Wall, SD

Tuesday, October 15

Another day of driving ahead. All along, it’s been Andi and I’s intention to spend as much time as possible in the Pacific Northwest during this RV road trip and then book it home the final week with longer drive times. Typically, we don’t like to spend for more than 2-3 hours at a time driving because it gets long for the kids, this final week of our trip is an exception to the rule. It’s been working well for us to get up and drive early in the morning, stop and sightsee for a bit to stretch our legs, and then continue driving for a few hours again to reach our camping destination for the evening.

Before we left the KOA campground in Buffalo, WY that morning, I finished a load of laundry in the clubhouse while Andi fed the kids breakfast. The campground was quiet overall. It seemed like most people staying there in October were hunters who’d already left for the morning. We hit the road for the Badlands of South Dakota shortly after 9:00am.

Along the way, Andi stopped at a truck stop for fuel and decided to have the RV weighed on CAT Scale. He’d always been curious about this, he said, and figured now was good of time as any to try it.

We stopped for lunch near Spearfish, SD. I navigated us to the famous Bridal Veil Falls in Spearfish Canyon — a waterfall that can be seen from the Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway. We parked in a pull-off area alongside the road and enjoyed a “snack lunch” of deli meat, cheese, crackers, hummus, cucumbers and carrots and then hopped out of the RV to check out the waterfall.

Back in the RV, we continued on Interstate 90 toward Wall, SD. The four of us visited the Black Hills of South Dakota in the fall of 2018, but never stopped at Badlands National Park. I’ve regretted that choice ever since! In reality, there is so much to see and do in the Black Hills that it requires more than one visit (or an extended stay) to experience it all. Tonight, we planned to camp in Wall, SD not far from the entrance of the national park and then visit the park first thing tomorrow morning before driving onward through South Dakota.

Andi discovered an incredible boondocking spot to camp just a minute or two outside the Badlands National Park entrance. (“Boondocking” in the RV world means to camp without hook-ups in a non-traditional campground setting.) The camping directions said to follow two big cell phone towers through a metal gate. There weren’t any other campers here, but there were a few fire pits made with piles of rocks so we knew we must be in the right place.

This site was incredible! We wanted to experience the Badlands and this was it. Spectacular views for miles and miles of canyons and dry terrain made it easy to see why pioneers settling South Dakota in the late 1800’s had such a hard time. Our RV was parked right on the cliffside which made us both a little nervous. Andi checked the weather several times to make sure it wasn’t going to be a windy night. We also cautioned Tory and Aden repeatedly about staying away from the edge of the cliff. Things could definitely end badly out here if you weren’t careful.

We decided to walk around to look for animals. The canyons were beautiful with spectacular colors running alongside the rocks and the sun setting in the background.

Later that night, another RV and a person in a van rolled into the bookdocking site to camp for the night. Otherwise, it was completely quiet and secluded. Tomorrow, we’re excited to check out the national park.