Day 1 – Hit the Road
Our road trip was four days at the end of June. The first day we drove from our home in Green Bay, Wisconsin and headed west to Wall, South Dakota for our first night’s stay. We started driving at 7 am, drove through Wisconsin and Minnesota, then stopped for a late lunch in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
As we walked the streets of the little downtown, we marveled at entries to a sculpture contest. There were all sorts of statues. Some inspired by wilderness in South Dakota and others showcased creativity of the artists. One of my favorites was a bear that I gave a high five to!
We kept walking until we found a little corner restaurant that was advertising fresh foods and juices called Agua Fresh. By the time we stopped I was so hungry, I didn’t even remember to take a picture of my food. I decided to get an avocado wrap and Dillon got a chicken pesto sandwich. It was a nice quick bite to eat. After lunch, we found our way back to our car and hit the road again.
Wall, South Dakota
Once we were out of Sioux Falls, it was only 4 hours to our hotel in Wall, South Dakota. After we checked into our hotel, we went to the Red Rock Restaurant for dinner. We were seated next to a farmer who was talking to guests at another table giving off a familiarity of the small town I grew up in. The burgers were delicious and mine was served on a pretzel bun! As we were enjoying our meal, the farmers were discussing how the restaurant had run out of the meat that they had sold them which I got a kick out of.
After a long day travelling and our dinner, we turned in for a good night’s rest.
Day 2 – Wall Drug & the Badlands
We woke up at 7am to get a jump start on the day. We had a lot planned starting with a visit to Wall Drug. Wall Drug is a family owned drug store that was founded in 1931, before Mount Rushmore was even completed. The business has grown into a fun stop for the kids, a restaurant, a gift shop, and is must-see destination when passing Wall.
From the time that we passed the state border into South Dakota to the exit right before Wall Drug, we were amused by the excessive amount of billboards Wall Drug uses to advertise. Most of them advertised:
- Free ice water
- 5 cent coffee
- Homemade donuts
- Fun for the Kids
Their advertising efforts definitely paid off as we were sure to stop by to check out the coffee and the donuts!
The Badlands National Park
When approaching the Badlands National Park, I recommend stopping just before the entrance to get a photo with the welcome sign. As we entered the park, we bought a 7-day entry pass for $30. All entry passes are valid for 7 days and are a flat amount per car. This is great if you are travelling with a family as you don’t have to pay per person. We started out our visit by following the loop that is accessible by car. As we awed at the views out the car windows, we kept an eye out for view points we could stop at.
I was most excited to see the yellow mounds in the park that showed off yellow and magenta deposits. At almost every viewpoint we could get out and wander down little paths that led to better views of the scenery.
Hiking in the Badlands
After we had explored the loop, saw cute little prarie dogs, and spotted grazing buffalo, we made our way to the hiking trails. In a guide we picked up, we were able to look at the difficulty of the trails and the distances ahead of time. We decided to try out 3 of the 7 trails available. We decided not to take the 10 mile or the 4 mile hikes as we only had a day at the park. The other trails were between .5 and 1.5 miles. On the first trail, I saw a sign that said “Beware of Rattlesnakes” and was on edge for the remainder of our hiking. I hate snakes.
We visited the park from 10 am to 3 pm . It was a very popular time as we did see a good amount of visitors. I highly recommend packing excessive amounts of water and sunscreen. We packed extra and went through all of our water. Hats and sunglasses are also essentials.
After all of our hiking, we got back in the car and stopped at a gas station on the way out to use the bathrooms as the park visitor’s center and restrooms were closed. We also restocked up on water before travelling one hour to our next hotel in Rapid City, South Dakota.
Rapid City, South Dakota – Hotel Alex Johnson
We arrived in Rapid city right after check in started for 4 pm. Staying at Hotel Alex Johnson was a treat from my mom. She had Hilton Rewards points so she got us a free night and treated us to the other. It is a little fancier than the hotels I am used to travelling in which was a pleasant surprise. As we walked in, I fell in love with the lobby!
