Custer State Park Day 5
The Boys were up at 0300 and we took them out for a walk. Back to bed, as it had been raining. We got up at 0600 and it is really raining now. Will see how this plays out, gonna be a slow start morning.
We took our time eating breakfast and doing another walk with The Boys and were still on the road a bit before 0900. We did make a stop at the South Dakota information area located in Rapid City. From there it was a pretty straight forward drive to Custer State Park. The fee for entry is $20 for 7 days or a $30 annual pass. No Discounts are offered. We found the Grace Coolidge Campground and backed into site #17. All these sites are electric only and are very flat and paved. Our site is in an oak grove and will provide some nice shade. We were set up even faster as there were less hookups to hook up. After leveling the first thing we did was get out our rain soaked front door carpet so it can start to dry. The restroom showers look really nice to me. While the price seems a bit steep costing $25.00 per night, then add in various State Fees our total for two nights camping is $60.00 with just electric hookups. It is a nice campground.
As the skies are still grey and we wanted a warm lunch so into the microwave went the Cheesy Tuna Noodle leftovers. As the sun is trying to make an appearance, The Boys found the bed and took a nap.
The weather looked like it might clear so we loaded up and headed to the Coolidge General Store and browsed their offerings. Lynn found a vest on sale and made the purchase. From there, we went to the Visitors Center. Inside we found some very nice interpretive displays on the various wildlife in the park. One thing they did nicely was on the large park map they placed little toy buffalo in the location where visitors can find the herd. As we left the VC the skies were definitely clearing and we decided to head towards Mt. Rushmore. A few miles up the road we spotted a small group of White Tail deer and stopped and tried to photograph them, but alas they were rather skittish.
We continued our drive to Mt. Rushmore making a couple photo stops and breaks for The Boys to be walked. The roads in this area are narrow and winding and sometimes there is a narrow one lane tunnel carved through the rock, and the roads corkscrew a few times crossing over them selves. This road is not for large RVs.
Soon we came to Mt. Rushmore and paid the $11.00 for parking. We took turns sitting with The Boys while one would go off for photos, as pets are not allowed past the entrance. There was a nice bench where we could sit and wait for each other. Sitting there with The Boys one, I should say they became quite an attraction, where they receive compliments, get their photos taken, and get petted. They love the attention and when returned to the truck to finish driving the upper loop of this area, they fell fast asleep not waking up for the 1.5 hour drive back to the campsite.
The main attraction to this northern route we were driving is called the Needles Highway. The section has three one way tunnels and one is so very narrow we had to pull in the mirrors on Diesel Truck to make it through. This road has some very dramatic scenery and could use some more turnouts for photo ops. About 2 miles from our campground we encountered a large old buffalo bull grazing next to the road. No turnout for us to stop. Soon we were back at the campsite and took The Boys for a stroll and then fed them. Lynn was off to take a shower as I watched The Boys. I will clean up before we make dinner of leftovers.
All in all, a nice day and we are having a great trip. Hope you are enjoying the photos and traveling along with us.
Yes we were quite the attraction!!!!!
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