Black Hills of South Dakota

Seems it 's been awhile that I've been here on Blogger. I kind of gave it up. But I enjoy how the past posts bring back so many memories, so I will start anew!

Since beginning the business that keeps us on the road, complete novices in running a business, I know that every job is a gift from Jehovah-Jireh, the God who provides. He has graciously sent us to some of the most beautiful places in the United States and this is one of them. The witness of His creation surrounds us!

We chose to leave the motor home in Oregon this trip because of the time of year and all those high mountain passes to get through. Turns out it was a wise decision as we are presently experiencing the effects of a Polar Vortex..... COLD and snow! Before the cold arrived, however, we were blessed with some beautiful weather and a half day of free time. So we took the opportunity to drive out and enjoy the beauty nearby. We went first to the Custer State Park area and soaked in the landscape.

NOTE: Photos can be double-clicked to enlarge.

Let the sightseeing begin!

On the sign is a fitting quote from My Antonia by Willa Cather:

"....more than anything else I felt motion in the landscape, in the fresh, easy blowing morning wind and in the earth itself, as if the shaggy grass were a sort of loose hide and underneath it herds of wild buffalo were galloping, galloping...."

I did not even notice the beauty in the sky until I previewed the photo.

            Seeing this area I immediately thought of the movie  "Dances With Wolves". I found out later parts of the movie were filmed here.

Another of the varied looks of these Black Hills

The two above I call Beauty and the Beast. 

All that snag of a tree needed was a couple of vultures.

We had a great wildlife day. Here are the Posers.....

...and here are the disinterested.

Some serious barking going on here;

they remained disinterested. Thank goodness.

We opted for an alternate route back to our home base and this sign pretty much sums up the road! Even the sign was crooked. As we snaked our way along there were also many narrow, sharp "U-corners".  It was well worth the slow going and more than qualified as a scenic route.

I couldn't get a photo of this series of bridges that did them justice because there was only this one spot to get off the road. To the right was a curving bridge leading here, then around the curve in the photo the road went under this location. 
Pigtail Bridges indeed!

There were several tunnels carved through the rock and they really DO, as the Pigtail sign stated, frame views of Mt. Rushmore.

Warning to driver; keep your eyes on the road!
Note how the guardrail on the other side curves.

We appreciated the many views of Mt. Rushmore, some not visible from the Visitor Center. By the time we got to the Center we decided we didn't need to enter, in spite of our Golden Pass no fee status.

I loved this profile perspective.

Two George's (and a Paulee)

There are numerous intriguing God-sculpted rock formations.

Stone face?

And then back to our little cabin and some of the wildlife that wander through.

The next day begins the story of the cougar that wandered through....

It began when the truck arrived to pick up a reported deer carcass. This truck put a whole new face on "road kill". Yes, I did get downwind. No, it did NOT smell good. Note the car bumper under the carcass on the bottom right.
So I couldn't figure out why the driver was going all over the property, as I knew where the deer was and he kept driving right past it. I got his attention, pointed to where it was and he finally found it. Unknown to me, the deer was not one that was hit on the road and died by the trees, where we had seen it quite easily when we drove up the hill to the cabin. It was a cougar kill. The cougar had probably been scared away the night before and left it uncovered, came back the next night for dinner and then covered the leftovers with pine needles.

It did a pretty good job, don't you think? 
No wonder the guy kept driving past it.

That's our cabin up the hill through the trees. I couldn't see that the carcass had been covered. The driver recognized it as a cougar kill and called wildlife management.  

They arrived shortly with tracking dogs and spent a couple hours tracking the cat, but eventually the dogs lost the scent.

For this photo I'm standing on the road where the trucks are parked in the previous photo. Here's what the wildlife management men told me, based on their observations: The cougar came down out of the forest on the road behind me.The deer was attacked down the road near that black dumpster on the right and then dragged over to the trees in the middle. (Drag marks were visible on the gravel drive). What sealed the fate of the cougar was the fact that this wasn't the first sighting of it and that is the main road through Hill City behind the trailer in the RV area. The park office is the building you can see through the trees. Between the office and the trees is a well used jogging trail and there is a school about a quarter mile down the trail. All that to say the cougar had little fear of people. The night of the "stake out" neighbors just up the hill saw it stroll through their back yard on it's way to the deer, and from there it went right in front of our truck. I sure wish I would have been looking out, but it was only 7 pm and I figured it would come in the middle of the night. I must confess though, that going outside that afternoon, even before dark, knowing you are between a cougar and its kill is a bit unnerving. I definitely checked behind me and even looked up in the surrounding trees. The two wildlife management hunters were in a pickup by the office, having rigged the carcass with a device that would set off an alarm in the truck if the deer was moved. Turned out the device was not needed; they saw it coming. I heard the shot but could not see anything because we had turned off the porch light so as not to deter the cat. Shortly the truck came up the hill and stopped in front of the cabin. That's where the cat dropped. They asked if we wanted to see it. What a beautiful creature, a young female, and I was amazed at the size of her feet. One of the men showed us the claws; talk about a well designed game killer. Wish it didn't have to die but I understand the concern for the people in the area, including us! I asked if I could take some pictures but they preferred not and I didn't push the issue.

And then the predicted Polar Vortex arrived, changing the look of the area and definitely ending my leisurely strolls with Paulee around the park.

Because of the continued below-and-barely-above-zero temperatures and Paulee's extreme dislike of cold weather she was not staying outside long enough to get all of her "business" done. So we returned to a solution developed earlier this year in very cold weather in Northern Idaho and made boots for her from the finger portions of some old gloves, held on with some of George's electrical tape. I think she was a bit embarrassed. 

"Hmmmm.... maybe my people had the right idea after all."

 In under a minute she got the job done and came flying back to the cabin,

where, after having her boots and coat removed, she promptly burrowed under the goose down. Pampered dog? Yes, but she pampers us back :)

Overnight the cold got the best of the truck battery and George had to call for help from a mill employee at 5:30 am. These poor guys are working in an unheated area of the mill that is open to the outside. George is exhausted and achy when the ten hour days are over. Hopefully he finishes the job today. My heart goes out to him.