Sightseeing Day:
- Custer State Park
- Buffalo Jeep Safari
- Needles Highway (and other scenic drives for later this week)
Up and out quickly this morning as we had a long drive. We had to get some gas and then drove through MickeyDs for a breakfast sandwich to eat on the way to Custer State Park.
We had made reservations for an 11 AM Buffalo Jeep Safari; however, we arrived in time to take the 10 AM safari. So, we hopped on board our open-air converted jeep with roll-bars and we were off to the wild blue.
Almost immediately, we encountered a herd of bison crossing the road. A lot of cars were stopped to enjoy the sight.
The bison just walk next to your car (as you can see in this picture with Dave) and are not bothered by them. According to our guide, bison are respectful of size. If you are larger, they ignore you. If you are smaller, you could get tossed.
Public cars can drive on some of the same roads as the safari jeeps. But, we were able to get off-road a few times. Dave and I almost lost our teeth from the jarring. But, it was adventurous.
We liked hearing the stories about the bison and their habitat. Our guide also shared how the bison are maintained in the park. The hard part is to hear when they are hunted once a year. The cost for a trophy bison is $5,000 and you apply by lottery. It may take 10-15 years to get chosen in the lottery. Only a few are selected for the hunt. These are older bulls in good health.
In September, all the bison are herded into pens and they are all checked for disease. Bulls are separated from cows and yearlings, and the bulls either go back to the herd or go for meat. Most cows are kept until about 10 years old. Ninety percent of the cows will give birth once a year. The cows and babies know each other by scent and by their call. There are no natural predators to the bison in the park.
I took this video as the bison was walking along side of our car. He just ignored us and walked along the road.
We also came very close to pronged-horned antelope. In the park, they do not seem to be too skittish. We saw only quick glimpses of mule deer.
After the safari, we hopped back into our car and headed for the Needles Highway. This drive is very twisty but exceptionally beautiful. The area is very wooded with pines and dotted with unique granite rock formations.
There are three very small tunnels. One cannot be traversed by an RV.
The highlight of the drive is the Needles. These needles are rock formations that are pointed, just like sewing needles. One formation even has an "eye." Driving the road takes a little longer than an hour of sheer twists and turns.
Near the end of the road is Lake Sylvan. This lake is quite beautiful with the these granite structures as a backdrop.
We stopped in a small town called Hill City. We ate lunch at the Alpine Inn. The weather was perfect. Warm with a gentle breeze. So, we ate on the front deck overlooking the town and the hills in the distance. This little place had some of the best food I have had on this entire trip. I had a Monte Cristo sandwich. I don't think I have had one in about 15 years. It was excellent. Dave had a club sandwich--he's so daring! But, we followed this lunch up with a yummy desert. They had over 30 to choose from. Dave had peanut-butter fudge pie. I had a Bavarian-style Tarimisu (quite unique). Both of our deserts were excellent. I had so much sandwich and desert left over, I was able to enjoy it for my dinner! Dave was still stuffed from eating his. So, he passed on din-din.
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