Road Trip '07 - Day 2

Mitchell to Hill City

Native American Awareness-
Prehistoric Native Village and
The Akta Lakota Museum
We started later this morning since we don't want to get to the Badlands till mid-afternoon to take advantage (hopefully) of some different sun angles. And on top of it we gain an hour today as we cross from Central to Mountain time. Our first stop is the prehistoric native village archaeological site just north of Mitchell.

They have a small museum there with a bison skeleton and a model of a Mandan sod hut, but the center of attraction is the prehistoric village excavation itself. This is the site of an ancient Mandan Village from about 1,000 years ago. They can tell how long it was inhabited by the number of times they moved homes. These sod houses lasted about 25-30 years. They also do a lot of digging through the ancient trash. Makes me wonder what my trash will tell about me.

They have built a dome over the excavation so that work can go on year round. These are students from Great Britain working here for the summer. They scrape slowly and then go through the scrapings. Many, many bones of animals have been found here and they continue to work hard at it.

They did have a planting of some native corn. We forget how much we have engineered crops these days. Genetic breeding techniques have been around a long time. Corn, as it is native to the wind-sept upper prairie/plains is short. It is planted in groups of three or so in little hills to provide protection for each other. Squash and beans are then planted around it. This sharing of resources and protection allowed for everyone to survive. The picture doesn't show the groupings of plants very well but the right leaning stalks sure show the wind as it was blowing that morning- and I am told- most days.

We then travelled to Chamberlain for a stop at the Akta Lakota Museum on the grounds of the St. Joseph's Indian School. No pictures were allowed inside in honor of the history and spirit involved. It was moving to walk around and read the Lakota history and all its ups and downs. As it turns out today isn't the only day we will be moved by the presence of a rich and powerful Native history. We are heading into the Black Hills, after all, a sacred center for the Lakota traditions.

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Cross the Wide Missouri
Up on the eastern hill, above the Missouri River, sits a rest area that gives a great introduction to the new land we are about to cross into. Over there are the upper plains- the West of much of legend and story. You can't tell it until you get over there, but the change in landscape is stunning. It was here at Chamberlain that Lewis and Clark stopped on both directions of their trip.

It is hard to imagine this land in its raw form. It is amazing even as it is today. You can get a little hint of it since the further we traveled the fewer residences we actually saw. But in its original pristine form, well, it must have been nothing short of spectacularly overwhelming.

But before crossing the wide Missouri we stopped for lunch at Casey's Cafe at the Chamberlain exit. It advertises itself has having "The Perfect Cheeseburger" as reviewed by a New York reporter. It's amazing- it didn't taste like McDonalds. And it was excellent! Too bad we are getting so franchised in America.

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The Badlands- A Trip to Mars
Get off I-90 at the Interior, SD, exit and you head south into a different world. The Badlands. It was a hot- HOT- day, somewhere between 104 and 108 degrees F.

We are looking, of course, at the remnants of an anciet sea bottom. The differing colors show different types of sediment and earth processes. Some rocks are harder than others and don't erode as quickly. They are all unique and give their own special additions to the scenery.

Over and over on the trip we will see incredible beauty- raw beauty that has its own place in the universe. The colors differ. Some will be deep and grab your attention. Others will be pastel and subtle. They are the many colors of an amazing world.

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We stopped for supper at Wall, SD, after leaving the Badlands. While we were there a woman brought in her older mother in the midst of heat exhaustion. They had been traveling in a non-air conditioned RV. The EMTs were called and they watched over her, but it was a strange sight to sit in a restaurant/diner while the medics work on a person two tables away. It was hot!!


We drove west and south and arrived in Hill City around 8:30. We watched a thunderstorm off in the distance the whole way! Even with the distant mountains we could see the storm dropping rain over 60 miles away. To live out here would certaianly take a shift in perspective.


As if to get the trip really started well a double rainbow showed up as we passed Rapid City and headed south on Hwy. 16. No- no picture. It was too special a moment to try to capture it in pixels. There are just some things like that!

Miles traveled today: 330 miles