Last night our entertainment was a walk through the Wall Cemetary across the road, which is perched on the outer wall of the Badlands, but we packed up and left early this morning from our little cabin in Wall, stopping in NOWHERESVILLE to find something for breakfast This has to be a first. Stale donuts and Ensure for breakfast! We followed the Sage Creek Rd., lined with Tickseed Coreopsis and groups of Buffalo interspersed with coteries of Prairie Dogs. It was a beautiful winding drive through prairie lands with farms and deer spotted along the way.
We took the scenic drive to the Black Hills, which was ablaze in yellow. Through Custer State Park, the Black Hills had an immense amount of Pine Beetle damage to the trees, so there were many areas that were barren with fallen pines and blank spaces amongst the beautiful pines. Alongside the car, we witnessed Buffalo rolling in the dirt, steep rock formations, camps, and beautiful roadside creeks. (Bill has been responsible for all the driving and maneuvered the switchbacks like the pro he is behind the wheel:)
Our first beautiful drive took us through Custer State Park and we joined the other masked tourists at Mt. Rushmore. It was everything
we hoped to see and more. We did not spend a great deal of time there and bypassed the visitor center, attempting to steer clear of the people, but it was an impressive landmark.
Our plan was to have lunch on Sylvan Lake, but my guess is the season is over and there were no lunches being served, so we had another tailgate picnic. We were so impressed with Needles Highway! The views were breathtaking from every angle! We are so thankful for the best weather ever to view all the unbelievable sights.
Our end tourist attraction was the Crazy Horse Monument and we are so happy we stopped! There were Lakota dancers from the Rosebud Reservation performing native dances with the history of their tribe and it was beyond beautiful. The museum was also surprisingly comprehensive in its collections of native Indian artifacts and photos.
Our last stop for the night is Deadwood and we are staying at the Branch House downtown. We were fortunate to time our arrival for the big shoot-out re-enactment on Main St., compete with gunslingers before dinner in a once-famous brothel,. The Deadwood Saloon, once we found this tiny restaurant, delivered a wonderful meal of our first ever Bison steak. We were not disappointed with our meal in our quiet little private room.
We made a decision not to head to Montana on this trip, but to head to Yellowstone via Wyoming. We want to save the Montana trip for a future combination with Seattle, Vancouver, and Alaska. Onward we go!