Just a short drive one lonesome cowpoke uttered to me at the “filling station” in South Dakota. Was he thinking that I had a jet car or an aeroplane? I have a rental car, and must travel by good old-fashioned blue highway. But since I am in South Dakota, why not kill two Dakotas with one airline ticket?

North Dakota, much like South Dakota, was split into two form the original Dakota Territory. The reason for each state is the same, to gain more representation in Congress. I cannot be sure if that is a good thing! But the area gained two US Senators, and 2 Congressmen by my math.

Our 29th state borders two Canadian provinces, Manitoba and Saskatoon. Minnesota lies ominously to the east, and the great state of Montana to the west. Gee, I wonder which state lies to the south? Bismarck is the capital, and the largest city is Fargo. It is the third least populated state behind Wyoming (expected), and Vermont) (unexpected).

The boom in natural resources has been great for North Dakota, in the form of oil extraction from the Bakken formation. The state is home to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Most of the state is covered in grasslands. The western half is the hilly Great Plains. The eastern is the Red River Valley, as sung in the old cowboy song. The middle part is Drift Prairie and Missouri Plateau.

This is a state with fewer than 700,000 residents as of 2012. Most North Dakotans are of European ancestry, with Germans at 47% and Norwegians at 30%. The ethnic composition is 90% white and only 5.4% Native American. North Dakota has the most churches per capita in the United States. They also have the greatest number of Native Americans.

The list of famous people here include: Lawrence Welk, Jonny Lang, Lynn Anderson, Bobby Vee, Josh Duhamel, Warren Christopher, Angie Dickinson, Phil Jackson, Roger Maris, Sacagawea, and Ann Southern. Someone told me that Fred Flintstone wanted to move here, but Wilma decided against it.

But as expected, agriculture is king here, followed by petroleum, food processing and technology. It is the only state with a state-owned bank, The Bank of North Dakota in Bismarck. But wait! There is more, with a state-owned flour mill in Fargo, called North Dakota Mill and Elevator. Yet, North Dakota is the least visited state. Even the Lewis and Clark Expedition came through in the winter of 1804-1805.

In my quest to have visited all fifty states, I am here. I do not know anyone from this state. Do you? That is all I can say. Good bye, North Dakota.

General George Custer and all of his men were killed in the Battle of Little Bighorn. Few remember that he was a Brigadier General (at the ripe age of 23!) in the Civil War, and his relentless pursuit of Confederate leader, General Robert E. Lee helped bring the war to an end. A native Ohian, he was born on December 5, 1839, he joined the 7th Cavalry in 1868. On June 26, 1876, he led 210 men into battle a Little Bighorn against Lakota and Cheyenne warriors.

George Custer enrolled at West Point in 1857. Needless to say, it was not a good fit. Custer finished last in his graduating class in June 1861. Just like the pharmacist or physician who finishes last in their class, the future career soldier generally does not fare much better than his health care counterparts. BTW, what do they call the guy who finished last in his class? Unemployed!

But when it came to war, Custer excelled. He was brilliant at leading the cavalry at the Battle of Bull Run, his first battle, earning him recognition. His bright red neckties became his signature look, giving him the makings of a real military hero. His daring and bravery earned him the title of “The Boy General.” In fact, his cavalry units were critical in forcing the surrender of General Lee at Appomattox on April 9, 1865. He was deemed a hero by none other than Lieutenant General Philip Sheridan.

He continued to distinguish himself in battles with Native Americans, even though we called then Indians back then. In 1876, an attack was ordered on the large Lakota village. His biggest mistake was dividing his troops into three units, as Custer and his men were surrounded and killed. The defeat was an embarrassment to the U.S. government, which then redoubled its efforts and quickly and cruelly defeated the Lakotas.

Though Custer became a legend, his career could not overcome “Custer’s Last Stand.” His wife, Elizabeth Bacon, tried to salvage his image and reputation. Her father was a judge, and did not approve of George, whose father was a blacksmith. After he was appointed brigadier general, her father gave his approval, and they married fourteen months after they formally met.

Skipping the details of Little Bighorn, I quickly digress to say it quickly became the highlight of the western Indian wars. So, despite all of the hoopla around his failure, he has been honored in several ways. Six states have named counties in his honor. Custer National Cemetery is located within Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. There is even a Custer Monument at West Point, where he is buried. He is probably the first, only, and last grad, who finished last in his class, to be buried there.

