Where the Buffalo Roam

It wasn't on the itinerary but Custer State Park in South Dakota was definitely a worthwhile stop. We were driving through the Black Hills (which were beautiful) and headed to Mt Rushmore. There were 2 different routes we could take so when we stopped for gas Mr UR asked at a little visitors center which was the better choice. The woman working there said to go through Custer State Park. So we did.

It cost $15 per carload and the ranger gave us a map showing where wildlife could be found. Our first view was a herd of buffalo.

Next we saw an entire city of prairie dogs. They were so fun to watch  - popping in and out of the ground.

We saw pronghorn antelope

We even saw a coyote

And then we ran into these guys looking to be fed. But we didn't have anything for them to eat

The most amazing part of our time in Custer State Park was seeing this guy walking up the road

He was loudly snorting and slobbering and passed right next to our car almost touching it...

We ended our drive in a traffic jam waiting on the herd of buffalo to cross the road while this large buffalo stood in the middle of the road acting as a crossing guard while a storm approached

Even though we only spent a few hours in the park, we saw more wildlife here than we did in 2 full days in Yellowstone National Park. Some of the best money we spent on our trip!

Every year Custer State Park does a Buffalo Round-up in September, driving the herd of 1300 bison which are one of the largest publically owned herds in the world. You can find out about that here gfp.sd.gov/state-parks/directory/custer/