Trip Recap: Dakotas (North and South)
Aug. 29th, 2016 02:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mala_14Finally feeling better, so here's the first part of my trip recap. My boyfriend and I hit the road and drove down through North Dakota, stopping off at a rogue Dairy Queen in Moorhead, ND. It's rogue because it still uses its contract with Dairy Queen from 1949 and is thus able to offer all sort of old school treats that are no longer served at regular DQ's. It was pretty sweet. I got a meal of a polish sausage in a bun, a drink, a bag of chips, and a sundae for $5! Sorry, no pics of this part of the trip. It was about a 7 hour drive to our first destination. Lots of farms, with cows and corn.
We were staying in Huron, SD and there saw the world's largest pheasant! (I love these "world's largest" things. They're so kitschy and retro and fun.) This is my bad picture from the car on the way to De Smet.
The next day was all Laura Ingalls, all the time. It was AWESOME! De Smet is pretty small, so it's really easy to get around to see the different sites. I had a really tasty donut at a place called Ward's Bakery. The town has all these signs related to Laura Ingalls stuff and being the Little Town on the Prairie.
While waiting for the tour in the town, we went to the Homestead (like a 5 min drive away) and looked around a bit. They have pioneer-y type activities, like hay rides and stuff, but not much is actually remaining there from the Ingalls' time except 5 of the cottonwood trees they planted and I think they know where the shanty was. We just browsed around the visitor's center and looked at the land rather than pay to participate in the activities (which seemed more like a fun kids thing to do).
The cottonwoods and my boyfriend's car:
Coming from the prairie, I really loved the land out here. It was more hilly than I expected, but you could still see for miles and miles and it all felt so open and free, just like she talks about in the books.
Still killing time, we visited the cemetary and saw the graves of Ma, Pa, Mary, Carrie, Grace, and the boy baby of Laura and Almanzo. Pa had a big grave marker, but everyone else had small ones.
We still had a bit of time so we went to the Loftus store where we met a very friendly man working (actually everyone in De Smet was SUPER friendly) who seemed quite excited about being a part of Ingalls history.
All the places in the town that are in the books have little informative plaques like this (sorry for the glare):
Finally it was time for the tour. You pay $12 at the Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society for access to a group of buildings and a guided tour. The Society is housed in a Victorian house and beside it is a little yard where 3 buildings have been arranged (from L to R): the first De Smet school, a replica of the Brewster school, and the Surveyor's House:
My boyfriend in front of the Society's building:
I'd lent him By the Shores of Silver Lake before the trip. He wasn't finished it, but he had some understanding of the area and knew about the Surveyor's House from that. Me in front of the Surveyor's House:
No pictures allowed in the Surveyor's House. But it was really cool. We couldn't go upstairs, but it was furnished and there was a mirror so that you could see into the attic from the bottom of the stairs. It was really interesting to see how small the house was because Laura makes it sound like a huge mansion in the book. Inside the first school, where Laura and Carrie were taught by Eliza Jane. It had been converted into a house at some point, but restoration revealed some of the original blackboards with chalk drawings still on them. The wall at the far end shows the various layers of wallpaper, siding and chalkboard with signs pointing to the drawings.
The Brewster school was tiny and it really brought home how shitty it must have been to go there in the winter. Like, -40 degree weather (same in Fahrenheit and Celsius) with walls that are basically a single layer of boards... I shiver just thinking about it.
The next part of the tour had everyone hopping into cars for a 2 min. drive to the house that Pa built in 1887 in the town after he gave up farming. No pictures allowed inside here either.
The house has been renovated to try to recreate what it might have been like when the Ingallses were living there. Sadly a lot of the Ingalls' belongings aren't there because, after Ma and Mary died and the house was sold to someone else, Carrie kept putting off returning to pick up their stuff and then she suddenly died herself. So the family living there just took the stuff to the dump. Boo. There are some things that belonged to them and a lot of Rose's stuff.
We met a super friendly cat outside the house who seemed to want to come with us on our trip, but was more interested in being petted than getting its picture taken.
So that was the first leg of the trip. I know the Dakotas sort of get a bad rap for being boring and not having anything interesting in them, but I like the wide open spaces and the friendly small towns. I think they're a great example of small town America (in my humble Canadian opinion). De Smet is a great place to visit if you have any interest in the Ingalls. :)
We were staying in Huron, SD and there saw the world's largest pheasant! (I love these "world's largest" things. They're so kitschy and retro and fun.) This is my bad picture from the car on the way to De Smet.
The next day was all Laura Ingalls, all the time. It was AWESOME! De Smet is pretty small, so it's really easy to get around to see the different sites. I had a really tasty donut at a place called Ward's Bakery. The town has all these signs related to Laura Ingalls stuff and being the Little Town on the Prairie.
While waiting for the tour in the town, we went to the Homestead (like a 5 min drive away) and looked around a bit. They have pioneer-y type activities, like hay rides and stuff, but not much is actually remaining there from the Ingalls' time except 5 of the cottonwood trees they planted and I think they know where the shanty was. We just browsed around the visitor's center and looked at the land rather than pay to participate in the activities (which seemed more like a fun kids thing to do).
