Traveling through South Dakota to Yellowstone

In August, we embarked on an Ultimate Family Road Trip for 11 days, covering 10 states. When you take a big family road trip in the middle of COVID you are clearly trying to overcome mental health issues from isolation and trying to avoid germs and crowds whenever possible. Those were definitely our main goals on this trip. We wanted to get away together, but we really wanted to stay safe. So a family road trip out west seemed like the best option.

We left early (read 4 am) the first morning and checked off several states on our first day. I hope you enjoy our trip outline over the next couple of days and add a few new ideas to your next family adventure. And, if we missed any highlights, leave a comment and let us know what we should add next time. Because we already know there will be a next time!

Advice for roadside detours and stop ideas along your route through South Dakota to Yellowstone for an epic family road trip adventure.

Day 1 Trip Outline – Leaving Arkansas, heading to South Dakota

Breakfast stop in NWA with family. We added a little extra time to our route, but it was good to get the wiggles out and have a good, healthy, protein-filled breakfast to set us for a late lunch.
Lunch – Butler, MO – great gas stop and quick food.
We enjoyed Kohen’s Bakery – sub shop and pastries. We called ahead, placed an order for pickup, and took it to Scout Park down the road for a little picnic.
Scout Park had a covered picnic table and a playground. We just parked in the church parking lot next door and walked over. It was nice to get out of the car for a bit and stretch our legs. One parent tip here, I just let Little Man play and tackled him eating his sandwich when we got back in the car. I knew the first two days of our trip were full day car trips and it was important for him to have some playtime to burn off a little energy and not stare at a screen for a few minutes.
Butler, MO has a beautiful town square that reminded me a lot of Magnolia, AR. I could have been fine sitting under a big tree in the town square for our picnic as well!
Our original goal was Kansas City BBQ but we adjusted! That’s what we often do on the days that don’t need a hard schedule. I usually look up food options on Trip Advisor or Yelp to give us an idea of what other people think and what towns could be a good stop.
The rest of the day included lots of driving.
We pulled into our hotel and got food to go from across the street. I really encourage on long days like this to grab curbside and setting in your room for early bedtimes.
We did stay in downtown. Unless you are just a couple of gals/dudes traveling together, I would suggest staying on the edge of town on your route. It’s never easy for a big family to fully unpack and stay in a downtown space especially when you are trying to unload in a parking garage. Just check your route for the best options to consider for your family.
Also, our goal that day was to DRIVE and get as far as we could. But, your family may choose to stop in Kansas City and explore or spend more time in Omaha. Sports families have plenty to see along this route and if you were not doing the full route we took, then you have much more time to enjoy the ride

Day 1 was all about getting to the next day. It started early and the next day will start early, as well. The best thing you can do here is to plan ahead to be productive while you travel or get lots of kids road trip activities together so you can just get through the day.

The second day of our Ultimate Family Road Trip started early again but we had a lot we wanted to cover and early was necessary to get to all our destinations.

Below are a few highlights we discovered along the way to South Dakota with a goal destination of Badlands National Park.

Our morning was much of what you expect…lots of fields of corn. Maybe not the day to introduce car bingo!
Buffalo Ridge, SD – roadside attraction buffalo herd and 1880 cowboy town and gas station. $8/person
Porter Sculpture Park roadside attraction between Humboldt and Montrose
Corn Palace in Mitchell, SD was a great stop. We planned to just drive by but, parked and used this as a great potty break and place to burn off some energy. This was an easy place for social distancing and walk around for a bit.
Mitchell, SD also has a historic downtown walking tour and Indian Village.
1880s Old Town in Midland, SD is another cool stop if you like Wild West or are traveling with little cowboys.

Our morning was quick and we had plenty of time at Badlands in the late afternoon. I’ll say this multiple times – while we had and Ultimate Family Road Trip that included Mount Rushmore and South Dakota attractions, I would suggest people break these up into two trips. This would allow for more time exploring on the South Dakota side and more time on the Yellowstone side. It was a lot for one day and slowing down a little would let you explore more of the roadside attractions that make a road trip so much fun.

For us, the exciting things were traveling through new states we had never seen and we watched for a lot of cows and horses, and red bars. Thankfully there were many of those along our route and that made the time really fly by!

Tomorrow we explore the Badlands National Park and saw our first wildlife right out our window.

Experience more from our Ultimate Family Road Trip to Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone and Rocky Mountain National Park