It was 815am when we left our Harvest Host in Huron, South Dakota. Our destination today was Rapid City, which is close to the Crazy Horse Memorial and Mount Rushmore.
Six years ago when we drove across the US in the other direction, we stopped at Mount Rushmore but didn’t visit the Crazy Horse Memorial, which is a rock carving of the legendary 19th century Oglala Lakota warrior and leader who fought the US government expansion and the assimilation of his people. Unfortunately, we were pressed for time today and will be again tomorrow, so will have to visit the memorial another time.
We made two stops along our journey today. The first was in the town of Mitchell, where the Corn Palace is located. Prior to yesterday neither of us knew the Corn Palace existed. Our hosts suggested we stop there before leaving the area and said it was only 45 minutes away.
We backtracked east a bit but it was well worth it. The first Corn Palace was built in Mitchell in the year 1892. The palace was conceived as a gathering place where city residents and their rural neighbours could enjoy a fall festival with extraordinary stage entertainment – a celebration to climax a crop-growing season and harvest. This tradition continues today with the annual Corn Palace Festival held in late August each year. In 1905 the original corn palace was too small and a new building was completed just in time for the 1921 Corn Harvest festivities. In 1930 it was decided to recapture the artistic features of the original palace and minarets and kiosks of Moorish design were added.
Each year since then, the building is redecorated with murals made from 12 different shades of corn, grains and grasses. Decorating usually begins in late may when rye and dock are removed and in August the corn is stripped from the murals. A new mural is usually completed in early October. Ear by ear, the corn is attached to the murals on the outside of the building, making it a folk art wonder on the prairie of South Dakota.
Inside the palace is a fullsized basketball court, stadium seating on one-side and a huge stage on the other side, used for plays and music concerts. The palace hosts high school and college basketball games and is rated in the top 10 of US college stadiums.
Who knew, right? After about an hour in Mitchell, we drove to the I90 and began a lengthy journey to our next stop, Wall Drug.
Six years ago, I was very intrigued by Wall Drug as signs began popping up advertising its existence in Montana. We were on a mission to get to Toronto on that trip, putting in 12 hour plus days, so had no time to stop but I wanted to return one day.
Driving from the east, Wall Drug signs began appearing in Minnesota. Clearly this was a place one should visit at least once.
On our way, we encountered a heavy headwind, so our gas mileage was less than ideal. I stopped to refuel twice. The trip felt extra ordinarily long despite the distance. Connie suggested it was likely due to the boring prairie and the I90. She is likely correct.
However, we gained an hour today, crossing into the Mountain Time Zone an hour or so before the town of Wall. When we arrived it was 1230pm but our stomachs were still on central time, so we decided to buy lunch instead of eating in the trailer as per usual.
We parked in a large parking lot, mostly full of other RVs and walked a block to Wall Drug. There were two tour buses parked nearby and when we walked in, the line up to order food was a mile long. At this point we were committed and had two choices. Eat something substantial or order donuts and ice cream. We decided to wait in line and eat something that was somewhat of a balanced meal. Fortunately, the line moved reasonably quickly and we were entertained by other folks in line. Most everyone was older than the two of us and there were only a handful of couples with kids.
Despite being cafeteria style, the food was quite tasty and I ordered a blueberry pie al a mode for us to share as dessert. Baked on site (so says the menu) it was reasonably good. It reminded me of the days when as a kid, I went to cattle auctions with my dad. He’d often order me a piece of blueberry pie with ice cream.
Wall Drug almost fills the entire east side of the block on Main Street in the town of Wall. Dorothy and Ted Hustead purchased the store in 1931 when there were just 326 dirt poor people living in Wall. Ted was a newly graduated pharmacist and Dorothy a high school literature teacher. Ted’s father had recently passed away and left him $3000, which he used to purchase the store and make a go of it. They chose Wall because it was a small town and it had a Catholic Church, their only two criteria. Dorothy’s father told Ted that Wall was about as God forsaken as one could find but Ted and Dorothy loved the town and moved there anyway.
For five years they struggled to make a living (remember this was the dirty thirties – the Great Depression), until the summer of 1936 when cars began to chug along Route 16A travelling toward or returning from Yellowstone National Park and Mount Rushmore. Dorothy came up with idea of posting signs along the highway offering the weary travellers free ice water. When Ted and his son Billy put up a few 12 x 36 inch signs along the road, car loads of people began to flow into town to get their free ice water. Soon they were also purchasing sodas and ice cream. And the rest…is history.
Wall Drug today is more like a mini mall. Within the mall is a pharmacy store with a licensed pharmacist but in addition, there is a chapel, a western art store, a souvenir store, a western outfitters store, a book store and of course the cafeteria style restaurant which seats more than 500 people. Behind the store and across the alleyway is a picnicking area with stuffed buffalos, a gold panning centre, an arcade, a shooting gallery, and other entertainment that younger kids enjoy.
Before leaving, Connie bought a Christmas ornament and some souvenirs and I purchased a bottle of straw hat cleaner from the western outfitter store. It was $8.95 and when I went to pay for it, I said to the older gentleman behind the counter “I hope this stuff works.” He responded, well I guess you will find out. Hardly a show of confidence but I’m desperate as my favourite Stetson hat is a little stained after several days working and sweating in the hot sun at Ethan and Carissa’s place in Bathurst.
It was 29 celsius when we left Wall for the last leg of our journey toward Rapid City and the Black Hills KOA. When we arrived in Rapid City the temperature had risen to 37 celsius. Summer is definitely not over here.
As I write this blog, it is 28 celsius but dark. Summer isn’t over but the days are definitely getting shorter.
Tomorrow we drive to Billings Montana and another Harvest Host. It is a 6 hour drive if we take the I90 but I think we will take highway 212 because it is more direct and should be more scenic.
Until next time, thanks for reading.
Mal and Connie's Cross Canada Adventure 2.0 