Never Enough Time in South Dakota

Whenever we pass through South Dakota we stop at Badlands National Park.  I just can't resist.

We had time for a drive through the whole park in the evening after checking into Sleepy Hollow Campground in Wall, our recommendation for a park in the area.  We also got a National Park Pass...so who knows where we will decide to go next year to take advantage of that pass?

I wasn't worried about not spotting Bighorn Sheep in Colorado or Custer because I knew we'd see them in the Badlands.  

We didn't see any big rams, but you can't have everything, right?

I couldn't wait to get up early in the morning and get into the park again, hoping to get some of that great light that makes it all worth it.  And another look at the Bighorn Sheep of course, this time from Sage Creek Road just inside the park boundary.

The prairie grasses were aglow, such a great contrast to the layers of time lurking in the background.

The prairie is what it's really about here in South Dakota, and nothing is more important to the ecosystem than the lowly prairie dog. Their burrows provide them with shelter from both the weather and predators, and many other species can take shelter in the prairie dogs' tunnels too including burrowing owls and unfortunately for them even snakes.

They aren't a favorite of the ranchers and the farmers, but their presence is critical to the overall ecological community of the mixed-grass prairie. I walked through Robert's Prairie Dog Town, trying not to alarm them too much, but intrigued by their system of relaying yips and barks to each other to warn of possible danger.

And then right across the road I walked, and immersed myself in the prairie some more.  I wandered across the grass and up and down the hills for half an hour before turning back and reluctantly heading back to the truck.

And then one last look at some bison before it was time to pack up and leave South Dakota.

I haven't read them yet, but I got the kindle editions of "Black Elk Speaks" and "Lakota Woman".  I'll be continuing my journey through South Dakota in my mind and through learning more about its history.

It's not all hiking and outdoor adventure in South Dakota, we made time for some silly fun at Wall Drug.  Where else can you ride a jackelope after all?

Crazy Horse, Mt. Rushmore and Mountain Goats Oh My!

It wouldn't be a visit to South Dakota without making time to see the Big Heads.  And of course the best route is to take the Iron Mountain Road and see them through the tunnels.

On our way out I said that all I wanted was to see mountain goats that day, and Keystone is a great place to see them.  It was the warmest day of our trip, but we still found the energy to do the Presidents Walk and see the stony faces close up.

I kept my eyes peeled for mountain goats but didn't see any...until we were leaving the parking lot!  There they were in the parking area across the street, fulfilling my wish without knowing it.  I have a knack for getting my wildlife viewing wish, so if you ever hang out with me on a hike keep that in mind and get me to make a wish for you.

We also saw mountain goats in downtown Custer, but they were the artistic variety and not the living and breathing sort.  The representation of the area needles on the buffalo from the Custer Stampede Art Auction was my favorite one in town.

We also made a quick stop into Crazy Horse.  Not much has changed since our last visit, but we think it is worthwhile to make our contribution to the project with our admission fee.  If we ever have millions to donate, this is one of the projects that would definitely be considered.

We've been home for a few days and of course it is hot and humid upon our return, but storms are rolling through tonight and it looks like more reasonable weather might be finally on the way by the weekend.  I have a Girl Scout recruitment event to help out with this weekend, but after that who knows where I will end up?

Custer State Park - Times We'll Remember

It wasn't our first visit to Custer State Park, but it was our first time to use one of their campgrounds.  We lucked out choosing site 32E at Stockade Lake North because we had no neighbor in residence most of the time on one side and nothing but a hill on the other side!

The cats loved it and begged to go out walking every day.  They checked out the tree stumps, the rocks, the tall grass and walked all the way down to the lake.

While the cats were napping we drove the Wildlife Loop and hung out with the local bison herd.

Also seen were deer and antelope.

As has become my habit I snuck out early in the morning for a solo hike on one of the park's trails.

The bison like the trails too, so be aware and keep your distance.  This guy was hanging out in front of one of the cabins and when I swung as far away from him as I could he still felt it was a little close and stood up to make sure I wasn't intending on getting any closer.  Once he saw I meant to move along he promptly turned his back on me and laid back down to enjoy the sunshine.

