"You can't rollerskate in a buffalo herd .... but you can be happy if you've a mind to" (Roger Miller)
Well, who would argue with Roger Miller. You can't skate, but you sure can take pictures if you've a mind to.
It would be hard not to be happy in beautiful Custer State Park in June -- when the baby bison are frolicking and the grass is green. This State Park (in our adopted home state of South Dakota) puts many national parks to shame. There are miles of scenic roads to drive or walk and all of it is well-maintained.
In addition to the buffalo or bison (the official signs use both) we saw a herd of wild horses, a wild burro, a bunch of pronghorn antelope, as well as blue- and other birds, and some prickly little porcupines having a great time in the new grass up near Crazy Horse.
While in South Dakota this time, we stayed at Heritage Village in Custer. It's about a mile from the Crazy Horse Monument (we could actually see the Chief out of our window) and just a few miles from this state park. Custer is an OK little town -- there's a lot of kitschy tourist stuff here and all around the area. Things to keep the family happy -- because the parents were, of course, mistaken when they thought the kids would actually enjoy learning about history and nature. So you see a lot of tourist trap kid stuff. But if you're old with no kids, it's easy to turn a blind eye to all that and the town is OK.
The Black Hills are beautiful -- especially this time of year. We got a short thunderstorm with hail nearly every afternoon (and one doozy in the middle of the night). Here's a picture taken just outside our door after the day's storm was over. All's well that ends well.
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