Jellystone Park ~ Sioux Falls, SD

Jellystone, where even Yogi Bear has learned to reinvent himself.  It appears the infamous bear, in what looks to be semi-retirement, is now making appearances at select campgrounds, surprising birthday boys and girls.  Who woulda thought?!  Our friend, David, was wondering where he might be so I thought I would take a picture of Terry with Yogi to authenticate his existence (Yogi’s that is, but I suppose it would be nice to see that Terry is still alive and kicking!)

Terry was being a good sport here but did insist that I take the picture quickly!

We would typically prefer to stay at a state park, where there is hiking trails right outside one’s door but we are here to get some business done so we chose to stay at a park convenient to our needs.  Since we had licensed our vehicles here, we thought we should familiarize ourselves somewhat with Sioux Falls, the largest city in South Dakota.  Given that this is a city of no more than 158,200 people, there must be some wide open spaces in this state.

One of the main attractions in this city is Falls Park, first visited by Native Americans, and has been a source of industry and recreation since the founding of Sioux Falls in 1856. The park consists of 123 acres and includes a visitors’ center, 5-story viewing tower, the remains of the Queen Bee Mill and other historic buildings, the Falls Overlook Cafe, bike trails, and lots and lots of waterfalls.  Each second, an average of 7400 gallons of water drop 100 feet over the falls.  From Memorial Day through Labor Day, a laser and light show, featuring a history of Sioux Falls, is shown at dusk in the park.  Terry and I did attend this show and unfortunately were a bit underwhelmed.  We thought the falls were much more spectacular during the day.

From the park we could see twin steeples of what looked to be a very interesting church so we decided to set out to get at up-close view.  St. Joseph Cathedral sits in the historic district of Sioux Falls and as we rounded the corner, we crossed over a cobblestone street, which took us back to Mexico, where most streets in colonial towns were cobblestoned and boasted beautiful churches.

Construction of this dramatic cathedral began the summer of 1915, on the site where St. Michael’s once stood.  The architect for this landmark passed away before seeing his finished product so one of his chief assistants oversaw the project and brought it to its completion in May, 1919.  A major 2-year interior renovation was just completed.  Sadly, we were not able to view the interior but the pictures online were striking.

Our last evening in Sioux Falls was spent strolling downtown, checking out the nightlife. Surprisingly there was lots of activity going on, friends enjoying drinks and dinner at sidewalk cafes, various little music venues to appreciate, unique shops to entice, and the most varied display of bronze figures sprinkled throughout the downtown area.

A couple of bronzes to enjoy.

Our one little indulgence for the night (and it wasn’t so little actually) was to stop at Sinful Things, a mother and daughter gourmet dessert shop, where we enjoyed two decadent little creations.  They were both former bankers who left the stress of corporate life to follow a dream and their desserts were heavenly!

We are headed back to Wisconsin, passing through Madison, then on to explore Door County.