Rocks and Relics

The Badlands were amazing, even after seeing them over 60 years when my family did a cross-country trip. Not quite as hot, just because we are here in June rather than late July. I complained then that I was hot, to which my unsympathetic mother replied, “It’s not hot!”. Yes it was, 104° on the ranger’s station thermometer. At least our long hair dried quickly in the hot air. This was all without air conditioning in the car. Now I refuse to drive 15 minutes to the grocery store without AC.

Outside of the park, I saw a pronghorn and deer (whitetail?). Inside, we saw bison, prairie dogs, more pronghorn and deer, and after stopping where another car was pulled over, a mountain goat. Clara then spotted 2 more goats and a baby one. No piles of rocks could compete with that, even Mount Rushmore.

The more I think about it, the more I am flummoxed that someone was inspired to sculpt huge heads out of a mountain in the middle of nowhere, before there were really even roads to get there. The human mind is a mysterious thing. Even more amazing is that the Crazy Horse statue, eventually to be the world’s largest sculpture, is still not finished. I saw that when Steve and I drove home from Alaska in 1973. 



Grant came to the area in the early 1970’s and is enamored with Custer State Park, so we drove its Wildlife Drive Loop, seeing the bulk of their bison herd. I practiced using the scope and could see gnats swirling around their heads. Clara was enamored of the feral burros, decedents of ones who used to carry visitors to the top of nearby Black Elk Peak. We didn’t have anything to feed them, so she settled on rubbing their heads.

Good birding, including 2 upland sandpipers, mountain bluebirds, tree swallow using boxes along the fences, and western meadowlarks. Also red winged and yellow headed blackbirds, downy woodpecker, magpies, grackles, and turkey vultures. 

We returned via the Needles Drive with twisty road and one-laned tunnels 8 feet wide. The Needles were impressive, but birds thrill me more. We passed Crazy Horse in the distance and the back side of Mount Rushmore. Amazing but still rocks all the way down. Perhaps because I have lived my life in Florida, land of subtle geology, learning about rocks hasn’t captured my attention. At least it has kept me from desiring a rock collection. Clara keeps picking up ones to take home. Maybe a budding geologist.

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