From the 1880s, to the Timeless Badlands, to the Wall Drug Store (Hot Springs, South Dakota Post)

This morning, after my earlier post, we found ourselves stepping back in time with the 1880s town.  I had a lot of fun in this town using what I knew to imagine what life would be in the town.  Eventually, my family began leaving me in different buildings, because I was spewing off facts from my Social Studies book.  This town was really interesting, because it was home to so many different antiques.   I also found it interesting to learn that the movie Dances With Wolves was filmed there, and that it was featured on an episode of the History Channel show American Pickers.  

Then, we entered the Badlands.  The Badlands were named by French trappers who realized that the land was bad to cross.   A Native American group also named it something meaning "land bad" in their language.  

Here is a collection of pictures from the Badlands.

     

A macro of the surface of the rock.  

The different colors signify different ages of rock and contain different fossils, as during that time period, the land supported different ecosystems.  

Baby goats on the side of the road! :)

After the Badlands, we stopped at the Wall Drug Store for our free ice water and some shopping.  It was giant inside, filled with many rooms holding different portions.  This isn't even the entire length of the store.  The store began giving out free ice water as a gimmick to draw in customers as the store wasn't doing well. The store's owner noticed many cars driving by, but no one stopping.  On a hot July day, she realized that they were probably thirsty and began offering free ice water.  The store still follows this tradition.