But Custer State Park, South Dakota’s first and largest, was named after Lieutenant Colonel George Custer. The park now cover 71,000 acres, and is home to many animals, three dams, and miles of road. The park is home to a famous herd of 1500 free roaming bison. It is easily accessible from Rapid City, where we land. Even President Coolidge made the park his “summer White House” back in 1927.

The park is known for its “begging burros”, donkeys who approach passing cars in the park. The burros have become famous, with many people bringing food specifically for feeding the animals. How different from the hungry bears in Yosemite National Park.

The park also has an annual buffalo roundup (more than 1,300 buffalo) and auction in September of each year. Other animals found in the park are mule deer, elk, mountain goats, white-tailed deer, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, mountain lions, and feral burros. Needles Highway and the wildlife loop are reputed to be the best drives in the park. Needles, so named for the slender granite formations that dominate the skyline, and grassy (not dewy) meadows.

There are rules here. Pet leashes can be no longer than 10 feet. July and August are hot, something I can do without. Bison, and not Custer, are the big attraction in the park. This is the world’s largest herd of bison at nearly 1300. Three hundred are sold at auction each November to keep the herd consistent. Campers should not drink from lakes and rivers. Cell phone reception is spotty, and rock climbing is allowed. Five lodges are part of Custer.

Most importantly, Custer is one of the last wild places left in the U.S. What do I mean by wild? Is it like the call of the wild, or the wild and woolly west? Probably, the wild means a little of all things wild. Like prairie dogs, white-tail deer, and the cute but smelly begging burros.

Custer City is the oldest town (1874) in the Black Hills, with a rather picturesque downtown. I think that is a euphemism for artsy craftsy places, and a few food joints lining a dusty road with no traffic signals. The town has rebuilt the stockade, a few minutes east of town. Also located here is the National Museum of Woodcarving, including the carvings of Dr. H. Niblack of Denver, who was the original animator of Disneyland.

Southwestern South Dakota is a land of riches in my opinion. Perhaps the crown jewel of the area is Badlands National Park. The striking landscape has some of everything, like buttes, spires, canyons, and pinnacles. Though the Lakota called this area “the land bad”, or “mako sico.” Erosion has left its beautiful and unmistakable mark, with colors of purple, yellow (shale), tan and gray (sand and gravel), red and orange (iron oxide), and white (volcanic ash). Badlands averages an inch of erosion annually.

Also, many old skeletons (fossils) have been found, as Badlands has the richest deposits of mammal fossil beds. These include camels, three-toed horses, saber-toothed cats, and an ugly rhinoceros-like creature. Within the park’s 244,000 acres, lodging can be found. This is the largest undisturbed mixed grass prairie in North America. The most endangered land animal, the black-footed ferret, has been reintroduced.

Some interesting places still exist, including lands managed by the Oglala, and Lakota Tribes, called the Stronghold Unit. A place called Ghost Dances, is a former U.S. Air Force bomb and gunnery range. Red Shirt Table is the highest point in the park at 3,340 feet above sea level. Badlands became a National Monument in 1929, and a National Park in 1978. The tribes have been here for over 11,000 years, using the area for hunting. This is the second largest Indian Reservation in America.

Unfortunately, homesteaders moved into the Dakota Territory at the end of the nineteenth century. Native lands were stripped from Native Americans, and they were forced to live on reservations. An uprising (December, 1890) culminated by the battle at the Wounded Knee Massacre, the last major clash between the Plains Indians and the U.S. Military. Coincidentally, this is when the Japanese began to migrate to America.

A standard homestead was 160 acres. For the Dakotas, the standard was increased to 640 acres, mostly to the arid, wind-swept land requiring a larger holding. Cattle grazed the lands, along with winter wheat and hay as annual crops. The Great Dust Bowl events of the 1930s forced many to leave. Then for the war effort (WW2), the U.S. Army Air Force took back 341,000 acres from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. They used the land for a gunnery range and bombing exercises.

Badlands is located 75 miles east of Rapid City. It was one of our last stops in this unique part of both the U.S. and the world. The best way to see the park is to drive the Highway 240 Badlands Loop Road. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip to South Dakota.