Welcome back 🙂 I’ve got more to share about our awesome family vacation to the Black Hills.
Recap: We left our house Tuesday after Hubby got off work, drove about six hours and stayed in Mitchell, South Dakota at the Holiday Inn Express.
On Wednesday morning, we left Mitchell, South Dakota and drove on towards the Black Hills.
First stop: Wall Drug.
The boys sitting on the BIG jackalope 🙂
Posing by a buffalo…more buffalo to come, but the next time we see them, they’ll be the real deal!
Shop after shop after shop of trinkets and treasures.
Everyone says you need to stop and see this town with all of the little shops. And we did. One can get a bite to eat or pick up some souvenirs. Maxim saw a wolf sling shot that he just HAD TO HAVE. Nate didn’t see anything that he couldn’t live with out. So, with a sling shot in hand and some photo ops…we made our rounds in about an hour, then set out for the Black Hills.
Second stop: The drive-thru wildlife park…Bear Country U.S.A.
Let’s see some bears!!!
After paying our entrance fee, we drove through the park (and yes, for the most part, we followed directions and kept the windows rolled up and of course, we stayed in the car). We scouted for wildlife and saw everything from the Rocky Mountain Elk, to Arctic Wolves, Big Horn Sheep, Timber Wolves, more wildlife, and of course…bears. Lots and lots of bears. After the drive (which lasted about an hour), we stopped at the end of the park and walked through Babyland. There, we saw black bear cubs, wolf cubs, and more. This was a great stop for the animal-loving family that we are.
A mule deer posing for a pic 🙂
Just lounging around
The BIG bear beside our car. Maxim and I named him Fatty 🙂
Cute little wolf cubs playing 🙂
After our tour of Bear Country U.S.A., we drove to Custer State Park. This park was one of my favorite places. It’s a large park with some amazing scenic highways and the Custer State Park Resort, where we had reservations to stay Wednesday night at Blue Bell Lodge. We had a cabin rented for Wednesday night right in the middle of the park, at the Blue Bell Lodge (I’m talking a cabin with a shower, clean towels, a flat screen, bathroom…your basic necessities).
We drove towards the Lodge, making our way through the park and oh. my. word. Stunning scenery. Our first stop in the park…Sylvan Lake. It is absolutely beautiful! We got out and hiked to some awesome rock formations around the lake.
Sylvan Lake was breathtaking!
My three favorite boys 🙂
A mama and her cubs 🙂 ( and Maxim proudly showing off his new sling shot)
After hiking around Sylvan Lake, we got back in the car and drove on Needles Highway. #mustdo #beautifulscenery
It was a lot of hairpin curves, some VERY narrow tunnels, and just a whole lotta me gripping the side of the door and stepping on my “brake”…I was a Nervous Nelly! So glad Hubby was driving!
Needles Highway
We followed this big truck through Needles Eye Tunnel. I thought for sure it was going to get stuck!
It had about three inches to spare on each side. Seriously.
We continued our drive through the park, enjoying the breathtaking scenery. Then, we made it to Blue Bell Lodge. We checked in, got our key, and unloaded our stuff. But we were itching to see buffalo. So, we went on the Wildlife Loop within Custer State Park. We were seeing pronghorn and MANY prairie dogs, but no buffalo. Nate mentioned about wanting to go to Wind Cave National Park and we decided to take an “improved gravel road” as the map called it, and turned onto County Road 6, to head towards Wind Cave National Park.
This was the game changer. Definitely a road I’d recommend to EVERYONE.
Because the next thing we knew, we were spying a buffalo clear off in the distance.
A tatanka #buffalo
I felt like we were in the movie “Dances with Wolves”, out on the prairie. 🙂 And as we drove closer to the hillside, we saw another buffalo. And another. And another.
There were so many!
So, we got out and took pictures with the buffalo on the hillside behind us.
More buffalo over the hill!
