#custer sd

1940s postcard view of Main Street in Custer, South Dakota.

Main Street of Custer, South Dakota, as seen in a 1940s postcard view

What I learned at Custer National Park - great family trip!

My family took a week-long trip to the Badlands/Black Hills area this summer. If you’ve never been there, immediately add it to the bucket list. I’ve taken numerous trips as a kid and still found more things to do that I’ve never done before. A week was a good amount of time to see many things, Two weeks would have been even better. We may have to come back 😀 We spent our first day in Custer…

We had company again this week.  I guess this was our 3rd visitor in 3 weeks. Only difference was this time, they came to see us (didn’t just happen to be in the area.). Mom, dad and Terri got here around 1pm on Monday.  We hit the ground running.  As soon as they unloaded, we went to Crazy Horse and spent quite a bit of time there.  The last time we’d been there, we hadn’t gotten to see everything, so Steve and I enjoyed going back.  Then we came back and Steve cooked up some delicious burgers and we just visited. Tuesday, we headed to Custer State Park. We took the wildlife loop and then came back to the Visitor Center.  We saw a big herd of bison at the beginning of the loop, but they weren’t very active. We didn’t see much more wildlife after that.  They had the theater open at the Visitor Center and we got to see a very neat video of the park that we hadn’t gotten to see before.  There were some picnic tables there and it was lunchtime, so we took our PB&J sandwiches and had a nice lunch by the creek.  A ranger told Steve that the bison herd was close by and so we decided to head back to the wildlife loop and see.  The bison were everywhere. They were crossing the road right in front of us and giving us all sorts of photo ops.  We were glad we came back.  Then we went to Sylvan Lake to hike around the lake.  It was an enjoyable hike and quite pretty.   That evening we went to the Powder House Lodge restaurant.  Mom, dad and Terri got the try the buffalo meatloaf. Steve got the buffalo stew in a bread bowl and I had chicken cordon blue.  We got to sit out on the patio and really enjoyed our views.  Wednesday, we did a lot of driving.  We went to Spearfish Canyon where the 3 waterfalls are and found out that 2 tornadoes had come through there a week ago.  We saw a lot of tree damage but thankfully, not a lot of structural damage.  It’s quite scary to see a forest that has been hit by a tornado.  The trees all looked like they’d been decapitated. There was a spot on the rim where all of the trees were leaning the same direction.  Due to the damage, the trail we’d planned to hike to the waterfall was closed.  We were still able to drive up to it so they still got to see it, but it wasn’t what I’d planned.  After seeing 2 of the waterfalls, we drove back to Cheyenne Crossing so they could try their famous Indian Taco.  All were stuffed and happy afterwards.  Then we drove to see the 3rd waterfall (one we hadn’t seen before.). It wasn’t really worth the drive but now we know.  We are all pretty tired by then, so we headed back to Custer.  That evening we got the fire going and roasted hot dogs and cooked s’mores.  It was just like old times! We left the best for last and Thursday, ended the trip with a tour of Mt. Rushmore and Needles Highway.  I think everyone enjoyed that day.  We had a great surprise as we were on the highway.  A biker coming towards us waved us down and told us that there was a herd of buffalo around the corner.  He had actually turned around and chosen not to ride through them.  I never thought about how scary riding through them would be for a biker.  It’s not quite so unnerving in a big truck but when the bison are bigger than you and a motorcycle...you gotta think twice.  We kept driving and there they were! They were in the road coming toward us. A couple looked like they were going to run right into the front of the truck, but one got wise, gave the other guy a snort and they walked around the truck.  I’d say of of all our bison sightings that was the most enjoyable. They were up close and personal and we just sat there in the road waiting for them to make their way by. We made lots of stops along Needles Highway to take pictures.  I think they enjoyed the tunnels.  Terri and I jumped out and rode in the back of the truck through the narrowest tunnel. That was cool!  For dinner, we took them to our favorite place for a buffalo burger. We got in line before they opened and were seated with the first group.  I’m pretty sure they know now why it’s our favorite place to eat!  Friday morning, they were off early to take Terri to the airport and head back towards Missouri.  We had a great time...lots of visiting and outdoor time.  I think they may have a better understanding now of why Steve and I are doing what we are doing.

