Pierre, South Dakota

Two Hundred Thirty Six miles west of Sioux Falls, we pulled into Pierre, SD, at about 4 in the afternoon after a leisurely drive on Interstate 90, and a brief jaunt north on US83. Before turning north at Vivian, we stopped at a fantastic rest stop that not only overlooks the Missouri, but has an interesting sculpture.

Named "Dignity" this 50 foot high stainless steel sculpture depicts an indigenous woman in Plains-style clothing receiving a star quilt. The sculpture honors the culture of the Lakota and Dakota peoples who are indigenous to the area. Claude Lamphere is the artist.

A medallion notes that the site was visited by the Corps of Discovery (Lewis and Clark) in 1804, and the friendship they established with native peoples.

As we were leaving, we noticed a cute little teardrop trailer. It would sure look good behind a freshly painted 1940 Ford pickup.

We arrived at River View RV Park, site 51 at about 4 pm.

The park is in the process of remodeling, with a bunch of new sites added over the last year. We picked the longest site available in the new section, and we're happy that the utilities are absolutely perfectly placed and work well. If we had any concern it would be the dirt/gravel roads and sites. It's dusty, but will settle down over time. Sasha is miffed that the grass/sod in the dog run is brand new and is being kept very wet while it develops new roots. She doesn't like to get her feet wet!

The rv park is on the west bank of the Missouri River, actually in the town of Ft. Pierre. Ft Pierre is part of the Pierre micropolitan area and was established around 1832, but an American trading post had been operating here since 1813. The population is just north of 2,000. The rv park sits on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River.

Just down the road from the park is the Verendrye Monument, which commemorates the first recorded visit of Europeans to this area.

On March 30, 1743, Francois and Louis-Joseph Verendrye reached this area while searching for a route to the Pacific Ocean. While unsuccessful in their search, they penetrated further into the interior of North America 61 years before Lewis and Clark. After visiting with local Arikaras, they buried a lead plate at the site of the monument to lay claim to the upper Missouri for France. The plate was forgotten until 1913, when a group of school children found it on an outing and thought to sell the lead to a local print shop. It was recognized as an artifact and saved. It now resides in a local museum.

The inscription on the plate translates: "In the twenty-sixth year of the reign of Louis XV, the most illustrious Lord Marquis of Beauharnois, 1741, Pierre Gaultier De La Verrendrye placed this." A reproduction is placed on the monument.

After setting up, we bundled Sasha into the car and drove into downtown Fort Pierre. OK. Then we crossed the Missouri and followed the main highway south along the river. A few side trips here and there led us to a sign that caught our eye.

We've found that South Dakotans like to gamble when we saw a casino on just about every street in Sioux Falls, but we hadn't seen this particular combination of businesses...

Pierre is the Capitol City of South Dakota, and downtown street corners are decorated with statues of past governors. We like this one of Nils A. Boe, governor from 1965 to 1969, because he evidently loved dogs!

The Sioux Street Cruise was taking place, so we stopped to look a some cars.

Since Pierre, on the east side of the Missouri, is the Capitol, we went looking for the State House. 

Probably not.....

Yes, Virginia, There is a S.....

 After the canine excitement yesterday, and the weather worry last night, we decided to relax today and cruise around Sioux Falls, SD. A drive into downtown led us to the Blarney Stone restaurant about noon.

Trust me, the fireplace was for show! The temperature was much lower this morning, and promised to top out at about 83 with much lower humidity after the T-storm, so it was a very comfortable day.

An order from the lunch menu got us a Sheperds Pie and Fish & Chips. Great food!

After a fortifying lunch, we headed off for a walk around downtown. 

The downtown area encompasses a large area, with original sculptures placed along the sidewalks to not only brighten the area, but encourage one to pause and reflect.

"Frisbee Dog" caught our attention first:

A tree made from silver spoons is a curious sculpture:

This sculpture harks to the history of the Sioux Empire as this area is known. A warrior and his horse preparing to cast a spear.

A water feature made from local sandstone made us stop for a few moments. Notice the young boy enjoying the cool water!

Near the fountain, a stainless steel dragon threatens the young boy!

We can do it!

"Delicate Balance" deserves two photos, because the facial expression is priceless! We all can relate to the predicament!

And the "Twisted Toad" made us chuckle!

"Charlotte" reminded us of our family's 4-H past:

Just a few blocks north of downtown, we found the city's namesake. Yes, Virginia, there is a Sioux Falls! 

Donna was a bit wind-blown on the falls overlook, but agreed it was worth it for the cool temperature!

At the Visitors Center at Falls Park, a bronze of "The Farmer" reminded us of the dependence of this area on land, water, and sunlight for the thousands of acres of corn and beans.

As we made a huge counterclockwise circle around the city, we passed one of the areas largest employers:

We understand chicken is a best seller in the company cafeteria....

Back on Interstate 90, five miles east of Sioux Falls, we were in Branden, SD, which is the home of a huge industrial park with easy access to the interstate and points both east and west. The largest facility there is Marmen Energy, a precision metal manufacturer. Should you want valving, piping, or control units for oil and gas, energy production, or, for that matter, any industrial application, Marmen can cast it, machine it, weld it, and polish it. This facility fabricates the huge towers needed to support the thousands of wind turbines used for energy creation. Three of the units were still in the shop, waiting to be moved to the storage yard. In the foreground, thousands of sheets of steel are waiting to be bent and formed into tube sections.

An almost inconceivable number of tube sections are waiting for shipment.

Two of the sections were being prepped for shipment. Incredible!

