Backpacking the South Dakota Centennial Trail | Day 2 | Custer State Park to Iron Creek Campground | Thursday, April 29, 2021 Read about Day 1 here We awoke around 5:30 AM after a quiet and uneventful night of rest. I somehow had enough energy and motivation to get up right away and go brave the cold morning air to… Read More
South Dakota Centennial Trail Day 1
Backpacking the South Dakota Centennial Trail | Day 1 | Wind Cave National Park to Custer State Park | Wednesday, April 28, 2021 Our first night of camping in South Dakota was the quietest night of camping we’ve had in a long time. There was no wind, no traffic, no birds, no sounds from nearby campers. Just some coyotes at… Read More
Hiking Black Elk Peak
Moving to Hawaii • Hiking Black Elk Peak, South Dakota’s High Point • September 7, 2017 We woke up just before dawn on Thursday morning, the day we had planned to do our first peak hike of our vacation. It was a brisk morning, but we didn’t have any trouble getting out of our tent after sleeping on uncomfortable ground. Our internal… Read More
The Badlands // Custer State Park
Moving to Hawaii • Badlands National Park, Minutemen Missile National Historic Site, Mt. Rushmore, and Custer State Park • September 6, 2017 Curtis: We woke early in the morning having slept fairly well despite the full moon. We packed up, returned to I-90 and continued our trek west. The first stop for the day was, of course, Badlands National Park. Since we… Read More
Family Vacation, Day 5
Wednesday, July 8, 2015 Hiking to Harney’s Peak My awesome siblings! For our last full day of vacation, I had tentatively planned a longer hiking trip for us to do together. I had heard about Harney’s Peak, the highest point in SD, and thought the trail sounded manageable for my family. I presented the idea to them, and they all… Read More
Family Vacation, Day 3
Monday, July 6, 2015 Exploring the Black Hills of South Dakota For our first full day in the Black Hills area, we decided to do a little mix of sightseeing and hiking. Everything we wanted to see was within a reasonable driving distance from where we were staying, so we never had to do too much driving. Our day… Read More