Out West Trip: Day 36 (Custer State Park, SD to Onawa, IA)

Today’s highlights: Eating pie at Wall Drug. Cob-shaped popcorn balls from the Corn Palace. A short detour to visit MN.

wall drug - 26 jun 2011

After some coffee and chatting with our friends, we packed up the car and headed out. As we headed east, our first stop was at Wall Drug. Chloe asked what was special about Wall Drug and I told her its signs. She walked in and asked “Where are all the signs?” Oops. We had lunch and dessert in the cafe, then wandered around the store for a little while before heading further east. We stopped again at the Corn Palace. The girls got cob shaped popcorn balls. Instead of heading south in Sioux Falls, we continued east in order to buy gas in Minnesota, then went back west to go south. The weather got worse and worse. Thunderstorms and high winds were making it hard to drive. We stopped for a while to give the storm a chance to blow through, then went further south for a little while. We finally stopped in Onawa, IA, at a Super 8 that was actually not too bad.

corn palace - 26 jun 2011

Trip Stats:
Roadside Attractions: Wall Drug. Corn Palace. (Total: 29)
States: South Dakota. Minnesota. Iowa. (Total: 17 – GA, AL, MS, LA, TX, NM, AZ, UT, CO, CA, NV, WY, ID, MT, SD, MN, IA)
State Plates Spotted: None. (Total: 51 – includes DC)
Miles: 557 (Total: 8374)
Gallons of gas bought: 36.4 (Total: 488.5)
Poptops Spotted: None. (Total: 53)
National Park Stamps: None. (Total: 16)
Miles walked: None. (Total: 76)
Dollars saved with NP pass: None. (Total: 205)
Continental Divide Crossings: None. (Total: 8 )
Time Zone Changes: 1 (Total: 10 – EDT, CDT, MST, MDT, CDT, MDT, MST, PDT, MST, PDT, MST, MDT, CDT)
Security checkpoints: None. (Total: Border. Petrified Forest. Agriculture. Dam Security. WY Hwy Patrol.)