Moving Day

 Friday, September 29, 2023

Our original plans had us leaving for home today but back in June we started talking and decided to extend our stay by a few days. This would give us a chance to spend some time in the northern Black Hills and allow us to attend the Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup "if" we wanted. 

The roundup is a very popular event and knowing that over 20,000 people would be attending helped us make the decision that we would NOT be going. We did watch part of the roundup live online and the announcer commented that cars started lining up at 4 am and the line extended two miles by the time the gates opened. Too peoply for me! 

Photo from a previous roundup. This is one of two viewing areas and the crowd is much further away from the action than what this photo makes it appear.
Credit:  Dakota News Now

Back in June (when we decided to add on some extra days to the trip) I searched for an AirBnB in the Spearfish area but not much was available. I did find a condo that looked suitable in Lead (pronounced LEED) and made a reservation. The condo was located right in town which was convenient, but it lacked the charm of the rural geodesic dome that we had stayed in on our last trip. 

After cleaning up the apartment and loading the car, we pulled out of the driveway at 10 am. Google estimated the travel time to get to Lead was about an hour and a half. The earliest we could check in was 3:00 so that gave us plenty of time to get there.

We had driven through the town of Custer numerous times, but never stopped. I decided maybe today would be a good time to walk down Main Street. The businesses consisted of t-shirt stores, rock shops, etc. and we mainly window shopped without making any purchases. While I stopped in at the visitor center (to use the restroom) Bob walked over to the city park and visited with a couple on a tandem bicycle who had ridden the whole 109 miles of the Mickelson Trail. 

Along the way we also stopped at Dahl's Chainsaw Art in Hill City. There are several of the Dahl's shops in the Black Hills and each has a VERY large wooden carving. Hill City sported Smokey the Bear.

Continuing on, we drove to the beautiful Pactola Lake where we walked the Veteran's Point Trail.  We put some sandwiches in Bob's backpack and had a picnic at a table along the trail overlooking the lake.

Pactola Lake from the highway.

Lunch with a view.

When we reached the end of the trail we stopped to just sit and look out over the water. While we were there, a lady walked up and we had the nicest conversation about traveling and some of our personal experiences. While talking, I mentioned that Bob would like to ride his bike on the Mickelson Trail and she commented that her brother was an engineer who had worked on the trail and they were able to have one of the bridges named for their family. I asked her what her name was so that "if" we were ever on the trail we would know which bridge it was. She spelled out her name N-O-E-M. I jokingly asked if she was related to the South Dakota governor, Kristi Noem and she said...yes...her nephew was married to Kristi!

Pactola Lake

As we have been traveling around the Black Hills we have been listening to the commentary from my Guide Along tour guide app with my phone plugged into the car audio system. As we were getting close to Lead, the commentator suggested we drive through Deadwood first...so we did! We were still too early to check into the condo and this was something to do while we waited. Deadwood is very commercialized and many tourist shops and casinos line the main street. Bob also remembered a small waterfall between Deadwood and Lead and we stopped there briefly.

Entering the city of Lead.

To occupy the last little bit of time, we stopped at the Sanford Underground Research Lab visitor center. The lab is located underground in the former Homestake Gold Mine. Until the mine closed in 2002 it was the largest and deepest gold mine in North America. The mining pit that is left (basically in the center of town) is a half mile across and a quarter of a mile deep. And that is nothing compared to the shafts which extend over a mile underground and house the Sanford Research Lab. The deepest underground laboratory in the United States, it houses multiple experiments in areas such as dark matter and neutrino physics research, biology, geology and engineering. 

Homestake Gold Mine Pit

Bob at the Sanford Underground Research Lab Visitor Center

Sanford Underground Research Lab Visitor Center

The condo was just a short distance from the Sanford Lab and we got moved into the second floor unit. The food supply I brought from home was starting to dwindle so I suggested that we go out for dinner. In my research I had come across the Cheyenne Crossing restaurant. The notebook of recommendations in the condo also had Cheyenne Crossing as the #1 choice in restaurants.

The restaurant was about 8 miles away and the drive there was beautiful with the late afternoon sun illuminating the golden trees on the hills. Their specialty was Indian Tacos (taco toppings on Indian Fry Bread) and Bob and I each ordered the "snack size". Luckily the folks sitting near us tipped us off about the huge portion sizes or we probably would have ordered the large taco. As it was, the snack size meal was ENORMOUS! Bob did manage to finish his meal but I only ate half and asked for a box to bring the leftovers back to the condo. The restaurant is also know for their carrot cake which Bob also ordered. (I HAD to try a couple of bites...😉) Besides the delicious food, the employees at the restaurant were so friendly. We will make sure to return on our next trip!

Cheyenne Crossing Restaurant & Gift Shop

If this is the "snack size" can you imagine how big the large order would be!!!

