Riding through South Dakota, (American Journey)

South Dakota was looking up. The storms cleared up and the speed limit is 75 mph.

There are a lot of long stretches of road with not much around. You can go 40+ miles with no gas. Then when there is gas it could be 1/4-1/2 miles from the exit.

Running low...checking for gas stations on the GPS.

There are alot of free range cattle up there.

Now apparently South Dakota is famous for it's wind. I did not know this...I do now! As the sun set I thought I would get a few more miles under my belt. But as it set, a 45 mph wind started blowing from the north, broad siding me as I was traveling west. The wind didn't stop. If they fill these plains with windmills (like the ones in MN), I think they could power the entire Midwest!...lol.

With the crazy wind blowing, dark, not knowing how far the next town would be, the trucks passing me at 80 mph and it getting colder, I decided to stop for the night right where I was. I saw something that looked like a motel. I pulled off the road and headed towards it. (At this point in the trip I thought I was in the middle of nowhere. I found out later what that really means). Down a long gravel road, very dark, wild winds, I saw a flickering motel sign and 3 old pickup trucks parked in front. Compared to this, The Bates motel look like the Waldorf! Thankfully the GPS on my phone was working and it said that there was a hotel 11 miles back. The last thing that I wanted to do on a trip like this was to backtrack. The fact that I did should tell you something. When I got there the hotel that was supposed to be there was not. Instead I found a log house with a bunch of log cabins around it. The owner was very helpful and I rented myself a cabin for the night. I had not eaten yet and asked about food and a possible delivery. Only 1 place in town to get food from, they didn't deliver and it was about 1/4 mile down the road, so I went.

I found myself in a town called Plankinton, SD. The town was only a few buildings on each side of the street. I stopped at a place called the Plank Inn for a bite to eat, the only place there was. It was a nice surprise. The owner (I think Ron is his name), is a big Yankee fan. Hence the bar in the picture. I ride all the way to South Dakota and stumble across a Yankee themed bar in a town with a population of 600 people. What are the odds? They were very friendly and the food was real good. I felt right at home. I want to give a shout out to Ron and his great bartender at the Plank Inn.

I've seen alot of Bud signs for different sports. But I've never seen this one! (click on any picture to make them larger)

My cabin in Plankinton.