2012  HIKING, CYCLING,

& RV TRAVEL ADVENTURES

 

   
 
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   BLACK HILLS DRIVING/HIKING TOUR, PART 2:
 BISON & MORE IN CUSTER STATE PARK
& WIND CAVE NATIONAL PARK

MONDAY, OCTOBER 1

 
"Don't let the park's name fool you, however. There is much more to Wind Cave National  
Park than its underground geological wonders. A diverse mix of wildlife, including  
bison, pronghorn, and prairie dogs, lives in the 28,295 acres of rolling grasslands,
pine forests, hills, and ravines that make up its sunlit upper layer." 
 
~ from the Wind Cave National Park brochure
 
 

This entry is a continuation of the previous one.

After hiking with Cody on several trails near Horsethief Lake and Stockade Lake in the northwest part of Custer State Park I continued driving east on US 16A through the park for a few more miles, then turned south on SD 87 through the western part of the park:

.

You can see the whole map larger at this link.

TATANKA, THE LAKOTA WORD FOR BISON OR BUFFALO

Both Custer State Park and Wind Cave National Park are renowned for their large, accessible bison herds. These majestic animals are one of the biggest tourist attractions in the Black Hills.

As I was driving south through state park lands I saw a few bison along SD 87 but most of the park's large herd is still grazing in the meadows near the corrals after the annual buffalo roundup in late September. You can see the area on the map above where the corrals are located in the SE part of the park.


Bison at Custer SP about a mile from the corrals on the Wildlife Loop Road

After the bison are examined, vaccinated, and tagged each year they are released to roam all over the park. The herd is kept at about 1,500 animals. It appears that the ones above have already been released.

There are also about 350 free-roaming bison in adjacent Wind Cave National Park, which borders Custer State Park on the south. Bison were reintroduced into Wind Cave NP in 1913-1914 after herds in the United States were nearly decimated.

The wildlife management programs in both parks have been very successful.

Custer and Wind Cave parks are two of the last remaining places in the country with thousands of acres of mixed-grass prairie and forests that are protected to support bison, pronghorns, elk, mule deer, white tailed deer, coyotes, prairie dogs, black-footed ferrets, cottontail rabbits, wild turkeys, and many other species of birds, small mammals, fish, and reptiles.


Fence line separating Custer SP and Wind Cave NP

We've seen herds of bison in Wind Cave NP on previous visits to the park. One of the best places to see them is near the trailhead for the southern terminus of the Centennial Trail, and that's where I saw the most of them today.

When I stopped at an overlook just north of that trailhead I could see lots of bison poop near the parking area. Cody had to check out one fragrant pile in the parking area:


That's a huge pile of poop!!

There were more large bison patties along a short trail overlooking the prairie in the distance. I watched where I walked but my main focus was on the group of bison I could see 'way off in the distance:

 

As I was driving toward that group of bison in the distance I saw a mama and her calf about a hundred feet from the road.

Here's the young-un -- that probably already weighs several hundred pounds:

 

Isn't it cute? The hair on its head still looks soft and fluffy.

Soon I saw a small group of bison near a creek as the road switch-backed down a hill:

I continued driving but discovered that I couldn't see the original large herd I spotted in the distance from the overlook because the road had descended through too much hilly terrain and didn't pass near them. 

However I got quite close to another herd with several dozen bison as they crossed SD 87. I stopped along the shoulder to get some close-ups:

 

 

 


This mom stood motionless by the highway for several minutes
as her calf nursed and other bison passed her.

 

They just seemed to keep coming. I was fascinated watching them walk by so close to me.

Fortunately no one got impatient and honked or tried to drive through the herd. These roads are not throughways. There was very little traffic through either park today and folks were driving slowly and stopping frequently to watch and photograph the bison and other wildlife.

PRAIRIE DOG HEAVEN

At the northern edge of the national park I began seeing lots and lots of prairie dogs on both sides of the road. I can’t believe how many there are, and how close to the road they dig their holes!

There is a dirt road (FSR 5) off to the left just past this entrance sign. There are thousands of prairie dogs near these roads in this vicinity:

 

I didn't get any good close-ups of the prairie dogs but Cody and I had fun watching them. He really wanted out of the truck to chase them but I didn't let him out -- not good for the prairie dogs or Cody.

I've also seen a lot of prairie dogs on the Centennial-Lookout Point-Highland Creek trail loop in Wind Cave National Park and various places along the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park.

WILDLIFE LOOP IN CUSTER STATE PARK

After watching the bison in Wind Cave NP I turned around and drove back north on SD 87 to the 18-mile Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park.

The prairie scenery along this road is so beautiful and there really is plenty of wildlife to be seen.


Mule deer in the shade of a clump of cottonwood trees

 

Scenic drive and much more wildlife continued on the next page . . .

Happy trails,

Sue
"Runtrails & Company" - Sue Norwood, Jim O'Neil, and Cody the ultra Lab

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© 2012 Sue Norwood and Jim O'Neil

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