After all of our hiking, the only thing I wanted was a shower. Prior to my mom booking us the hotel, we were going to camp in a tent I was borrowing from my sister. I cannot express how thankful I was that my mom knew tenting it would have been miserable. After a nice cold shower it was time to find some dinner.
Vertex Sky Bar
We ventured to the Vertex Sky Bar, the hotel’s rooftop restaurant, for dinner. It was a little pricey but the atmosphere and quality of food were worth it. Check out the food we ordered below!
After dinner we decided to walk off our dinner around the downtown area of Rapid City. The Rapid City streets are charming and on every corner you meet another US President. We had a fun time trying to guess who was who on our approach.
Day 3 – Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse & Devil’s Tower
Mount Rushmore
In the morning, we grabbed coffee from the Starbucks at our hotel. Once we were caffeinated, we headed for Mount Rushmore! On the way there, I recommend stopping at the welcome sign of the memorial to get a photo. Entry to Mount Rushmore was $11 and was an annual parking pass.
Before we left for the trip, we did a lot of research on what would be open and the best practices for protecting against covid-19. We knew that the visitors center at Mount Rushmore would be closed but we still planned on going to hike the trail going up the mountain. When we arrived we were a little disappointed to find the hiking trail, the avenue of flags, and the visitor’s center were all closed. With the other areas being closed, there was a lot of foot traffic in a smaller area and I was uncomfortable with the amount of people.
Thomas Jefferson’s Ice Cream
We snapped a few photos, grabbed an ice cream cone, and headed on our way. I believe the maintenance being performed was in preparation for President Trump’s visit the following weekend to celebrate Independence Day. The ice cream was refreshing and is made from Thomas Jefferson’s recipe. I had the chocolate and Dillon got a root beer float with the vanilla ice cream. I recommend the vanilla over the chocolate!
Crazy Horse Memorial
The Crazy Horse Memorial & Indian Museum of North America is a stop I recommend making time for. It was less crowded that Mount Rushmore which was nice. Entry was $12/per adult for a one day pass. The memorial is under construction year round and proceeds from the museum fund the construction.
The day of our visit, they hosted a Native American culture talk which was a great way to learn about the Native American connection to the land of the Black Hills. To show more about their culture, the presenters showcased traditional Native American dancing and singing.
After touring the museum we decided to have lunch at the museum’s on site restaurant. After checking out the menu, I chose the Indian taco, it is served on Indian fry bread instead of a tortilla.
Devil’s Tower, Wyoming
Next, we hopped in the car and drove 2.5 hours to Wyoming to see Devil’s Tower. On our drive, the scenery through Wyoming was a nice surprise compared to the flat landscapes making up the majority of our South Dakota drive. We saw rolling hills and bright red dirt patches. As we got closer to Devil’s Tower, we could see it reaching up higher than anything around it.
Before our adventure, we stopped at the Devil’s Tower Trading Post for a cup of coffee before making our way to the hiking trail at the base of the tower. The trail is well maintained and paved which makes it an accessible trail for visitors. The trail is 1.3 miles and offers 360 views of the tower and the surrounding scenery.
Paddy O’Neill’s – Rapid City, South Dakota
After the wonderful forest walk we headed back to Rapid City for our second night at Hotel Alex Johnson. After a long day, we decided to have dinner at Paddy O’Neill’s, the Irish Pub connected to the Hotel. We ordered our dinner with an appetizer of chislic, which is essentially beef tips battered like a chicken nugget. The beef tips are very tender and the batter adds a nice crunch to them. The menu advertised them as South Dakota’s Cowboy candy.
Firehouse Brewing Co.
We finished our dinner, then decided to take a walk down the street and try out the Firehouse Brewing Co. The firehouse decor really added to the brewery experience. We sampled one of their light beers and enjoyed the atmosphere before returning to the hotel for the night.
Day 4 – Hit the Road Again
On the morning of the fourth day, we woke up and prepared for a 13 hour car ride home. Even though our trip was short it was completely worth it. I wouldn’t change anything about our little adventure. It was just enough time to let us find a refreshed perspective and renew our faith that everything will be okay. It was so nice not to think about all of the negative things happening in the world for just a weekend. The world is a fragile place right now but we will recover and then we will travel farther.
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