Rest areas are not known as a destination, but this one is.
Located on I-90, at Chamberlain, SD (serving both directions), is a rest area featuring a museum about the Lewis and Clark Expedition and a giant statue of an Indian woman.
The statue, dubbed, “Dignity Statue” pays homage to the Native American culture that South Dakota is so well known for. This is not a statue of Sacajawea. Rather, a statue meant to reflect the many Native American cultures of the Northern Plains.
The museum has many artifacts on display from the Lewis and Clark Expedition along with Native American pieces of art and life. The museum also tells the story of Lewis and Clark and their brief stop here at this very spot.
The rest area offers vending machines, picnic tables, some gorgeous views of the Missouri River valley, and even some hiking trails down to the river itself.
If you plan to overnight at the rest area, keep in mind there are signs posted limiting you to just 3 hours of stay.
However, when I stayed there, I found several trucks and RVs that had stayed beyond the 3 hour limit. I ended up overnighting there as a result.
There is also a South Dakota Highway Patrol sub-station located here too. Because of that, I chose to leave at 5:30 AM, just in case the cops made a habit of citing overnighters.
Leave a Reply