Let’s Celebrate National South Dakota Day!
April 26th is National South Dakota day!
South Dakota became the 40th state in the union on November 2nd, 1889. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes who comprise a large portion of the population with nine reservations currently in the state. It is the seventeenth largest state by area but simultaneously the fifth least populous in the United States. The state bird is the ring-necked pheasant and the American pasque is the state flower.
As part of the Great Plains, there is a wealth of natural beauty to be enjoyed in South Dakota as evidenced by their multitude of state and national parks. In fact, there is no shortage of things to do and sites to see in “The Mount Rushmore State”. Here are five must see attractions in South Dakota.
Badlands National Park
This park is the site of the largest undisturbed mixed grass prairie in the US. With more than 200,000 acres to explore visitors are likely to see the endangered black-footed ferret, bighorn sheep, bison, coyotes, elk, bobcats, foxes, and prairie dogs.
It also features a variety of hiking trails – the Castle Trail, the Door Trail – and even themed trails, like the Fossil Exhibit Trail, which features replicas of now-extinct animals once thriving in the region.
Deadwood
The historic town of Deadwood was founded in 1876 after gold was discovered there and quickly became an epicenter for the Black Hills Gold Rush. The entire town is a National Historic Landmark, preserving architecture and sites from the Gold Rush-era. The popular television series Deadwood was also filmed locally.
Wind Cave National Park
Established in 1903, the Wind Cave is the first cave in the world to be designated as a national park. It’s primarily known for its unique calcite formations called boxwork and frostwork. It’s one of the only places in the world to see the ultra-rare boxwork formation.
Tours to the cave began long before its official designation as a national park and have since developed into an incredible experience for adventure-seeking travelers.
In addition to the underground caves, Wind Cave National Park includes its above-ground area as part of the premises. The grassland consists of diverse wildlife, including free-roaming bison, elk, coyotes, cougars, foxes, and many more. Its ideal for hiking enthusiasts.
Ingalls Homestead
Fans of the Little House on the Prairie book and television show can explore the former childhood home of Laura Ingalls Wilder when visiting the Ingalls Homestead. The house is located at De Smet, South Dakota.
Visitors are welcome to explore the house and to participate in a number of hands-on activities like covered wagon rides, crafting and even chores done as they were in Wilder’s time.
The grounds are open for overnight stays in tents, covered wagons RVs or in the bunkhouse. The site is open from May through October but require email reservations through the Ingalls Homestead website.
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Of course, no visit to South Dakota would be complete without a visit to Mount Rushmore. The nationally revered landmark is a sculpture of the heads of four former United States presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln carved into granite on the southeast side of Mount Rushmore.
As expected, this is one of the state’s most visited attractions, with nearly three million people visiting each year. Visitors are encouraged to walk The Presidential Trail to get up close and personal with the monument and to visit the Borglum Visitor Center to learn how the monument was made.
