Thanks, Teddy

"I never would have been President if it had not been for my experiences in North Dakota."  That's a quote from Theodore Roosevelt, who came to North Dakota one summer to hunt and who ended up creating the Maltese Cross ranch with a couple of partners and then later building anther residence, Elkhorn Ranch, on his own.  After watching the decline of the bison due to non-stop hunting and disease and seeing the grasslands disappear because of overgrazing by cattle, Teddy Roosevelt became concerned about what was happening in the Dakotas and areas of the west.  Once he was elected president he created several national parks, created the US Forest Service and signed the US Antiquities Act, leading the way in preserving a great part of our heritage; our own beautiful country.

Eleven years ago Denny and I explored some of North Dakota, stopping at both the north and south units of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park.  This time around we stayed in a campground in the town of Medora which is the gateway to the south unit of the park.  Our stay here has seen temperatures reaching 100+ degrees on several days so when the day started out overcast Denny and I jumped in the truck hoping the slightly cooler temperatures would allow the animals of the park to show themselves.  According to the brochures handed out at the ranger station we had the potential to see bison, wild mustangs, deer, elk, prairie dogs, pronghorn antelopes, big horned sheep, badgers and coyotes that live here, but we only managed to see the deer, bison, wild mustangs and prairie dogs. 

The south unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park has a visitor center near the entrance with a small museum, gift shop and the original Maltese Cross Ranch house which has been moved to its current location.

Once you've checked out the museum, toured the cabin and watched the brief video in the visitor center and checked out the ruins of the meat packing plant on the grounds it's time to jump in your vehicle and start driving the 36 mile loop in the park.  There are a lot of short hiking trails near the overlooks as well as longer hikes throughout the park.  There are also riding trails and a stable that has guided horseback tours available if that's your inclination.  Just bring along a lot of water.  There are also primitive campgrounds available within the park; there are no hook ups there but there are restrooms.

But the main attraction here is miles and miles of scenery and rugged, rocky terrain softened by areas of cottonwoods along the Little Missouri River that winds throughout the park. 

What you won't find here are crowds--this is sort of off the beaten path although its entrance is just a couple of miles from an interstate exit.  So you can wander at your leisure, being enveloped in the scent of sagebrush and immersed in the sounds of silence.  Which we did until the thunderstorms rolled in and we rolled out.
 
Of course, I have to close with an "awwww" moment; this wild mustang foal who was all tuckered out from being so darned cute.

Getting Partially Around Custer State Park

One of our favorite state parks is Custer State Park in South Dakota.  The last time we were here was the week of September 11 in the year of 2001 so that was a very weird and somewhat somber time to be visiting Mt. Rushmore and Custer SP so we thought we'd visit the park at a different time period.  I was surprised that the park wasn't more crowded with tourists, but then again, we were still suffering through 100+ degree heat here in South Dakota.

The visitor fee of $15 per vehicle might seem a bit steep until you realize that it allows you access to the park for a period of seven days; not bad.  This time around we entered from the eastern side of the park and headed south on the Wildlife Loop.  It wasn't long before we discovered one of several large herds of bison blocking traffic, so we settled in to take some photographs and a couple video clips.

This one makes you think of the buffalo nickel, doesn't it?  These guys are huge, weighing about a ton.  If you see a lone male buffalo, they are normally the older males who have fought for their herd of females and lost.  The older, losing male will then spend the rest of his days alone.

The bison have no fear of vehicles and simply amble across the roadway at will, assuming traffic will stop for them.  The truck pulled off near the center left of the photo below is a park ranger with a whip (I asked if it was to force the tourists to move along and got a grin from him).  I assume the whip was to assist in getting the bison to move if they blocked traffic for too long or created too much of a back up.

The wild donkeys are descended from animals that were once available for trail rides in the park.  When that business was closed, the donkeys were simply let go to live free in the park.  They are the park's beggars and will pretty much eat anything that's offered to them.

This little guy was not only adorable, but his coat was unbelievably soft.  He accepted pats and ear rubs but still preferred mom's milk to any treats being offered.  That's mom poking her head into the picture on the lower right.

Circling west and then north you arrive at Needles Highway.  There are three tunnels on this route, the smallest being 8'4" wide and 12' tall and the next smallest being 10' wide and only 10' tall.  It was at the 10' tall tunnel that we saw a Class C RV trying to figure out what they were going to do because they were too tall to enter and the roadway behind them (2 lane) was a long series of hairpin switchbacks.  I will say that when you enter the park you are given a booklet that has a map that lists all the interior roadway, all the tunnels and all the height and width limitations on said tunnels.  So no excuses for folks who get stuck.

 

 Needles Highway was named for the tall spires of rock jutting out of the ground in this section of the park.  It's quite a change from the rolling hills of the Wildlife Loop.

Can you see the resemblance to a bear in the yellowish rock below?

This time around we only saw bison and pronghorn antelope.  Our last time through we also saw big horn sheep, although there are also mountain goats, elk, and a couple of varieties of deer that live in the park.

Originally there were 50,000 forested acres in the park.  Wildfires have burned 23,000 of those acres, some of that thanks to the pine beetles that are killing the trees, turning them to tinder.  Trees that have been damaged by the pine beetles turn red/brown like those below and whole mountain sides are covered with these dying trees.

If you enlarge the photo above, you'll notice the kayakers.  This is Sylvan Lake, where there are boat rentals and a beach for swimming as well as hiking trails and picnic tables.  Another nice area for a picnic is by Legion Lake.  There are several campgrounds within the park, most of which have at least a few electric sites and fishing is permitted after you purchase a license.  Rock climbing is also permitted within the park and there are ranger talks and children's programs as well.

This bridge is actually located on Hwy 16 north of Custer State Park but is attractive because it's made of wood.  Somehow the huge beams were bent (I assume by soaking in water) and formed into these huge arches.  It's a lovely piece of work.

There is so much to see and do in the Rapid City area but I have to admit, I think I prefer the area after Labor Day when the crowds are a bit smaller.  I'm sure we'll be back to this area again.