Custer, South Dakota

In normal fashion, when we got to Custer, South Dakota on Sunday, 6/15, we got set up and then we went for a ride in Custer State Park. There were so many motorcycles (Sturgis is nearby) and after driving around you can certainly understand why. There isn’t much of a shoulder and the road twists and turns, switchback here and switchback there and rather narrow in sections so it’s nice to have a narrow mode of transportation. It reminded me of some of the roads in Zion National Park. The difference is this area has a lot more trees, so the drop-offs aren’t as noticeable. There are three different roads that are part of the Peter Norbeck National Scenic Byway. One is Needles Highway, which is appropriately named (to me it’s like threading a needle when driving), which you do in one of the tunnels. The road name actually comes from the needle-like granite formations. The roadway was planned by former South Dakota Governor Peter Norbeck, who marked the entire course on foot and by horseback, 14 miles, completed in 1922.

The Iron Mountain Road is 17 miles and connects Custer State Park to Mount Rushmore National Memorial. This road has three tunnels that frame Mt. Rushmore in the distance and the largest is 12’ wide and 11’4” high. The scenery is beautiful, and this road was constructed in the 1930’s, again under Gov. Norbeck. It is recorded that he didn’t want it to be used as a superhighway but to see the scenery of the black hills. This is the road the engineers once said couldn’t be built, how wrong they were.

The Wildlife Loop Road inside Custer State Park, twists and turns its way through the prairie and ponderosa pines for 18 miles. Lots of wildlife to be seen, reminding us of Yellowstone (minus the snow). It’s estimated there are 1,350 free roaming Buffalo in this area.

Here we are at Beaver Lake Campground.

Custer has buffalo statues on the street corners. 

Loved the mountain goats and big horn sheep included

on this one.

They are known as Black Hills because of their dark

appearance when viewed from a distance. The shadows

cast by the ponderosa pines create the impression of a dark

mass against the surrounding plains.

Information regarding Peter Norbeck.

If you zoom in on this picture you can see

Mt. Rushmore. We had just come out of the

Doane Robinson Tunnel.

Here we are going through the Scovel Johnson Tunnel.

All of the tunnels are one vehicle only.

This cabin is known as The Badger Hole. 

Charles Badger Clark built this 4-room cabin, completed in 1937 and lived 

 his last 20 years there before his death in 1957. He was honored as  

SD's first poet laureate.  He was an author, lecturer and one of SD's most

 beloved citizens. The cabin is kept exactly as it was at his time of death

with all of the original furniture, wood burning cooking stove and no modern conveniences.

A true step back in time in the wilderness.

This was taken on Needles Highway. The needles

are similar to the hoodoos we saw at Bryce Canyon.

If you zoom in, you can see a car entering the Needles

Tunnel. It is 8' wide and 9'9" high.

Here we are going through. Mark pulled

the side mirrors in as a precaution. You 

can see the people in the car in front with

their occupants trying to touch the sides.

The vehicles were lined up on the other side to get in.

Tatanka

In Lakota Tatanka means "big beast". There was an 

excellent Bison Center in the park that explained 

everything bison. Cowboys and cowgirls have a roundup

once a year as they drive the herd of approximately 1,300.

Then they test, brand and sort the Bisons as to whether they

will release them back in the park or sell them. This is

done to manage the herd. They also vaccinate the herd and have 

not had any Brucellosis in the park's herd since 1966.

Buffalo only have one calf at a time. The gestation 

period is 9-10 months. 

Pronghorn Antelopes are members of the Bovidae family.

They are native only to North America and have no other family in the world.

They are the fastest land animal in North America and second in top speed only 

to the Cheetah but can run at top speed for a half mile, while the Cheetah can only 

reach it's top speed for 50-60 yards, just long enough to catch it's prey.

We couldn't believe all of the big horn sheep hanging

out by the road on this knoll.

We were shocked when we saw these burrows along the road.

They are not native. We found out they are descendants from the herd that

once hauled visitors to the top of Black Elk Peak. When the rides

 were discontinued years ago, they were released into the park and

have adapted and survived. One of them came over to the truck and 

started rubbing his ears and head on the side mirror.

We saw several white tail deer. The

elk eluded us in the park. When we spoke

to a ranger, he said it is very hard to find

them during this time of the year. They are out

very early in the morning and late in the day.