Alas, we must leave Sioux Falls. The city has much to offer, and we haven't even scratched the surface. Starting tonight, and over the weekend, there are free live concerts in Falls Park, Farmers Markets, and the Grand Opening of Candy World at the local Scheels store! As usual, we miss all the good stuff by a whisker!

The Queen Has A Limp

 We were awakened this morning at 6 by a train behind the motorhome. The quarry behind us evidently loads train cars in the morning, so the train slowly drifts into the quarry, loads, and then slides out. The noise is noticeable, but not excruciating. At least there aren't any whistles!

Late last night, while we were playing ball outside with Sasha, she took a tumble and hurt her shoulder. This morning she was not able to walk properly, so we scrambled to find an emergency vet clinic to take a look at her. Just a few miles from the motorhome, All Cities Emergency Pet Care was able to take her in about noon. X-rays showed no bone damage, so it's once again an old neurological issue from her "childhood". A steroid and a pain prescription should get her back into shape in a few days. She acts better this afternoon and even wants to play ball a little, but sleeps a lot. Best thing for her. We miss the Queen.

At about 10 this morning, a helicopter landed a few hundred feet from us, a police patrol car arrived with lights and sirens operating, and a full on ladder fire truck showed up. Turns out it was a show for school kids. After a demonstration of a fire hose and a round of sirens, the helicopter revved up and took off.

A trip downtown to do some much needed shopping took up most of the afternoon, but as the evening progressed, hunger began to talk loudly to us. The Attic West has good reviews, and is just a couple of miles away, so we checked the restaurant out.

The Boss Hogg took care of Donna's wishes, with three pork sliders, roasted garlic, pickle, apple Jalapeño slaw and onion frizzles (read crispy onion straws). A side of onion rings finished that one off!

I let my eyes take control of my stomach, and ordered the Drunken Wilber. Pulled pork, thick cut bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, and onion frizzles. Awesome!

For being so busy today, we didn't get much done! We're prepping this evening for a severe thunderstorm that is supposed to appear during the night tonight. TV is predicting 70+ mph wind, light hail, and heavy rain. We'll be buttoning up the motorhome before bed, and hope for the best. I'll let you know how that works out!

Sad Day at Blackrock or, Can It Be Lifted?

 

It's Wednesday, the 9th of June. We had to leave the Twin Cities area today. It's always so exciting to visit with family members we haven't seen in two years, and sad to leave them, knowing that it probably will be another year before we see them again. We have been treated like royalty during our visit and, well, kinda got to liking it....

Yesterday, we spent most of the afternoon with Donna's brother, Bill, and his wife, Linda. Needing to get out and explore a bit after a year of lockdown, BnL took us to downtown Stillwater, MN. Still-H2O is an old logging town, and the first substantial settlement in the state of Minnesota, but has been transformed into a destination. The St Croix River is a big draw, with pleasure boats cruising upstream from the Mississippi and docking in Stillwater for a bit of family fun. It's said that one can walk across the river on the Fourth of July without getting wet. That's a lot of boats!

The old Liftbridge across the St Croix to Wisconsin has been taken out of vehicular service, refurbished, and made part of a trail system that accommodates pedestrians, skateboarders, and bicyclers.

Huge weights counterbalance the lift section in the center of the bridge. Looking up at one of the weights was a bit scary, but when these weights are released, they lift the center section of the bridge. That's how they do it!

In the center of the span, a medallion marks the border between Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The lift operates every 30 minutes to accommodate tall boats, and we were fortunate to be on the Wisconsin side as it operated. Almost all the way up!

And almost all the way down!

The temp was near 100 degrees F, and probably much higher on the concrete and asphalt around the bridge, so we elected to slip into Leo's Ice Cream for a bit of air-conditioned comfort. Leo's is part of the downtown scene, and was perfectly placed for a sweet drink.

Aunt Linda's rosy cheeks were a good measure of the temp outside! We enjoyed peanut malts, Orange Crush Floats, and sweet Iced Tea while we cooled off.

Back at CnB's house for dinner, Donna prepared a shrimp skillet with Feta in a tomato sauce over rice with a green salad. A fine ending to a fine day with the "kids".

Back at Dakotah Meadows RV Park, we walked around the lake with our faithful canine companion, Sasha, who discovered a turtle that appeared to be laying her eggs.

The sunset was fitting for our Minnesota visit. Both beautiful and emotional.

Leaving Prior Lake this morning on US 169 took us through Jordan, which is home to the Worlds Largest Candy Store! Also known as Jim's Apple Farm, is home for hard-to-find sweets, baked goods, the worlds largest selection of sodas, popcorn, pasta, and deli meats! If you need a theater box of candy, a yard of bubble gum, or a bottle of Route 66 Blu Razzberri soda, come to Jordan, Minnesota! The parking lot did not lend itself to motorhomes, so we had to pass it by, but the 97 degree temp made us long for a cool drink.

Passing on into the farmland of southwestern Minnesota, we found ourselves comparing it to the rolling hills of Central Minnesota. This area is more like Kansas!

Just before we crossed the state line into South Dakota, we noticed a huge wind turbine "farm". There were hundreds of the machines slowly turning in the prairie wind.

The first SD rest stop on Interstate 90 was very nice, and referenced the states relationship with the Sioux Nation.

Two hundred sixteen miles on the road got us to the WH Lyon Fairgrounds in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The fairgrounds has a couple of dozen full hookup rv sites along the west end of the grounds. There is an operating quarry around the site, with a once-a-day train that passes by and occasional earthquakes from the blasting, but the sites are fine. The grass is going to allow Sasha a bit of ball time, as soon as the temperatures get down to something reasonable! We're here for three nights (at $30 a night. A deal!) to explore a bit of the city and surrounding areas. We'll see what we can see!