Custer State Park is a very large area of land and at 111 square miles is more comparable to a National Park in size. It is situated in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Most of its roadways were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps under the New Deal during the Great Depression of the 1930’s. The Civilian Conservation Corps was a work relief program for unmarried and unemployed men to build the infrastructure of what became many of the nation’s National Parks, National Monuments, National Forests, National Recreation Areas, State Parks, State Forests, and State Recreation Areas. Here in Custer State Park, building the roads would have proved to be a challenge. While the lower altitudes of the park are rolling prairie grasslands, the upper altitudes are dominated by granite hills and spires. It is amazing that roads even exist there. The Wild Images Team captured an example of this difficulty in construction, by showing one section of the road in Custer State Park where it had to be tunneled through two successive rock mounds of solid granite. A close inspection of the image will show where light shines in between the two successive tunnels. These tunnels are quite narrow, allowing only one vehicle at a time, and the other side of the tunnel is often blind so it is best to take it very slow and easy. The Wild Images Team has captured many other images from South Dakota such as the bright flash of a colorful lightning strike over the badlands, the moment that a pronghorn displays its phenomenal physique, and the time that a massive bison bull came meandering past, each of which are available for sale in our store. Blog posts from South Dakota have documented the centuries long carving of the massive Crazy Horse Monument, the very majestic Mount Rushmore and the Avenue of Flags, the expansive view as wild burros walk through the rolling prairies, the ever wary prairie dog stands at attention in the prairie, the amazing location of the granite roadways through Custer State Park, when The Wild Images Team encountered a remote end of trail sign in the middle of nowhere, this close up image of textures in a colorful badlands mound, the interesting time when a flock of turkeys photobombed our image, and The Wild Images Team sunset shadows over Badlands National Park. In neighboring North Dakota, The Wild Images Team has captured images such as the contrast created by the horizontal color bands cross through yellow badlands and the entire herd as a group of wild horses cluster together on a hilltop, each of which are available for sale in our store. Blog posts of North Dakota have documented the herd of bison grazing in the grasslands and the ever changing colorful badland mound that caps a rolling ridge. In neighboring Wyoming, The Wild Images Team has captured images such as the contrast found in the colorful grasslands and background Grand Teton National Park peaks, the varying landscape of Grand Teton National Park rocky peaks and clouds, the large antlers on display as an elk takes a look back in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest, the vertical abruptness as Devils Tower rises above the red rocks and green pines, and the many hues found as the colorful badlands cover over this very remote region, each of which are available for sale in our store. Blog posts from Wyoming have documented as the rugged snowy peaks rise above wildflowers, and as The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome poses for a picture at the Meeteetse “Where Chiefs Meet” welcome sign. In neighboring Montana, The Wild Images Team has captured images such as a group of white mountain goats as they graze the highlands, an expansive view of rocky ridges extending to the horizon, the colorfully massive wall of Hidden Lake, high altitude view of tundra and glacial lakes, a very remote reflective alpine lake covered with rocks, and an ominously approaching heavy downpour over the green foothills, all of which are available for sale in our store. Blog posts from Montana have documented the very deep blue waters of McDonald Creek and the panoramic view of The Wild Images Team at Hidden Lake.
To see more photos, please visit our store