GossSquatch Outdoor Adventures

Our family loves caves. I grew up making the pilgrimage to Mammoth Cave with my parents, so when Wind Cave National Park showed up on the itinerary, there was no debate. It was a foregone conclusion. A non-negotiable. A hill I was willing to die on — preferably underground. Wind Cave is the sixth largest cave system in the world, with more than 30 miles of passages still believed to be unexplored. Here's the kicker: it's only the second largest cave in South Dakota. Jewel Cave beats it. We'll get to that one another day, but for now, let that sink in — South Dakota is just sitting out there, quietly hoarding caves. Above ground, the park is home to a surprisingly diverse ecosystem of wildlife and wide-open prairie. But we'll get there. First, let's go underground. History The cave was originally known to the Lakota tribes of the Black Hills , who considered it a portal to the underworld. Honestly, given what's down there, that tracks. The modern discovery...

 We spent a week at a campsite with views of the Badlands — our first trip out west, and honestly, it exceeded every expectation. Then came checkout day. Leaving the park, we had two options: the three-hour northern route via the interstate, or the two-hour scenic route heading south. The choice felt obvious. We are, after all, an outdoor adventure family. We chose the scenic route. This was the first bad decision of the day. Scenic, South Dakota We rolled south through the tiny town of Interior, then followed the road west toward a place called Scenic . The name, it turns out, is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Scenic, South Dakota is a ghost town sitting in the geographic center of the Badlands — not the heart of it, more like the forgotten middle. It was named for its views, which, to be fair, are genuinely good. The town itself, however, never caught on. At its peak it boasted a saloon, a dance hall, a bunkhouse, a museum, two stores, and a railroad depot on the Chicago, St. P...