After that busy 4 days, we went back to work.  Friday wasn’t bad but Saturday, was the worst day I’ve had yet.  It was the owner’s daughter’s birthday, so they had plans to take her on a helicopter ride.  Jen also has a friend from NY in to visit for a couple of weeks and has been running around with her.  So, Saturday, I knew we had about 34 arrivals.  Usually it’s doable when I have help but everyone was gone but Steve and I (and 2 of the kids.). I guess we should have talked about how to make it work but the phone started ringing not long after I got in the office at 10am and never stopped until around 2:30.  I love working here and both Jen and Bill are great people but their organizational skills are a bit lacking at times.  Knowing that we had so many arrivals and knowing that they were all going to be gone, they should have had the day ready to go by the time I got in at 10. But none of the charges for the day had been checked nor the papers ran for all of the arrivals.  Due to the amount of phone calls, I had 3 out of 34 ran by 12:30.  Then they started to arrive...I had 2 big groups arrive at the same time...nothing was ready and I hadn’t even had time to think about where they were all going on how it was all supposed to work.  One group came with a bunch of UTVs and I had no idea where they were going to park them.  I was so stressed by the end of that, that I could feel my heart racing for the next hour. Then a family came in that needed help parking (they were new to the RV thing) so I tried to call Steve to come help them and couldn’t get a hold of him.  I tried to get one of the kids to go find Steve and couldn’t get a hold of them. Nothing more frustrating than feeling like you are all by yourself trying to run a campground.  Finally, I got one of the kids and he went to find Steve who was mowing and couldn’t hear his phone. Around 3:15, Bill came back and asked how things were going and I told him!  He felt bad that no one had been there to help me and told me to leave around 30 minutes early.  I was so worn out that I actually took him up on his offer and left.  (Of course, the phone had finally stopped ringing constantly and it was pretty calm by the time I left. He probably thought I was just making it all up!). I still think we have a great gig here, but we are a little over halfway through the season and I guess we are getting grumpier and starting to see things that irritate us more.  My biggest thing is the mess in the office and the lack of planning.  IF someone had checked the charges and ran the bills for Saturday ahead of time, my day would have been so much better. Steve and I are working 4 days next week in order to allow us to take 10 days to go to Yellowstone in August and so Jen can spend some time with her friend.  I really hope those days go better.  

We think we may be closer to getting Norcold to give us a new cooler unit for our fridge. Should hear something tomorrow.  I hope so because it’s currently holding around 56 degrees.  Not good at all.  We need to get it working before we go to Yellowstone!  

Pictures above are from the Spearfish Canyon Nature Area.  There were 2 sets of waterfalls to hike to and we found a film site from Dances With Wolves in the area.  We first stopped in Cheyenne Crossing, which is barely on the map, to eat breakfast.  We had a delicious breakfast.  Mine was more traditional with eggs, hash browns, bacon and a huge pancake.  Steve had eggs and a burrito that was packed full of ingredients.  Then we did the 2 hikes and checked out the area.  It was a beautiful day to be out which made our pictures turn out nice as well.  Then it was lunchtime so we decided to go back to our breakfast stop.  The waitress had told us that Man Vs. Food had made a stop at their place in March while doing a challenge at a nearby restaurant.  They spotlighted their Indian Taco.  I really wanted to try it and so we did and we weren’t disappointed.  I think I enjoyed it even more than my breakfast.  

On the way back from our hike, the check engine light came on.  Steve was not a happy camper since we haven’t had the truck that long.  We found a place that would check the code for us and it has something to do with “fuel.”  So after we got back home, Steve looked at the extra warranty we had purchased when we bought the truck and it had 20 miles left on it before it expired.  We took it to the shop Jen suggested (turns out she told us the wrong one).  The one she meant to say is reliable and quick.  The one she did say is very good at what they do but they are rude and slow. Ughh!  So, the day after Steve took it in, he called just to see if they’d had a chance to see what was wrong and the guy asked him “if he’d seen all of the vehicles he had parked at the shop?”  His way of sarcastically saying, “you aren’t on the top of our list!”  It’s almost a week later and I think Steve plans to call again today and check on progress and see if he can get the guy to understand that it is our only vehicle. Thankfully, Bill offered to lend us one of their vehicles so we could go to the grocery store and get food.  Of course, that meant paying the high, local prices but at least we are good for another week or two!

