STATE #45 – SOUTH DAKOTA
I mentioned in an earlier post about my 3,500-mile road trip to get 7 of the last 8 states that I needed to visit…well, I must say that South Dakota was my absolute favorite state on the trip. It started with my first night in the state. We arrived in Sioux Falls, SD. This was really just a place to sleep before going off to the Badlands in the morning. But, what a great stop. The “falls” of Sioux Falls are awesome. It’s not often that you have raging rapids and waterfalls running through the middle of a city, but when you do, it’s worth seeing.
The falls of Sioux Falls, SD
Next morning, it was off to the Badlands National Park. What can you say about the Badlands…see the pictures below. Its almost like we landed on another planet. The hiking is breathtaking with some great terrain. My wife and I did manage to get lost on one of the trails. And, in late April, there are not many folk around to find you. We eventually figured it out, but we were not having fun for about 60 minutes of our day. KEEP AN EYE ON THE TRAIL MARKERS! Anyway, we did 2 days at the Badlands National Park. We did some chilly hiking, found buffalo, prairie dogs, coyotes, and mountain goats (or whatever they are called). We also did the obligatory trip to Wall Drug. Wall Drug is worth walking around and having lunch at…but do not get your expectations too high. And, let me once again give a shout out to the Wagon Wheel Grill in Interior, SD. As the park restaurant closed at 4:30 pm, this place kept my wife and I fed and “hydrated.” See the FINE DINING category for details.
Not your run of the mill hikes
I have video of the buffalo stampede that I “might” have started 
In all its glory…
Has anyone seen the trail markers?? 
Communing with Mother Earth
Just to fast forward South Dakota…On the following day, we went to the Blackhills. I liked these even more than the Badlands. If you want to see lots of buffalo and other indigenous creatures, go to Custer State Park. Also, Mount Rushmore was more interesting than I anticipated, but I would not fight a crowd to get there. Anyway, these sites are widely known and I feel that I am violating the integrity of my blog by discussing them any further. Bottom line…put South Dakota on your MUST VISIT list. PT
Custer State Park 
Mt Rushmore to ourselves
The badlands are so cool.