Custer Days Inn

... the most unique scenic byways we have travelled on.

Because of the recent storms, which dropped quite a bit of snow at the higher elevations, we were not able to complete the Norbeck Byway - it's a loop road. We were able to do short portions of either end of it. Because this byway skirts Custer State Park we decided to take ...

We have been here in Rapid City for a week now and have had a series of unseasonably cold, wet and windy days. We've ventured out to the Buffalo roundup, a day trip to Deadwood/Sturgis and the local pumpkin festival. But, we have spent more time at home riding out the storms and the wind than we have away from the coach.

The ...

... We saw a few more on their own. Bent over eating at the grass. The buffalos didn't care about us and they didn't react to us or our car. They just kept doing what they were doing, eating. As we continued to drive in the eastern horizon, dark shadows were coming up. It was a whole herd heading south. They walked in the warm sun. We read that in the grasslands had mineral naturally accuring in the plants ...

... out to be, gave us some god pointers to start using our newly acquired gear..
Some hours and climbs later we where finally ready to start packing and heading back to the car... but as fortune would have it, there just had to be one more challenge...
Darkness was coming fast and as we where rushing to get everything and everyone ready to move, a big whoops is heard... I will only say that one end of ...

... camping breakfast of bacon and beans, we went into town for ice and food, and then meandered back through the park, stopping at several lakes for short hikes. When we returned to camp, there was a short hailstorm, after which beautiful weather ensued. We had a nice dinner and a roaring campfire. This was probably my favorite segment of the trip.

... we are both starving. When we walk into the building it's like a ghost town. That is, until we turn the corner into the dining room. A large banner that reads "Happy Retirement, Gary!" Is strung across the room. Apparently, some guy named Gary was retiring from the park service that day and they closed down the buffet for his party. Well good for you, Gary! What the hell are we supposed to do?!? And dag-nabit, it looks good, too ...

... bomber fly over Mt Rushmore, and kick off a July 4th (3rd) grand fireworks display for myself and 30,000 other spectators. I had to park four miles away, but a cute dog makes for a good hitchhiking companion. when the fireworks were over, I hiked out of Mt. Rushmore with about 10,000 other people back down the road to my car, bomber and I drove to deadwood and "camped" in the ...

... a place called the Gold Pan Saloon, that had a sawdust floor and dollar bills taped to the walls. Kinda a dive, but I could have seen myself hanging out there quite a lot. Jerry found me there an hour and a couple beers later and said the car couldnt be fixed til Tuesday! So we thought it over and decided to risk it and just forget about the problem for the time being. After leaving Custer, we drove down to Custer State Park and ...

... on our way out of town in a couple of days) and headed back to the lodge. The pool was less crowded this time, so it was much better for Brooks since he didn't keep on running into other people. After the swim we parked the car to see the Mt. Rushmore fireworks, which we could barely see over the tree line. From our vantage point they were "OK". Even though I'm sure the view from the base of Mount Rushmore was much better, I couldn't imagine waiting 13 hours just for that.

... great and then we came to the last 5 miles. Remember how I said it was a slight downhill? Not so much. From the bottom I felt like I was looking at a wall. Of course that also might have been caused by my exhaustion. It is a good thing Layl was along encouraging me or I might have just sat down in the middle of the road and cried. Jason did great, he would run ahead and then after a while run back to meet us. I think he added on an additional ...