August 24, 2014. Pierre (pronounced pair) South Dakota paradise?

CAMPGROUND:  Farm Island Recreation Area.  Five stars out of five.  For a state park, it has good amenities....great showers, clean bathrooms, electricity at all sites, big sites with shade trees, and located on a lake with canoes, etc to rent.  $ 26

LOCATION:  Outside of Pierre, right in the middle of South Dakota

WEATHER:  Sunny. Windy. Highs around 80

We packed up early at Theodore Roosevelt National Park, before it started to rain again.  We went into town and had breakfast at the Cowboy Cafe.  Sure enough, there were real cowboys eating inside.

Our goal today was to drive somewhere sunny.  We drove through southwestern North Dakota, passing  oil fields and national grasslands.  Into South Dakota, on rural back roads, we saw miles and miles of wheat, oats, and happy-looking sunflowers in the fields.  Factoid:  South Dalota is the #1 producer of oats and sunflowers in the USA.  We had 2 near misses of hitting pheasants flying across the road.

We stopped in Pierre, the tiny state capital, and luckily found this campground.  It is on a lake that feeds into the Missouri.  Absolutely beautiful, and perfect weather.  We hung things out to dry, and got cleaned up in their nice showers.

George made a fire.  Our site overlooks the lake.

We plan to stay here 2 days to relax and enjoy the weather and surroundings.

DINNER:  I really need to use leftovers in the refrigerator.  I cooked potatoes in aluminum foil on the fire.  In a pan, I sautéed some veg  that needed to be used....mushrooms and bell peppers.  After they were cooked, I added a few slices of grilled leftover brats, and the leftover corn chowder.  After it thickened, I served the chowder mix over the potatoes.  As a side, we had more cabbage.  It is hard to find small heads, so we end up eating a lot of cabbage whenever I buy it!