Black Hills area is cool and Mt. Rushmore and Wall Drug are worth the drive.

I spent about a week bicycling across the state during a cross-country bicycle ride.  SD was the worst part of my trip, as far as my feeling for a state.

First of all, I found, and heard from others too, that it's like 2 different states, depending on which side of the Missouri River you are on.  The western half is the "west", and people are considerable more open and friendly.  In the eastern half, I found people to be more than unfriendly; downright WEIRD.  Eastern SD & western MN were about the same.

People in eastern SD were the WEIRDest people I ever encountered.  If you look at them, they look away.  If you smile at them and say hi or speak to them, they just stare at you.  This happened over and over in eastern SD/western MN.

They are also all still fighting the Indian Wars there.  Other bicycle riders I encountered, before I got to SD, told me the same thing.  They also mentioned WEIRD.  Lots of anti-Indian prejudice there.

I rode through the Cheyenne River Lakota Indian Reservation.  The Native Americans were extremely friendly and hospitable to me; quite the opposite of most of their white brethren in the eastern half.  (I am white, in case you were wondering). 

After spending a couple days riding through the reservation (west to east), I stopped at Gettysburg for lunch.   A priest asked if he could talk to me about my trip.  He said he was surprised I wasn't mugged on the Reservation.  I told him I'd had zero problems there.  Then, I asked him if he'd ever been there, and he said NO.

Watertown, on the eastern side of the state, was about the worst part of the entire trip.  I had more people blow their horns at me and give me the finger in Watertown, SD than on the rest of the entire 4,000 mile trip.  Horrid, horrid people.  In the west, if someone blew their horn, it was to make sure I saw them waving energetically at me.

I subsequently found that a lady named Barbara Savage also did a cross-country bike ride across SD years ago, and wrote a book about it.  Her observations about SD were about the same as mine; people who wouldn't let her camp on their property, people who scammed her for money to camp, rather than tell her about a free campground down the road, people who wouldn't give her water - I encountered all that, too, in the eastern half.

It doesn't mean everyone in SD is a dork, but the people of eastern SD/western MN sure left a bad taste in my mouth, over and over.

Have you ever seen a national weather map?  Ever notice how the winter extreme cold or summer extreme heat make a huge dip down through the midwest, with the Dakotas at the top of it?  I'm not too fond of winter in NH, but it's a whole lot better than the Dakotas.

They also seem to be incapable of making decent pancakes in SD.  After numerous cases of horrid-tasting pancakes (part of a bicycling breakfast staple), I gave up on ordering them in SD.

Mount Rushmore was smaller/further away than I'd expected, and the ongoing Crazy Horse Memorial was nice.  

The two stars is to account for the people in the western half and the Indians.  Zero stars for the rest of it.

Among the things I like most about South Dakota is its Native American culture. You get glimpses of it at Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse, etc. But to really see this forgotten side of America you need to travel off the tourist-beaten path. The Pine Ridge Reservation has some fantastic scenery, and the Lakota Oyate who live there are friendly and open. There aren't a lot of hotels and restaurants, but those things are starting to emerge. Bear Butte, east of Sturgis, is a fascinating religious icon to native peoples all over the Western plains.

Well Badlands National Park and the Black Hills National Forest are some of my favorite places in the US.  Deadwood City is also cool.  This state really doesn't deserve to be at the bottom. 

Every time I think I know the United States, I see people, sights and places that blow me away and make me like this country and its people anew.

This was the case when I attended a reading of a book about black mormons in the US, also when I attended a gay rodeo at Rawhide with my kids. And again, when I happened to pass through the town of Wall, South Dakota at the weekend of the Sturgis motorcycle rally.

Grannies, yuppies, nazis, other '-ies' that defy definition, all roaring about on their hogs, and stopping to browse through the over-the-top Americana kitsch at Wall-Drug. It was a great experience: I wanted to take some photos of my kids with the bikers - the bikers wanted to be photographed with my kids, but my kids were scared of them. Great fun, nonetheless.

Wall and Sturgis are in the SW corner of South Dakota, a corner that compensates for the remainder of the state, which is quite drab, really. There you have the Black Hills, the Crazy Horse monument, Mt. Rushmore, Custer State Park (well worth a look, with its herd of buffalo that routinely block traffic on the roads), the Badlands, etc.. It is a wonderful part of the USA to visit and I intend to go back there again and again.

If I were picking one area of the United States for a Western vacation, it would be the Black Hills of South Dakota.  Within a small area you have excellent scenery, the best wildlife viewing (outside of Yellowstone) in the US, and attractions such as Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Statue, Custer State Park, Badlands, Wounded Knee, Deadwood (Kevin Costner's casino and Bill Hickok's grave), Wind Cave, and just across the border in Wyoming Devil's Tower.

