Planning September trip to WI/MN/SD/ND/WY/MT - open for suggestions

[dlsterner]

Hi all,

I'm in the midst of planning a road trip out to the area mentioned in the title sometime in September.  The basic route would be to take the I-94/I-90 "loop" between Tomah WI and Billings MT, branching off of that wherever there is a place of interest to see.  I would fly from Baltimore to Minneapolis where I would rent a car for the actual trip.  Thinking about doing the loop clockwise but I can be persuaded otherwise.  I'm figuring about nine days or so of driving.  All these states will be new to me (I currently have 35 and hope to someday get all 50).  Might try to overnight in each new state as well.  Hey, I'm a road geek and I keep track of stuff like that.

Trying to determine some good attractions to see.  Obvious ones include Mount Rushmore and the Badlands.  Also open to the "schlocky but interesting" things like Wall Drug.  Or the Corn Palace.

I'm also interested in trying any local delicacies.  Such as the "Juicy Lucy" in Minneapolis.  Any others that are recommended?

A question ... I'm considering renting an EV like a Tesla Model Y Long Range instead of a conventional car.  Kind of an "extended test drive".  Anyone have any experience - good or bad - with using an EV on a road trip vs an ICE?

Any suggestions welcome!

[Max Rockatansky]

Needles Highway, Custer State Park and Wind Cave National Park are easy to access if you if you are already going to Mount Rushmore.  I liked US 14A in Spearfish Canyon in the Black Hills also. 

Also, you are already going to be in Billings the Beartooth Highway on US 212 is worth your time.  For me it competes with US 191 over the Coronado Trail for best mountain US Route segment.

One of the community mainstays had a recent trip where he got an EV unexpectedly and it became a liability.  Considering how remote some of the places you are going are you might want to reconsider. 

[dlsterner]

Needles Highway, Custer State Park and Wind Cave National Park are easy to access if you if you are already going to Mount Rushmore.  I liked US 14A in Spearfish Canyon in the Black Hills also. 

Also, you are already going to be in Billings the Beartooth Highway on US 212 is worth your time.  For me it competes with US 191 over the Coronado Trail for best mountain US Route segment.

One of the community mainstays had a recent trip where he got an EV unexpectedly and it became a liability.  Considering how remote some of the places you are going are you might want to reconsider.

Max, Thanks for the suggestions!  I did do a few spot checks with GSV; those roads are quite scenic and look like lots of fun to drive.  Perhaps I may try to incorporate some of them.

As far as EV vs ICE, no decision yet.  I did check for charging stations; if I didn't wander too far away from the Interstates, looks like they may be plentiful enough.  But if I were to deviate significantly and try some of your suggestions, then I will likely go with an ICE car.

[froggie]

I'm also interested in trying any local delicacies.  Such as the "Juicy Lucy" in Minneapolis.  Any others that are recommended?

There are two outfits that claim to be the founder of the "Juicy Lucy" :  Matt's Bar at 35th and Cedar, and the 5-8 Club at 58th and Cedar.  I grew up a mile from the 5-8 Club so I'm partial to that one.

It's a bit off your intended path (~30min), but there's the Spam Museum in Austin, MN.  Austin is the home to Hormel Foods.

[paulthemapguy]

You can directly compare the South Dakota Badlands to the North Dakota Badlands!  Definitely check out Theodore Roosevelt National Park, in western North Dakota. The park is right off I-94!  If you want to deviate to the north, into the north woods of Minnesota, you can find the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Itasca State Park. That's kind of a nifty geographical point of interest. Definitely take some time to explore the Twin Cities area if you're flying there.

[Jim]

You can directly compare the South Dakota Badlands to the North Dakota Badlands!  Definitely check out Theodore Roosevelt National Park, in western North Dakota. The park is right off I-94!

For sure on TRNP vs. Badlands NP.  They're both "badlands" but very different.  You can check out my pics from a trip that visited a lot of the places you're considering.  I'm "live tweeting" it right now +20 years: https://www.teresco.org/pics/north-20030707-22/  I'd be happy to offer thoughts on any of it you'd like.

I've been to the Black Hills several times, and echo the recommendations to include Custer State Park and the Needles Highway in your plans.

[clong]

Just got back from a trip about a week ago that included the trip you're planning.

