From Pierre, SD to Bismarck, ND 
From Pierre, SD to Bismarck, ND
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Last night, after I had checked in but before I went to dinner, a group of three motorcyclists checked into the hotel. I wasn't able to make contact with them last night even though we had dinner in the same restaurant. This morning while loading our bikes, I manage to talk to all three in separate encounters. Dad provides the most information. He is riding with his two sons. His oldest son gave him the Harley Davidson that he is riding. They are from the Minneapolis area and have been done to the Black Hills for a couple days of riding. They are headed home today.
Before
I leave town, I drive up to get a picture of the South Dakota state
capitol building. The state administrative buildings are scattered
around the capital grounds. There is a nice lake and a series of
parks leading away from town up into the hills to the north of town.
The governor's mansion sits across the lake from the main capitol
building.
Elsewhere in Pierre, there are a couple of historical markers that discuss the city's relationship with the cattle industry. One is a discussion of brands and how to read them. The picture below is impossible to read in the thumbnail version but the full size version is legible. Just click on the picture to view the full size image.
This is an interesting bit of Americana that I thought I would
share with you. 
The
other thing I enjoy about the historical markers in South Dakota is
their chatty style of writing.
Heading out of Pierre, yesterday's headwind returns. The wind is heavy and sustained. Today's ride is almost 200 miles across the farmland between Pierre and I-94 in North Dakota. I will pass through only a handful of farm towns. I consult maps.yahoo.com to be sure that there is adequate gas available along the way. A full tank with no winds will get me between 125-150 miles.
The crops are in and the winds turn the fields into what my father described on the telephone last night as 'great oceans of grain.' The description turns out to be apt -- the rolling hills and the shimmering plants really fit Dad's words. It seems like a stormy sea, but a sea nonetheless.
I stop for gas and the wind is just howling! I can not believe the strength of the wind. I continue northward. I stop at the North Dakota border for the last South Dakota historical marker. Basically, the marker pays tribute the North Dakota -- like a not of introduction as we depart South Dakota.
I stop for lunch in a town called Strasburg, North Dakota. This town's claim to fame is the Lawrence Welk Homestead. From this tiny farm town burst forth that tremendous purveyor of waltz and polkas. The historic site is down a long gravel road so I can't report on the contents. But I do have lunch at a small restaurant on Main Street. This is my first observation of Scandinavian - American. Everyone in the diner is blond and I don't dirty blond, I mean golden blond. Their voices are heavily accented with the open 'o' sound associated with Minnesota. Everyone is friendly and nice but the locals are all greeted by name. I feel a little bit like an alien -- they aren't sure how I managed to walk into this little spot on Main Street and I'm not sure what to make of them.
I turn onto I-94 and the headwind becomes a side wind. When I get into Bismarck, I check into a Days Inn. I'm in early and need to catch up on my laundry. The dryer turns out to be really underpowered. I'm on my second dollar of dry time. When I go back to check on my laundry they are out of the machine, not yet dry and someone else is using the machine. That really ticks me off. The woman using the machine is doing a whole family's laundry for about a month. She has both machines in use until nearly midnight. But in the end I have clean underwear.
One
thing I notice while waiting for my laundry is the front page of the
Bismarck Tribune report on the storms that passed through the Dakotas
on Saturday night. Two underpasses in downtown Bismarck were filled
with hail. The story reports that nearly 100 truckloads of ice were
removed in order to reopen the streets.
Weather remains the uncontrollable part of my adventure. In Ohio and Illinois, I was much less concerned about the weather than I am now. In the Dakotas, there are no places to take cover if heavy rain, hail or a tornado were to overtake me. I've thought of this during the last two days of riding after Saturday night's thunderstorm.
Tomorrow I will visit the small town where my Dad was born and grew up: Underwood, ND and surroundings.
Depart Pierre heading north on US 83.
Cross state line into North Dakota
At intersection with Interstate 94, enter I-94 heading west.
At exit 159, exit I-94.
Arrive Bismarck, ND
(c) 2001 Thomas N. Engler Revision Date: 06/17/2001
