We made it! Custer State Park entrance.
Me at the entrance sign.
Matthew and I
Driving through the Needles Loop; a scenic drive that winds through the park. We took this route to get to our campsite.
Though cloudy, still breathtaking!
The Cathedral Spires from a distance.
A closer view of the Spires.
Black Hills
The trees were just beginning to change color when we were out there.
Our huge campsite! Unfortunately because of the fire ban, we were unable to enjoy the fire ring at night. :(
Matt peering out from the tent.
Overlooks of the Black Hills
Many trees were dead on the mountains. Come to find out there's been a pine beetle infestation out in the Dakota's that have been killing off thousands of evergreen trees. A few dead pines can be seen from this photo.
Within the park is a 6-mile loop called the Wilderness Drive. There's a good chance of seeing wildlife on this drive. We spotted many whitetailed deer like this one.
A trailhead area within the park.
First sight of bison! There are roughly 1,300 bison that roam freely within Custer State Park.
Mount Coolridge Overlook. We decided to take this small drive up to the top. There was breathtaking views of the Black Hills from here. Matthew standing by the overlook.
Me.
A panoramic view of Mount Coolridge overlook.
Another view from Mount Coolridge overlook. This side of the mountain reflects the Galena Fires of 1988 that burned nearly 17,000 acres of land in the park.
The park is also home to Pronghorn Antelope. This was our first time ever sighting one!
More Antelope
Butts!
A bunch of dead pine along the Wildlife Loop Drive.
I thought there would be more of a dramatic feel to the photograph of these dead pines if I did them in black and white.
Thursday morning sunrise; September 13th. We took a short drive along the Needles Highway before hiking. The lighting was prime for capturing photographs of the beautiful landscape.
Needles Eye; a rock formation that resembles an eye of a needle, hence the name.
Views of the rocky landscape of the Black Hills in morning light.
Such beautiful views!
This scene was taken with film....
...And again in digital.
Another scenic overlook....
... and in panoramic view
The Needles Highway leading to one of the few tunnel entrances throughout the park.
Interesting rock formations that caught our eyes while driving through the park.
The Cathedral Spires; more rock formations in the Black Hills.
Matthew sporting my headband... we fought over who got to wear it. Ha ha just kidding. :)
Cathedral Spires from a distance.
A group of Aspen turning color.
Also in Black and White...
We took another drive around the Wildlife Loop. Prairie dogs!
The big herd of bison was out on the range Thursday morning. A few shots of them taken by Matthew.
Baby bison!
Matthew watching the buffalo walk by us. We were about 15 feet away from them.
Crossing the road in front of us.
A few miles up the road, we found the Burros! A pack of donkeys roam the park; they were once used to aid in helping people up Harney's Peak.
Cute little guys!
Matt making a new friend. :)
We thought it would be fun to feed the burros. They followed us everywhere after that!
This guy must not of liked the taste of that last cracker...
Taking a turn at feeding the burros.
Friendly guy!
He wants more!
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