The itinerary today was to travel west on Interstate 90 (see our route map for a visual picture) from Sioux Falls, SD to Rapid City, SD.
One thing to know about Interstate 90 is that there isn't much going on between towns. This results in local entrepreneurs finding ways to grab travelers' attention with outrageous displays, kooky signs, and anything out-of-the ordinary they can think of, like giant ox heads, or a 20-ft tall hammer (look to the right of the photo behind the billboard).
One of the most egregious examples of these attention-grabbing displays is the endless promotion of Wall Drug, using hundreds of billboards that dot the highway. There was literally a Wall Drug billboard every mile along the highway. These billboards promote free ice water, a T-Rex, a giant jackalope, a piano playing ape, homemade pie and donuts, 5 cent coffee... just see for yourself:
There are two particular types of Wall Drug billboards I like best. First, the ones that play up the mundane reasons you'd drive hundreds of miles to drive to a drug store. "Black Hills Maps", "Fresh baked donuts", "Homemade pie". All good things, but would you drive three hundred miles for a fresh donut?
Second, the special offers. "Free ice water", "Five cent coffee", "Free coffee for hunters". Hey, I wasn't planning on driving to Wall, SD, but that free ice water offer was too good to refuse!
The amazing part is that after seeing hundreds of these billboards, you just need to see this place. How good or bad does a place have to be, that they need hundreds of billboards to get people to stop? Or for that matter, a huge model of a brontosaurus?
More on Wall Drug later. You know, the part of the story when we actually get there.
So after about an hour on the road (or approximately 70 Wall Drug billboards), we stopped in Mitchell, SD. Mitchell is a small town known for it's Corn Palace. The Corn Palace was built during the Great Depression as a way to promote corn farming in the area. The outer walls of the Corn Palace, and some inner walls also, are re-decorated each year with a different theme using different colored corn cobs, which are stapled onto the walls.
At around noon, or approximately 210 Wall Drug billboards later, we stopped in Chamberlain, SD. Chamberlain is built right along the Missouri River, with basically divides South Dakota in half. We stopped for some pizza and sat out on the diner patio overlooking this peaceful section of America's longest river.
On the western side of the Missouri River is some of the most beautiful farm land I've ever seen. The clouds and the weather on this day helped, but I was able to take this photo which reminded me of my computer desktop wallpaper.
A couple hundred Wall Drug billboards later, and we found ourselves in Wall, SD. While known world wide as the location of the infamous Wall Drug store, Wall is also the Interstate exit to enter Badlands National Park.
Despite it's name, there's nothing inherently "bad" about Badlands Nat'l Park. Established in January 1939, Badlands is an enormous area marked by heavy erosion. Natural processes have uncovered and displayed a concentrated collection of rutted ravines, serrated towers, pinnacles, and precipitous gulches.
There were prairie dogs everywhere. Dana got a real kick out of them.
We were getting hungry by now and headed back into Wall to grab a bite to eat. Those homemade donuts sounded really good.
As we pulled up to the drugstore, I felt as if my life was complete.
Here's the story behind Wall Drug:
It is a sprawling shopping mall consisting of a drug store, gift shop, restaurants and various other stores. Unlike a traditional shopping mall, all the stores at Wall Drug operate under a single entity instead of being individually run stores.
The small town drugstore made its first step towards international fame when it was purchased by Ted Hustead in 1931. Hustead was a Nebraska native and pharmacist who was looking for a small town with a Catholic church in which to establish his business. He bought Wall Drug, located in a 231-person town in what he referred to as “the middle of nowhere”, and strove to make a living. Business was very slow until his wife, Dorothy, got the idea to advertise free ice water to parched travellers along the road. From that time on business was brisk. Wall Drug grew into an enormous cowboy-themed shopping mall/department store. Wall Drug includes a western art museum, a chapel based on the one found at New Melleray Abbey near Dubuque, Iowa, and an enormous 80 foot Apatosaurus that can be seen right off Interstate 90. It was designed by Emmet Sullivan who also created the dinosaurs at Dinosaur Park and Dinosaur World.
Wall Drug earns much of its fame from its self-promotion. Billboards advertising the establishment can be seen for hundreds of miles throughout South Dakota and the neighboring states. In addition, many visitors of Wall Drug have erected signs throughout the world announcing the miles to Wall Drug from famous locations. By 1981 Wall Drug was claiming it was giving away 20,000 cups of water per day during the peak tourist season, lasting from Memorial Day until Labor Day, and during the hottest days of the summer.
To date, Wall Drug still offers free ice water, but as they have become more popular, they have started to offer free bumper stickers, signs to aid in promotion, and coffee for 5 cents. One popular free bumper sticker reads “Where the heck is Wall Drug?”
Wall Drug has been featured in Time Magazine as one of the largest tourist attractions in the north. They have over 500 miles of bill boards on Interstate 90, stretching from Minnesota to Billings, Montana. Wall Drug spends an estimated $400,000 on bill board signs every year.
Wall Drug is a tourist trap, and it certainly trapped us.
Here's the map of Wall Drug:
They really do go overboard to make it the most interesting drug store the world has ever known.
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