8 July 1992: Sioux Falls, South Dakota to Rapid City, South Dakota

We left Sioux Falls, South Dakota in the morning. Our destination was 430 miles (692 km) west in Rapid City, South Dakota.

It was about a seven hour drive. There were some tourist sites along the way, but just like Iowa, South Dakota was mostly flat and flatter. The sites were memorable, the drive not so much.

We left Sioux City with a short drive on Interstate 29 before we found ourselves on Interstate 90 once again.

142 miles (229 km ) west of Sioux City, we stopped in Chamberlain, South Dakota, a town on the east bank of the Missouri River, the longest river in North America at 2341 miles (3767 km) in length. As I recall, there was a Triple XXX drive-in restaurant in town or just outside of town where we stopped for a lunch of hamburgers and root beer. We also stopped at a rest area with a good view across the river so I could take some photos.

My mother and grandmother with the Missouri River in the background

Concrete teepee at the Chamberlain, South Dakota rest area

132 miles (212 km) west of Chamberlain we cut off on South Dakota Highway 240 for a 40 mile (64 km) loop through Badlands National Park.

Badlands National Park is a spectacular vista of eroded buttes and prairie. In certain places, the spaces between the buttes remind one of the Grand Canyon, albeit on a much smaller scale.

We stopped and hiked one of the easier trails in the park, but as I did when we visited the Grand Canyon, I almost fell while taking a risk to get a good photo. Apparently, I didn't learn from previous misfortune, but once again I got the photo I wanted.

Badlands, South Dakota

Badlands, South Dakota

Badlands, South Dakota

Badlands, South Dakota

Badlands, South Dakota

At the other end of the loop, we arrived in Wall, home of Wall Drug Store.

Wall Drug Store was once a small town drug store, but evolved into a tourist attraction after it began offering free ice water to travelers on the highway. In 1992, it was a mall consisting of the original drug store, a gift shop, a restaurant, and many small merchants. It also offered cups of coffee for a mere five cents.

I remember we had a bite to eat at the restaurant before wandering the mall for awhile. We purchased some trinkets in the gift shop. My grandmother got some of their five cent coffee for the road.

We followed Interstate 90 55 miles (89 km) west to Rapid City, where we had rooms reserved at the Motel 6. We waited a couple of hours before eating a light dinner.

Total Travel Distance: 430 miles (692 km)

7 July 1992: Milan, Missouri to Sioux Falls, South Dakota

After spending seven days and eight nights in Milan, Missouri with our cousin Lanny and his wife Karen, it was time to return to the concrete trail for the final leg of our journey, which would take us home to the Seattle, Washington area at last.

Milan was not only the longest stop on the trip, it was one of the most enjoyable. It was a pleasure to meet long-lost relatives. It began to feel like our home away from home.

As we drove away from Lanny and Karen's house, we drove north along the dirt road that took us past the the small house where my maternal 2nd-great-grandfather Elihu Millikan Crawford M.D. lived his final years before his death in 1924, and then back through the village of Boynton and past the well in the road.

We continued 52 miles (84 km) in a northwesterly direction on Missouri Route 5, U.S. Route 136, and Iowa Highway 2 to Corydon, Iowa.

My great-grandfather Henry Elwood Crawford was born near there in 1866, so I stopped to do some research in the courthouse. My 2nd-great-grandparents Elihu Millikan and Adalade (née Woodruff) Crawford had only lived there for about eight years before moving south to Missouri, so I didn't expect to find any substantial records, which was indeed the case.

Our next destination was 357 miles (575 km) northwest in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, but first we had to trek across Iowa. Outside of its cities, Iowa is flat farmland. Mile after mile of flat farmland tends to blur together into a homogeneous memory.

Our route took us along Iowa Highway 14, U.S. Route 34, Interstate 35, Insterstate 80, Insterstate 680, and Insterstate 29.

Entering Sioux Falls was like visiting a smaller cousin of the Las Vegas Strip. I remember a lot of neon signs advertising local attractions. We arrived at twilight, so the lights stood out in the growing darkness.

Our rooms were reserved at the Select Inn. I believe we ate dinner at a local steakhouse before returning to our rooms for the night.

Total Travel Distance: 410 miles (660 km)