Custer State Park - My Actifit Report Card: September 14 2026

Hey Actifitters,

Yesterday we wanted to catch a sunrise somewhere near Custer, SD. But the morning weather wasn't great with thunder and rain. So like this bison below, we decided to rest a bit in the morning.

But when the weather cleared up and the sun started to shine, we were on our way to the Wildlife Loop Road in Custer State Park.

I don't use the panorama option so often, but yesterday was the day for it, with these giant open prairies.

And of course, wildlife! Prairie dogs and pronghorn antelopes to start with.

And then bisons, or buffalos like American sometimes call them. Not as close as the ones from the side of the road earlier, but a big herd, quite impressive, even from the distance.

Less wild I guess, donkeys and mules. They were just trying to stay in the shade, letting tourists pet and feed them. The young ones were cute.

What about this little one, a prairie dog, like squirrels but in the ground.

We stopped at the Bison center, I tried a small hike, but missed a turn and made it even shorter.

Then we found a small trail leading to more beautiful views.

We thought we might get more rain, but we were lucky, just a few dark clouds for a while.

Then I decided to follow that other unnamed trail.

Good decision because bisons were near the end of it.

That big one looked at me like 'what do you want?...' Obviously just a photo...

We went back to the place where the biggest herd was.

And nearby, I decided to follow the Prairie trail. Not super long, but a few decent steep sections.

Followed by more open spaces! I guess that's where the name came from.

And suddenly, bisons, lots of them! Including some younger ones, apparently ready to play,

Look at that tiny prairie dog standing up in front of that humongous bison!

Some of them were so close to the trail, they actually forced me to turn back!

Very cool to see all these bisons so close but too bad I could walk only half the trail or so. Still beautiful!

We finally made it all the way back, but not before more wildlife of course.

Next stop was Stockade Lake because we had a little more time.

By chance, I found Stockade Lake trail, a short but steep one. With some pretty good views over the Needles and other rock formations.

You can even see Crazy Horse Memorial pretty well.

And after an early dinner in town, the final event of the day, another visit to Mount Rushmore National Memorial to attend the evening ceremony. We arrived at the end of the sunset.

Great light.

After nightfall, the ceremony itself, first a ranger talk and a short movies then veterans and active service all invited on stage while the faces are being illuminated. Pretty cool!

One last one from the Avenue of Flags, the last one for this trip, and possibly last one ever for me, as I'm not sure I'll get an opportunity to go there again.

I'll stop here, that's already too many photos. Just one last morning and we will be on our way back home to Michigan. But not without one last short hike. In my next report...
As always, thanks for stopping by and see you tomorrow.

[//]:# (!pinmapple 43.76027 lat -103.40001 long d3scr)
This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io

14/09/2026

18729

Walking,Hiking,Daily Activity