Things I would recommend by state:
WI - a couple of hours off your loop, but the Lambeau Field tour (and I'm not a Packers fan) was excellent.
MN - Cathedral of St Paul (and I'm not Catholic) was beautiful and just down the street the Minnesota State Capitol was worth a swing by, we also grabbed a Caribou Coffee in the St Paul Skywalk, US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis was worth a drive by, we also stopped at the Mall of America and saw the location of home plate and the chair where Harmon Killebrew hit a monster home run from Metropolitan Stadium which previously occupied the site where MOA now stands that are still in place near the Nickelodeon theme park
ND - saw a decent herd of bison at Theodore Roosevelt North Unit
MT - good cup of coffee at Crazy Woman Espresso in Glendive, best Mexican food on the trip at Rio Sabinas in Billings
WY - Devils Tower was worth the stop (and hike to avoid the parking delay to park near the Visitor Center)
SD - Happened upon the sunset ceremony where they light up the faces of Mt Rushmore, Badlands was enjoyable - bring a good pair of shoes for the short hikes (we didn't do any of the multi-mile options), Wall Drug was a fun stop, Sioux Falls Park and downtown were good and the Cathedral of St Joseph was also good

Hope this helps!

[JREwing78]

If you're renting an EV for this trip, it's Tesla all the way. I wouldn't bother with anything else, in particular because Tesla's SuperCharger network is head and shoulders beyond other providers in terms of availability and uptime.

Follow Out of Spec Motoring on YouTube. Specific videos to watch are the road trip ones, where the host visits various rapid chargers and highlights the quirks of each one. He does a great job of wringing out the most drive time v.s. charging time out of every EV.

As for destinations along your way:
- Duluth is a really cool town and worth a visit on its own. Take a run up Hwy 61 to Grand Marais if you have time, right along the Lake Superior shoreline. Simply spectacular views!

- In Mitchell, SD, the Corn Palace is worth seeing, but the Dakota Discovery Museum is a better reason to stop.

- I wish I had stopped at the Chamberlain (SD) rest area on I-90 just before the Missouri River; it's a gorgeous sight after many miles of farmland.

- Wall Drug is overrated. Maybe it's better if you show up more than 30 minutes before closing. But I'd rather spend more time in the Badlands instead.

- Badlands NP and Crazy Horse were definite winners. Unfortunately Wind Cave NP and Jewel Cave NM were closed when I went. Hard to go wrong with spending more time in the Black Hills regardless. Everyone knows Mount Rushmore, but that's the least interesting reason to visit. 

- Definitely do the Beartooth Highway; it's really close to Billings. It is utterly stunning. A caution - the later into September you arrive, the more likely the Beartooth will have closures due to snowfall. In my case, I made it from Red Lodge to the Wyoming line, then was turned around.

- If you don't end up taking the Beartooth all the way into Yellowstone NP, circle back up the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (WY-296). I think it's just as stunning.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I'm also interested in trying any local delicacies.  Such as the "Juicy Lucy" in Minneapolis.  Any others that are recommended?

There are two outfits that claim to be the founder of the "Juicy Lucy" :  Matt's Bar at 35th and Cedar, and the 5-8 Club at 58th and Cedar.  I grew up a mile from the 5-8 Club so I'm partial to that one.

Other popular Lucy bars include Groveland Tap on St. Clair Avenue and The Nook on Hamline Avenue both in St. Paul, and the Blue Door Pub, which has a couple locations including at MSP Airport (unfortunately the original Blue Door neighborhood location in St. Paul appears to have closed).

I haven't tried Matt's or Groveland, but I personally rank the other three as Nook > Blue Door > 5-8.

Since Froggie mentioned the Spam museum in Austin, if you do end up there and are looking for another burger fix there's Tendermaid if you can squeeze in their weird hours. It's a loose meat sandwich in the vein of a sloppy joe but without the sauce.

[dlsterner]

Thanks everybody for the varied suggestions!  I will definitely keep them in mind as I plan the trip out.  Devil's Tower and TRNP in ND are both not far off my path.  My plans also take me by Austin MN so the Spam museum is definitely in play.

Unfortunately won't be doing anything that require serious hiking - being near 65 with arthritic knees, my hiking days are behind me.

[thspfc]

Devil's Tower and TRNP in ND are both not far off my path.

Speaking of devils, Devils Lake is Wisconsin's best state park without question. It's an hour from Tomah, straight down 90/94. Mirror Lake is very pretty as well, also in that immediate area.

[froggie]

If you're going for "Devil's Lake", a suggestion would be to check out the North Dakota version.  It's a unique and very interesting geological feature in that it has no natural outlet unless/until the lake surface reaches 1458ft elevation (above sea level), at which point the lake would eventually drain into the Red River of the North.  Current water level is about 1450ft.

Because of changes in precipitation and runoff over the last several decades, the lake has grown dramatically.  Over the past 30 years, the lake level has risen almost 30 feet and has taken out about 150 square miles of land (much of it farmland).  The increase in lake level has forced NDDOT and the local counties to raise the height on several roads, including US 2, ND 19, ND 20, and ND 57, and a ~19mi segment of US 281 had to be relocated entirely.  North Dakota's version of "Devils Lake State Park" is effectively an island, connected only by a county road causeway.  The increasing lake level has also affected Amtrak and BNSF rail services.

And if you take US 2 to get there, you may also pass through Rugby, which claims to be the "Geographic Center of North America".