My Pilgrimage to Sturgis Part II

“My Pilgrimage to Sturgis” is a multi-part story chronicling my trip to the 75^th Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Week.

Part II - Getting There is Part of the Fun:

As you will recall from Part I, I rode to Sturgis.  I rode a Sportster.  Apparently, relatively few people actually ride to Sturgis anymore.  Most people take their bikes on a trailer, or in a toy hauler.  And significantly fewer people ride Sportsters.  I saw maybe two other Sportsters on the road to and from Sturgis, and only saw a couple dozen in the area.  I really don’t get this, because getting there is half of the adventure.

Let me start out by saying that I know my limits as a rider.  Sturgis is approximately twelve hours from where I live.  While I would be absolutely willing – and comfortable – driving that far, there’s no way that I would ride that far, straight through, on a Sportster.  Sioux Falls, SD is almost exactly half way between my home and Sturgis.  So, the wife and I rode from home to the halfway point, and stayed in a hotel in Sioux Falls.  This worked out just about perfectly.  After 300+ miles on the skinny Sportster seat, I was ready to be finished for the day.  Besides, this gave us a precious first day away from the family, and a comfortable last day before we forayed into the “camping” expedition of the Black Hills.

After leaving the Black Hills, it was on to Custer State Park. This was not only a journey of miles; it was also a journey of time.  As I mentioned in my last entry, I have been to the Black Hills before – twice – on family vacations when I was a boy.  So, in addition to collecting miles, I was also recalling memories as I rode to our destination.

Our first stop after Sioux Falls was Mitchell, the home of The Corn Palace.  The Corn Palace probably sounds really, ummm… corny.  It is.  But it’s also really pretty cool.  There’s a lot of history to the place, and it’s really artistic.  The Corn Palace is a more than a tourist trap, though it’s definitely that.  It’s also a historic live performance theater where the likes of Jim Nabors, Lawrence Welk and Red Skelton have performed.  And the art is really cool too.  They use corn, corn silk, and other agricultural products to create large murals that act as a tribute to America’s agricultural history, and the history of South Dakota.  Though not an all-day trip, it’s absolutely worth a couple of hours of your time to stop in Mitchell.

The Corn Palace

The next major stop after Mitchell was Wall, SD.  Wall is primarily famous for Wall Drug, which is a huge – and I do mean HUGE – tourist shop.  My size estimates may be a bit off, but Wall Drug is a series of interlocking shops that total approximately a full square block of shopping area.  The vast majority of it, of course, plugs Wall Drug.  There’s bound to be something for everyone, whether it be a “free glass of water,” “$.10 coffee,” a place to eat, a stuffed Jackalope, or just a place to use the bathroom, Wall Drug, though kitschy, is truly something to behold.

 Wall Drug

After leaving Wall, it was time for our final leg of the trip, which brought us to Custer State Park.  Even though it was the end of the day, once I hit the scenic, winding roads of Custer State Park, I was energized.  The road-weariness left my mind, and the aches and pains of long-distance riding left my body.  I was surrounded by the sights of the mountains, and the scents of the forest.  Getting there was absolutely part of the fun.