July 2021 - The Black Hills
My first trip to the Black Hills. I didn't quite know what to expect and was very impressed. Mt. Rushmore was truly awe inspiring. On the wildlife front, we been to Yellowstone twice in the previous year, but still managed to be surprised by an incredible experience with mountain goats (which I'd never seen before). And then the scenery of the hills themselves was really beautiful. It's a special place!
Part two of the trip, with pictures from Rapid City, Wind Cave National Park, and the mammoth hot springs, is here.
My first trip to the Black Hills. I didn't quite know what to expect and was very impressed. Mt. Rushmore was truly awe inspiring. On the wildlife front, we been to Yellowstone twice in the previous year, but still managed to be surprised by an incredible experience with mountain goats (which I'd never seen before). And then the scenery of the hills themselves was really beautiful. It's a special place!
Part two of the trip, with pictures from Rapid City, Wind Cave National Park, and the mammoth hot springs, is here.
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| We didn't see much in the wildlife loop at Custer State Park, but we did see this nice buffalo | Some deer | Pronghorn |
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| The sun rises on a buffalo | A lone meadowlark fills the meadow with song | A Dickcissel, what an interesting name |
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| A tree swallow | A western meadowlark | A bit puffed out |
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| A beautiful mountain bluebird | Headed down the road | |
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| Enjoying the morning | Custer State Park | Heading into the Black Hills |
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| Tunnels framing Mt. Rushmore on the Norbeck byway | Our first view of Mt. Rushmore! | |
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| A pigtail bridge | Another beautiful tunnel framing | |
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| Mt. Rushmore! So cool! | ||
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| At the visitor center | ||
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| The greatest state in the union! | Mt. Rushmore is incredible close up, but is especially remarkable as part of the surrounding landscape | |
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| Us enjoying the view! | Beautiful striations in the rock | |
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| The founders | The next generation | |
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| Teddy is really tucked into the corner | The head-on view | A view slightly from the side provides a better angle at Jefferson and Roosevelt |
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| A mountain goat family hanging out right beneath Washington's head. They were impossible to see when they were standing still. | The boardwalk trail to the base of Mt. Rushmore | |
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| A view through the rocks | Looking from down below | Back to the top! |
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| Profiles of greatness | ||
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| Beautiful Sylvan Lake | A beautiful place for a wedding, other than the lack of parking | |
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| Hiking into the Black Hills! | Plenty of wildflowers blooming in July | |
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| The trail through the rocks | Hiking to the top of a rock formation | |
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| Wow! What a view! | Classic Black Hills | |
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| We walked around a corner in the trail, and there was a mountain goat right in front of us! | And a baby one. Cute! | |
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| Yum! | Mom and child | |
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| Such a rugged looking animal | Nearby, a deer with really fuzzy antlers | |
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| Yum! | ||
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| The Black Hills seen from Black Elk peak, the highest peak east of the Rockies, all the way to Europe. Very cool! | ||
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| More lovely wildflowers on the way back down | Cool rock spires | |
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| A hairy woodpecker | A red-naped sapsucker | A buffalo just hanging out on the side of the road |
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| Great views on the scenic drive | The needle's eye tunnel | |
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| The road up to the crazy horse monument | ||
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| The armpit is carved out | ||
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| The profile is excellent | ||
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| The cute cabin we stayed in, right in the heart of the Black Hills | Campfire hotdogs! Yum! |