Cautionary tale :- If you are a Woolly Mammoth…stay out of the hot tub.

Custer, South Dakota is one of those little towns I imagined to be large and touristy (kinda Niagara Falls-esque) simply because of its proximity to iconic American tourist attractions, Mount Rushmore being one of them…!!

It really isn’t…..yes it has a bunch of rock shops and some kitschy souvenir places …but overall…it is a lovely little town with a classic main street of small stores and a clean and friendly vibe to it.

The campground we stayed at for a second time, Broken Arrow Horsecamp, is nestled in the hills above town. A great location as a jumping off point for Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave NP, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore and Deadwood. (yes, it’s a real place ..!!)

We just had to stop at the Founding Fathers brew pub and indulge in their ‘Rattlesnake Bratwurst’……. I had a taster of Scotts…that was enough of a challenge for me….(it was not bad actually….LOL).

We found ourselves in the area again to attend the Hot Air Balloon Festival in Hot Springs, SD on the Saturday. The plan on Friday was a pre-flight check of the 45 minute drive, and the actual location of the event so that we were not trying to find it at 4.45 am in the dark..!!!

Hot Springs SD was another little surprise gem of a town. The buildings are all red sandstone and looked like a movie set.

…and all the local stores had hot air ballon stuff happening..!!

In dire need of caffeination when we arrived……who could resist the Wandering Bison coffee shop…!!!

Our visit also managed to coincide with the farmer’s market. Browsing the vendors took us across the creek/river that runs through town where the embankment has springs of water bursting out in several places.

Since we were there for the day we visited the Mammoth Site, one of Tripadvisors recommended activities for this town. It is an incredible place.

Basically, the story is that in the 70’s a developer bulldozed some dirt off what turned out to be a mammoth tusk. Recognising that it might be important he contacted the appropriate people to investigate, and excavation of the site revealed it to be an ancient sinkhole with not only a variety of animal fossils trapped in the prehistoric mud…….but also 62 mammoths. The museum has been built over the site (beautiful building also…!!) and they continue to excavate to this day.

This is an incredible ongoing project…..and well laid out for curious visitors, built and operated entirely by donation, volunteers and entry fees.

The walkway has QR codes that we could play with our smartphomes.

While wandering the walkways, we watched volunteers in the pit still carefully scraping and dusting to expose more creatures from the ancient mud.

I had to keep reminding myself that this was the real site and not an elaborate reconstruction in a museum.

If you ever find yourself in the area…this is one that is definitely worth the price of admission.