We’ve had the opportunity to have 2 campfires so far.  I LOVE that. There’s not a fire ban and hopefully there won’t be.  The owners make a lot of money selling wood and it’s flying off the porch.  Steve had a little trouble getting our first fire started due to damp wood, but he finally got it going and we were good!  We cooked hot dogs and made s’mores. Reminded me of the many times in my childhood when we’d do just that; guess that’s why it still feels like a treat when we get to do it.  Steve may not know it yet, but I plan to use the fire pit so much that we are sick of hot dogs and s’mores by the end of the summer.  

There’s not much to report since we haven’t gone anywhere.  Steve has been trying to catch up on all of the calls and paperwork he has gotten behind on, so I guess maybe the truck thing is a blessing in disguise. We did go hike in the national forest that our campground backs up to and it’s a nice and peaceful place to be. There are some ATV made trails in there that make it easy to hike. That’s our hiking for the week-no vehicle required; I hope to go hike again tomorrow.  The park is a lot quieter now that Memorial weekend has passed. Memorial weekend was crazy.  There were people and kids everywhere!  I didn’t have a chance to eat my lunch again on Friday.  We had around 24 guests coming in and the phone was ringing non-stop.  Saturday, I finally had a few lulls in the day to get caught up and breathe a little bit. We still have a decent amount of guests but it’s definitely not full.  It should be like this most of the summer with the exception of holiday weekends. We had been told that although we have to park at the front of the park where it’s not as pretty and has a lot of traffic, we wouldn’t have people around us but it’s not turning out that way so much.  We have had people parked around us off and on the whole time we’ve been here. Bummer, because it blocks our view of the deer and woods at times.  But that’s what you get when you are a workamper.  At least we are still really enjoying our time here!

It rained a good part of last week.  Steve even got out of work part of Saturday because all of the things that needed to be done, like mowing and pouring cement, couldn’t be done in the rain.  I, on the other hand, was busy, busy, busy in the office! Saturday, I didn’t even have time to eat my sack lunch because the phone would ring, I’d input the reservation into the computer system and then the phone would ring again.  If the phone wasn’t ringing, then there’d be an email requesting information to answer.  I don’t like to be bored but that’s a bit much!  I’m pretty sure next weekend will be non-stop as well.  I know we have a ton of people coming in on Friday.  But, of course, it’s Memorial Day weekend so rain is predicted both Saturday and Sunday.  

We’ve been looking into plans to go to Yellowstone.  It’s currently closed but set to open June 15.  I just have to find us a place to stay.  It’s not as easy now that our RV grew!  We are planning to work 4 days in one week so that we can stay longer in Yellowstone.  Figure we might as well make it worth it since this will probably be the only time we’ll make it up there.  

They have something they call the Sugar Beet Harvest in the north. States like Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana have it for example.  A lot of workampers work the sugar beet harvest because it is big money. One could make $3000 working 12, 12-hour days.  We decided to look into it since we were so close.  It sounds like boring, physically demanding, dirty work.  They say that you should buy clothes at a thrift store (if any are open) and just plan to throw them away at the end.  You basically direct the trucks when they come to the piling station; you watch it unload; you take a bag to be sampled; you clean mud off the equipment and the concrete pads; the truck drives off and you do it all again. I think we’ve decided to forgo that. Word is, you’re not a real workamper until you’ve worked a harvest, but I guess I’ll just never be a true workamper. Ha!  Instead, Steve is possibly going to work for a company for a month (October) that picks the beets up from the piling stations and deliver them to the factory.  It will still be 12-hour days but he’ll either work 4 on and 2 off or 5 on and 1 off.  Weather won’t be a factor either.  With the beet piling stations, we could work 10-15 days straight but if it’s too cold or too hot or too wet, then we would be off.  You could be done in 2 weeks or it could drag out for a month depending on the weather.  Steve will just be working his days on, in a climate-controlled cab.  Someone loads the truck and then you dump your load at the other end.  He could try to get a job with a farmer.  They say it’s even better money but it’s back to working when the weather permits and it’s a lot more physically demanding and dirty work.  This will put us arriving in Arizona the first week of November which was okayed by my boss already.  I’m wondering what my job will even look like if this social distancing thing keeps up. They may not have as much for me to do but I hope they will at least find something for me to do so I can get my hours.