Onward to Pierre

Lake Oahe, near Pierre 

Chamberlain at dusk

I left Mitchell this morning and headed toward the state capital in Pierre. It was a lot like a drive through western Nebraska - small towns few and far between with nothing but fields and grasslands as far as the eye can see. The drive around the southern edge of Lake Sharpe is fantastic, if the road is a bit lumpy, and completely isolated. After leaving the Native American settlement of Fort Thompson, there was not a single gas station or much of any sign of civilization until reaching Fort Pierre an hour and a half later. In the end, Pierre was only mildly interesting. The city is mostly a single strip of chain restaurants and stores without many unique qualities other than the state capital grounds.

Also visited: Letcher, Woonsocket, Lane, Wessington Springs, Big Bend Dam, Lower Brule, Vivian and Kimball, South Dakota.

South Dakota

near Dimock, South Dakota

Today was a very, very, very windy day in South Dakota. Not occasional gusts, either, but this incredible, ever-present south wind that made it difficult to operate car doors and take steady photographs. An elderly gentleman in Irene told me that it's usually windy there - but not always this windy - and sometimes more windy. I just smiled.

I do have to say that I like south-eastern South Dakota a lot. There are a lot of narrow gravel roads and wide open spaces to explore, plus the huge skies are fantastic. It feels good to get out on the road for a few days towards some place new.

I am spending the night in Mitchell, home of the world famous Corn Palace, many souvenir stands and cowboy-themed restaurants. Mitchell is an easy day's drive from the Black Hills on I-90 and attracts more than its share of tourists this time of the year. Tomorrow I'll be headed towards the state capital of Pierre and  Lake Oahe.

The image above was edited with Nik Software's Snapseed on my iPad. It's a nifty app, although the iPad's limitations make it difficult to post to Blogger via the device. I eventually emailed the edited image back to myself and created this post on my dreadfully slow netbook.

Also visited: Riverside, Iowa. Hub City, Volin, Menno, Olivet, Tripp and Parkston, South Dakota.

Another Sunday afternoon...

Thurman, Iowa

Sidney, Iowa 

Villisca, Iowa 

near Stennett, Iowa 

Montgomery County, Iowa

Also visited: Randolph, Anderson, Imogene, Essex, Coburg, Hepburn, Viking Lake and Stanton, Iowa.