Day 24, Third Time's a Charm

Not to be dissuaded by failure to see elk the two times we went looking yesterday, we got up early and gave it another try. Yet again we drove to Badger Hole, the spot in the park people told us we were most likely to see elk. As we were both scanning our sides of the car, we first saw a number of deer. Denis suddenly exclaimed and there they were, right in front of us. We drove slowly by trying to take a few pictures. It was magnificent to see so many of them.

We continued to drive on since it is a very narrow two-lane road with no shoulder. We got to the end of the road turned around and hope to see them again but by then, which couldn't have been more than 5 minutes later, they were all gone. We felt so lucky to be able to have spotted them.

Today was the day to drive Needles Highway. It was still early on a Sunday morning and we were very happy to not be rushed or delayed by traffic. Again, it is a narrow two-lane road that twists and turns up the mountain with amazing views of tall, thin outcroppings of rocks. 

Along the way, there are three tunnels. The widest is 8 ft 9 in., the narrowest being a mere 8 ft. We pulled in our mirrors and paid close  attention to the sides of the car as we drove through. We were happy to have chosen a travel trailer we could unhitch from for our RV.

About halfway through, we stopped at Sylvan Lake. There is a short, 1.5 mile hike around the lake. Since it went around the lake, I was figuring on a nice, easy, flat walk. I was wrong. Some steep inclines and a bit of rocky going earns it a moderate rating.

We went back to Hill City to walk around a bit. It looked totally different on a Sunday morning. The streets were still blocked off with "Motorcycles Only" signs but most of the motorcyclists are either on their way home or were sleeping in.

Next stop was Crazy Horse Memorial. The Native Americans decided that they too should have a memorial carved in granite in their sacred Black Hills. It is fully funded by private donations and profits from the Memorial. There is a museum, daily cultural shows, tours the get you closer to the monument, all might have been nicer in non-Covid times.

I found what looked like a nice grocery store in Custer so we stopped to buy a few fresh things better we head out tomorrow. Sometimes places that cater to campers have canned and frozen foods but not much in the way of fruits and vegetables. And, of course they take advantage of their captive audience. While a bit pricey, we found what we were looking for at Wild Spruce Market.

We spent part of the afternoon just sitting by the lake near the campground. Kinda uncharacteristic for us but much needed after chasing the elk at both ends of the day.
Location: Stockade Lake South Campground, 12677 Stockade Lake Dr, Custer, SD 57730, USA

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