Buffalo

The American Bison that make up the great buffalo herds of Custer State Park are a sight to behold.  We almost drove these animals to extinction, but now the Custer State Park herd is now among the largest in the world.  The majestic power is something to watch and feel.  Bring your camera and binoculars.  Don't get to close, and don't poke them.  Believe it or not those BIG dudes and dudetts can run over 35 miles per hour.  If they are crossing the road, they have the right away.  Every year people are hurt and have vehicles  damaged when they try to get to close to the bison herd or hurry them along by honking.  These wild buffalo are best viewed from a distance.  Especially during the spring caving season, you don't want to find your self between a  momma buffalo and her baby buffalo.

If you don't find the herd while driving the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway, you can arrange a jeep tour through the Custer State Park concession to view the buffalo herds in style.  If you visit the Black Hills during October, be sure to check out the annual Buffalo Roundup.   Every year the herd is brought in for an annual check up, branding, vaccination, and since there is only so much room to roam out there in Custer State Park, some of the animals are auctioned off during the Buffalo Roundup Auction.  Visitors are welcome to watch the action as expert horse riders and park staff drive the herd into the buffalo corrals.   You will think you have gone back in time when you feel the pounding hooves, see the rising cloud of dust, and hear the wild buffalo coming over the hill.

During much of the summer you might very well find a solitary bull roaming the southern end of the Needles Highway.  Seeing these big guys among the pine trees of the Black Hills is one of my favorite things.  The big brown heads and huge brown eyes are a bit different then the cows we used to feed on my families Illinois farm.  South Dakota is one of the leading buffalo growing states.  Along with the Custer State Park Herd, you can also view the Wind Cave National Park herd and there are many private herds as well.