It was fun to shop in the attached gift shop after we finished eating. Bob purchased a small piece of "peacock ore" to take home to one of our grandsons who is into rock collecting. 

From the balcony of our condo we watched as the full moon rose over the city of Lead.
You can see the Homestake Mine in the distance and I think perhaps I caught a shooting star in this photo! (Or maybe just a jet...😏)

So Many Buffalo!!

 Thursday, September 28, 2023

The day began with breakfast and a map. Our plan was to go to the Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup Arts Festival, but we wanted to make sure our route took us along the Wildlife Loop and eventually to Iron Mountain Road.

Leaving the apartment we passed by many deer and prairie dogs, but once we reached the Wildlife Loop...nothing. Eventually we did see a few wild turkeys but we thought perhaps that would be the extent of our wildlife sightings. Oh how wrong we were.

Seeing a few cars stopped on the road ahead of us was a good indication that some animals had been spotted. When we got closer we could see it was a huge herd of buffalo grazing across the meadow and on the side of a hill in the distance. As we stopped to snap a few photos, the herd started moving toward us and crossed the road in front and back of our car. We have been detained by buffalo jams before, but never with numbers like this! For some reason they all decided they wanted to be on the opposite side of the road which meant we waited for them to cross. A. Very. Long. Time.

The line of bison stretched far up onto the hill.

I had my camera ready so I could submit a video for the evening news when this lady was gored by a buffalo. Fortunately her stupidity didn't get her into trouble. 

There was finally enough of a lull in the bison crossing that we could continue driving but we felt like we had hit the wildlife jackpot. But then...we came across another large herd. This time they were grouped together under a tree alongside a small creek. Some were rolling in the dust, others were scratching against the trees making the branches shake like crazy. A few were butting heads and others were just running through the field. What a sight!

At the end of the Wildlife Loop is the new Bison Center which we walked through and checked out the exhibits. The news media were there setting up in anticipation of the Buffalo Roundup the next morning. Following the roundup all of the bison would be herded into the large corrals in this area to be sorted and vaccinated. 

Hanging out in the parking lot we found the "Begging Burros"! We came ready with a package of carrots and once they knew we had food they got very excited. One in particular was very greedy and not very nice to the others when they tried to get a handout. Bob tried to be fair with the carrots but the "bully burro" didn't make it easy. A baby burro followed me around and when I directed my attention to one of the other animals, he would chew on my purse or even nip me in the arm! The burros are descendants of the animals that prospectors used during the gold rush. Normally feeding wildlife is discouraged, but the park encourages people to feed the burros.

They aren't shy.

When we reached the arts festival the parking area was a very long way from the vendor tents. Luckily the weather was absolutely perfect so the walk wasn't too bad...mid-60's and sunshine. It was fun to see the artistic talent on display but I have decided I am at a stage in my life that I don't buy "stuff" unless it is something I am truly in love with...so no purchases for me. Bob enjoyed stopping to visit with several pottery vendors. We also came across some folks we know from back home who had a stand from the Buffalo Billfold Company and stopped to visit for a bit.

Our scenic drive for the day took us through Iron Mountain Road. This drive is more terrifying than any thrill ride at an amusement park. The hairpin turns, narrow one lane tunnels and pigtail bridges are as beautiful as they are scary. A couple of the tunnels were strategically formed to frame a distant view of Mt. Rushmore.

Distant view of Mt. Rushmore

A stop at a scenic overlook.

A zoomed in view through the tunnel.

One of the pigtail bridges.

We were almost to the end of Iron Mountain Road when we stopped at a picnic area to have lunch. The last couple of miles brought us to Mt. Rushmore. Originally we planned to attend the evening program at the memorial, but the long drive there and a return drive back after dark made us reconsider. The dozens of deer we saw coming back to the apartment following the laser show at Crazy Horse was enough to make us stay off the country roads past sunset. Too great of a chance to have an unwanted encounter.

Each day we would pack a picnic lunch.

This was as close to Mt. Rushmore as we would get on this trip.

George's profile.

We did take a few presidential photos from the highway and then headed back to the apartment. I hung out at the apartment and sorted through the day's photos while Bob hiked up the hill AGAIN to drag down more large rocks.

Supper was leftover soup eaten early so we could get out for our sunset exploring. Instead of wildlife hunting (because there was no way to top the massive buffalo herd we experienced earlier) we picked a gravel road on the map to see where it would take us. What we found...the map does not accurately depict the roads correctly and the lack of cell service kept our Google maps from functioning on our console screen. Eventually it did start working but we weren't really sure where we were. We just drove on gravel roads up and down the hills and made a large loop route. No wildlife sightings on the drive but the scenery was top notch!

When we got back, a friend of the owner was working in the garage below our apartment. He is a taxidermist and was working on the head of a deer that he had killed the day before. I get a little squeamish just thinking about what he was doing but Bob enjoyed watching.

