South Dakota

A couple weekends ago, I took a road trip to South Dakota. It's about a 6 hour drive from Wray, CO, so I thought I'd do some sightseeing while I'm near this area. After all, I don't know when I'll be within driving distance of South Dakota again!

I left after work on Saturday, and the drive up there was mostly boring through the plains of Nebraska. When the landscape finally started to change, it was getting dark. Then a dense fog rolled in and it started snowing; the last hour of my drive was a little tense! But I made it safely and checked into my hotel in Keystone, SD.

Badlands National Park. My first stop on the trip. It was about an hour and a half from Keystone. It took me a few hours to drive through, with lots of stopping to take pictures. There were some trails, but it was too cold to get out and do much hiking. I loved the landscapes though! Each one seemed more spectacular than the last. These are some of my favorites:

There were hardly any other cars in the park that day. I had the road and the views all to myself.

Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse. I saw Mt. Rushmore about 14 years ago and I remember it being really cool. This time it was a bit of a letdown. I mean, seeing it from the road is really cool, but then you pay $11 to get into the park to see it 100 yards closer. It was really cold and no one else was there! The food at Carver's Cafe in the park was good- they have a variety of entrees made with bison meat. I got the bison burger and ice cream for dessert and it hit the spot!

I also remember seeing Crazy Horse 14 years ago, and they had just finished his face. I was thinking a lot more of it would be completed by now, but it kind of looked the same. Again, I paid $11 for a slightly closer look at the carving, and it was slightly underwhelming. But then I went into the visitor's center and watched the 20 minute video on the history of Project Crazy Horse, and I was a lot more impressed. It's really complicated and time-consuming to carve such a huge statue, not to mention it's being managed by one family and paid for through donations. The final statue will look awesome! I hope I get to see it in my lifetime.

Custer Park. The day started out cloudy and dreary, so I didn't get many good pictures at first. After awhile, it started clearing up, but by then I was driving through grasslands, which weren't as scenic. I drove the Wildlife Loop hoping to see some buffalo. It had been awhile and I had only seen some deer. I was getting worried that I wouldn't see any buffalo at all. Then I rounded a corner and a whole herd of them were everywhere- including the road.

After taking some pictures, I was inching forward when suddenly I felt my car shake. A huge buffalo had come up and was licking salt off my car.

Within minutes, several buffalo had surrounded my car and were giving it a thorough tongue washing. I was a little nervous, but figured they weren't hurting me or the car. I didn't want to make the buffalo scared or angry by trying to pull away too fast, so I just sat there for awhile and got some pictures.

When I found an opening, I kept inching forward, until eventually I had a clear path to drive away. It was a little scary, but I definitely got my fill of seeing buffalo!

I didn't spend much time in Keystone itself, other than staying at the hotel there, but I loved this little stone bridge. In the summer during tourist season, it's probably a more happening place.

I enjoyed seeing a lot of sights in South Dakota in two days! It was definitely worth the drive!