Last Raft Trip Down ‘Old Mo’
Editor’s Note: Almost 60 years ago — before bulldozers dammed the Missouri and changed the river forever — two Sioux Falls men assembled a wooden raft and floated from Mobridge to Pierre. Durand Young...
View ArticleEating Wild Cactus
Wild plants like the prickly pear cactus have served many purposes By Ruth Steil ((img|Missouri-River.jpg|width=600)) Prickly pear cactus thrive in dry conditions on slopes and hills, like these yellow...
View ArticleSharing Nature's Wealth
Editor’s Note: Sisters Mary and Maud Adams donated the first parcel of their family homestead to the state of South Dakota in 1984. Today, the Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve features walking...
View ArticleMysterious Monarchs
By John Andrews MONARCH BUTTERFLIES ARE just a couple inches long, weigh less than an ounce and flutter through the air with wings as thin as tissue paper, but they may be the most intriguing creatures...
View ArticleAutumn Grasslands
By Bernie Hunhoff Photography by Stephen Gassman Emily Dickinson was a great poet but she underestimated an important plant species when she lamented how she longed to be grass-like. The grass so...
View ArticleWinter Hike On Harney
By Bernie Hunhoff ((img|Harney-Peak-12-05-14-1.jpg|width=600)) Climbers who reach the summit of Harney Peak can gaze upon four states: South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Nebraska. Want to play like a...
View ArticleA Whale Of A Mountain
Story and photos by Jeremiah M. Murphy ((img|Terry-Peak-01-30-15-2.jpg|width=600)) Snow whales, sometimes stretching 70 feet or more, offer Black Hills snowboarders unique opportunities for adventure....
View ArticleCrawling a Cave
By Don Kopp ((img|cave-02-27-15-10.jpg|width=600)) Hair thin gypsum strings, a rare formation, wave slightly in a gentle breeze deep within Jewel Cave. My friend Ken Gartzke and I were on our way to...
View ArticleWhy We Go Birding
Story and photos by Kelly Preheim I have noticed that people may not understand what I'm doing when I go birding. They sometimes think that I'm going just to look at pretty birds. That’s true, but...
View ArticleOn Target
By Roger Holtzmann Editor’s Note: The NFAA Easton Yankton Archery Complex and the city of Yankton are preparing to host hundreds of archers ages 15 to 20 and their families at this summer’s Youth...
View ArticleCan We Save The Big Sioux?
By John Andrews ((img|big-sioux-05-28-15-5.jpg|width=600)) There's beauty all along the 420-mile Big Sioux River, but it is consistently among the most imperiled rivers in the country. Photo by Greg...
View ArticleLooking Up
By John Andrews ((img|looking-up-07-24-15-1.jpg|width=600)) Minimal light pollution in South Dakota allows stargazers to clearly see the Milky Way among thousands of stars. Photo by Christian Begeman....
View ArticleSearching For Color
When leaves change color, our state photographers take to the highway. We figure they are our unofficial fall foliage experts, and so we asked six photographers from around the state to tell us where...
View ArticleSnow Birds
The first major snowstorm of the season hit the midwest on Friday. Only a few inches were initially expected in Sioux Falls, but the city saw record snowfall by the end of the day. The previous record...
View ArticleHalverson’s Skies
By John Andrews Randy Halverson’s fields are his livelihood and his passion. By day he farms 1,300 acres of corn, wheat and milo in Lyman County. But when the sun sets, Halverson swaps his tractor for...
View ArticleOur Centennial Trail
Story and photography by John M. Rud ((img|Centennial-Trail-01-27-16-5.jpg|width=759)) Hikers refer to the northernmost stretch of the Centennial Trail as The Prairie Walk. The forest gives way to...
View ArticleThe Old Growth Pines
By Mark Meierhenry Photography by Stephen Gassman ((img|old-growth-trees-02-26-16-4.jpg|width=400)) Our oldest trees are seldom the prettiest specimens in the Black Hills forest. They survive on high...
View ArticleA Nature Hike Without Solitude
By Bernie Hunhoff ((img|Volksmarch-04-25-16-1.jpg|width=759)) Korczak Ziolkowski envisioned the Crazy Horse carving as not just mountainous art, but as a living symbol. That's never more evident than...
View ArticleChanging Pace
Photography by Stephen Gassman Story by Katie Hunhoff ((img|black-hills-kayaking-05-25-16-3.jpg|width=759)) Kayakers float past the rocky shores of Sylvan Lake. Granite surrounding the lake is over 1.7...
View ArticleIf You Live Long Enough
By Robert Speirs I have lived in the western shadows of Crow Peak for nearly three decades, and in all of that time, I have never had this much company. Long lines of tourists pack the drive, sitting...
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