Today was my last day in South Dakota and I spent it hiking, driving back to Rapid City, and visiting a Norwegian stave church.
I spent most of the morning hiking the Sunday Gulch trail in Custer State Park. The trail is a 4-mile loop to… you guessed it, the bottom of Sunday Gulch. The trail starts behind Sylvan Lake and since you can hike in either direction, I did some research ahead of time on which direction is better. I opted to go counterclockwise which meant the most strenuous part came first. And strenuous it was. I cannot imagine going in the opposite direction, as you literally have to climb down a series of boulders. There are railings on both sides for support, and I basically just held onto those and slid down the boulders.
Once you get part way down, the trail turns into more of an actual trail, with several stream crossings and a few more boulders and stairs to climb down. The first part of the trail was definitely more scenic, as the second half is basically just a slow, steady climb out of the gulch. There are a few nice views toward the top, but it is also close to the road so there is some traffic noise. Hiking down to the bottom of the gulch, I had the trail all to myself. It wasn’t until I got close to the bottom that I started passing people going in the other direction.
On the outskirts of Rapid City, tucked into a neighborhood, lies an unexpected attraction: an exact replica of the stave church in Borgund, Norway called the Chapel in the Hills. The church was constructed in the 1960s as a way to expand the outreach of the “Lutheran Vespers” radio program. You can visit the church and grounds for free and the setting is beautiful. Since I didn’t make it to Norway last summer, I was happy to have this small taste of Norway in South Dakota.
I left the stave church and was already dreading my next task of repacking my suitcase. My car had stuff everywhere and my suitcase was a disaster. Once I checked into my hotel (I had to use a luggage cart to bring everything in), I gave myself 45 minutes to organize and pack it all back into my suitcase and backpack. Then I ate dinner at MacKenzie River Pizza, Grill, and Pub. The service was slow, the grill was broken so they had a limited menu, and they made my barbecue pizza with chicken instead of pulled pork. So, not the best final meal in South Dakota.
I have a 6AM flight to Dallas tomorrow morning, then on to Orlando to visit my family for a few days and celebrate my niece’s first birthday before heading home to Massachusetts. Though South Dakota was never high on my vacation bucket list, I was more impressed than I expected to be by this underrated destination. If you’re looking for something other than the typical western U.S. national parks, the Black Hills of South Dakota is a great alternative!
Traveling with Laura 