A cold morning here in South Dakota 🥶 54* at 7am outside the camper! The heater was on during the night & we even added another blanket on the bed. Hot tea 🍵 & coffee ☕️ were in order for a relaxing morning. Sat outside to journal and blog once the sun appeared on our site.
Today was our day to just explore the area. We started our adventure around 11:30. Drove up to Mount Coolidge Fire Tower. What an intense drive for the gravel road was narrow & winding up the mountain with sheer drop offs … On My Side! 😮 We could see for miles & miles all around us and we could see The Needles, Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse from the summit.
Mount Coolidge Lookout Fire Tower was one of the last projects completed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the late 1930s. Built of local stone, the tower rests atop a 6,023-foot peak and is still used today as a fire lookout and dispatch center. As the highest point in central Custer State Park, it offers breathtaking 360-degree views from the top of the fire tower. On a clear day, you can see the Badlands nearly 60 miles away in the east. The original mountain was called Sheep Mountain.
• 1923: A log tower and caretaker’s quarters were built and the mountain was renamed Lookout Mountain.
• 1927:The mountain was renamed yet again and called Mount Coolidge.
• 1939:The Civilian Conservation Corps built a stone lookout tower and caretaker’s quarters that replaced the log structure.
We then traveled to the East Entrance of Custer State Park to take pictures. (I needed the entrance sign picture since it was raining the day we entered)! 🤷🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️ I know I’m a PIA every once In awhile. 🤣😘
Lucky for us because on the way back into the park we saw a large herd of big horn sheep! Next stop the visitor center where we got our stamp for our book, looked at all the exhibits which all explore the iconic species of the prairie such as the bison and watched a 20 minute movie “Spirit of Tatanka” narrated by Kevin Costner in a beautiful 100 seat theater! What an amazing experience!
Next adventure of the day was at the State Game Lodge to find where we were having dinner tonight. The State Game Lodge is a gracious native stone and wood lodge built in 1920 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Lodge was the 1927 Summer White House by President Calvin Coolidge & visited by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. There are 7 original historical lodge rooms that were occupied by President Coolidge & Eisenhower and their staff. We walked through the beautiful lobby, visited the gift shop and enjoyed the view from the historical front porch.
The Peter Norbeck Visitor Center was our next stop. The inner child came out here for this was such a great educational building…inside & out. The interior is designed to encourage children and families to explore the unique ecosystems within the park while the exterior Outdoor Classroom is a chance for unscripted play. “The Civilian Conservation Corps built the Peter Norbeck Visitor Center as the park museum during the winter months of 1934-35. The young men of Camp Lodge, ages 17-25, created a structure that blends into the surroundings. They used their talent in construction and native materials of logs and rocks to create a building to educate the public on the parks natural and cultural history. Interpretive exhibits and displays allow visitors to gaze into the eyes of a 1,900-pound bison or witness tree rings dating back 330 years. Displays reveal much about the history of the area, from Black Hills geology to the efforts of an 1876 gold panner”.
Across the street was the General Store. We browsed but nothing intriguing! What was cool was outside… old time gas pump that was functional. Only regular unleaded available. So back to the campground. Walked across the street to the Legion Lake Lodge. We took the hike around the lake, then walked back across the street to Ruby. Relaxed about 30 minutes and started getting ready for dinner. 🎉🎊🎉 Super excited to get dressed up & go out to dinner!! 😊 We arrived at the State Game Lodge early and good thing we did for a wedding was happening on the lawn. 💕 Sat at the bar for Happy Hour and then at 6:30 we were seated at our table. Started with Buffalo Ravioli, covered with Black Truffle mushrooms & Parmesan cheese. Used the bread to soak up the delicious sauce. Tim ordered Elk Osso Bucco, slow braised elk shank, smoked Gouda risotto wild mushroom & burgundy brown sauce with veggies and a Caesar salad. I started with a salad with amazing cranberry vinaigrette dressing then Walleye with wild rice, tomatoes and caper beurre blanc with veggies! OMG can you say phenomenal. But wait I had to try dessert… Salted Caramel Pecan Pie! Such a magical night we had! We always try to experience dinner at a historical restaurant at least once o trip and we were not disappointed! That’s a wrap for today! Good night! 😴
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