On our way to The Badlands, we drove through this interesting small town called Wall. It’s largely a farming community, home to about 900 people. However, for hundreds of miles before you arrive, you see giant signs on the side of the road for Wall Drug. It’s almost like they are begging you to come visit. My parents had stopped on their previous trip, but humored me and let us drop in so I could see what all the hype was about!
Pulling into town, there are building size posters directing you to free parking in the downtown. You really can’t miss it. When you walk to the main street, it is one wide street about the length of a football field with a few souvenir shops but mostly consumed by Wall Drug.
Now Wall Drug isn’t your typical drugstore. In fact, only a tiny fraction of it is actually a drug store at all. Instead, once you walk through front doors you have entered an indoor mall with a maze of interconnected stores that offer everything you need and don’t need. There is a boot shop, a camping store, a rock shop, art galleries, a jewelry boutique, and more. There is a cafeteria serving up warm donuts and 5 cent coffee. There is a clothing shop. A bookshop. You can get your fortune told. And it just keeps going. But that’s not all!
Walk out the back and you enter a courtyard of larger than life statues to climb on, featuring a bucking bronco and a jackalope. There’s also a mini Mt Rushmore (in case you missed the real one) and a water pad shooting up sprays to run through.
And if that’s not enough for you, step into the back building where you can walk by an animatronic T-Rex who might bust out of his enclosure and “eat” you if you time it right as well as corridors of old photos and newspaper clippings to read and study. You could spend hours here if you wanted to. Wall Drug is the town of Wall. It’s worth a stop if you are ever in the area!
When we finally had our fill, our purchased our souvenirs, and were ready to continue driving, we headed out towards The Badlands. I’ll never forget Wall Drug though!
Our next stop for the day was our camping destination right outside The Badlands National Park. My parents took me to this gem of a spot, a dispersed camping area on a cliff above the eroded maze that is The Badlands. You pull off the highway and drive down a bumpy, slanted dirt road, paralleling the cliff edge, until you find your spot for the night. Drive slow, or you might miss the perfect view, but not too slow or you might feel like your vehicle will tip over from the slant in the road (but it won’t, don’t worry!).
We found a level, empty spot on the inner side of the cliff and parked for the night. Although not on the cliff edge as I hoped (compromises had to be made), we still had a spectacular view of the landscape below. After dinner we walked to the end of the road as the sun set over the grasslands. Before it got too dark, my dad and I hopped around on the top of the hills out to a viewpoint. It’s like walking on the moon, craters and pointy mountain tops, valleys and steep walls, dips and rises here and there. A giant playground to explore.
The next morning I woke early hoping to see some animals and the sunrise, but we were fogged it. The sun did burn red through the moisture and eventually opened up the view for us again. It also brought with it tremendous winds! So we packed up and headed for the National Park, ready for more adventure.
Tonelli's Travels 