Off to bed...tomorrow is moving day.

Custer State Park...Needles Highway

 Wednesday, September 27, 2024

I was awake and having my coffee when Bob crawled out of bed. It takes him all of three minutes to get ready at morning and I wanted to shower and wash my hair...which takes considerably longer than three minutes! Rather than sitting around waiting on me, he headed up the hill by the apartment to an abandoned mine that he had discovered. At the mine he can find large chunks of pink quartz which he then lugs down the steep mountainside. Our hosta garden at home has a rock border and the quartz will be added to the collection.

Bob's hike took exactly the same time as it did for me to shower, dress and do my hair. I have naturally wavy/frizzy hair and I love the low humidity in the Black Hills. I run the flat iron through my hair and it STAYS straight and smooth. That never happens at home.

Driving down the gravel road from the apartment towards Custer State Park, we stopped to watch a pronghorn antelope. Instead of him running away, he actually came towards us and started grazing right next to our car. A little further on we came across a buffalo meandering down the side of the road eating grass. He was within a few feet of the car but never even looked up or acknowledged our presence. He appeared to be an older bison.

The AirBnB apartment where we stay is pretty much in the middle of nowhere!

One of the "new" stops I wanted to make on this trip was to the fire lookout tower on top of Mt. Coolidge. We had attempted to get there on our last visit but the road was closed. This time we were able to drive the very steep and curvy road. It was a little unnerving going up the narrow gravel road with no guard rails, especially the couple of times we met another car.

From the top of the tower you could see forever in all directions. With the binoculars (and my camera zoom) we could make out Crazy Horse waaaaayyy off in the distance. 

Mt. Coolidge Lookout Tower

View from tower

Zoomed in view of the Cathedral Spires from Mt. Coolidge

We also made a stop at the Heddy Draw Overlook just across the road from where we turned off to the fire tower. A short trail lead to a log pavilion overlooking the valley below. The breeze blowing through was heavenly. I could have spent the whole day there!

I wanted to eat lunch at the Alpine Inn in Hill City. We debated about driving north on Needles Highway to get there but it was getting close to lunch time and knew we wanted to take our time on the Needles Highway and not rush. Instead we cut back to the west to the town of Custer and went north on the highway from there. We arrived at the restaurant at 11:20 and immediately got an outdoor table on the porch. We ordered right away and our food came very quickly.

Alpine Inn, Hill City

Bob and I both got the Schnitzel. It came with Kaes Spaetzle (German mac & cheese), sauerkraut, red cabbage and German bread. Bob also got a side order of German potato salad. The food was delicious and just as we experienced in 2021, the perfect weather day made our meal even better. By the time we finished eating there was a line waiting to be seated.

From Hill City we drove Highway 87 which turns into the Needles Highway. Although much less than on our last visit, the yellow birch and aspen trees provided a bit of color to the hills.

Cathedral Spires

If there is a crack in a rock, Bob will try and go through it.

Needles Eye

Needles Eye Tunnel

Driving Needles Highway is a slow process because of the curvy roads and we were even slower due to our frequent stops at the scenic overlooks. Just past the Cathedral Spires area is our "secret" spot. I mentioned this in my 2021 blog post. The "secret" was discovered back in the 1960's when my family was on a vacation in the Black Hills. My dad noticed a narrow, gravel road and just wanted to see where it lead. At the top of the hill we found an abandoned mine. We re-discovered the location in the 1980's with our young sons and then accidently found it again in 2021. At that time I marked the location on Google maps but we could have easily found it by memory this time. We hiked up the hill, enjoyed the views and Bob came back with yet another piece of quartz from the abandoned mine.

Old mine tipple

The road to the mine is only accessible a short distance and then we hiked the rest of the way.

It was around 4 pm when we returned to the apartment. I mixed up the ingredients for tortilla soup, but stuck it in the fridge for the time being. Bob was anxious to get out and look for wildlife before it got dark so we left at 5:15 and drove the back roads into Wind Cave National Park as we had done two nights ago. The plan was to link up with the Wildlife Loop Road in Custer State Park, but our plan failed. The gravel road that we were going to connect with had a "road closed" sign. We assumed it was due to the buffalo roundup scheduled for Friday since the road lead to the parking area for the roundup and also the buffalo corral.

Our trip wasn't a total bust. We did see a small herd of buffalo, a pronghorn antelope and more prairie dogs that you could count. The lyrics "oh give me a home where the buffalo roam and the deer and the antelope play" kept drifting through my mind! 

Back at the apartment we warmed up the pot of soup for dinner. Afterwards we visited with the AirBnB owners (and now our friends!) in their home. 

It had been a long, full day and we turned in early anticipating what tomorrow would bring!