South Dakota Day 5

Today Natalie, Dax, and Dad got up early and drove thirty minutes to Jewel Cave to get tickets for later in the day. (Well, Dad woke up even earlier and went for a walk around Legion Lake.) Then we took a leisurely drive around the lower loop of Custer State Park. This park is pretty huge and there are a lot of cool animals. We saw several pronghorn, a few white-tailed deer, and hundreds of buffalo. The herd in the park is between 850 and 1500 depending on the time of year. There was even a minor traffic jam as we the buffalo crossed back and forth across the road.

The white-tailed deer are so delicate and beautiful.

There were plenty of baby buffalo in the herd.

The herd was right on the road.

We passed a herd of donkeys, which was sort of strange to us.

Our Jewel Cave tickets were for 1 o’clock, and the tour was ninety minutes. We arrived a little early and ate sandwiches for lunch. The boys completed the Junior Ranger badge and patch by doing a short hike in addition to the booklet and the cave. Then we went down into Jewel Cave.

Seth asks to have his picture taken all the time on these trips.

This cave is a lot like Timpanogos Cave with smaller, narrower rooms. The major difference is that Jewel Cave has very little water. This means that there are only a few stalactites or other formations. But the cave was deep and colorful, and the history surrounding the discovery of it is interesting. We weren’t too impressed with the jewels in the cave, which were calcite crystals, but after Carlsbad last year, I guess it would be hard to be blown away by a cave. We liked Jewel Cave, though, and we are looking forward to Wind Cave tomorrow.

Because of all the steps, Laurie and Glen skipped the long tour at Jewel Cave.

There are a lot of these crystals that give the cave its name.

We've been to a lot of caves by now.

The was one really long stalactite that we liked.

There are over 700 steps in Jewel Cave.

Many of the crystals in the cave were very dark colored.

Mmmmm..... Bacon!

We liked our boys being around such good examples as their cousins.

When we were finished at Jewel Cave we drove to the Circle B Chuckwagon. It took us past the Crazy Horse Monument, but we just viewed it from the road. The boys had fun at the Chuckwagon because there were some good activities beforehand. Seth enjoyed being chased and captured by Dad. He got put in jail more than once. Dax panned for gold. He seems to always think he is going to strike it rich. Mark liked roping cattle, and he is getting pretty good with a lariat. There was even a gunfight, and best of all, no tears! The Biscuit Bandit fired off a really loud shotgun, but Seth and Dax plugged their ears and were fine. Dax even chased the bandit around the building.

Mark the cowboy!

Seth the miner!

Dax the ball player.

The boys love when Dad chases them.

The Circle B CHuckwagon

The chuckwagon itself was okay. It didn’t approach the Bar J, which is our favorite, in either food or singing, but we liked the show. They played The Devil Went Down to Georgia, Orange Blossom Special, and Pecos Bill, so it was fun for the boys. Best of all, the show ended by quarter after seven, so we were able to make it back to Custer State Park at a reasonable time.