Checking out the buffalo prints
Selfie!
This place…it was simply beautiful.
We started counting and lost count after 200. There were that many tatanka! They worked their way closer to the road and we got back in our car. They kept coming closer and closer. It was incredible.
We had our cameras ready!
I kept taking pictures of these amazing animals. They were just so BIG and they made loud grunting noises. It was so neat!
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Look at those horns! The right one was really making noises at us! YIKES!
And then, I got out for a QUICK photo! Hubby was so proud of my bravery!
Just me and my buffalo
And then, they came even closer. So, I scurried back in the car.
This guy was awfully close.
They crossed the road…to get to the other side, of course! Hahaha
We drove on and continued to be mesmerized by God’s beauty.
God’s handiwork…Wow.
Maxim and his trusty sling shot 🙂
Nate posing by the stream 🙂
Daddy and his boys
This was one of my favorite memories about our trip. Taking a little gravel road and checking out the amazing Black Hills up close and personal! I highly recommend you do this if you visit the Black Hills.
After our buffalo sighting and exploring, we drove back to Blue Bell Lodge.
Our cabin at Blue Bell Lodge. Campfire and all!
I was so glad when we checked in that we had the “sleeping cabin” and not the “camping cabin”. I am all for experiencing the wild woods, but I love having our own bathroom, etc…
That night, we had reservations for dinner at the restaurant across the street from our cabin. It was okay food and service, but it was convenient and close since we didn’t have to leave the park and head into town for supper.
Saddles at the bar. We thought those were cool 🙂
This little guy came and sat right by me after supper…. #sleepy-boy
I highly recommend a night’s stay in the park, at one of their cabins. It was so close to the scenic highway, Wildlife Loop, and Wind Cave National Park roads.
I forgot to take pictures of the cabin when we got there Wednesday night. So, by Thursday morning, this is what it looked like:
Two queen beds, a table, fireplace, flat screen, kitchenette, and bathroom. Nice and comfy.
Oh. And a buck over the fireplace. PERFECT.
Now because I don’t want this to be completely boring and only about buffalo, I thought I’d share some of the little things that make me ME. I don’t know about you, but I love hearing the real, down-to-earth stuff about people. Makes a person more relatable. 🙂
First of all. I love my pillow. My own pillow from home. It’s soft, white, and so feathery. Not firm. Not foamy. Just perfect. But. I usually don’t bring it on trips. Well, this time, I decided to. And I brought the boys’ pillows. Their pillows are flat and perfect for little necks. And they have bright pillow cases. Bright pillow cases (blue) that make them easily noticed when lying on a bed.
WELL. I made a mistake. My pillow is white and while I used it at the cabin…it BLENDED in with the cabin’s pillows. And you guessed it. I forgot it. At Blue Bell Lodge. 🙁 Note to self: When you bring your own pillow, put a BRIGHT pillow case on it, so you won’t forget it in the hotel/cabin room.
Here’s another thing about me. I cannot stand to get ready in a hotel/cabin and stand on their cold, tile floor. The germ-a-phobe in me wonders if the floors are clean and “have they ever been mopped?” So, I stand on towels while I get ready in the morning.
Step 1: Grab the towels my family and I have used. Step 2: Spread the towels ALL OVER THE FLOOR. Step 3: Proceed to get ready as usual.
Yes. I am on the verge of being high-maintenance. And, I do NOT let my tooth brush set out on the counter. GROSS. It goes right back into my make-up bag, where it is safe and protected from all kinds of germs. (I’m very aware of my issues. Hahaha)
And so. After supper at the restaurant, we returned to our cabin for a good night’s sleep (on my favorite pillow). Then, we woke the next morning, showered, and packed up, and continued onto more adventures of our family vacation in the Black Hills.
See you tomorrow as I share about more of our wonderful adventures in the Black Hills!
Your travel guide who’s sad because she’s missing her favorite comfy pillow…Angela Banae
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