The Standing Rock National Native American Scenic Byway crosses the reservations of four tribes of Lakota Sioux: Crow Creek, Lower Brule, Cheyenne River, and Standing Rock.The stories and histories of the tribes are told at the Akta Lakota Museum in Chamberlain, the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre, and the H.V. Johnston Lakota Cultural Center in Eagle Butte. Its many memorial markers, monuments, museums, and sacred sites commemorate the heritage of the Sioux Nation and help travelers hear history from the Native American point of view. Retrace the steps of the famous Meriwether Lewis and William Clark who stopped 14 times along the route during their expedition, and it is documented as the final resting place of Lewis and Clark’s guide, Sakakawea. The area was the home of Lakota spiritual leader Sitting Bull and is the final resting place of Lewis and Clark’s guide Sakakawea. Other famous mountain men like Jim Bridger and Jedediah Smith also passed through.
The scenic byway runs parallel to the Missouri River, with rounded bluffs that make up the eastern border of the Missouri River flood plain. Prairie Knights Marina is located adjacent to Lake Oahe, a 371,000-acre lake on the Missouri River, with public access, electrical RV sites, showers, and a picnic area. With supplies of walleye, trout, and other game fish, Lake Oahe has some of the best fishing in the region. Hiking and mountain biking trails are also accessed at Prairie Knights Marina. Landscapes along the way include mixed-grass prairies and rolling hills that end in limestone cliffs lining the river in many places. An abundance of wildlife, including prairie dogs, pronghorn and deer can be spotted as you travel – not to mention bison and elk herds that are maintained by several tribes.
Herds of colossal bison roaming the vast pastures are likely to cross your path as you continue towards Fort Yates. Fort Yates is a former military post established in 1874. The only original building remaining from the town’s early military days is the Fort Yates Stockade, which is named for Captain George Yates, who met his demise at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. In its time, the fort housed soldiers and for a period, Chief Sitting Bull. While in Fort Yates, pay your respects at Sitting Bull’s original 1890 burial site. Sitting Bull is widely known for his central role in the Battle of the Little Bighorn, his contributions to the traveling Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, and his fierce advocacy for his Lakota people.This site is marked and located on the drive into Fort Yates, within one mile of the scenic byway. The Hunkpapa Lakota spiritual leader’s remains were said to have been removed in 1953 to a site across from Mobridge, South Dakota, marked by a stone monument carved by famed sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski. That site is located south of Grand River Casino, three miles off the South Dakota portion of the byway. The Sitting Bull Visitor Center also offers travelers useful travel information and a gift shop that sells a variety of authentic Native American arts and crafts and other unique merchandise.
Be sure to pay a visit to the Standing Rock Monument before you leave Fort Yates. The symbolic rock of the legendary petrified form of a woman and her child influenced the name of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, 2.3 million acres of picturesque prairie.