Not half a mile later I came upon a large pile of fresh bison poop.  This guy was so tough he ate and pooped out rocks the size of my fist?

He looked like the twin of the other guy, but after seeing that rock in his poop I figured I should just turn around and call it a day.

Adult male bison tend to wander around alone, but the ladies and the young'uns travel in herds.  They even enjoy a communal bath now and then.

Cory spotted some baby birds in a nest at Legion Lake Lodge.  How adorable!

There is a fee to enter the park, they used to have a day rate but now the lowest available rate is for 1-7 days and is $20.  Well worth it, but something to be aware of.  Another thing to be aware of is that there is only one dump station in the park and since it wasn't in the direction we wanted to go we opted to pay to dump at Beaver Lake Campground instead for an additional $8 on our way out of Custer.

Linda isn't the only blogger we met on this trip, Ray and Wendy from Anywhere, USA were camp hosts at Stockade Lake North while we were there.  This is their fourth year volunteering at the park and if you visit their blog you can find out what it's like to have such a sweet gig.

On Ray's recommendation Wayne and Cory tried their hand at fishing at Stockade Lake and at Bismarck Lake across the road.

They got enough at Bismarck Lake for a trout dinner!

While they fished I wandered the lake with my camera and caught sight of an Osprey and a Marmot.  The Marmot was really good at staying perfectly still in an attempt to hide but I got lucky!

Wayne and I love it in Custer, who knows maybe someday we'll be camp hosts here too!  In the meantime we'll just have to make do with the memories of our third trip to South Dakota.

Rapid City's Art Alley

Art Alley is located between 5th and 6th Streets in Rapid City and was on my to-do list for our visit.

Linda and her mom

Linda hadn't seen it yet either, so she was game and as luck would have it the alley was just around the corner from the Hotel Alex Johnson.

A lot of the alley featured "tagging" but there were a few complete pieces intact.

Cory spotted the Pokemon characters easily.

Nothing was left untouched by paint, it was quite a sight.

My favorite was the "No painting allowed on this building" proclamation which was just like putting up a target in my opinion  I could just see people sneaking in at night to express their feelings about that.

We're on our way home now, but I still have posts to come from our trip!

Hill City and Rapid City "Seen"

Hill City is a good place to stop if you'd like to curl up and dye.  At least that's what the sign said.

Or, if like me, you want to see Iron Star.  She's one of the sculptures by John Lopez, and Hill City is home to the Sculpture in the Hills sculpture show every June that I'm still longing to attend.

She has her imitators, like this pack mule nearby, but none can compare to John's brilliance in my opinion.

If catching the train to Keystone or browsing the shops in Hill City isn't your thing, motor on down the highway to Rapid City and wave to a few of the United States Presidents hanging out on the street corners downtown.

Better yet stop and get a bagel at Black Hills Bagels, home of my new favorite sign.  A cowboy riding a bagel?  Genius!

And for dessert go into the Hotel Alex Johnson and sample the Chubby Chipmunk truffles.  These are my absolute favorite in the whole world...well, so far.  I have sampled a lot of chocolate in my time, but not all of it yet!  If you aren't in Rapid City their home store is in Deadwood.  Or you can order online, which I usually do when I'm down in the dumps during the winter and need a special treat.

I bought some 2 packs to take home to my buddies...and a 12 pack for myself.  I let Wayne have one.  It's possible he might get a second one if he is quick about it.

Wayne had to get a radiator flush done on the truck so Cory and I got to meet up with Linda and her mom and spend a few hours wandering downtown.  Included in our wanderings was the site of a new sculpture project called "Passage of Wind and Water" at Main Street Square which portrays the Badlands Garden on one side of the square and the Black Hills Garden on the other side carved in granite.

We had lunch at the Firehouse Brewing Company which had good food and a killer mural.

Sculpture is everywhere in Rapid City, including lovely Native American inspired pieces.

We also checked out Art Alley, more about that in the next post!