Southeast South Dakota

Saturday: 270 mi / 430 km driven from Pierre to SE South Dakota (Vermillion), but it didn't feel that much considering very few traffic and long straight stretches of roads. Also, we made a couple of stops: first one was the interesting Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center in Chamberlain, on the campus of St. Joseph’s Indian School (opened in 1927), an octagon shaped building with interesting displays about the Sioux in general and the Lakota in particular, about the Native American way of life, both past and present. We have been here before and met the exactly same guy again we had as a guide many years ago!

High up on a bluff, greeting from I-90 near Chamberlain: "Dignity" a monumental (50 ft./15 m) steel sculpture, representing the rich Native American culture. It was designed by SD sculptor Dale Lamphere - who also designed the new big "Arch of Dreams" in Sioux Falls - to honor the cultures of the Lakota and Dakota people. Though she is already impressive at daylight, at night, LED lights glow in the evening sky. The view from here towards the Missouri River is gorgeous, too, and the nearby Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center is very instructive. Weather was pretty good, too, for a change.

On to Mitchell to see the corn palace, a quite unique attraction. From 1880s to 1930s over 30 prairie palaces in the Midwest, made from grasses and grains, brought attention. Only one endured: the World's Only Corn Palace in Mitchell. It was built in 1892 on Main Street to prove to the world that South Dakota had a healthy agriculture. It became a gathering place where city people and their rural neighbors enjoyed and still enjoy a fall festival with entertainment in late August. The nowadays palace was built 1919-1921, and in the course of time it became one of the finest basketball arenas in the area. Also, it serves for exhibits, dances, shows, meetings, banquets, graduations and other purposes. It is redecorated each year with naturally colored corn and other grains and native grasses to make it "the agricultural show-place of the world". A different theme is chosen each year - right now it's "weather".

From Mitchell it was only a pretty short drive of about 2 hours to Vermillion, a college town, where we stayed for the night. Unfortunately, the renowned Music Museum was closed for renovations, the W.H. Over Museum was already closed for the day when we arrived, and, even worse, we didn't know about a college football game taking place this evening. Unfortunately, nobody had told us. So, after a tasting in the local Valiant winery - which has good wines, esp. the "wild grapes' wine", but is pretty expensive - we decided to call it a day and had a "picnic" in our modest hotel room.