Tonight's post comes from Rapid City, South Dakota. The city lights came into view an hour before I reached it. Travelling down I90 at 80mph it seemed like it took forever to reach the city 80 miles from where it first came into view when the car topped a rare rise in the South Dakota landscape.
The morning began in Brookings, South Dakota with a drive out to Des Met, South Dakota. This is where Laura Ingalls Wilder, the author of the Little House on the Prairie book series, homesteaded with her family. My friend Melanie Stringer, who is an historian that portrays Laura in the first person, gave me pointers on where to go and who to see. Check out Melanie's business Facebook page entitled Meet Laura Ingalls Wilder. The first person that I came across at the homestead was Melanie's friend Dianne who was surprised that I was friends with Laura and let us in for free. 
The 160 acre homestead that Pa Wilder claimed is a beautiful plot of land. It's open landscape and the wet slough were striking. It was so peaceful wandering the farm on the open prairie with no sound but the wind blowing through the few trees on the property. It was a cold 41 degrees and I saw my first snow flakes of the year blowing in the air. The wind blew hard across the prairie and was bone chilling.
After spending the morning at the Wilder Homestead it was a drive west across the prairie on Route 40. I had thought that Iowa was flat until I saw South Dakota. The small towns along Route 40 were quaint. We rolled through Iroqouis, Population 278, and home of the Iroqouis Chiefs the 2006 South Dakota state football champions. Then it was through Cavour, population 141, which featured one gas station and a burned out bar. Of course all these towns featured the obligatory feed mills and silos that dominate the landscape across the prairie. Next was Huron, population 12,000, which has the worlds largest pheasant which was appropriate as today was the first day of pheasant hunting in South Dakota. Other towns that were seen included Wessington Springs, population 1011 and Reliance, population 169. The road was arrow straight and only curved when a town was coming into view. The corn fields of Iowa and Minnesota had given way to endless fields of wheat, hay, sunflowers and cattle ranches. It was refreshing to drive through this country that was devoid of chain restaurants and Walmart. A wonderful step back in time compared to more populated areas.
After rolling down the road for miles without seeing another car and stopping the car in the middle of the road to hop and take pictures of the endless landscape, the road came to a four way stop intersection in the middle of no where. There wasn't any houses for miles and not a single car passed. At the intersection you could see for ten miles in all directions. The photo opportunity was awesome and I was taking several pictures when an old beat up Ford pickup truck came down the road and several minutes later stopped at the intersection. I nodded to the driver as he looked left the right then left again and waited about twenty seconds before turning left and heading up the road. This was hysterical as you could literally see for ten miles in all directions.
For hours the road stretched forward devoid of houses. Cattle, hay and sunflower fields lines the highway. The only other sign of man was the electric poles stretching across the landscape. The cattle herds were as huge as the crop fields. After several hours of driving the two lane highway rejoined I90 and the pace quickened to 80mph and the four lane stretched to the horizon twenty plus miles in the distance.
The next stop was the Badlands. This area is an amazing feature of nature. The rugged steep crevasses and ravines were brightly colored and dropped off into the Buffalo Grasslands National Park. Words cannot describe the sight. It was unbelievable and awe inspiring. The view for miles of the colors that I never knew could exist in a landscape. As dusk approached mule deer and mountain goats came out into the open and were close to the road.
The South Dakota darkness was overwhelming as I got back on I90 and headed to Rapid City. The day had been long and a lot of things accomplished. South Dakota is a huge state and I feel fortunate to have the opportunity to explore it a little. Rapid City is an oasis of modern mans civilization in a see of natures beauty. Tomorrow it's on to Mount Rushmore, the Devils Tower in Wyoming and then continue the western journey. The trek to the west coast is now only a little over half way over and the trip to Alaska is only a third over. It has been an amazing adventure so far.
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