Needles Highway

At long last, I have finally started this blog. We have been full-timers now for a full five months and want to share what we are seeing and doing as we travel this fabulous country of ours.

We are currently in Custer, SD and started our stay on May 21. We are staying at a wonderful campground called Broken Arrow Horse Camp (http://www.brokenarrowhorsecamp.com/). The owners/hosts are Larry & Geri Gustafson and are two of the nicest people you will ever hope to meet. They have made all of us here feel like we are family. If you are ever in the area, check them out.

Don and Bev, who are from Maine and are staying in our campground, invited John and I to join them on the drive on the scenic Needles Highway.

What is unique about this highway is that there are three tunnels, each of which gets smaller to drive through. On our first drive on the highway, we were scared off because the smallest tunnel is only 8 foot 7 inches wide and the truck is 7 foot 10 inches wide (not a whole lot of wiggle room). From our viewing advantage, it did not look big enough for the truck so we turned around and never finished the drive. When Don and Bev took the drive, it was foggy, so they wanted to go again and were nice enough to invite us along. How could we refuse?

The drive is very beautiful.






Here is the tunnel with a motorhome slowly and very carefully going through the tunnel. Braver soul than we were in our truck.










John and I in front of the narrow tunnel (the needle). There are pictures of a big tour bus being driven through the tunnel. That has to be one heck of a bus driver who is sweating buckets every time he/she drives through the tunnel. I know I wouldn't want to do it!






Here is a picture of what is called the Cathedral Spires.

With all the rock, it is very rugged but oh so beautiful.







After the Needles Highway, we drove on in to Custer State Park where we saw bountiful antelope, deer, bison, and the stupid tourist who gets out of his (usually male) car to get a closer picture of the bison. Not hard to believe when they say it is not uncommon for people to get gored due to their own stupidity. Thanks Don and Bev for the tour; it was fun.

Soon it was home for a late lunch and just kicking back.