Custer State Park- Bison, Burros and Rainbow Trout

We settled into our campsite at the Game Lodge Campground at Custer State Park.  We have a wonderful site with a huge yard and wildlife for neighbors!  This big bison above and his 4 bachelor buddies decided this was a good place to call home for a few days and they’ve been hanging out about 100 yards from our fifth wheel!

We took a drive around the Wildlife Loop Road and came upon the burros.  They are the only wild animal in the park that you are allowed to feed, and they know it!  They orchestrate burro road blocks, sticking their noses into your windows to see what treats lurk in your vehicle. 

Of course this time of year there are adorable babies.  The burros were not native but were released into the park many years ago after they were no longer used to transport visitors to the top of  Harney Peak.

Along the route there were also pronghorn grazing on the lush green grass and white-tailed deer playing in the meadows.  The herds of bison must be grazing elsewhere, so we will look for them.  We stopped at the Coolidge General Store to obtain a fishing license and were able to get some fishing tips.  So today was fishing day!  We hiked into the Grace Coolidge area, along the creek.

We stopped at various pools along the way, took a break for lunch and were ready to fish our way back, when the Rainbow Trout got hungry!

Caleb caught some good sized trout and kept Chris busy putting them on the stringer.  Fresh trout for dinner!

Another beautiful day in South Dakota,  we have so much to be thankful for!