I spent a few days in late September of 2018 exploring West River in South Dakota (anywhere west of the Missouri, for those of you not from SD). I’ve been through countless times, but always on my way somewhere, so it was nice to have some time just to enjoy the vastness of the area.

I was expecting the endless prairie, but I was surprised by the buttes that just pop up at random places throughout the region. It’s really cool. Fall colors were as abundant as they ever are in the Dakotas, and I really enjoyed just driving random gravel roads for a few days. Roads are few and far between, but the beauty is bountiful–it’s easy to understand why people love the openness. And just when you think you’ll see nothing but pasture for the next hour, you come upon a creek with trees cutting through the plains. Amazing!