Week #4 on our adventure through South Dakota, highlights places on your trip to slow down and relax. Enjoy!
Evans Plunge
1145 North River Street
Hot Springs
(605) 745-5165
Evans Plunge was built in 1890, but the therapeutic benefits of these naturally warm spring waters go back thousands of years. A fierce battle raged between the Sioux and Cheyenne over ownership of the springs. Today, the $12 admission lets us get the benefits. This is the world’s largest natural warm water indoor swimming pool. At first glance it looks just like your average swimming pool. But spend a few minutes in the 87F water and you’ll start feeling those therapeutic effects, thanks to the high mineral content. Test your arm strength on the Tarzan Rings or zip down the waterslide. Evans Plunge has recently added an outdoor pool that lets you catch a few rays on those hot days.
Cascade Falls
8 miles south of Hot Springs, South Dakota Highway 71
It can get hot in South Dakota in July. Real hot. In search of a quick cool down, locals head to Cascade Falls. A tiny sign and parking lot are your only clues that this place exists, so keep your eyes peeled as you head down Highway 71. Park your car and head down the path. What awaits you is a good ol’ fashioned swimmin’ hole! Water gurgles out of Cascade Springs (the largest spring in the Black Hills) and makes it way to the falls. At the upper part of the falls, a series of flat-rocked steps with an inch or two of water sliding over them make the perfect lounging spot. Keep cool while soaking up the sun. The falls themselves are less than eight feet—the perfect height for a cannonball dive into the deep, clear pool below.
Custer State Park
Black Hills
Government State Park – Custer Park
(605) 223-7660
If you’ve come to experience the Black Hills, you can’t do better than spending some time in this 71,000 acre state park. For those who crave adventure, there’s hiking, biking and walking trails as well as horseback riding, rock climbing, canoeing, mountain biking and fly fishing. Want to kick back? Book a campsite or check in to one of the park’s authentic lodges. The ultimate Black Hills experience just may be a sunset dip in Sylvan Lake, perched at 6,175 feet above sea level. Float on your back, breathe in that piney mountain air and with a little luck, you’ll catch a shooting star streaking across the South Dakota sky.
You can check out the rest of our 4 week South Dakota adventure HERE.
There you have it folks – our 4 week adventure through South Dakota has come to an end. We hope you enjoyed your little adventure and if you have any “must-see” spots in South Dakota, we would LOVE for you to share them with us.
Shel writes about the outdoors, travel and food when she’s not playing outside, on the road or eating. Her recent adventures have included a trip to the tundra to serve as cook at a caribou hunting camp and making a long overdue journey to Ukraine with her dad Merv. She’s the founder of a group called the Manitoba Food Bloggers as well as an avid angler and hunter. She lives in Winnipeg with her husband Ivan and their son Clark. [email protected]