Day 7 (Travel & Sightseeing) Belvidere, SD to Hill City, SD 162.1 miles ( total now 2081.7 miles)

Started the day with a visit to The 1880 Town, a collection of some 80 buildings brought together from all over the US and all built prior to 1880.  The buildings were filled with memorabilia from the same period.  A good tourist trap with a fair amount of enjoyment.  Enjoyed the animals and we all found some we could communicate with and relate to.

Jan and a friend

After about an hours drive we arrived at The Badlands National Park and spent about 2 hours walking and driving through the Park.  The change in the geography from the rolling plains was incredible and so were the views. 500,000 years of erosion from wind & water have created another of Mother Nature's masterpieces (although many of the early visitors to the area found it to be of no positive value of any kind!)  Not so with the plains indians who found it rich in wildlife of both the land and the air.

Today the Badlands has become a major area of scientific exploration having to been found to be one of the richest areas of the US for fossils and paleontology studies by universities throughout the world.

prairie dog

After leaving the Badlands we traveled on to the "infamous"  Wall Drug" .  For those who haven't traveled in the West I would say this is the "South of the Border" of the West.  Signs announce it's virtues for over 300 miles before you reach it, and the commercialism and glitz is no less than at Pancho's.  A total tourist trap.