Sherry and Lea joined us in Custer to attend the Buffalo Roundup. We were camped at French Creek RV in Custer. It was raining when they arrived and sleeting by the time we went to bed.
Up early for Buffalo Roundup with 6 inches of snow.
By the time we arrived at the viewing area there was almost no snow on the ground. We were layered up but it was a cold wait for those bison.
This valley would soon fill with bison.
We really enjoyed seeing the horses and riders. Sherry and I were jealous. We would have loved to be out there.
And the bison came.And kept coming.
A closer view of bison and horses.
Binoculars are a must. Glad we had ours. It was a really great experience. I would go again and hope for warmer temperatures.
After the bison are corralled they check the new calfs and tag them. There were about 350 new calfs this year. Some of the bison are removed from the herd and sold at auction in a couple weeks. They try to keep the herd at 1300 to 1400.
Sherry and Lea visited Mount Rushmore on Saturday morning. We all spent the afternoon in Custer seeing the bison there.
Sherry and Lea with one of the many Custer bison.O-H-I-OThese bison were so creative.This may have been our favorite. So many images to see.
Saturday evening Sherry and I were glued to the TV watching the Buckeyes silence the “white out”. Sunday morning Sherry and Lea headed for Denver and we headed for Ohio. Our next adventure will take us to the northeastern states.
Up early on Thursday August 31st to do some laundry before getting on the road. We left Medora, North Dakota and headed for Rapid City, South Dakota. It was amazing how after only a few miles out of Medora the scenery began to change from badlands to grasslands, There were fields of sunflowers, grasslands, wheat fields and large herds of cattle.
We arrived at Cabelas in Rapid City with plenty of time to check satellite feed for the Buckeyes game against Indiana. Buckeyes got off to a slow start but in the end were victorious, 49-21!! GO BUCKS!! This Cabelas even had a corral for people traveling with horses. How nice. Good place for nights sleep.
The morning found us headed for Custer, SD and French Creek RV. Arrived in early afternoon in time for the Friday night potluck at the campground. Diane, the owner of French Creek RV hosts a potluck diner every Friday evening. This Friday she provided pulled pork and kielbasa which we could smell cooking when we checked in. We met a couple, Anna and Steve, at dinner who were avid bikers (tandem) from British Columbia, Canada. We really enjoyed sharing biking tales with them. We had ridden so many of the same trails all over the U.S.
One colorful buffalo in Custer
We are camped right on the George S. Mickelson Trail, a Hall of Fame Rail Trail. It did not disappoint. The trail is 109 miles long and we road all of our 100 South Dakota miles on this trail. It was packed gravel and had long uphill grades and long downhill grades. One of the days we rode a 12 mile uphill grade. Whew!! Who’s idea was this anyway?
Bike Art along trail.
There had been a fire south of Custer and we had a few days of smokey air which caused our eyes to burn. The last day we rode the weather had cooled and it was clear and beautiful. We rode through deep valleys surrounded by high cliffs and all we could hear was the water flowing through the stream. Some places we had to wait for the cattle to move off the trail. Deer were a common site and at times they would just stand and watch us. We also saw flocks of turkey, some looked bigger than Flo.
There were tunnels on the trail which provided a cool respite from the heat. The Mountain Trailhead provided a nice view of Crazy Horse Monument. The terrain was dramatically different from the south to the north. The south reminded us of the high desert while the northern part of the trail was green with ponderosa pines and wild flowers along the trail.
Rock wall along the Michelson Trail.Bike repair along trail – using our first aid kit.
One of the highlights of our trip to South Dakota was our visit to Custer State Park. We drove on the Needles Highway where we saw beautiful spires. The tunnels were narrow and low. Our little Fiat had no problems though. The visitors center has an awesome video narrated by Kevin Costner, it’s a must see.
Narrow tunnel on Needles Hwy – Custer State Park
Driving on the Wildlife Loop Road we saw feral burros, prairie dogs, pronghorn and most awesome of all was a herd of bison. We took a gravel road off the main loop road and drove a couple miles before coming over a hill to the sight of bison for as far as we could see. Awesome! I would love to return next year when they do the bison roundup.
BUFFALO and baby buffalo.Buffalo for as far as we could see.
Iron Mountain Road was another treat. This is a winding road which makes some 360 degree turns. The tunnels frame Mount Rushmore. It was a good rest day for us before our final ride on the Mickelson.
A closer view of bison and horses.
