The Mammoth Site

The other day we headed over to Hot Springs to check out the Mammoth Site.  It was awesome.  Here are a couple of photos.

The place is all undercover....to protect the dig and the bones.  I think the thing that amazes me the most is that this is an active site.  You can even volunteer to be a part of the dig for a couple of weeks in the summer.  No degree required...they teach you what you need to know.

This is one of my favorite photos of the dig....just amazing.  If you are ever in the area, you really need to see this!

Tomorrow is travel day...it is time for us to leave the Black Hills and start making our way back to Sioux Falls.  It is my turn to renew my license and then we start our journey back to Indiana.  I'm ready.....looking forward to seeing my son!

Oh give me a home, where the Buffalo roam......

Mission accomplished!  Our drive through Custer State Park could not have been more perfect.  Aside from the beautiful scenery, we came across this large herd of Buffalo and BABIES!  Yes sireee, two sweet little ones.

Isn't that an awesome sight!

Baby one

Baby two, still a bit wobbly on those legs.  I wish I could of got closer for a better focus, but ya don't mess around with mamas and babies!

This guy was much closer to us and just the perfect pose.  I love those horns and that beard.  Definitely thinking of doing a painting.

It was hard to leave the buffalo, but we spied this Pronghorn a bit further down the road.  Love the markings on the fur.

It was a great day and I'm hoping we have an opportunity to do this again before we leave Custer.

Custer

Well here we are at Custer's Gulch......it is a great little park.  Nice wide spacing between sites and beautiful surroundings. 

The deer came by for a visit.......

As did this little birdie....these guys make the sweetest little chirping sounds

And my very first Indigo Bunting.....absolutely gorgeous, don't ya think!

Tomorrow we head over to Custer park to do some more exploring.....hoping to see a baby buffalo!

On to Custer

Today is a travel day...onward to Custer we go.  This last week here in Deadwood has been very enjoyable.  The city of Deadwood....not much of interest there except the history.  Billy and I are not into gambling and the casinos have pretty much taken over Deadwood.  Too bad...it could be quite the place.  We do plan on coming back....we love this little campground we are staying at....the scenery here is beautiful.  Yesterday we checked out the Deadwood Cemetery where Wild Bill resides....

Took one last walk around our campground....

This little one was busy building a nest in the birdhouse

And this little guy is so darn cute....I know they can be destructive, but they are so curious and engaging.  We played peek-a-boo around this fallen tree for several minutes.

I called ahead to Custer's Gulch Rv park...they are open...so that is our next stop.

Staying Warm...

Last night the temps fell to about 28 degrees. We are trying to conserve our propane so we have been running our portable electric fireplace in the living room and the small electric heater in our bedroom.  Normally we don't leave the fireplace run at night, but since the electric bill is paid (we have a weekly rate here with electric included) we decided to set it on low and leave it on.  We stayed toasty warm and the furnace never ran once.  Somewhere around 3am my little Belle decided to trek out into the living room....for a drink of water I think.  I heard the pitter-patter of tiny paws on the bathroom floor and then the growling began.  I could not imagine what she was growling at....was she sleep walking?  No, turns out she was growling at the fireplace and I can't say that I blame her.  Sitting in the dark...those sparkling embers....must of been a scary sight to her.  By this time, Cosmo decided he had to investigate as well.  Then they decided...."well, since we are up....how bout a trip outside!"  I layered up...and out we went into the cool, crisp early morning air.  Once all the "furball business" was done...we were back in our respective beds....all snugly warm.
Awoke this morning to the sun peeking out from between the clouds....wouldn't be surprise if most of the snow was gone by today.  I think we will spend another day just hanging out here in the fifth wheel, but tomorrow we plan on doing some exploring!

Snow, Snow, and more Snow

Wow, what a difference a day makes...we arrived in Deadwood early afternoon.  We had just finished setting up when the rain starting changing to snow......it stopped for awhile...but somewhere during the night the snow began to fall once again....it finally stopped by late afternoon today.  I took a few photos.....

I think we ended up with about 12 inches, but almost as soon as it stopped it started to  melt.  The temps hovered around the mid thirties most of the day.  We are staying at the Creekside RV Park which is just outside Deadwood.

We have a row of pine trees and a little babbling brook behind us....so beautiful in the snow.  The furballs are loving this....our little Belle loves to use her nose as a little snow plow.  Me...I would actually trade in my flip flops for a pair of snow boots....cause I would love to take a walk in this winter wonderland!

Badlands...

I had an absolutely wonderful day yesterday!  The weather cooperated...mild temps..a bit breezy, but lots of sunshine.  We headed over to the Badlands around 11am and just lookie what I saw....

 Or maybe they saw me.....

 There is just something special about seeing one of these free and wild.....beautiful, majestic animals

 I love the song this guy sings...but I have not looked up what he is....anyone know?

 Just takes your breath away....

 Look at that big blue sky....awesome!

I could not believe my eyes....a whole field full of these prairie dogs.  As soon as I stepped out of the truck they scattered and chattered....barking and squealing.  

 Peeking from their burrows....

 All but this guy....he came right up to me...within about 2 feet....sat up and said "howdy"!

And last but not least....I spotted this mule deer looking up from the brush...."what big ears you have"!

Great big wonderful Day!

