Next: September 20 - Lander

Custer State Park is a rare Jewel.  Its size, beauty and wildlife diversity rival that of the best National Parks.  We were originally going to stay there only overnight, in order to see nearby Mount Rushmore, but there was so much to see we turned it into 2 nights.

We did not have to travel far to begin seeing wild animals.  Below you can see Jordan inspecting the neighborhood Bison, as well as the local herd of Longhorn Sheep -- all from our campground.

There was an excellent "Wildlife Loop" drive that we took, in which we saw Pronghorn Antelope (below left), a lone coyote, and a 'town' of Prairie Dogs.

Custer State Park maintains a herd of about 1500 Bison, which we wanted to see.  As we neared the suspected location for a herd of 500 or so, we were approached by the local panhandlers -- a pack of wild burros.  They had quite a routine: they would stand in the middle of the road, forcing cars to stop completely, at which time they would surround the car and mooch food.  Jordan snapped this picture as I quickly rolled up the windows, narrowly avoiding a wet burro nose in the face.

Cowboy Doug and his trusty sidekick, on lookout for Bison.

And here they are.  One of the most wonderful things about them was the sounds they made -- a kind of bellowing at one another.

An up-close-and-personal view of a big male.  He was just off the roadway, watching us closely as we passed.  They are not docile, domesticated animals.  Many tourists are injured each year by Bison.  We maintained a respectful distance.

We drove North out of the State Park, to Mount Rushmore, where we encountered a herd of Mountain Goats nibbling the grass just off the road.

At the base of Rushmore, attempting to look presidential.  What do you think?

We waited around until evening, to see it lit, and passed some of the time talking to our wonderful but far away daughter, whom we missed dreadfully.

We had to endure a painful little speech given by a NPS ranger who set a new record for poor analogies, malapropisms and mispronunciations in a public address.  But the mountain was beautiful.

September 20 - Lander