The cottonwoods and my boyfriend's car:
Coming from the prairie, I really loved the land out here. It was more hilly than I expected, but you could still see for miles and miles and it all felt so open and free, just like she talks about in the books.
Still killing time, we visited the cemetary and saw the graves of Ma, Pa, Mary, Carrie, Grace, and the boy baby of Laura and Almanzo. Pa had a big grave marker, but everyone else had small ones.
We still had a bit of time so we went to the Loftus store where we met a very friendly man working (actually everyone in De Smet was SUPER friendly) who seemed quite excited about being a part of Ingalls history.
All the places in the town that are in the books have little informative plaques like this (sorry for the glare):
Finally it was time for the tour. You pay $12 at the Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society for access to a group of buildings and a guided tour. The Society is housed in a Victorian house and beside it is a little yard where 3 buildings have been arranged (from L to R): the first De Smet school, a replica of the Brewster school, and the Surveyor's House:
My boyfriend in front of the Society's building:
I'd lent him By the Shores of Silver Lake before the trip. He wasn't finished it, but he had some understanding of the area and knew about the Surveyor's House from that. Me in front of the Surveyor's House:
No pictures allowed in the Surveyor's House. But it was really cool. We couldn't go upstairs, but it was furnished and there was a mirror so that you could see into the attic from the bottom of the stairs. It was really interesting to see how small the house was because Laura makes it sound like a huge mansion in the book. Inside the first school, where Laura and Carrie were taught by Eliza Jane. It had been converted into a house at some point, but restoration revealed some of the original blackboards with chalk drawings still on them. The wall at the far end shows the various layers of wallpaper, siding and chalkboard with signs pointing to the drawings.
The Brewster school was tiny and it really brought home how shitty it must have been to go there in the winter. Like, -40 degree weather (same in Fahrenheit and Celsius) with walls that are basically a single layer of boards... I shiver just thinking about it.
The next part of the tour had everyone hopping into cars for a 2 min. drive to the house that Pa built in 1887 in the town after he gave up farming. No pictures allowed inside here either.
The house has been renovated to try to recreate what it might have been like when the Ingallses were living there. Sadly a lot of the Ingalls' belongings aren't there because, after Ma and Mary died and the house was sold to someone else, Carrie kept putting off returning to pick up their stuff and then she suddenly died herself. So the family living there just took the stuff to the dump. Boo. There are some things that belonged to them and a lot of Rose's stuff.
We met a super friendly cat outside the house who seemed to want to come with us on our trip, but was more interested in being petted than getting its picture taken.
So that was the first leg of the trip. I know the Dakotas sort of get a bad rap for being boring and not having anything interesting in them, but I like the wide open spaces and the friendly small towns. I think they're a great example of small town America (in my humble Canadian opinion). De Smet is a great place to visit if you have any interest in the Ingalls. :)
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Date: 2016-08-29 08:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-08-30 04:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-08-30 01:22 am (UTC)I used to think it was boring but I appreciate the prairie now too. The part of SD my family is from (SE, banks of the Missouri) is really beautiful with dramatic rolling hills, trees, and fields. That's where Louis and Clark headed west.
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Date: 2016-08-30 04:07 pm (UTC)lol I come from prairie that is even flatter, so SD looked pretty hilly to me. But there is so much gorgeous scenery to see during road trips. I love watching it change.
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Date: 2016-08-30 03:15 am (UTC)It would be so cool to see all this stuff and where it took place. It's been ages since I read all the Little House books, but clearly I need to give them a reread.
I got a bit of chills seeing all their graves. I mean, realistically, of course they are all gone, they lived so long ago. But even so, they are alive in books, so it's weird to see their graves. Does that make any sense?
Also, kitty!!
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Date: 2016-08-30 03:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-08-30 04:13 pm (UTC)Yeah, its strange to think of them as being outside of the books or continuing on after the books. Like the 1887 house was so weird to me because it's not in the books and I just pictured the family continuing to live on the homestead farm. So yeah, I get what you're saying about the graves too. It's a weird intersection of reality and fiction.
Loved the kitty! So cute and friendly!
And yeah, as someone who does attend school in -40 degree weather, I can't even imagine trying to go to school in that little shack. Pioneers were tough!
no subject
Date: 2016-08-30 07:29 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-08-30 07:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-08-31 05:06 am (UTC)I come from the Pacific Northwest, so I need giant trees and mountains cradling me in. When I read why Pa loved the big wide open prairie-- it really opened my eyes to another point of view I never entertained!
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Date: 2016-08-31 03:41 pm (UTC)lol I went to school with a girl who was from BC and we used to jokingly argue all the time about landscapes. I was team prairie and she was all about the mountains and ocean. Where you grow up really makes an impact!
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Date: 2016-08-31 12:25 pm (UTC)Anyway, I am inspired to re-read that series now and to see this town (and re-see Walnut Grove!)
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Date: 2016-08-31 03:43 pm (UTC)Food is important! Hangry is a real thing. I totally support re-reading and visiting the sites!
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Date: 2016-08-31 03:28 pm (UTC)Sounds like a really cool trip!
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Date: 2016-08-31 04:24 pm (UTC)It was a neat trip! There's still more to come!