Black Hills of South Dakota |
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A night-time view of Mount Rushmore. |
The Black Hills in South Dakota are a wonderful place to take a vacation. There is something for everyone. There are, of course, the "tourist traps" which are a lot of fun and great entertainment. However, there is another side of the hills that appeals to the outdoor lover. The Black Hills contain many campgrounds, miles of hiking trails, fishing streams and lakes. I have seen mountain goats, bighorn sheep, deer, and elk. South Dakota's Fish and Game stocks most of the lakes so the fishing is generally very good although most fish are small. Here are a few outdoor photos of the hills. They were taken in July of 2005. Click on a photo for a larger view. Any trip to the Black Hills has to include Mount Rushmore. The photo at the top of this page was taken from the visitor center (as was the one on the left side of this page). The two photos below were taken from the Iron Mountain Highway. The tunnel is on the Iron Mountain Highway. Custer State Park - lots of wildlife to observe. Many buffalo, a few pronghorn antelope, and the "wild" burros. The lodge is a great place to eat. The pheasant dining room has an interesting decor which consists of many stuffed pheasants. Also serves a good buffalo stew. Any trip to the hills must include Spearfish Canyon. It is a beautiful drive; many hiking trails; fishing; picnics. Here are a couple of shots of some "tourist traps." The first two are in Keystone where we took the chairlift to the top of the mountain and rode down on the slide. The third photo is from the top of the mountain. The last photo is a bear cub in a tree. Here are a couple of fishing photos. The Black Hills are a great place to fish. The first photo is of one of the beautiful lakes in the hills; the second is fishing along one of the streams in the hills; photo #3 is an 8" brook trout; the last one is a 10" rainbow. Every creek we fished in had fish. |