6/13

We got out of the motel by 11am. I am a master packer, and anyone seeing the job I did packing our van would be in awe.

It didn't take too long to get to Dell Rapids, where we found the Big Sioux Overlook (above). What's funny is that Dell Rapids is fairly flat, and other than a few signs there is no indication of this overlook. It's really cool to see, though.

Stopping downtown, we ate at the Bowl & Cafe, a literal hole-in-the-wall housing a cafe/bowling alley (duh).

We got into Watertown around 2pm. Isabella wouldn't take a nap, so we went straight to the Terry Redlin Museum. It was cool to see all his work, and the place is very well-maintained. My favorite part was a series which depicted a house going through a series of life-changing events, starting from a kid getting acquainted with his new dog as they moved into their new house, to the kid growing up and leaving for college, then the Navy, finally ending with officers coming to the house to tell the mother that her son was killed in the war, sort of a tribute to his own brother-in-law.

There was also a traveling Norman Rockwell exhibit. Rockwell was a heavy influence on Redlin, so it was cool to see the two in the same place.

We got to the Sandy Shores campground around 4pm. It was very windy again, but I had little trouble getting the fire lit. This campground was a little more modern--the toilets flushed and the lake was more tourist accessable. We were a little cramped in between our neighbors, but they were all pretty friendly. We had beer brats for dinner and got some good warmth out of our fire fire before the wind picked up even more. Before we knew it, it was raining and blowing like crazy. After about a half-hour (9pm), the rain let up and we came back out to find the fire still somewhat lit, so we roasted marshmallows a little and put Isabella to bed (where she was asleep within 2 minutes!). Not long after it started to rain again, so Karissa and I just went to bed.