A Night in Rapid City
Rapid City was our half-way stop between Chicago and Yellowstone National Park.
We looked at the map and chose the area right in the middle. We were pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a real hidden gem!
Things to do :
A must-see is Prairie Edge, a local store and art gallery showcasing Native American art and artisans' work. You can also buy traditional craft supplies. I just started making dream catchers so I was able to buy suede, leather, beads, feathers and more authentic supplies. There are several Sioux First Nations in the area and this is a great place to discover their heritage, art, music, books and more.
We stayed at the oldest hotel in town, Hotel Alex Johnson. It opened its doors in 1928. If you don't stay here you MUST take a walk in the alley behind the hotel to see the amazing street art. By the way, a quick Google search will lead you to a few stories claiming the hotel is haunted. I'm happy I didn't read any of these until after I had spent the night. Nothing paranormal happened to us while we stayed there.
We also chose the oldest building for food, The Rapid City Firehouse. Today it's a brewery and a great place for casual dining.
We wish we would have had more time since the town seemed to have many more shops and restaurants that we'd have loved to check out, not to mention more time in the Black Hills. Mount Rushmore is also about an hour away.
