just relaxed and enjoyed the peacefulness of the area.
Tuesday (09May2023) we headed to Badlands National Park arriving just before lunchtime. Along the way we slowed down for some pictures of the Dinosaur Skeleton sculpture just off I-90 (see Justin's post 13) and we stopped at the Ranch Store outside the Badlands NP and got up close to some prairie dogs. Once we were inside the park we stopped at the Big Badlands Overlook and then hike a few short trails for some views. After setting up camp at Cedar Pass Campground we drove west into the park stopping at some of the overlooks for more views. We ended up parking at White River Valley Overlook to try and catch the sunset. The rain didn’t really allow for great sunset photos, but we did get some great view of a rainbow.
Wednesday (10May2023) we hiked the Castle Trail (east trailhead) to Medicine Root Trail and then back (7 miles). During the hike we saw a bighorn sheep fairly close to the trail during the hike (see Justin's post 14). Later, we decided to drive the rest of the Badlands Loop Road to the Pinnacles Entrance. We saw a lot of wildlife along the way - prairie dogs, elk, bighorn sheep, and bison.
Thursday (11May2023) we did a short hike, the other part of the Castle Trail we didn’t do Wednesday. We then took our time driving the Badlands Loop Road again, making a few stops we didn’t on Wednesday, seeing some more wildlife - prairie dogs, bison, bighorn sheep, and pronghorns. After leaving the park we decided to park up behind Wall Drug for the night (as rain was in the forecast). We checked out Wall Drug and then weathered the the rain and wind by spending the rest of the evening in the van.
(Highlights from Badlands)
Friday (12May2023) we stopped by in Wall Drug to get a donut to share before heading to Rapid City to do some chores. It was rainy all day so we just did out chores and then found a spot off of Calumet Rd in the Black Hills National Forest to park up for the night.
Saturday (13May2023) we headed to Mount Rushmore National Monument first thing in the morning. After breakfast we explore the monument and visitor center, then headed to Crazy Horse Memorial. There we explored the onsite Native American Museums, saw a film on the history of the monument, and viewed the current state of the memorial from the viewing area. We then headed to Custer State Park and setup camp at Bismarck Lake Campground (in Black Hill National Forest).
(Top - Mount Rushmore, Bottom - Crazy Horse Memorial)
Sunday (14May2023) it was just cold and rainy, so we did some grocery shopping in Custer, SD. We also stopped in a local health food store where I picked up some kombucha from Lone Pine Kombucha (local from Rapid City). We then got a campsite at North Stockade Campground in Custer State Park to enjoy hot showers with electric to plug in our electric heat van :). Once the rain did clear up that evening we took a short hike around the campground and the lake.
Monday (15May2023) the rain cleared and we did an awesome hike in the Sylvan Lake area of Custer State Park. We hiked up to Little Devil’s Tower and then hiked part of the Cathedral Spires. After picking up some maps at the National Forest Station we headed to Bismarck Lake Campground for the evening.
(Views of Cathedral Spires from Little Devil's Tower)
Tuesday (16May2023) we headed into Custer State Park to hike the Lover’s Leap Trail, while nice was not nearly as impressive as Monday’s hike. After the hike we headed to Wind Cave National Park and snagged a spot at the Elk Mountain Campground.
Wednesday (17May2023) we got up a little early so we could get to the Wind Cave National Park Visitor Center when it opened to get tickets for a cave tour. We were able to snag tickets for the Fairgrounds Tour. The cave had some really cool features, though the tour felt kind of rushed and wish we could have spent longer in the cave. Later in the afternoon we hiked the Wind Cave Canyon trail. We had to take a short detour to give space to the bison right on the trail. We also got to see a lot of prairie dogs up close. On the way back to camp we spotted some pronghorns chilling in the grass.
(Top left & bottom right: example of boxworks feature, Top right: example of frostwork feature)
Thursday (18May2023) our 10 year wedding anniversary <3, we got up and had a slow morning. We decided to do another hike in Wind Cave, picking the Lookout Point/Centennial Loop Trail. It was pretty cool, as it took you through a variety of landscapes; from prairie dog town (we saw a baby prairie dog), to piney areas, to rocky formations, and a creek. After finishing up the trail and eating lunch we headed back to Custer State Park and the North Stockade Campground for the night. To celebrate we decided to grill out and just relax for the evening.
Friday (19May2023) we just chilled at the campsite and then headed to Black Hills National Forest Road 307 to find a camp spot for the night. A day off the grid to just relax and read :).
Saturday (20May2023) we headed to the NW corner of Jewel Cave National Monument to hike Hell's Canyon in the Black Hills National Forest. It was a pretty cool hike up into the rock formations then down through the canyon valley. The hike did results in the first tick we have had on us (ick)! We returned to our same spot as Friday and just chilled the rest of the day off the grid.
Sunday (21May2022) we headed to Jewel Cave National Monument for the Scenic Tour. This tour was a good pace and we enjoyed seeing the difference in cave formations between Jewel Cave vs. Wind Cave. After the tour we headed to Spearfish, SD to do some grocery shopping then camped at Spearfish City Campground for the night.
(Top left: Dogtooth Spar formation, Bottom left: Dogtooth spar & sraperies formation, Bottom right: Cave Bacon)
Next we are headed onto Wyoming and well be to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone very soon!!
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