Roadtrip thru North Dakota
To Devil's Lake
Continued from the South Dakota Lewis and Clark Scenic Byway
We stopped at the North Dakota State Line and took a picture of the Welcome to North Dakota sign, then walked over and took a picture of the Welcome to South Dakota sign, and then had some fun walking back and forth to each state.
North Dakota
So, now we are in South Central North Dakota and heading north on the Scenic Byway Hwy 1804. The scenery looks pretty much the same as South Dakota so far, with the rolling hills, round hay bales, acres of sunflower fields, and to our left the Oahe Lake. Do you know how to tell whether you are in South Dakota or North Dakota? Cows in South Dakota tails point south, and cows in North Dakota tails point north. Hahaha
We drove into the town of Linton, ND and took highway 83 north. We stopped at Darnell's Diner to get something to eat. Here's a picture of Darnell's sign. The most interesting thing I noticed in Darnell's is a rack of North Dakota post cards. I thought it was strange that one postcard called the "mosquito" the state bird. Huh?
Interstate 94 East
After leaving Darnell's Diner, we hopped on Interstate 94 east for a short distance. Exit 190 is the town of Driscoll. Exit 195 has no services, then there was a sign for Steele, with gas, food, and lodging, which is exit 200. Then we saw a sign advertising the World's Largest Buffalo at Jamestown, which is Exit 281.
The Lone Steer Motel is located at Exit 200. Here's a view of the town of Steele as we were exiting 200. We took a left and headed north on highway 3, passing a sign for Bismark.
Buffalo Lake Campground and Recreation
It was getting dark out, and I was wondering how many more pictures I would be able to take. By the time we reached Buffalo Lake campground, it was dusk, and we "saw" the reason why they jokingly call the "mosquito" the state bird. The mosquitoes were big, and many stuck to the front of the RV. See more pictures of the Buffalo Lake campground on the Esmond ND page.
In the morning, we got out the motorcycles and rode into Esmond for breakfast and to see the church that Rich and Ellie bought. After breakfast we went back to the motorhome and drove it to the church. Vlad and Rich cut down the pine tree that fell on the roof of the church. See more pictures on the Esmond, ND page.
Devil's Lake and the Spirit Lake Casino
Then we road the motorcycles to Devil's Lake, with a short stop at Fort Totten, and ate seafood buffet supper at Spirit Lake Casino. Read more about the trip to Devil's Lake and Spirit Lake Casino
On the way back to Esmond, we stopped in a town called Minnewaukan.
Rugby, ND Thurs. Aug 16
In the morning, we walked to the Esmond cafe and checked out the Esmond Campground on the way. Then we got on the motorcycles and drove to Rugby, ND, where there is a monument saying it is the Center of North America.
When we came back we packed up and left Esmond. We drove south to Jamestown and got there about 5:30 pm.
Jamestown, ND
We signed into the Fort Frontier campground which is right next to the gift shop that has the baby buffalo. Read more about the trip to Jamestown
Frontier Village Jamestown Fri. Aug 17
This morning we got ready to leave and drove the RV to Frontier Village a couple of blocks away. We parked in front of the Buffalo Museum, and went on the museum tour. Then we walked around the shops in Frontier Village, and went to see the World's Largest Buffalo.
After we left, we drove toward Kathryn, and found out we were on the Sheyenne Scenic Byway. We ate at the cafe in Kathryn for lunch, then headed south to Fort Ransom. Driving through Fort Ransom, we went to Lisbon, and then to Havana, ND.
Havana, ND - the Border town
We spent the night at the Havana Campground. Read more about our trip through Havana ND
De Smit, SD Sat. Aug 18
In the morning we ate breakfast at the Havana Cafe, then headed south into South Dakota. We went past Fort Sissleton and stopped in DeSmit to see the Laura Ingles Wilder house.
Arrived in Delmont, SD at 6:30, arrived back in Tripp, SD at 7:30 pm