The Travel South Dakota Stories

The Black Hills are home to more than 100 known caves - including the world's third-longest cave system at Jewel Cave National Monument with its miles of unmapped passageways, and the complex caves systems at Wind Cave National Park, which are not merely a geological wonder they also make up a sacred site for the Lakota people. We join pioneer explorer Chris Pelczarski for some hands-on spelunking...

In South Dakota, the deep agricultural roots mean that visitors have plenty of chances to get a true hands-on experience, from exploring vineyards to see how wine is made to meeting farm animals and learning how to make cheese. When you participate in agritourism, you're tapping into a way of life that few visitors see. Join us as we take a stroll through a hops farm on our way to a brewery, help...

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is the biggest two-wheeled party in the world, drawing hundreds of thousands of riders. Set in the stunning Black Hills, it's a spectacle filled with roaring motorcycles, live rock concerts, custom bikes, and communal camaraderie. Join us as we take in the stunts and music at Buffalo Chip, ride Main Street on a Fat Boy Harley Davidson, meet a 100-year-old rider, and hi...

There are two sides to every story. That's especially true when Lewis and Clark met the Teton Sioux. Their 1804 journey through South Dakota wasn't just about exploration — it was where two worlds met along the Missouri River . Long before the Corps of Discovery arrived, Boyd Gourneau, chairman of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe , says his ancestors and other Indigenous tribes had already built full l...

The Black Hills Powwow is the biggest powwow in the U.S., where dancers, singers, artists, and spectators come from across North America to honor the spirit and beauty of the Great Plains Indigenous culture. The powwow comes alive through handcrafted regalia and the spirited dancers who embody history.   Join us as we take in the sounds and stories from this enduring celebration that bridges gener...

In South Dakota, hunting and fishing traditions run deep and are woven into the very fabric of the state's culture. Folks come from across the country to experience the pheasant-hunting capital of the world and to cast for walleye in the state's serene rivers and lakes.   Join us at Thunderstik Lodge, South Dakota's most luxurious pheasant-hunting retreat, for a hunt with veteran guides and some o...

In the winter of 1879, a man by the name of Charles Ingalls brought his family to South Dakota, fell in love with the area and filed for a formal homestead in the small community of De Smet. Charles Ingalls was the father of Laura Ingalls, the author of The Little House on the Prairie series. Join us as we roll across the prairie in a horse-drawn cart to Laura's homestead, take part in a spelling...

The South Dakota culinary scene is heavily influenced by Indigenous people, Scandinavians, Germans, Russians, farmers, hunters… and even church basement ladies. From all those sources the state has a smorgasbord of local specialties with names as exotic as some of the dishes themselves.   Join us as we go on a four-course road trip around South Dakota. Our appetizer is the state's 'official nosh'...

The Lakota people called it Mako Sica. It means bad lands. It's probably not a name that a tourism office would come up with. It sounds more like a desolate and forbidding landscape.   So, is it a fitting name?   Join us as we hike through a colorful geological tapestry of sharply eroded buttes, pinnacles, and spires in Badlands National Park in search of ancient fossils, become an unwelcome visit...

As soon as we walked into the barracks at Fort Sisseton, we were handed muskets - heavy Springfield 63s from the Civil war era.   That's because we enlisted in the army. The Union Army that is.   Join us as we march back in time to 1864 at the annual Sisseton historical festival, where calvary, artillery and infantry reenactors come together and bring the camp to life for a weekend, with period ac...

Rodeo in the United States is a pure reflection of the spirit of the American West, and it's a tradition rooted in the folklore and culture of the country. And in South Dakota, it's not only the official sport - it's a way of life.   Join us as we go on a wild ride at the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo where over 300,000 people from all over the world descend on Rapid City to watch over 120 diff...

In Africa, people go on safari in search of the Big Five: the Lion, Leopard, Rhino, Elephant and Buffalo. But in South Dakota, you can go in search of the huge five: Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops, Stegosaurus, Raptor and Mammoth. South Dakota is a major hub for paleontology and in the past three decades alone some of the most famous dinosaurs in history have been unearthed here.   Join us as we h...

"You're experiencing what you see on TV and the old western movies, the buffalo roaming across the prairie like that. It's that old west tradition that you don't see anywhere else in the world." – Matt Snyder, Superintendent of Custer State Park Feel the ground rumble and the dust fly as sixty cowboys and cowgirls saddle up to bring in a thundering herd of 1,300 buffalo at the 57th Annual Custer S...

"Nobody's down here except for us ghost people and the hotel staff. And some of the hotel staff in the past wouldn't come down here by themselves. Things happen in here. Things have happened to me." – Kate, Ghost Tour Guide at the Bullock Hotel, Deadwood   Tales of the Wild West and lawless frontiers are ingrained in American culture - and in Deadwood, the discovery of riches in the southern Black...

"It's kind of interesting that people that come here to Crazy Horse Memorial, because it's almost like there's a spiritual calling. They don't know quite what it is. But they feel it." – Paul LaRoche, Lakota tribe member and founder of the band Brulé.   The great Lakota Sioux Nation have become the international symbol of America's native people. Over 60,000 Lakota Native Americans live in South D...