I woke up early, and I couldn’t go back to sleep, so I put on a pot of coffee. The view out of the cabin was astounding, with the A-frame tucked up in the woods on the side of a hill. Then I went upstairs to a sitting area with a nice chair and worked on a post. I thought the view would be better upstairs, but I couldn’t see as well as downstairs. The stairs were a little precarious, so I stayed put until I was done.
When getting ready, the small bathroom was a little tight. It has an awkward layout and little room for the two of us, if any. But the bathroom does have a window; you can see out of it through the shower until it gets steamed up, that is. Amanda finally went into the bedroom to do her makeup; there was a mirror and better lighting there, anyway.
The first stop was Custer for coffee. On the way out, we got a great view of the cabin. It was nice to see the area in daylight now. It was prettier than expected and got us pumped and ready to see more. The drive into Custer had some great views as well.
Amanda perused the menu but got her usual, a latte with oat milk and honey. I had a dirty chai latte with oat milk and honey. They were both good but not great. While they made them, I went next door to a store that had 50% off everything. I had some things picked out, and then Amanda grabbed a gift for a friend and a heavy canvas shopping bag.
From there, we headed to Custer State Park. The first spot we saw was a lake. The drive to get there was beautiful as we climbed up in elevation. We were making a double-loop like a figure eight through the park today. We’d be hitting a lot of the top sights.
As we got out and ready for a hike, it was breathtaking in more ways than one; the view was astonishing but colder than anticipated. I knew Amanda wouldn’t last long in the cold, especially with the wind off the lake and the freezing rain we started to get pelted in the face with. We made it about halfway around the loop before the trail closed and then returned to the warm car.
We have a great app that tells you all about national parks. Even though this isn’t a national park, it had an entire section for the Black Hills, including all surrounding parks. We’ve really enjoyed using it on the last couple of trips. Running in the background, it will pop up randomly with tidbits of handy information mixed with lots of history. I wouldn’t visit a national park without it now.
After the cold lake hike, it was on to Needles Highway. It is a spectacular 14-mile road through the forest, flanked by rugged granite hills. We went through a couple of very tight tunnels cut right through the granite. The first was the tightest. The front sensors on the Yukon were freaking out. We have the seat vibration alerts set on it, so my butt vibrated all the way, though!
Just as we emerged from the tunnel, there was a mountain goat right on the side of the hill next to the road munching on grass. He was unbothered by the cars ahead driving by. The car directly ahead of us took their sweet time blocking both lanes while they took a million pictures, acting like they were the only ones around.
The views continued to be astounding. We timed it just right after a quick stop to take pictures. I told Amanda, “Let’s go before a herd of tourists gets out in front of us.” I understand we are tourists, but I don’t think we seem the same as many others. Too many are loud, boisterous, inconsiderate, and downright rude sometimes. Either way, we were out ahead and leading the pack well ahead of others and far enough behind not to have anyone in front of us for most of the road.
There were two spots I’d picked for lunch: a Mexican place and a nicer place that had a limited menu but some plant based options. Amanda chose Mexican. As we got out to walk in, a sign on the door said, ‘See you next summer!” Looks like we didn’t even have to make a choice. We had an appetizer of cowboy caviar with chips. You could tell we were far from the border; their chip selection was round nacho chips! You could swap any protein in a sandwich for a grilled portobello. So we got an Italian turkey sandwich, swap the turkey and 86 the cheese.
We perused the connecting store next door; it looked expensive, so I rushed Amanda out! We aren’t to the point financially where we can afford to do much shopping on trips. We save and give up on such things to be able to afford to travel more. Amanda begrudgingly complies; that girl likes to shop! So see, the rushing of Amanda is simply being financially responsible!
We needed groceries and didn’t want to return to town, so we walked to a nearby bougie grocery store. We couldn’t get everything, but it was our kind of store. They had a roasted vegetable ravioli on sale, so we picked that up and a few fresh organic veggies and went to a more traditional grocery store a few blocks away. The grocery bill was a lot less than expected, but the grocery bill at home for all the vaca food was higher than anticipated, so it was a wash.
Back to the state park for the wildlife loop. I thought we might stop by the fire tower outlook, but we saved it for another day. Amanda was ready to see some critters! We were on the loop for a while before seeing anything. The annual bison round-up was a month ago, so I wondered how that might affect the viewing. Buffalo was the first to be spotted. They were all close to the Buffalo Center and corrals. It wouldn’t be long before we saw more wildlife.
We saw a herd of the long-anticipated Begging Burros not far from the center. You aren’t supposed to feed the wildlife, but who can say no to these big guys? I was well-planned out; we’d picked up a bag of carrots from the grocery store for them. That was the highlight of the day. They were so funny and would stick their heads right in the car. I had to watch out for Amanda as they would try to nipple on her when she wasn’t paying attention! I was the chief carrot distributor, while Amanda took pictures and videos. I got so tickled laughing at one that kept on after me to get more carrots.
We saw a few antelope and another herd of bison in a meadow. They looked more natural in this setting than the ones by the fences and corrals. They seem smaller than the bison we saw in Yellowstone a couple of years ago. This buffalo experience was great, but I don’t think anything can compare to Yellowstone in that aspect.
We decided to head back to the cabin. It wasn’t that far from the end of the wildlife look; the dirt road we were staying on popped out just 100 yards or so from the loop entrance. I needed to start a fire in the outside grill; I was too cheap to buy charcoal. So I had to find wood; it was just a walk up the hill to the wood pile, where they split logs. There seemed to be five or six cords, if not more, of wood, so I took my pick. I also grabbed a full for the woodstove and placed it inside the fireplace.
I really enjoy sitting by and watching a fire. Amanda, not so much; well, she likes it but loathes smelling like smoke. I’d never been around a wood stove much, but I really enjoyed it. I told Amanda we needed one of these in our downtown place we’ll eventually move to. There was virtually no smoke getting out of the cabin. The smoke and flames would roll right up to the door, then make a turn and go up the stack.
I was surprised to see Amanda snuggled up next to the fire. Her leg was swelling from all the walking and riding, so I grabbed her a pillow to prop her leg up on next to the fire. We enjoyed it so much that we had our appetizers right at the fire.
Dinner was Spanish-inspired and in stages. First were tapas, the ravioli we’d picked up with a brava sauce. I did have a couple non plant based items on the menu: manchego cheese and a tortilla, not the Mexican kind, but a Spanish one. This tortilla is like a frittata with potatoes, but we couldn’t find the cheese and swapped both for the ravioli.
The pièce de résistance was paella, a rice dish cooked in a large, thin metal pan seasoned with saffron and Spanish chorizo, a firm cousin of the Mexican cousin. We skipped the chorizo and made a veggie version, which I’m sure had some Spaniards rolling in their graves! At the end of cooking, you turn the heat up and toast the rice on the bottom, hence is the thin pan. It’s pretty much like a controlled burn. Like a cajun roux, you can burn it if you are paying attention or are inexperienced. Of course, we also accompanied the Spanish night with a bit of sangria, just trying to keep it authentic.
We tried to make it to bed early but failed. It’ll be a long day with a big drive to North Dakota to see Theodore Roosevelt National Park, then into Wyoming to Devil’s Tower and back. We’ll be up early and back late.