The Black Hills of South Dakota is one of our favorite areas – stunningly beautiful with lots of bison and other animals. We actually got to stay inside the Park this time – previously we stayed in the town of Custer about 7 miles outside the Park. But it was so cool to stay inside the Park – much closer to everything. No sewer hookups, but we only had to go dump once mid stay. Our friends Bill & Deb also happened to be in the Park, albeit at another campground. Still great to meet up with friends during our travels.
The big thing here is the Wildlife Loop Road. It’s an 18 mile road that goes through the Park. Lot of bison, wild donkeys, turkeys, antelope and birds. We drove this loop every day and at different times you can see different animals. As you probably know, I love seeing the bison – so majestic, awesome looking creatures. I think we saw them every day and in the evening, they’d be all over the roads. Very cool.
We did a couple of drive byes around Mt. Rushmore and the Needles Highway. Amazing rock formations amongst the trees. Beautiful drives. Didn’t stop in Mt. Rushmore as only part of it was open. But seeing it is truly a delight. Crazy Horse Memorial is also close by – seems not much done to it since we were last there, but cool to see anyway.
We had to go into Rapid City a couple of times for life stuff. Had lunch at a place we met friends Joe & Nancy a couple of years earlier. Still good food.
Custer Park is at about 5000 ft. As we spent our time here I was noticing my SOB more and more. A short walk over to the lake by the campground required a few rest stops. Beautiful area and lake, quiet campground – I’d definitely go back. I ended up using my oxygen more here that any previous areas we traveled to.
We spent 9 days here. We enjoyed this area a lot. Seeing bison daily was way cool for me. But soon it was time to head out. Bill and Deb left headed a different direction – it was great to be able to camp nearby and see them. Good people. Now we headed South.