Throwback Thursday-Travel Edition: Sights to See in South Dakota

I am a pretty detailed planner when it comes to almost every part of traveling. I pore over travel guides, blogs, and websites for the best hotels, restaurants, and cultural spots. I make extremely precise itineraries based on both time, location, and ease of travel. I plan out my travel wardrobe based on a color palette and make sure that all my accessories match effortlessly. And then we take the trip that I spent so much time planning, we have a fantastic time, and I never talk about it again.

Seriously, I am the WORST at sharing about my travels. I almost never share pictures (even though I have actual gift cards to Shutterfly burning a hole in my wallet right now) and if people ask about a trip, I generally say, “Yeah, it was super fun!” and leave it at that.

For someone who spends so much time reading, thinking, and dreaming about traveling, you think I would be better at sharing more about it! Thus, this blog series, which is a retelling of some of my favorite adventures, both stateside and international. In the spirit of Throwback Thursday, I’ll be throwing it back each week to share some pictures, reviews, and brief itineraries from some of my favorite trips.

(Read week one’s post about Nashville, TN here and week two’s post about NYC here!)


This week we are roadtripping to South Dakota! While my previous weeks have been pretty adult-centric, South Dakota is an awesome place to travel with kids. In fact, B and I felt like big kids the entire time we were there!

We drove out for 4th of July a few years ago, and it was a surprisingly great time to visit. The weather was gorgeous, lines weren’t too crazy anywhere we went, and it was an extra special treat to celebrate Independence Day by checking out Mount Rushmore at a special night ceremony!

There are so many options of things to do and see when you’re in the area, but I’ll run through my favorites for each of the following areas: where to stay, what to see (sights), what to do (interactive), and most importantly, what to eat!

Where to Stay:

Not only a money-saving trick, but also a way to have a much more interactive experience while traveling: camping! We had originally booked a hotel, but changed our minds a few days before and decided to camp instead! Because we drove, we were able to pack all our own gear, and so we tent-camped, but Rafter J Bar Ranch (which made a fantastic base-camp due to its central location and easy accessibility), also has cabins available for renting.

They also have a small convenience store, swimming pool, and nice bathroom and laundry facilities available. Even if you are a totally novice camper like we were, Rafter J makes for a super fun and low-key camping experience.

What to See:

I mean, you came here for Face Mountain, right? (Oh, sorry. I forgot that most people refer to this geological wonder as Mt. Rushmore.) But seriously, if that’s the main reason you’re here, it’s totally a good enough one! We loved Mt. Rushmore so much that we went back multiple times. We first went at about 6 am. to see the sunrise and it was probably the coolest thing I’ve ever done that early in the morning. It was relatively void of people at that time, so we had ample opportunity to snap ridiculous pictures at our leisure, hike around the trail that leads you right under George Washington’s nostrils, and read educational plaques.

We returned in the evening of the 4th for our second visit. This time, all of the buildings were open, so we were able to walk through the gift shops, watch an informational video, sample some of Thomas Jefferson’s ice cream (shockingly delicious for such an old recipe), and shop for some fudge. When the sun had set completely, we made our way to the front of the monument for an evening light ceremony complete with a section honoring the veterans present. Super cool way to spend the 4th. (Even though I was a tad disappointed by the lack of fireworks.)

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Driving through Custer State Park/Needles Highway/Sylvan Lake:

We spent hours driving through Custer State Park and I don’t regret a second of it! From the hairpin turns to the “will our car even fit through that?” rock tunnels, the simple act of driving takes on an entirely new meaning here.

Definitely start with Needles Highway, if you’re brave enough, and take the time to hop out of the car and take the walking path around Sylvan Lake. We managed to get ourselves caught in a hailstorm while walking and ended up hiding under a large rock formation, and we still loved every minute. The Wildlife Loop was somewhat lackluster, as we didn’t see near as many buffalo as we were hoping, but that’s the outdoors for you: somewhat unpredictable. If you are a burro fan, you will probably enjoy this loop, as we not only saw our fair share of burros, but nearly ended up with a few in our car.

 

What to Do:

  • We always try to do something new or different on our travels, and what’s more different than taking a vintage 1880 Steam Train ride? 

A two hour (20 miles round-trip) ride between Hill City and Keystone, the train ride is narrated, provides absolutely beautiful scenery to feast your eyes upon, and is an excellent way to both see and learn about some local South Dakota history. You can choose between a steam engine and a diesel engine, or ride one on the way there and the other on the way back! Either way, you are guaranteed to see some gorgeous nature and learn at least one fact you didn’t know.

 

  • Here’s where I have to admit that I have an obsession with visiting caves. I find them to be one of the single most fascinating ecosystems on Earth, and they have become one of my favorite attractions to seek out while traveling. That obsession actually started on this trip with a tour of Jewel Cave National Monument

If you think you don’t like caves, you are wrong. If you think they are dark and gross, or only filled with bats, you MUST go to Jewel Cave. Equally fun for kids and grown-ups, Jewel Cave is beautiful, and the tours are expertly-led by some extremely knowledgeable veteran guides. Never heard of cave bacon? JUST GO NOW!

Also, Jewel Cave is the 3rd longest cave in the WORLD, with over 193 mapped miles of passageways. It will seriously blow your mind. Even if you aren’t much of a walker, there are four types of cave tours to choose from, so pretty much everyone will find something that fits their style. (Side note: it’s extremely difficult to take pictures in a cave, but rest assured that it is unfathomably cool in person.)

 

This fantastic attraction is about two miles west of Mount Rushmore, and is the absolute perfect places to stop with or without kids for a little recreation. There is an abundance of options to choose from: ziplines, chairlifts, walking paths, a restaurant at the top (with a killer view of Mt. Rushmore), an aerial adventure park, and my personal favorite: the Alpine Slide.

We took the chairlift to the top, spent a pleasant few hours in the sun eating and staring at Face Mountain, and then Alpine Slid our way to the bottom. So much fun! (If you’ve made it this far into the post, I will now reward you with my first ever travel video: scroll all the way to the bottom of this post to see my ride down the mountain. I’m a cheese.)

 

What to Eat: 

We had fantastic buffalo burgers at a number of places, and really all of the food we ate was great, but if there is one place that sticks out in my mind (and in my dreams) it was the Purple Pie Place.

Evidently this place has an entire menu of food to choose from, but B and I stuck to pie and ice cream each time we went there. Yep, twice in the same day. I won’t apologize. The pie is THAT good.

 


Honorable Mentions:

Bear Country: (I’ll be honest, as a bear lover, I enjoyed this place. However, I know a lot of travelers are extremely choosy about their animal interactions and what they support, and I just don’t feel comfortable recommending this to everyone. I will say that while Bear Country had some pretty horrible scandals in 2006, they have since changed owners and seem to be keeping things on the up-and-up.)

 

 

Presidents’ Walk (Rapid City)

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Dinosaur Park (Rapid City)

 

 

Bonus: My first-ever travel video! Please enjoy this poor quality, non-edited, Erika-eye-view of my ride down the Alpine Slide. It was a blast. 🙂

 

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