Next Stop Deadwood

Well....it did warm up a bit as we progressed toward Wall yesterday.  The temps made it up all the way to 68 degrees, but the wind was really a blow-in!  We got set up in Sleepy Hollow rv park which is just a short walk from Wall Drug....decided on two nights.  Ended up walking over last night and having dinner at the cafe....pretty good.  Took a short look around and then headed back to home and the recliners.
Today we are going to drive around the Badlands National Park....taking the scenic drive on Highway 240.  The winds are still pretty bad, but the temp is back in the 60's.  Hopefully I'll get some good photos to share next post.
Tomorrow we are heading out to Deadwood...and we will probably stay there for a week or so checking out the area.  According to the weatherman, the next week here in this part of South Dakota is going to be a bit rough....rain, snow, wind, and colder temps!   
On a happier note, I read over at Mike and Pat's Blog, that the first buffalo calf of the season has been spotted in Custer.  Looking forward to spending some time there after our adventures in Deadwood.  Hopefully the weather will improve!

The City of Wall

Billy has his license, but I can't get mine for another couple of weeks.  No point in hanging round Sioux Falls all that time....heading west today.  Thought it might be fun to spend a couple of days exploring Wall Drug then on to the Black Hills. 
It is official....I'm cold!  Dipped down below freezing Tuesday night and I think we might actually see some snow in a few days.  I'm not going to let it get me down.....just gonna have to add a few more layers....of course, the most depressing thing of all will be if I have to put on shoes....I really hate shoes.....barefoot is best and if that won't do then flip flops..... do they make flip flops with snow treads?

Tower Campground

As I said, we are in Sioux Falls.  Staying at the Tower Campground which is another Passport America park.  Our first night here was spent in a less desirable section of the park....pretty much all dirt with a little concrete.  Not good for the furballs, plus the spacing was tight.  We asked to move to the "newer" area when space became available.  Lucky for us we got to move the next day.  This section of the park used to be a mobile home park.  They have gotten rid of all the mobiles and are in the process of turning it into an rv park.  A lot more grass and trees and more room between the sites.  They still have a ways to go, but once it is done it will be very nice.

As you can see, there is still an area of dead grass and dirt where the old mobile home stood.  But we do, as do most of the sites, have a concrete parking pad for the truck.

This site also gives us a lot more privacy with that stand of pine trees between us and our neighbors.  Our cell phones (ATT) and verizon aircard work well here.
Now that we are all settled in for the week.....I was off to see the local zoo.  Yes, Dad....another zoo...LOL!  It is a small zoo, but very well done.

Beautiful Black Swans....with curly feathers...

My first Snow Leopard......awesome!

And just as I was leaving, this peacock decided to strut his stuff....gorgeous!
These are just a few of my favorites, but there is lots more.  If you like zoos...you'll love this one.  Admission is very reasonable too! 

Sioux Falls....we're here!

Yeah, I know last time we "spoke" I mentioned staying in Peculiar.  Well, we got such an early start that morning that we pushed on to Platte City, MO....just north of Kansas City.  Stayed at the Basswood Resort...another Passport Campground.  

 Here is our site....nice long pull through...nice spacing between sites

 Although you can see we didn't have many neighbors.

 This guy stopped by to say "hello"!

 And my first sighting and smelling of one of my favorite flowers.....mmmmm so sweet!
We were both feeling pretty tired that night ... so we didn't leave Platte City til about 11am.  We planned on a short travel day stopping somewhere around Omaha, but a lot of the campgrounds were closed for the season or flooded.  We ended up getting into Sioux Falls about 5pm.  The park we are staying in is right in town....and certainly not a favorite, but it is close to all we need to do.  I think we are going to stay about a week and then head out to the Black Hills.  At least that is the "plan" for now.....Oh...the weather...not to bad.  I had to pull out my sweatshirt this morning...it was about 40 degrees, but we are heading for a high in the 60s.  I can live with that....

Ozarks

Yesterday we made it to the Ozarks Mountain Springs rv park near Mountain View MO.  Driving through the Ozarks was an experience.  The roads were not bad, but a lot of curves and ups and downs.  I had a firm hold on my "old sh-t" handle most of the day yesterday!  LOL!  We had gotten an early start, so we arrived at the rv park around 1:00.  This is a passport America park so the rate was 16.00, but the park is something else.  The sites are close together...and the lay out is very strange.  I swear the guy who designed this must have been drunk.  For example, we are in a east/west pull through our neighbor is in a north/south pull through and our truck bumper is just a very few inches away from his tow vehicle bumper.  Oh well, just for one night....and our site was level enough that we did not have to unhitch.  This is obviously their "off season" as I think there was maybe 4 or 5 of us last night, but I would hate to be here when this place is full!
Today we are back on the road heading toward Kansas City.  Thinking we will spend the night at Peculiar Rv Park in Peculiar MO.  Curious to see what a place named "peculiar" looks like....we will probably fit right in....LOL!

On our way to Springfield MO

Today is another travel day.  Trying a new route...we really hate the interstate, so we are going to pick up US 63 N then US 60 west toward Springfield, MO.  Should make for an interesting trip....I like seeing the small towns along the way and the furballs don't seem to be as nervous.  The large trucks passing us on the interstate seems to really bother my  furbabies.  So far, the weather has been great....a little rain, but warm temps.