Images of Custer State Park – South Dakota, taken in July 2017.

Custer State Park is directly north of Wind Cave National Park but I was not intending to go through it because of its $20 per car fee. However, I did want to take the drive along the Needles Highway and had to pay the fee anyway when I found out that it was part of the state park. So, with fee paid, after driving the Needles Highway I decided to take in the rest of the park. It is more or less an extension of the type of landscape seen in Wind Cave National Park. And that fact makes an important point; National Parks are often surrounded by National Forests, state or local parks which effectively extend the National Park and protect the ecosystems of the entire region. These “protector” parks hold back major development from encroaching on the boarders of the National Park and enlarge the area that wildlife has to roam.

So there are two roads leading into the park from the north, the Iron Mountain Road with its log overpasses, tight tunnels and interesting views of Mount Rushmore; and the Needles Highway with its valley views and a road that winds among soaring pinnacle rock formations. It was there that I took the hike up to the Cathedral Spires, a moderate hike with some tough patches that ended up at the top walking along a fairly flat trail among the towering spires. An experience well worth the effort…and the entrance fee!