Spiders and Snakes . . . and Bears

Jan and I left the rig about 9am heading for Bear Country USA, the first park on today’s three park tour.




It took us about 30 minutes to get there and $30 to get in to take the 45 minute drive though the park.

Bear Country Waterfall

First up was a herd of American Elk.

Bear Country Elk

Many still with their Velvet Antlers.

Bear Country Elk 2

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Right next door was a head of reindeer.

Bear Country Reindeer 1

Looks like Donner, Blizten, and a few others.

Bear Country Reindeer 2




Big Big Horn Sheep.

Bear Country Big Horn Sheep

Little Big Horn(less) Sheep.

Bear Country Big Horn Sheep 2

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An ugly, shaggy bison (Buffalo)

Bear Country Buffalo

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Bears, Bears, and more Bears.

Bear Country Bear 1sgfgsdfg

Bear Country Bear 3sgfgsdfg

This is the animal guard separator that keeps the bears in their own habitat area.

Bear Country Animal GuardUnlike a regular cattle guard, these are made up of railroad rails, and then electrified like an electric fence.

Bear Country Bear at GuardThe bears walk back and forth in from of the guard so much that they even have a sign posted to keep you moving.

Bear Country Bear Sign

But sometimes two or three of them will be weaving to and fro, blocking the road. I guess they can’t figure out why the cars can get over it and they can’t.

Bear Country Bears at Guard



And this is their resident Grizzly.

Bear Country Grizly

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American Bobcat

Bear Country Bobcat

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An Arctic Fox

Bear Country Arctic Fox

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Another sculpture done by the same guy that did the horse sculptures in Hill City

Bear Country Buffalo Head

Hill City Horse Sculpture

Hill City Large Horse

Finishing up at Bear Country, we headed over to Hill City to have lunch at Alpine Inn. Wanting to try their much-renowned German food, we had tried to have dinner there last Thursday, only to find that they only served the German fare for lunch. So we were back,

Alpine Inn

I started out with a cup of the Austrian Cheese Soup.

Alpine Inn Austrian Cheese Soup

Delicious with a sharp nutty flavor and a smooth creamy texture. Jan quickly reached her two spoon taste limit, and almost ordered her own cup. (When I order something that she doesn’t, she gets to taste two spoonfuls of mine, and then she has to order her own. I’ve learned this from experience.)

Jan ordered her favorite Jaeger Schnitzel, a breaded port cutlet covered with a fresh mushroom sauce, accompanied by German potato salad and red cabbage.

Alpine Inn Jaeger Schnizel

I got the German Plate, with a Grilled Bratwurst, a Smoked Bratwurst, sauerkraut, German potato salad, and red cabbage.

Alpine Inn German Plate

Both of us agreed that the Alpine Inn’s German food is on the same level as our other favorite German place, Der Lindenbaum in Fredericksburg, TX.. Really, really good.

I’m going to wrap it up for today and finish up with our visit to Reptile Gardens tomorrow.

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And on tomorrow, we driving over to Gillette, WY tomorrow to pick up a part for our rig’s generator, and come home with a side trip to Devil’s Tower.


Thought for the Day:

You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas. — Davy Crockett

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