August 2018 — During the dog days of summer we hung out in the Big Horn mountains of Wyoming and in western South Dakota. We took it easy and enjoyed lots of naps.
Buddy catches a snooze during the dog days of summer.
We hung our hummingbird feeder on our trailer window and lots of Rufous hummingbirds stopped by for a drink.
We put a hummingbird feeder on our RV window and promptly had customers!
A Rufous hummingbird says “Hi!”
Woa… A hummer puts on the brakes as he zooms to the feeder.
They got so familiar with us and our rig that they hovered around us as we moved around our campsite. At times they’d hover right in front of our faces, as if to say, “Thanks for opening the bar!”
It was a blast trying to catch these guys in action as they flew all around us. Usually, just as we’d get the camera focused, they’d zip away. But every so often we got a great shot before they zoomed off!
Those little wings sure go fast!
A female Rufous flies by.
As the weeks passed the smoke from the many western wildfires clouded the air. It was eerie to be living in a world that had quietly gone gray! As we drove into northern South Dakota the world seemed to be hiding behind a veil.
The smoke in northern Wyoming and South Dakota from wildfires far west of here was intense.
The air was thick. For the first time in our lives we heard local weather forecasts that called for “patchy smoke.” We’ve been in plenty of places that were smoky from wildfires, but smokiness was never predicted in the upcoming weather forecast!
Smoke and mist grays out the view.
However, smoky air has its beautiful side. When the full moon rose it took on a fabulous shade of bright pink and orange as it climbed over the horizon.
The full moon rises bright orange/pink because of the smoke.
It wasn’t the “Blood Moon” but sure could have been!
Fortunately, a storm front blew in and rain fell for two days. It was odd to be back in sweatshirts with our heater running at midday, but the air outside was wonderfully cleansed by the pouring rain.
Dark skies brought lots of rained that thankfully cleared the air.
The next day the sun was able to shine once again. We came across a little outcropping of unusual rock formations and badlands tucked into a fold in the vast prairie landscape, and the sky glowed lavender in the early morning.
Lavender sunrise.
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Even Buddy was excited to see the sun!
Buddy sings “Here Comes the Sun!”
We wandered around among the rock formations, marveling at the exotic shapes Mother Nature had created.
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We had a ball wandering through these rock formations.
At sunset we saw another beautiful display of pink in the sky.
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Buddy waited patiently while Mark snapped a pic.
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We drove a little further and found the town of Buffalo which boasts a population of 380. On the edge of town we found a directory listing all the businesses and services that can be found in Buffalo. There was something very charming about these signs.
Town services directory for Buffalo, South Dakota.
The main drag in Buffalo.
A pretty white church in town caught our eye. And the wood paneling inside the post office harkened back to a bygone era.
The cute Congregational church.
Walking into the post office was a walk back in time.
There are a few places to stop for a bite to eat in Buffalo.
Blossoms and Brew Cafe.
One cafe was offering free beer! Well…almost.
Free Beer!!! Oh wait… not quite.
We’d seen lots of cattle out on the ranches as we had driven through the area, and of course all the cows had tags in their ears. I’d never thought much about where these tags come from, but inside the hardware store we found a whole display of cow ear tags!
Z Tags – The cow ear tags that stay in!
In another store there was a pair of swinging doors that led to a dark space lit with a neon sign that said, “Casino.” Why not slip inside and pull the handle?!
“Must be 21 to enter…!”
From friendly hummingbirds to smoky orange full moons to crazy badlands to a tiny town on the prairie, we’ve loved our off the beaten path travels in South Dakota!
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More info:
- Location of Buffalo, South Dakota – Google Maps
- An excellent article on how some smart folks are minimizing the impact of wildfires in their neighborhood
Other blog posts from South Dakota:
- Americas Mailbox – Mail Forwarding & So Much More in South Dakota!
- An Old Time Country 4th of July – Custer, South Dakota
- Badlands National Park – Beauty & Wildlife in South Dakota
- Black Hills National Forest, SD, RV Boondocking – Camping with Cows!
- Black Hills, SD – Mt. Rushmore and More
- Custer South Dakota Highlights on an RV Trip
- Custer State Park Burros & Bison – Close Encounters of the Animal Kind
- Custer State Park Wildlife Loop Road – Where the Animals Are!
- Fall River Balloon Festival in Hot Springs, South Dakota
- Soap Box Derby & Barrel Races – A Labor Day to Remember!
- Solar Eclipse 2017: Time-Lapse Videos from the South Dakota Badlands
- Sturgis Motorcycle Rally – Wild and Free in South Dakota’s Black Hills!
- The “Right to Vote” is a PRIVILEGE Some Nomadic RVers Might Lose
- Wall Drug – An Iconic Pit Stop on a South Dakota RV Road Trip
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Wonderful pics, Em.They should make you an honorary member of their Travel Bureau! 😉
Bob
Cute! Actually, that might be a pretty fun job!
Very nice picture sorry about the smoke from the Inland Northwest
The smoke is coming from lots of fires all over the western states and provinces. We saw a photo on a friend’s cell phone a week ago that they’d received from someone in Alberta, and the smoke was so thick the sun was a faint red ball at midday!
Love Buddy singing “Here Comes the Sun”. LOL. Buffalo sure is a cool place. Love your wanderings. 🙂
Buddy has quite the voice. We’ve been thinking he might be part Basenji by his looks, and he’s got a cute little howl every so often too!! We’re loving life!!!
“Loving Life” should be the Roads-Less-Traveled motto !!!!
And whatever Buddy’s heritage, his colors are always great contrast with the setting…
Yes, that’s our motto!! It’s a great life and we feel blessed to be living it.
Buddy is one handsome pup, and he receives compliments from people wherever we go. I don’t know where or how he learned to pose, but he must have had a runway model for a mom!!