Mike Whye - The Dakotas Off the Beaten Path®: Discover Your Fun

Mike Whye developed his wanderlust as a member of a military family that moved often from when he was born until he graduated from high school. Although he did not plan to be a writer-photographer while earning a bachelors degree in architecture at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, he sold his first story and photos in 1974 to the Magazine of the Midlands, published by the Omaha World-Herald, during his junior year. He continued freelancing on the side while working on a masters degree in journalism at Iowa State University and then administering the public relations for a 150-person engineering-architecture firm.

Since becoming a full-time freelancer in 1985, he has supplied stories and photos, mostly about the upper Midwest, for publications including the Omaha World-Herald, Des Moines Register, AAA World, and Motorcoach magazine. In 2005, he also became a part-time instructor teaching journalism and photojournalism at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He and his wife, Dorie, live in Council Bluffs, Iowa, where they raised their children, Graham, Meredith, and Alex. He has been a member and officer of Midwest Travel Journalists Association and its predecessor, Midwest Travel Writers Association, since 1989. Read more about Mikes works at mikewhye.com.

Thanks first of all to my wife, Dorie Stone, and our children Graham, Meredith, and Alex, for going on trips with me across the Midwest as well as putting up with me when I disappeared into my home office to write or edit photos (and for some years, working in a darkroom, too, until digital photography ended that task). Dorie deserves much thanks for reviewing what I wrote and helping with research.

Thanks also to my parents, Dorothy and Harry Whye. My father was an officer in the Air Force which meant the family traveled a fair amount, including two years in Grand Forks, North Dakota. We treated any place we lived like long-term tourists, visiting natural wonders and historical places on trips lasting from a weekend to a few weeks.

I appreciate the help of the offices of South Dakota Tourism and the North Dakota Tourism Division, plus many many people at the sites mentioned in this book. I also appreciate Jill Callison, William White, and Constance Hoffman for introducing me to places I might not have otherwise visited. Special mention goes to Jacquie Fuks, formerly of Southeast South Dakota Tourism, and Camie Lies, of the Bismarck-Mandan Convention and Visitors Bureau.

I especially want to thank Lisa Meyers McClintick for providing a terrific base to work with in revising this book.

By a fortunate accident of nature, the northeastern area of South Dakota, also known as the Glacial Lakes Region, features prime boating and recreational areas, with 16 state parks and two national wildlife refuges. Serendipity appeared in the form of glaciers some 20,000 years ago, and more than 120 lakes and miles of prairies were left when the glaciers retreated. This area is referred to as the Young Drift Plains by geologists, but residents simply call it the Lakes Region. For the most part, the area is swampy plain, dotted with lakes and marshes. The notable exception is the wide, flat valley of the James River. I-29, which runs northsouth, and US 12, which runs eastwest, help keep travel and commerce flowing from Sioux Falls, in the southeastern corner of the state, to Rapid City, in the west.

Well begin on US 12 in the northwest corner of the James River Valley, anchored by Aberdeen, which was first settled by the Arikara, who introduced farming to the region. Established Americans from the East Coast and newly arrived pioneers from Scandinavian countries, Germany, Russia, and the British Isles were to follow by train and wagon and on foot.

Established in 1881 near the Milwaukee Railroad, the town was named for Aberdeen, Scotland, the hometown of Alexander Mitchell, president of the railroad. Aberdeen soon became known as the Hub City in recognition of the rail lines that converged hereat least nine of them in 1890like spokes on a wagon wheel. These days the community has more than 1,400 businesses and more than 28,000 residents, making it the third largest city in South Dakota. Agriculture and manufacturing still anchor the economy, while the city provides a regional hub for services and education. Northern State University, a public university established in 1901, and Presentation College, a small four-year Catholic college, bring history, higher learning, and the arts to the Aberdeen area.

You can wander through the whimsical world of Wizard of Oz author L. Frank Baums imagination at Aberdeens Storybook Land on US 281. It includes Land of Oz with Dorothys farmstead (complete with special effects to simulate a tornado), a petting zoo with farm animals, a Yellow Brick Road that leads to Munchkin Land (a small cornfield that is planted and harvested annually), the Scarecrows and Tin Mans homes, the Haunted Forest and Lions Den, and the Wicked Witchs Castle. The Wizard Balloon Ride offers a view of the park from about 32 feet in the air.

Other larger-than-life exhibits at Storybook Land were inspired by fairy tales and nursery rhymes, such as Jack and Jill Went Up the Hill, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Humpty Dumpty. Kids can climb aboard Captain Hooks ship, ride a 30-horse carousel, slide down the Tin Mans giant metal legs, crawl through a tunnel to watch prairie dogs at the zoo, and explore a medieval castle. The zoo includes buffalo, elk, sheep, deer, and geese.

BEST ATTRACTIONS IN NORTHEASTERN SOUTH DAKOTA

Bramble Park Zoo

Childrens Museum of South Dakota

Dacotah Prairie Museum

Fort Sisseton State Park

Gladys Pyle Historic Home

Ingalls Homestead

Redlin Art Center

South Dakota Art Museum

South Dakota State Fair

Storybook Land & Wylie Park

Admission to Storybook Land is free, although rides have fees, including a trip aboard the scale-model replica of the 1863 C. P. Huntington that chugs and whistles its way around the park. The Visitor Center stays open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends, with shorter hours in the spring and fall (roughly Apr 15 to Oct 15). Call the park at (605) 626-7015 for more information or go to aberdeen.sd.us.

roll through the park

If youre seeking a whimsical way to get around the sprawling Wylie Park, Rollout Bike Rentals provides choppers, surreys, traditional bikes, tandem bikes, pedal go-karts, and John Deere Tractor bikes . Call (605) 226-1773 or go to rolloutbikerentals.com for details.

Surrounding Storybook Land, youll find Wylie Park, with 200 acres of recreation that includes a lake, picnicking, paved trails, and golf. With Thunder Road (605-225-8541; thunderroad.info) you can race go-karts, play in the Lazer Maze, or minigolf past a volcano spewing flames. Events are held throughout the year, including Haunted Forest the third weekend in October. Visitors are guided through 13 spooky scenes led by ghoulish guides. A matinee walk-through is available for younger children, who are invited to wear costumes and collect candy at every scene. Visit aberdeenhauntedforest.org for more information.

Lake Minne-Eho,