South Dakota Highlights

After leaving the Mississippi River behind me, the rest of Minnesota along I-90 can be summed up in two words...

Corn

 Windmills

That's right. Corn and windmills or more accurately a wind turbine. Both of them as far as the eye can see before they disappear over the curvature of the Earth... seriously.

Anyway, on to South Dakota.

When entering South Dakota from the east (which is the best way to do SD if you are a "save-the-best-for-last" kind of person...if you are a "desert-first" kind of person, you will want to do SD west to east...), this is the view you are welcomed with...

In fact, you are subjected to miles and miles and miles of this...

So, since even South Dakota realizes that the average sane person will not tolerate "this" for long and would very quickly start checking for alternate routes to wherever they are going, they put up teasers for all the "special attractions" South Dakota has to offer...

Like the World's Only Corn Palace... yes, Corn Palace. It is a palace (insert "building" here) covered in corn and other organic materials...like the Parade of Roses...except it is not a parade...and there are no roses... and it is in Mitchell, SD. (More on this later...)

And Wall Drug... Wall Drug Store is in Wall, SD and has been operating since 1931 and offering free ice water since 1936. As many as 20,000 people will visit the drugstore on a good summer day. I did NOT visit this time through as I was silly enough to make my trip coincide with Sturgis (more on this later) but I have been there before and it is a most pleasant diversion from the miles and miles of flat.

But before I get too far ahead of myself, let me tell you about Sioux Falls. The actual falls are on the Big Sioux River and although they only drop about 100 feet (don't laugh), they really are quite beautiful. It is, however, extremely difficult for the average visitor to get a picture of the falls with out a tourist in it, for they (tourists) are EVERYWHERE.

 Upper Falls

 Upper Falls

Upper Falls

One of the buildings at the park is the Sioux Falls Light and Power Company building, completed in 1908. The building housed three 500-kilowatt hydroelectric generators. Now it is the Falls Overlook Cafe. I do not have a picture of this building nor did I go down there to get an overlook of the entire falls since it was so incredibly crowded. (Note to self: stay away from major local and tourist attractions on good weathered Saturdays...)

Another building at the park is the Queen Bee Mill.

Queen Bee Mill

The mill opened on Oct. 25, 1881, and consisted of a seven-story main structure built of Sioux Quartzite quarried on site. Nearly $500,000 was spent on the construction of the state-of-the-art mill and its supporting structures. At the time of its construction, the mill was one of the most advanced in America. The mill could process 1,500 bushels each day. However, by 1883, the mill was closed - a victim of inadequate water power and a short supply of wheat.

Sioux Quartzite

Sioux Quartzite is a 7 on the Mohs hardness scale and extremely resistant to chemical weathering which makes it an excellent choice for buildings and structures. (Class dismissed)

Middle Falls

Ok. The Corn Palace. So, I've been here before but this time you couldn't get to the front of the building due to construction AND they were in the process of redesigning so not all the panels were complete. Each year there is a new theme and seeing the in-progress stage was kind of interesting.

Four panels that look like they are finished and one panel with just the sketch. The sketches are done on black roofing paper and have a color code on them...kind of like a corn-by-numbers...

Now. Let's talk about Sturgis.

Unless you are actually going to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, it really is in your best interest to just avoid the Black Hills (and surrounding areas) before, during, and after the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. I ended up in the Sturgis area the day before the rally started. (you think I would have learned my lesson the first time this happened to me...) Ignoring this life lesson means that almost half a million motorcyclists were on the road at the same time and headed in the same direction as I was, needing a motel room at the same time and in the same city as I did, AND needing gas and a bag of Doritos at the same time as I did... (navigating a gas station being overrun by hogs? an adventure not for the faint-of-heart) 

Just so you know, Sturgis 2015 dates are August 3-9, 2015.

I crossed the Missouri River in South Dakota... Overheard a discussion on what river that was... some thought it might be the Mississippi but then again they may have already passed the Mississippi so... well... maybe it is the Columbia...

Missouri River

All this took place in front of a placard clearly stating that we were standing on part of the Lewis & Clark Trail and overlooking the Missouri River...

There is more to share from South Dakota but I'm going to put it in a separate post so...

To be continued...

The Great River Road to Minnesota

After eating breakfast on the outdoor patio at my motel....

And crossing the Mississippi River AGAIN...

I found myself entering Iowa...AGAIN...

 At some point in my travels, I would need to head north to I-90 so I decided to take the Great River Road from LeClaire, Iowa...

 I traveled through Clinton, Iowa and I could see this church up on a hill so I tried a couple of roads trying to get up there. As I looked out over the Mississippi River valley and all the picturesque rolling hills and farmlands I noticed the humidity.  I didn't just feel the humidity... I could SEE it. The CAMERA could see it.

 I have to say that I was surprised at how beautiful this part of Iowa is...

 Then I continued north to the bluffs of Bellevue, Iowa where I was able to enjoy an amazing panoramic view of the valley.

 I continued up through Dubuque, Iowa... at this point the Great River Road leaves the "route" roads and continues onto "country" roads giving me the opportunity to actually see the river from the overlooks.

I love the look of the Mississippi. If I had no other choice but to live in the Midwest, it would have to be somewhere along the Mississippi River and after driving through the northeast corner of Iowa, that area would be a top contender.

Welcome to Minnesota...

A few more lovely views of the River before I have to turn westward once again.

 To be continued...

To Iowa and Back Again

Sometimes when I am road-tripping, what I am really doing is scouting locations where I want to spend more time the next time I drive through the area.  This was definitely the case for Nappanee, Indiana.

I would love to explore the Dutch Village Market (dvillagemarket.com) as well as Amish Acres (amishacres.com). The downtown area that I drove through was lovely and there were quilt shops, furniture shops and farmer's markets galore.

The rest of Indiana was corn and soy...

The farms are quite charming, however...

I entered Illinois amid the suburbs of south Chicago... just your basic strip malls and auto dealerships...

Once I got out of the city, I stopped at a lovely little rest stop and took a break with my camera in hand. I don't know if I have mentioned this before but I love tree bones... I could spend the entire day looking up at the sky through the branches and leaves of an old gnarled tree...

Mile marker 1226 and I crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa. I crossed the river at LClaire, the birthplace of William F. Cody ("Buffalo Bill") and would have taken an hour or so to visit the museum there but it was late afternoon and I was losing the light... (I hope everyone understands this to be the "photographic light" and not the light to drive by...)

I took a couple of pictures at the riverfront park there in town before continuing on my way...

City of Baton Rouge

The plan was to drive north along the river... it was supposed to be a scenic route... and at first I was a little concerned...

It wasn't looking too scenic.

But then it started looking more scenic. And again, I was finding areas that I would love to return to when I had more time. Like Sabula, Iowa (seen below), which is located on an island in the middle of the Mississippi River.

After driving through Sabula, I crossed back over the Mississippi River into Savanna, Illinois. (There were better motel choices over there...)

To be continued...