9.2.2023
Rapid City, SD
Mileage: RV is still in the Rapid City KOA. We drove the truck today.
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Today consisted of three very different experiences: Wall Drug Store, Minute Man Missile National Historic Site, and Badlands National Park. It was also HOT, like record setting we wanted to be inside HOT.
Wall Drug Store
Our first stop was the very kitschy Wall Drug Store. Surprisingly there actually is a drugstore there amongst the myriad of other shops, a cafeteria, a hall of animals, and a large billowing T-Rex. It is one of those places you just have to stop. It is famous for offering free ice water and 5 cent coffee. We wandered about; bought a couple souvenirs; and had coffee, a donut and apple pie. We can check the Wall Drug box off the South Dakota Travel list.
There is even a traveler's chapel.
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
A much more sobering experience was the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. During the Cold War many missile silos were installed across the Great Plains. This area is not near any large population center, is near the Canadian border, and so, the North Pole which is the shortest path for the missiles to travel, and is in a conservative political area so there was little resistance to the installations (just quoting the video here, not a political statement).
The size of an actual nuclear warhead.
This graph ran along one wall of the museum. The blue cylinders represent the number of nuclear weapons the US had over time, the orange cylinders the number that the USSR had and the tall orange the total number in the entire world. While treaties have reduced the number over time there are still enough to end life on the planet.
The video at this site is very well done. If you have the time it is worth the time to watch it.
Badlands National Park
If you are keeping track this is our third National Park on the trip. While we have gone to things with other designations like monuments and memorials this is the 3rd actual park. There are 63 total with 51 being in the lower 48 states. It is a goal for us to see all of them.
The heat definitely impacted our visit. We didn't leave the truck for much more than a walk out to an overlook. Even then there was little time spent other than to snap pictures and get back in the air conditioned truck. Also please excuse our hat hair! The video at the visitor's center was broken. It is linked here:
The colors at the Yellow Mounds Overlook were amazing!
On our way out we saw this bison rolling in the dirt. You didn't think I would let a day go by without a bison picture, did ya?
Just outside the park is a dispersed camping area called The Wall. It is in a National Grassland so it is free to camp there. While we opted to stay in an RV park, it was cool to drive through this area and see so many folks dry camping. With the extreme heat we are very glad we have full hook-ups for the week! Look closely and you can see the campers on the edge of the cliffs.
We made it back to the RV and Comet! He is doing a great job adjusting to life in the RV!
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