 I've lived in 9 different states & South Dakota tops the list as the most BORING one. FREEZING & bitter cold winds occur from October-April! It snows in April & even May, sometimes! There is virtually NO autumn here. What they call summer is what most Americans call spring. You are mostly trapped like a rat in your home the majority of the year due to the rotten weather. It gets worse.... the pay here is ridiculously low, they don't care if you have a college degree, you get paid nothing. The people are shallow, self-centered, boring, cold & quite unattractive. A good looking person is RARE. Native Americans here seem miserable & very poor.

We rank #47 on the pay scale! That is disgusting & I can't wait to get out of here. I lived here in 1987-1992 & 2005-present. Apartments are overpriced, houses are so overpriced compared to what they are WORTH, and they're ugly with no architectural imagination whatsoever. It is the most depressing place besides North Dakota! Dead trees 7 months of the year, brutal winds, low pay, NO career opportunities, people who don't think beyond the day they're living or beyond the state...... hmmm

The ONLY good things are Mount Rushmore & the excellent Italian & Mongolian restaurants & no thugs or gang members.

BORING BORING BORING - No wonder the population is so low, there is no future here for anyone unless they're in the Senate or House of Reps. Can't wait to get out for good.

Doesn't really have much population or things to do.  There is a lot of nice scenery, and it's definitely better than it's neighbor to the north!

Not the greatest place for progressive thinking people. The pending ban on abortion is really indicative of how backwards these people are. Next they'll ban contraception and make the women walk several paces behind the men.

No income tax--friendly people. It has some unique sights.

I love South Dakota! It is one of the most spiritual places on Earth....not to mention beautiful.

Gorgeous landscapes. Nice People. A little too barren to live there and it gets cold in the winter. But definitely a great place to visit.

Tboneya- As someone who attended college in South Dakota, lives in Minneapolis, and whose parents live in Oregon, I will tell you that South Dakota is extremely unsatisfying, and that Sioux Falls is no more than a big suburb. There are many, many progressive thinkers in Oregon, in places such as Portland and Eugene. There are also some country bumpkins. South Dakota seems to be filled with the latter.

Coming from California, my opinion may be spoiled, so just keep that in mind. I have lived near Rapid City for about a year now, and I must say I am not impressed in the least. It doesn't really have that small town feel (ie, the people are still pushy and rude) yet doesn't have nearly enough stuff for it to be classifed as anything other than a small city (seems like there's only one of everything). It does get crowded here during the weekend because people from Wyo and Neb come here to shop. This is the only decent size city for 300 miles or so. The only redemming quality is the Black Hills.

Not much better then N. Dakota-A 'culturally out of touch' regional society, that exists mainly to maintain the status quo.... also a rather bland population- that seems detached from multi cultural life. ND seems to have no understanding of the diverse nation that exists at the east and west coasts. Isolated, as it has been for 100 years and totally lacking a global outlook- which is something needed in the 21st century. In a word flat, cold and socially backward.

I was disappointed to see one person giving this state a negative rating for being mostly white, out of touch. I see these kinds of slurs real often. Apparently, we still have a long way to go in this country before people can get over their stubborn race-consciousness. I happen to live in a southern town that is 64% black and 36% white. Whenever anyone asks me how I like it here, I tell them that I like it fine - which is the truth. I hope to stay here a long time. But what would you think of me if I said instead that I don't like this place because it is mostly black, out of touch? Such a statement would be (rightfully) considered repulsive. And anit-white statements are just as racist. I pray that the day will come in America when we will be friends with each other based on our mutual interests, not on what people look like.

Montana should annex the western half, and Minnesota should annex the eastern half.

Yes, it is very cold most of the year. Summer is HOT!!! This state is boring, but not as boring as Wyoming!!! I have lived in South Dakota for Twelve years.

Lived here for 6 years. People say it's boring and cold. I'll stick up for this okay state - lots of history (both good and bad), the Black Hills are very beautiful, excellent outdoor activities (hunting, fishing, and skiing out in the Black Hills) and Sioux Falls is one of the more underrated cities in the US. There aren't many cities in South Dakota but Sioux Falls is a must-see if you do plan on visiting. On the downside, it's very poor (even more so than Mississippi or Alabama), the people are as ignorant and bigoted as they are good-natured, the public school system is a joke, not to mention it's very cold and boring.

I really think South Dakota is just a big waste of space. It should be called THE GAP. The cities are dirty, and they aren't even that big. The Black Hills area, which was once Native American land is now ruined because of the abuse of tourists, and the traffic in that area during tourist season is unexcusable and disgusting. I mean there are a few good spots, but they are few and far between. And the people are so horribly close minded. You should just visit Wyoming, a much better place right next door to the west. :)

IT'S OK. SIOUX FALLS IS FULL OF RUDE BASTARDS.

Sioux falls is great, the state has no income tax, and there are a lot of lakes and rivers. I just cant allow myself to give it more than an ok though

Great place. Just don't go in January.

The Badlands are a sight to behold -- stark, desolate, and beautiful. Saw an excellent high school rodeo there once, too.