Mother's Day Weekend Adventure II

9.10 Sylvan Lake

On Mother's Day, my Mom, Josh & myself headed south to Custer State Park, one of our favorite places. It was a beautiful but windy day and we were headed south.

Our first stop was Sylvan Lake. By this time we all needed a stretch and we pulled Brady out for a little walk. Though we had been there countless times, never before had we seen the loop around the pond. How'd we miss that? Of course we were obligated to explore and ended up finding a small cave and waterfall. The trail took about twenty minutes and lead us behind the rocks that act as a natural dam for the lake. It turns out that there was once a grand hotel near the dam that burned shortly after it's construction. All that remains is the small bridge above the dam that offers the illusion of standing on water. It was a perfect short walk.

5.8.11 Wind Cave NP

All loaded up we headed south on Needles Highway. It weaves along the granite outcroppings and leads you through three tunnels that each share amazing views. It's the best way to enter Custer SP. We took some of the usual roots through the park, enjoying Wildlife Loop Road and stopping here and there to photograph the wildlife but the real adventure began when we drove into Wind Cave National Park. On the road in we saw the prairie dogs basking in the sun and bison playing along a pond. The baby bison were spunky and playful while their mothers weren't impressed with our intrusion. Bighorn sheep rested along side the road and burros blocked out paths, demanding payment. After scratching a few noses we found a dirt road on a ridgeline that gave expansive views of Custer SP and Wind Cave NP. There were a couple turnouts along the way where we pulled over and enjoyed the beautiful day.

5.8.11 Wind Cave NP, Bison & Baby

We ending up taking Highway 16 north from the town of Custer to Hill City. Maintaining tradition we made our way to Prairie Berry. No trip from Maine would be complete without a stop there. As it turns out Mother's Day was the premier of their newest wine, Sand Creek. Perfect. We obliged them with a tasting and it was delicious. Rarely do I find a red wine which I really enjoy but Sand Creek definitely hit the spot. As usual we purchased a few bottles; some heading east to Maine and others north to Deadwood. Happy and exhausted we made our way home.

Custer State Park & Beyond

This past Monday we visited Custer State Park which lays in the Southern Black Hills. It's about 50 minutes South of Deadwood. We started our day out thinking that we were going to finish up some stuff at work and then head home but before I knew it we were on our way to Custer. The road South is a favorite of ours. It's a scenic highway that runs North to South through the hills. Each curve reveals a new meadow and sloping pine covered ridged. Granite boulders shape the skyline. Deer are the decoration, gathering in mass throughout the fields.

We made it as far as Hill City before we realized that Nate, our roommate, had never been to Prairie Berry, our favorite winery in the Hills. Well, that would never do so we swung in and did a tasting. Five tastes are complementary so I did all the wines that had just come out like, Buffaloberry and the older wines that I had been wanting to try like, Calamity Jane. It turns out that they were all delicious. Josh & I selected wines for the wedding and were given a few extra tasting of the ones we were curious about. We walked out with a bottle of Blue Suede Shoes & Calamity Jane.

We were back on the road in no time and heading for the park. The entrance fee for the day was $14 and year long only $28. We bought a year pass. We eventually found our way to Wildlife Loop Road. They aren't kidding. Before long we came across a herd of Buffalo crossing the road. They have become accustomed to traffic and are perfectly happy to make you wait for them. There were a few babies with the herd. One crossed just in front of us.

Josh, Nate and myself were all excited. Before too long we came up on a group of Burros. Several cars were stopped in the road and we waited in line behind them. Burros were grazing throughout the meadow but a few of them were harassing the cars. We had one come up to the window, stick his head in and check things out. Then another and then they tried to eat my camcorder. I did get a few good shots of the inside their mouths.

We started exploring off from the main road and saw our first Elk. Actually, in total, we proabaly say 20-25 Elk. It was the first time any of us had seen them in the wild. Beautiful creatures. Unfortunately we didn't get to see them very close and at first we thought they

were deer with the exception of their size. On one of the offshoots we saw Pronghorn. They seem to travel in pairs. I don't think that we've ever seen them running. Their either grazing or bedded down. We took the offshoot until we realized that we had entered Wind Cave National Park. There really wasn't much of a difference between the two parks but Wind Cave has less trees and a bit more meadow. Wind Cave is the third largest known cave in the world. It's amazing to think that as you look across the prairie there are miles of tunnels that have yet to be discovered.

We meandered back to the Loop and continued our wildlife exploration. It wasn't long before we came across more Buffalo. They are the most amazing creatures. Right now, they are going through a spring shed. It looks like they have a huge sweater across their shoulders but their rear end is nearly hairless. It's not the prettiest time of year for them but their still awesome to see. There's one area towards the end of the road that has a campground and some private camps. This is where we saw, for the first time ever, mountain goats. I didn't think that they would be white! We were all surprised to see them eating their lunch on the campground lawn.

The sun began to get low and we started our adventure North taking Needles highway. It's probably the most scenic highway we've been on out West. There's hairpin turns and tunnels that are carved out of the mountains. The fog was settling and it began to feel eerie. The whitetails were out in hundreds on our ride home. It's funny how they are everywhere this spring but last fall you couldn't find one. The guys were so excited I thought that they were going to jump out the window and wrestle a deer down. We made it all the way home no accidents, no deer meat but thoroughly excited about going back to Custer again.