OK, so shoot me. I
lied and I’m back again today, but that’s only because it was a really
interesting day. It started out as just
a boring, “eat up the miles day”. I
started at 7 because I had an9 hour ride on Interstate 90 through flat
farmland. Not my idea of a good
time. But then, all that changed. Before I got to Spearfish, SD, I hit the exit
for The Badlands and figured I’d do that today rather than wait until tomorrow. After all, what’s another 50 or 100 miles
when you’ve already done 500+? Good move
on my part.
This place is stunningly desolate and stunningly
beautiful. A picture is worth a thousand
words, so here’s a few thousand words:
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
If you ever get out this way and don’t spend a couple of
hours here, shame on you. For those of
you who like to camp, this would be a beautiful spot to do it.
After the drive through the park, the road hooks up with
I-90 at a little town called Wall, SD.
In that town, there is a place called “Wall Pharmacy” and it is
supposedly famous, having been featured on “good Morning America” and a few
other TV shows. For those of you who
have travelled to Florida via I-95 and stopped at “South of the Border”, you’ll
know exactly what “Wall Pharmacy” is all about.
The roadside signs start in Minnesota and there must be at least 100+ of
them. This place isn’t a tourist trap …
it’s a tourist black hole that sucks the money right pout of unsuspecting
visitors pockets. I thought it was kind
of neat.
There's much more to it than this - it's a whole town.
Also, I took a quick ride through Sturgis and it is
absolutely amazing to me where they put a five hundred thousand bikers (that’s
not a typo) for the annual rally. As wild a time as that probably is,
I’ll pass.
As of day 4, I’ve got over 1,500 miles behind me. The highways in South Dakota have a speed
limit of 75 mph, which we all know really means 85, so I made great time. Tomorrow, I’ll be visiting Deadwood, Mt.
Rushmore and taking a long ride through the Black Hills. Tonight, maybe a casino (Patti, eat your
heart out).