2012 Jansen Family Road Trip: Day 5 - Wall, SD

We started off the day leaving the Badlands and heading to Wall, SD. We had heard from several people that if you're in the area, it's something to stop and see. You start seeing signs for this place hours out. Sign after sign after sign. All of the reviews online talked about it being a tourist trap, which it somewhat is. We spent quite a bit of time there and quite a bit of money as well. Those souviners will get you every time.

Wall Drug Store, often referred to simply as "Wall Drug", is a tourist attraction located in the town of Wall, South Dakota, United States. It is a shopping mall consisting of a drug store, gift shop, restaurants and various other stores. Unlike a traditional shopping mall, all the stores at Wall Drug operate under a single entity instead of being individually run stores. The New York Times has described Wall Drug as "a sprawling tourist attraction of international renown [that] takes in more than $10 million a year and draws some two million annual visitors to a remote town.

The small town drugstore made its first step towards fame when it was purchased by Ted Hustead in 1931. Hustead was a Nebraska native and pharmacist who was looking for a small town with a Catholic church in which to establish his business. He bought Wall Drug, located in a 231-person town in what he referred to as "the middle of nowhere", and strove to make a living. Business was very slow until his wife, Dorothy, got the idea to advertise free ice water to parched travellers heading to the newly-opened Mount Rushmore monument 60 miles (97 km) to the west. From that time on business was brisk. Wall Drug grew into a cowboy-themed shopping mall/department store. Wall Drug includes a western art museum, a chapel based on the one found at New Melleray Abbey near Dubuque, Iowa, and an 80-foot (24 m) Apatosaurus that can be seen right off Interstate 90. It was designed by Emmet Sullivan who also created the dinosaurs at Dinosaur Park and Dinosaur World.

There really is a lot to see there.

Eating lunch in their cafeteria. Unfortunately the food was just marginal and tasted like cafeteria food.

We had heard all about the dancing girls at Wall.

Our first purchase at Wall was cowboy boots and hats for Jack and Katie. Grace also got a hat but we decided to look someplace else for boots. John also got a hat. Sam and I decided against boots and a hat as we probably wouldn't wear them again. But we did get some moccasins.

Their version of Mt. Rushmore

Riding the Jack - A- Lope

The jackalope is a mythical animal of North American folklore (a so-called "fearsome critter") described as a jackrabbit with antelope horns or deer antlers and sometimes a pheasant's tail (and often hind legs). The word "jackalope" is a portmanteau of "jackrabbit" and "antalope", an archaic spelling of "antelope. There are stuffed "Jackalopes" everywhere. Apparently people stuff giant jack rabbits and add on antlers. Very strange.

And the whole reason the drugstore came into existence. Free ice water.