Custer State Park (Black Hills SD)

Located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Custer State Park is home to a variety of wildlife and magnificent scenery spanning 71,000 acres; it is the second largest state park in America.  Nearly 1,300 buffalo roam the prairies and hills of Custer State Park, along with pronghorns, elk, mountain goats and adorable burros.   Clearly, I was most enthralled with the buffalo and burros, because those seem to be the only photos I took in this magnificent state park!

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

Signs all over the park remind you that buffalo will kill you if

you harass them.  People seem to forget these are wild animals. 

Pronghorns are a common sight in the park. 

This is a herd of "wild" burros.  They were SO cute.

(I was not the one feeding them) 

I couldn't resist this photo op!!  And, he was a

willing participant! 

Grandfather Mountain State Park (Linville NC)

Grandfather Mountain is 5,946 feet above sea level and is a globally recognized nature preserve. The highlight of a trip to Grandfather Mountain is the Mile High Swinging Bridge. The bridge was built in 1952 to give visitors easy access to the breath-taking view from Grandfather Mountain's Linville Peak.

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

 The drive up to the mountain during fall is so colorful!

 There are a lot of animals and varieties of birds at Grandfather Mountain.

 Not exactly something you want staring back at you through the bushes!

 The drive up to the swinging bridge offers spectacular views

of the Smoky Mountains.

 This is called Sphinx Rock

 This is called Split Rock - for obvious reasons.

 A cute little varmint.

 I don't know where this otter came from!

The drive up to the Swinging Bridge (visitor center is at the top).

 This is the Swinging Bridge.  Apparently, there is

nothing holding it up but cables.

 Walking on it is a little scary, because it does swing!

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 The view from the bridge is amazing.

 There is a hiking trail under the bridge.
It was a very rugged trail despite being called "moderate".

 You could look up at the bridge on the hiking trail.

 This thing is all that is holding the bridge up!

(I wouldn't have walked on the bridge had I known that!)

Views from up and down the mountain.

Great spot for a picnic!

Great day for a no-frills picnic!

 Forget those great views and fresh air - THIS

was what I was looking for!

NOTE:  In 2009, Grandfather Mountain, Inc., sold 2,700 acres of the backcounty to the state of North Carolina for the Grandfather Mountain State Park. The North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation and the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation work together to manage and protect this natural treasure.