We’re back in North Dakota! We arrived in Bismarck, picked up our Dodge Ram, named him Wyatt and set off for our accommodation. Upon the car rental guy’s recommendation, we had dinner at Humpback Sally’s. In a city that appeared to to have no life on a Saturday night, we did not expect to find this gem serving yummy small plate food with a great ambience. Complete with an utterly batty waitress who frequently plonked herself down at our table for a rest, we absolutely recommend Humpback Sally’s to anyone visiting Bismarck.
Clambering into Wyatt (literally) we left Bismarck and found ourselves relishing being back in the wide open spaces of North Dakota, taking in the rolling fields and skies that stretch for miles (from a much higher vantage point than we are used to in Ruby). We passed ranches, cattle and cowboys and reacquainted ourselves with the sorry sight of roadkill as we wonder if we will ever see a live raccoon in this country, instead of a squashed one.
We visited the site of the Knife River Indian Villages and learned about the life and culture of the Hidatsa people. From the short movie about Buffalo Bird Woman’s life in the village to wandering around the surrounding land and imagining life as it was, we got our first enlightening glimpse of America’s indigenous history. They also have an amazing reconstruction of an Earthlodge and a museum full of artefacts. It was well worth the stop and the ranger on duty was so excited to see us, we think we were the first visitors to stop here in days.
From Knife River to what was most definitely the highlight of Sammy’s North Dakota visit: the Enchanted Highway. With the exception of the still-to-be-visited largest ball of twine in Kansas, the Enchanted Highway was the culmination of Sammy’s roadside attraction dreams come true. The 35 mile stretch of Gladstone-Regent highway is dotted with seven sculptures in total, making up a collection of the largest scrap metal sculptures in the world.
The aim of the sculptor, Gary Greff, is to bring tourists following the the Enchanted Highway to his hometown of Regent, in an attempt to bring an influx of much needed business. Sorry Gary – we’re not sure your plan is working. We arrived in Regent to find an assortment of no more than 15 closed buildings on the main street and not a soul present.
And now off we go from North Dakota to South Dakota. Crazy Horse, see you soon! P&S