Custer State Park

We were excited about going into Custer State Park as we wanted to see some wild animals in the wild roaming free, rather than in a zoo or Wildlife Park (although we did enjoy that experience). Our first challenge going into the Park was coming across a tunnel and having no idea if our RV would fit through it. We had to park and let other cars go ahead while I pushed the side mirrors of the RV in. Then I walked through the tunnel ahead of Trev, guiding him through and praying that we wouldn’t get stuck!

Admiring the scenery in Custer State Park.

The tunnel! Will we get through?

Me directing Trev through the tunnel

Luckily we made it through with a little room to spare. On the Wildlife Loop Drive, we couldn’t go down Needles Highway as there were a few more tunnels which our RV definitely would not get through. But the rest of the loop was very scenic. We started at Sylvan Lake where we planned to only stay for half an hour, but ended up going for a walk around the lake and didn’t leave until a few hours later!

Sylvan Lake

Trev and Akaisha enjoying the beautiful view.

Kaitlin on the trek around the lake.

Finding a sorts of nooks and crannies.

Jai found a great place to rest.

I'm on top of the world!

Worth climbing for the view.

Meeting lovely people is part of the adventure. Trev and I with Steve and Phyllis.

We met some lovely people as we walked around and Steve and Phyllis were no exception. That’s what we love about our travels. The people we have met are so friendly and helpful. The kids enjoyed the trek and found many unique rock formations to climb and clown around on.

Climbing and clowning around.

I love this shot of the tree taken by Kaitlin

Finishing our trek around the lake.

The next part of our journey took us around another section of the Wildlife Loop. On the way, we saw some Burros (like donkeys). They were extrememly friendly (as you can see) and we had a hard time getting back into our RV so we could continue our journey. The Burros in Custer Sate Park are not native to the Black Hills. Apparently they are descendants from the herd that once hauled visitors to the top of Harney peak. According to the guide book, the Burros were released into the park where they have become a popular tourist attraction.

Burros crowding around some tourists' car.

A very friendly Burro!

Kit thought the Burro was going to join us in the RV!

We saw beautiful scenery and lovely buildings along our journey. We stopped at the Game Lodge Camping Ground and hired an RV site AND a cabin for the night. We had been travelling in an RV with seven kids for over 4 weeks and decided that we needed a little space! So Trev, myself, Akaisha and Chayse stayed in the cabin, whilst the rest of the kids stayed in the RV. I think they liked sneaking late night hot chocolates and marshmallows!

A gorgeous stone house along our way.

Our campsite (RV and cabin)

Beautiful views from our cabin

The kids played by the river..............

.....and went on their longboards.

The cabins were great (they had both heating and airconditioning.) All we had to provide was the bedding. We enjoyed spreading out and using all facilities. In fact, we enjoyed it so much, we stayed for another night. Chilling out, doing some art and interacting with nature was just what the kids needed (and so did we!)

Eating breakfast outside the cabin.

Surrounded by beautiful colours!

"I need to do a wee!" Famous catch cry of Chayse.

Well, we couldn’t stay here forever, so we were up early the next morning to see what wildlife we could spot before leaving South Dakota and journeying onto the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.