Along the way, we had a couple of unplanned stops. The first was another byproduct of the power of advertising, The Corn Palace, the world’s only corn palace found in the town of Mitchell, South Dakota. I was tempted to build my own corn palace so that they could no longer make this claim. The palace was a little corny, another intended pun, but it was interesting to see how many other people had succumbed to the lure of the numerous billboards that promised “corny souvenirs” (their words, not mine, so you can stop the groans). You probably can’t tell from the pictures, but all of the mosaics are constructed from cobs of corn. You can decide for yourself if this sounds like something worth visiting or not if you happen to be driving past the town of Mitchell.
Our next unplanned stop was at a rest area; I know this doesn’t sound worth mentioning, but this particular rest area, not only had clean restrooms, but a 50 foot tall statue called Dignity which is a tribute to the Native American culture. The statue is placed on a scenic bluff overlooking the Missouri River. Nearby is a stone teepee that can be found at most rest areas in South Dakota. If you happen to be driving this direction, it is worth a visit, and not just to use the restroom.
We arrived at Fort Pierre in time to grab dinner at Drifters, a bar and grill overlooking the Missouri River. This ended up being a surprisingly cool experience as when we arrived, a dog adoption event was happening with a live guitarist playing covers. When the event finished, a South Dakota based band, Camp Comfort performed a combination of original music and covers. Their style is self-described as a combination of “bonfire jam session, reggae house, and festival blues-rock” and were fun as the band had a lot of energy and character. The food was fairly good too; we shared a buffalo queso and fish tacos. Overall, this was another cool, unexpected experience.
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