Day Four was probably the highlight of the trip. We began our day with a drive on Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park, a highlight from when I was a kid. The drive was pretty fruitless for the first many minutes. We only saw the occasional pronghorn and Eric was getting fussy.
Things got a lot more exciting once we stopped to visit with the wild burros. They were scraggly and stinky and very interested in snacks. The kids got a kick out of feeding them some crackers. Eric was grossed out.
We then headed to the Bison Center, which was a brand new facility for hands on learning all about bison. We enjoyed the many exhibits and checked out where the herd was on the park map. It was such a cool addition to the park!
After we left the bison center, we found the herd of bison, grazing quite a distance away. We also saw prairie dogs and several lone bison bulls hanging out close to the road where we could get a good look.
We continued our drive through the park and found an awesome spot by a creek for a picnic lunch. It was beautiful there with a bridge and lots of grass for the kids to run off some pent up energy.
While we were exploring the park, we saw a sign for Wind Cave National Park. We didn't realize how close we were, so we decided to abandon our current plan and head that direction instead.
We saw more wildlife when we entered the park, including a very rare and special appearance from a badger who was hunting prairie dogs.
There was quite a long way for the next cave tour, so we worked on our Junior Ranger badge book, had a snack, and walked around the visitor center. We were unsure about waiting for so long, but it seemed silly to leave without seeing the cave. I'm SO glad we didn't leave. The cave tour ended up being the highlight of our whole South Dakota trip. I got very nervous when meeting our park ranger, as he told us about how a woman had gotten separated from her group and got lost for 36 hours inside! I clarified once again that this tour was appropriate for 3 year olds, and was told yes, so we proceeded. I'm so glad we did, but there were times that were pretty stressful and intense to keep Simon safe!
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We took an old elevator down several stories to reach about 240 feet below the surface. Eric admitted later that he felt really panicking for the first 20 minutes or so and we wound through the dark, winding path. There were low ceilings, many stairs, and deep pits if you fell off the path. Simon held my hand the entire time, despite any of his protests. The formations inside the cave were breathtaking. Wind Cave is home to 95% of the world's boxwork, a beautiful intricate grid formation found all over the ceiling of this cave.
During the next part of the tour we were seated and heard about the history and discovery of the cave, and the evolution of the cave tours given. The park ranger turned off all of the lights to show us just how dark it would be in one of the original candlelit tours. And then, he had Simon blow out the candle and it was pitch black! It's hard to believe anyone would have been willing to climb into this cave in total darkness!
It was such an amazing tour and we learned so much! We were all amazed that this intricate underground world existed below the endless grasslands above. When we were finished with the tour, the kids earned their junior ranger badges and were sworn in by a very kind and helpful park ranger. We absolutely loved our visit to Wind Cave National Park!!
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