Knowing it was going to be a hot day, we headed off in the direction of Custer State Park on day 4. “You’ll probably see buffalo” “You may see some deer” “There are animals everywhere” – these were the promises that others made to us prior to our ride through the park. For the uninitiated, Custer State Park is, as you might guess, a South Dakota state park where the deer and the antelope play. There are only a couple of roads through the park where you can drive and observe a multitude of wildlife in their natural habitat. There are plenty of parking spots along the roads where you can pull over and get a better picture of whatever it is you’re looking at. Most of what you do is from the comfort of your air-conditioned vehicle, so it made sense given the temperature.
I was the lucky one to see the first buffalo, and it was a sight to behold. There were a handful in clearing, and we took way too many pictures. They weren’t threatening, but we were careful to keep our distance.
Throughout the drive, we were fortunate to see buffalo (many herds), prong horns (like antelope), mules (left to roam the park after helping tourists travel many, many years ago), turkeys (and their babies), a few different kinds of deer (and their babies), and lots of prairie dogs. On subsequent trips through the park, we were very fortunate to run across a coyote, a group of big horn sheep, and a mountain goat. You know there’s an animal in the area when there’s a car stopped along the road for no apparent reason. Everyone slows down and rubber-necks, just like at an accident.
The mules were the most approachable of the animals. The literature mentioned they would happily approach your vehicle and beg for food. When we came upon them, there were already many cars parked with people milling about petting and feeding them. The girls insisted – we stopped.
Custer is one of the gems of this area. Every time you drive through there is an opportunity to encounter something new and different. Definitely a must see.
(Link to all unedited photos from Custer State Park.)
Wind Cave National Park was just a bit down the road from Custer, so it was an easy decision to keep heading toward the park. There are only 58 national parks in the US, and Wind Park is one of them. Who knew? As I mentioned, it was Africa-hot that day, so the thought of a 53-degree cave tour was very inviting to us all. It did feel weird to be carrying a light jacket in the sweltering heat as we walked through the parking lot. There were a couple of different tours, so we took the one for newbies.
Wind Cave is famous for and home to 95% of the world’s boxwork. It’s a sort of honeycomb structure that you can read about on your own. We saw plenty of it on our guided tour. Here’s a sample:
Given its proximity to Custer, Wind Cave National Park and the expanse of land on which it sits (more buffalo and other wildlife) is worth a visit.
(Link to all unedited photos from Wind Cave National Park.)