Squirrels, trains and prehistoric animals

John took a picture of the squirrel that hangs around our site. His/her coloring is certainly different from the squirrels we had in Sacramento.

While I was on the computer pondering what to do on this cold, dreary day, Faye knocked on the door and asked if we would like to take the 1880 Train. We said sure and off she went to make reservations. Faye came back a short time later and said that we had reservations for the 1:30 p.m. train and to be ready to leave in about 45 minutes.

The 1880 train is a vintage steam train that winds its way through the scenic hill country between Hill City and Keystone.

The train station.
This caught John's eye as a unique use of a railroad cattle guard.
Water tank for loading the engine with water.
One of the scenic views as we chugged along.
Pretty meadow with a stream wandering through it.
An old caboose left over from some movie shoot a number of years back.

The train ride takes about an hour to get to Keystone and 50 minutes to return to Hill City. The outbound trip has a 6 percent grade to go up that slows the train down. It was a nice trip but it wasn't quite as rural a trip as we thought it would be but our VIP passes got us the trip for free so it was all good. We saw deer, horses, and a marmot or two.

When we were heading back to the truck, Fayed asked if we would mind going through the Black Hills Museum of Natural History since we were in Hill City. We said we'd love to as we really enjoyed this museum last year. Better yet, our VIP passes got us in for free this time. The museum basically deals with all things prehistoric. Here is a shot of different geodes from around the world.

The best part, as far as we are concerned, are the dinosaur displays. Here is what was a predecessor to an alligator.

A Pterodactyl.
A big fish and that's no lie!
A fossilized dinosaur egg - notice the yolk. Awesome.
A Triceratops head.

This is an absolutely wonderful museum on all things prehistoric. In our opinion, this is an absolute must see when you are in the Black Hills area.

By the time we were done with all our sightseeing, we were all starving. We stopped at Crazy Horse and had dinner at their Laughing Waters restaurant where three of us had Indian Tacos (so good) and John had Buffalo Stew.

Another delightful day of sightseeing with Faye and Marshall who are good company.