I encountered a whole lot of good, a little taste of bad, and a few days of ugly on my trip through South Dakota’s badlands. I’ll start with the good, which was the Badlands National Park itself.
This park of 244,000 + acres exceeded my expectations. Photos I have seen in the past gave me the impression that I would be driving through some monotone beige rolling hills that undulated out to the horizon. With a name like “Badlands” one expects a certain reputation of being desolate, remote, and uninhabitable, and not entirely pleasing to the eye. That was true to a certain extent, as the panoramic views of the rugged terrain seemed to go on for miles where men dare not tread.. But once I dropped below the “wall,” it became a geological rainbow of fascinating spires and sand sculptures, colorful and delicate in their beauty.
I entered Badlands National Park at the Pinnacles Entrance, just down from my boondock spot on a gorgeous ridge of the Badlands wall. From here, the ragged edge of the escarpment just drops off from the middle of the prairie into miles of geological formations.
The 24 mile scenic drive stretches the length of the park, exiting at the Ben Reifel Visitor Center where one can rejoin Interstate 90 and circle back for a loop. Traveling in this direction, one starts out above the canyons of the badlands with scenic overlooks out across the tops of the formations. As the drive continues, the road drops in elevation until one is at the bottom, now looking up at the giant formations of sedimentary layers overhead. This is a great way to gain perspective of the magnitude of the erosion while following the layers down.
Although it’s a beautiful drive with majestic views right out the car window, as with most “drive through attractions,” it pays to get out of the car and set out on foot to get a feel for the true perspective. Several short hikes like the Door and Window trails explore the natural gaps through the formations and allow one to view the erosion layer by layer.
I enjoyed my time in this national park much more than I had anticipated. Of course, having that “national park view” right outside my door sure didn’t hurt!
Now on to the bad…and I do mean b-a-a-a-a-d! That would be Wall Drug. Apologies to any readers who might be fans of this famous travel icon. As my friend Gayle said, “It’s a rite of passage.” Agreed. I’m just glad I don’t have to pass that way again! Never in my life have I seen so much plastic JUNK of little to no value for sale!
Given that Wall Drug has been in business since 1931, I was expecting some quaint little old fashioned drug store with a character straight out of Archie comic books standing behind the soda fountain hand-making milkshakes. I figured it would have the obligatory teeshirts and trinkets. But what I found annoying was the room after room after room of hokey western gimmicks.
In the Wall Drug “Backyard,” you will find grown men crawling up a step ladder to “mug it up,” waving their hats while sitting astride a giant sized “jackalope” (half rabbit, half antelope) or a bucking bronco. Life-sized paper mache’ robotic musicians yukking it up to western twang that would make more than Tom Dooley hang his head. Animatronics await beside every doorway to spring into action at the drop of a quarter or three, from penny-crushing Cowpoke Pete to tonic-pushing Dr. Feelgood. And walls lined with a plethora of dead, stuffed wildlife. “Wallcome to Wall Drug.”
Even the donuts were bad. I had long been anticipating one of their famous (or famously advertised) “homemade” donuts with maple frosting that had come highly recommended, only to find they only sell CAKE donuts. That’s not even a donut in my opinion. I bought two and threw the second one in the trash on my way out the door.
I’ve seen Wall Drug bumper stickers on vehicles from coast to coast, so I figured I was in for a special treat of “Americana.” I pulled into one of three giant gravel parking lots big enough to accommodate two million visitors per year, securing the Winnie thinking I would be in there a while…I could have left the engine idling.
And finally, the downright “Ugly,” which would be the $1,300 I left behind in Rapid City to replace the Winnie’s thermostat, fan clutch, and replace the broken latch on my driver’s side door. Readers may recall my “limp mode” incident when trying to climb the 7 mile, 7% grade Rabbit Ears Pass out of Steamboat Springs. I knew the temps I had been seeing on the Scan Gauge were not typical, running about 10 degrees hotter than in the past. So it was good to find the culprit.
However, the irony is, I went in to troubleshoot an intermittent “hoovering” sound believed to be coming from the passenger side wheel well, but they couldn’t find it. I still have the sound effect after $500 of added labor costs to test drive and troubleshoot. Like going to the ER for a sore foot, and coming out with an appendectomy you didn’t know you needed. And $1,300 less in the bank as a result.
Thank goodness I got something in exchange for my investment as Eddie’s Truck Center was kind enough to let me overnight on their lot while the work was being done. And since I arrived late on a Thursday and had to wait over the weekend for parts from Sprinter, I was grateful for the parking privileges for just shy of a week.
