We stopped today at the best rest stop ever!! It was on a bluff high above the Missouri River, off Highway 90 above Oacama, South Dakota. It also happens to be near one of the camp sites of the Lewis and Clark expedition. The rest stop had an exhibit which included a full-sized replica of the largest of the boats used by the group. The boat replica was half inside and half outside the building, in such a way that the back end of the boat served as a platform from which to view the river. The photo below is of the bow of the boat:
This view shows the full boat, inside and out. The inside looks a bit like a reflection in the glass, but it's actually the front end of the boat. Very clever!
The exhibit included a color illustration, with which some of you may be familiar:
It was gratifying to see that the Academy was mentioned:
And Philadelphia's own Charles Willson Peale:
Also included were examples of animals collected by Lewis and Clark:
There was an explanation of the magpie, which included yet another connection to the Academy through Alexander Wilson, Father of American Ornithology:
Outside, the view of the Missouri River was spectacular. I had no idea it was so wide, so far north:
I loved this sign near a walking path at the rest stop:
