South Dakota

Top 10 Places

Mitchell's Corn Palace
Mitchell’s Corn Palace

10. Mitchell Corn Palace

      • Arena
      • Mural
      • Concessions

Wall Drug
Wall Drug, Wall, South Dakota

9. Wall Drug

      • Backyard
      • Restaurant
      • Shopping

Jewel Cave National Monument
Jewel Cave National Monument

8. Jewel Cave National Monument

      • Historic Lantern Tours
      • Discovery Talks
      • Scenic Tours

Mammoth Site
Mammoth Site

7. Mammoth Site

      • Mammoth Site
      • Hot Springs (a small town gem)
      • Former Fossil Cycad National Monument

Crazy Horse Memorial
Crazy Horse Memorial

6. Crazy Horse Memorial

      • Crazy Horse monument
      • Indian Museum of North America
      • “Legends in Light” multimedia laser-light show

Saloon No. 10, Deadwood
Saloon No. 10, Deadwood

5. Deadwood (a small town gem)

      • Historic Main Street
        1. Saloon No. 10
        2. Historic Fairmont Hotel
        3. Historic Bullock Hotel
        4. Silverado Franklin Historic Hotel
      • Deadwood Alive re-enactment
      • Deadwood Stagecoach Ride
      • Broken Boot Gold Mine
      • Tatanka Story of Bison
      • Mount Moriah Cemetery

A bison at Wind Cave National Park
A bison at Wind Cave National Park

4. Wind Cave National Park

      • Above ground
      • Garden of Eden Tour
      • Natural Entrance Tour
      • Fairgrounds Tour
      • Candlelight Tour
      • Caving Tour

The Needles in Custer State Park
The Needles in Custer State Park

3. Custer State Park

      • The Needles
      • Sylvan Lake
      • Burros
      • Peter Norbeck National Scenic Byway
      • Custer State Park Wildlife Loop Road
      • Nearby: Custer City (a small town gem)

Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Mount Rushmore National Memorial

2. Mount Rushmore National Memorial

      • Mount Rushmore
      • Presidential Trail Loop Trail (0.9 miles)
      • Lincoln Borglum Visitor Center
      • Sculptor’s Studio
      • Black Hills National Forest
      • Nearby: Keystone-Hill City – 1880 Train

Badlands National Park
Pinnacle Overlook, Badlands National Park

1. Badlands National Park

      • Badlands Loop Road
      • Sage Creek Rim Road
      • Black-tailed Prairie Dog Towns
      • Bighorn sheep
      • Pronghorn antelope
      • Nearby: Wounded Knee Battlefield (site of the Wounded Knee Massacre; part of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation of the Oglala Lakota)

State Info

A) State Nicknames

      • Mount Rushmore State
      • The Coyote State

B) State Symbols

      • Flower: American pasque (Pulsatilla hirsutissima)
      • Bird: Ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus culchicus)
      • Tree: Black Hills spruce (Picea glauca densata)
      • Animal: Coyote (Canis latrans)
      • Grass: Western wheat grass (Agropyron smithii)
      • Fish: Walleye (Stizostedion vitreum)
      • Jewelry: Black Hills gold
      • Dessert: Kuchen
      • Sport: Rodeo
      • Bread: Fry bread
South Dakota State Capitol Building, Pierre
South Dakota State Capitol Building, Pierre

C) Major Metros

      1. Sioux Falls
      2. Rapid City
      3. Pierre (state capital; 8th largest city in state)
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site

D) Military History

      • Minuteman Missile National Historic Site

E) Famous People

      • Crazy Horse