Spending time in Rapid City, however, made me grateful to be rolling again. Chain restaurants, big box stores, and a Cabela’s bigger than the only food store in town, (I don’t count Walmart and Target as “food stores”) it feels too much like the neighboring Texas town where we go to stock up. The biggest thing I could find going on was the AMC Classic movie theater. I respect that some people like that lifestyle, but I am not one of them. And it’s not like I needed a week-long stay to remind me.
An excellent rendition of the good, the bad and the ugly.
I found your pictures of the badlands to be beautiful as well as fascinating. The west continues to surprise and awe me. Thanks.
Can’t say much to the bad, it is as you say. But the good…those colors…frikkin yeah! We never went to the SD badlands in our many years in the US and I can now see that’s a grand mistake. We never went to Wall Drug either…lucky escape I guess?
Nina
Well, we have never been to Wall Drug and now I never plan to. We did visit the badlands in ’06 and they are beautiful and your photos are really fine. You had great light for sure. We can go you a few grand better in the repairs department with our last outing at MB here in Maryland. Hope to catch up to you soon one day!
Ed
Umm… Its very clear that you didn’t make any effort at all to explore Rapid City. Let’s start with…. the city has at least 5 large (non-walmart/target) grocery stores, as well as a couple of food co-ops. Downtown has many different kinds of local eateries, from fine dining, to ethnic food choices from Jamaican to Nepalese , all locally owned, and not chains. Rapid City also has a big live music scene, and there is usually never a night that a person can’t find a band playing somewhere in town. There is always something going on it might be a symphony, or it might be a rodeo….but there is always an event if you look.
Rapid City, is special because a person can buy anything they need, get a great meal, and be on a rock climbing, hiking, caving, or mountain biking route all within 20 minutes of their house. Next time you are stuck somewhere for a week, get away from the interstate and see the place. Or, don’t write about it.
Dear “Count Edmond.” My personal blog, so I will write what I want to write about. If you do not like it, you can exercise your right to read what you want to read about. I made it clear that I was there to have repairs done…not tour the city. I did get away from the interstate, drove through downtown at least three times, hunted down the one and only Safeway I could find, went to three movies. It was a mirror image of the town I left behind in Texas. Again, this is my personal blog, and I call it like I see it. If you do not enjoy reading, I certainly respect your reasons for not doing so.
Love your first picture of the sheep, absolutely beautiful! The Badlands are a natural wonder that everyone must see if they are in the area. Wall Drug? Well, lets just say that marketing makes all the difference and is probably a “one and done” for most of the people who stop there.
The Badlands look lovely, the last time I visited I was 11 so my memory is shaky, thanks for taking me back. Wall Drug looks like hell, I cannot understand how places like that stay in business. Dealing with an aging RV that has been heavily used for multiple years is a drag, we’re hoping to find a house and get rid of ours before anything big goes wrong!
Beautiful scenery! I do have one question however; why do you say (at the beginning) the sunrise was rarely seen? Is it usually foggy there?
And yuk – Wall Drug looks like a place our Buc-ee’s aspires to be. I stopped going to Buc-ee’s 2 years ago because of the crowds & cheese factor. At least their food is decent.
Sorry about your unexpected bill. Even if expected, that one had to hurt.
I am laughing, my dear cousin, because you know I am part of the Stephen and Don trio, whose only sunrises have been on the way home from the party. haha! I have never been to a Buc-ee’s, but I heard they are building a BIG one in Waxahachie, so looks like I’ll get my big chance soon!! 😉
Ack! Shoulda known! 😉
Beautiful photos of the Badlands, just absolutely stunning, need to go there again and savor the views all over again.
Wow, Suzanne! It’s been at least 25 years since I visited the Badlands. Thanks to your photos and report, the Park is back on the list. Thank you.
I remember feeling the same way about Wall Drug when we visited many years ago. Always love the Badlands! You were so lucky to score such a beautiful spot overlooking them. Beautiful images Suzanne!
Well, I reckon I’ve been reading your blog long enough to quickly figure out what you meant about sunrises being rarely seen. This one was a beauty, though, along with the other photographs of the Badlands. What pretty colors come from dirt and stone! For sure, we share one commonality: cake donuts? No, thanks! Give me a hot dozen melting Krispy Kremes to slide down my throat *any* day! 🙂