Onward to Indiana

Today we start our journey back to Indiana.  Our first stop will be Blue Earth, MN.  Looks like an interesting little town.  There claim to fame, according to them, is the largest Green Giant statue in the United States or maybe the world.  I can't remember which!  At any rate, we thought we would check it out.  I do love the name of the place...."Blue Earth" just sounds so "earthy"........LOL!

Watertown

Apparently we missed the prime viewing season for eagles in Pierre....cause we saw not one!  Disappointing to say the least.  We did head over to Watertown last Friday.  Found an rv spot at Prairie Pasque.  Which is nothing more then a mobile home park with a few designated rv spots.  Not a destination spot by any means, but full hookups for $20 bucks a night and you are close to town.  Not a lot to do or see here in Watertown.  I did take in the Terry Redlin museum yesterday.  Always nice to see a fellow artist work....impressive!  The weather here has been pretty bad.  We have had storm after storm, chilly temps, and so much rain!  YUCK!  Today is finally dry, but pretty windy and chilly.  We will be leaving here Thursday and heading down to Sioux Falls for a couple of days.  I'll be renewing my driver's license.  Then it is on to Indiana!
I did snap a few more photos before we left the Black Hills.....

One last look at the deer as they made their evening stroll through our campground

Spotted this beautiful Red Headed Woodpecker working hard.......

On this most perfectly rounded hole....isn't that amazing!

This awesome sculpture.....the photo does not do it justice....we saw during our little side trip to Hill City.  We love Hill City and its quaint little downtown. 

Presho to Pierre

We spent one night in Presho at a nice little park close to the interstate called New Frontier.  Not much to this little burg, but a pleasant enough stop for an overnight or two.  We had planned on heading straight to Sioux Falls, but we decided to check out the state capitol instead.  Yesterday we headed up to Pierre.  There are several state parks in the area, but we decided to stay in town at the city park on the Missouri River.......Griffin Park.  Great little place, but lots of activity.  We found the Walmart yesterday and stocked our pantry back up.  Today we are going to check out some of the other parks in the area....hopefully I'll have some photos for next blog.  We paid for two nights here in Griffin Park, so tomorrow may be a travel day.....unless, of course, we change our minds!

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.