In my opinion, there's not much to commend the stretch of I-90 across the great part of South Dakota. Sioux Falls, South Dakota was our destination, about 6 hours of mostly straight and flat road, few towns, and those that do cling to this mostly unpopulated landscape are small. But you can't get to Minnesota without traversing it, so we set our teeth and got on with it.
About half-way there we worried about finding a decent place to eat in this wasteland. We hopped off the interstate at Murdo, population 488, and chanced that this small cafe sporting the Triple A sign of approval wouldn't be too bad.
Suzanne spotted this gem behind the counter - a vintage malt machine.
And yes, we did indulge! Best chocolate malt perhaps ever, and I was so not prepared for my club sandwich to taste so good! I take back everything I was thinking about substandard service in such a small town in the middle of nowhere.
There might not be a great deal to look at while driving but South Dakota does have nice rest stops along the interstate with these tepee-like structures at each one.
Leave it to me to see the design aspects from various angles.
Suzanne wouldn't let me leave without a shot of me with the "Great Faces, Great Places" sign - me and the presidents of Mount Rushmore. Hot hot still- let's get back on the road.
Finally we arrived at Sioux Falls, South Dakota and the Super8 Motel. Ok, so this may not have been the best location, right off a 4 lane hwy, but the price was right and it had a pool.
Suzanne has family ties to this area, and going back a few generations, I too have family on my father's side who resided nearby. We speculated that our ancestors might have crossed paths. But at the moment, since she had just driven the last half of the day's trek through a lot of road construction, wind and bumpy road, all she was interested in was the quality of the bed. It passed muster.
Soon we headed next door to a family-style restaurant, nothing fancy but some plain good food. Then a lengthy walk through the surrounding neighborhoods to get the kinks out and blood flowing, followed by a soak in the Jacuzzi and a few gentle laps in the pool.
Thus ended the 3rd day.
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