Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Mammoth Site, Hot Springs, South Dakota




We loved Hot Springs - the top photo shows the decor on the roof of the Blue Bison, a cafe that served buffalo chili that Goldfish has voted her favorite restaurant meal of the whole vacation. Just a couple doors down was the Wild Burro bookstore where we talked at length with the owner about what it was like to have a small community book store - a dream Goldfish and I have for when we retire from the island. It was a true eye-opener - her clerk makes as much as she does, and the key to the whole arrangement is her attorney husband bringing home the bacon. She did have a great life though - she hosted book signings, had a book club that met in local restaurants, and got to be surrounded by books all day!

At the Mammoth Site, an ancient sink hole contains the remains of at least 150 wooly mammoths, with lots more to discover in the future. A land developer was leveling a hill in preparation for building a subdivision when he scraped across an elephant tusk with a bulldozer. He made the good decision to sell the land to the state for what he paid so it could all be preserved and they erected a building over the entire sinkhole creating a unique display that is a must see - the picture on the bottom shows the original mammoth skull exposed by the bulldozer.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Oh man. I missed all that? That was in South Dakota? The mammoth, i mean.