Took the day to recuperate from the busy last week, catch up on going through photographs, updating this blog, cleaning, and preparing to paint. Didn't get as far as putting brush to paper, alas, but I'm ready. In the evening, my ranger buddy came by for a hike. Where to? How about that window way up in the buttes across from the visitor center. Excellent. I have wanted to attempt that climb for two years, and always someplace different was chosen. Tonight I can say "been there, done that." Yet another good day.

If you look close, the window is visible along the top
of the buttes to the left of center.

A little ways into the drainage. Nice thing about hiking
with a friend is you have a figure to give scale in photos.

Looking back from around halfway up.

At the base of the upper buttes.

Pause for a posed photo.

Way below lies the visitor center, facilities buildings,
and housing area. White River in background.

As long as we're taking a break, why not climb a tree?

Sun sinking lower equals nice coloring.

Again looking back towards the VC area.

It didn't look like we could reach the window from that
side, so we scrambled up and over the nearby saddle.
This shows the back side from where we climbed.

Tyler found this nice fossil. A slip on the climb up caused
the bloody finger and butte rash on arms and legs.

Sunset behind one of the butte peaks.

View of the back side of the buttes.

Climbing around to see what we can find.

View north from the back side,
loop road in the distance.

Another posed shot.

And a rare image of myself.

Last sunset shot before the climb/slide down.

Spent the day with Ed (park paleontologist) and Gary (teacher from Calhoun, summer park ranger). Ed has wanted me to see an area of badlands in Nebraska since my first trip out here two years ago. The idea being that it would give me a better understanding of the geology within Badlands NP. Today, we finally managed it. The badlands formations stretch from North Dakota down into Nebraska, so we were looking at the southern areas near Crawford. Beautiful stuff, with many areas that look so much like Palmer Creek I could almost forget where I was. We spent time hiking through Toadstool Geologic Park, which has great formations, fossils, and fossilized trackways with prints from birds, bugs, hippos, rhinos, entelodonts, and more. Very neat place.

When we arrived home in the park, I began cooking for a group dinner, hosting a half dozen friends for a meal with music and conversation. After eating we played a game of cards and I ended the night with a walk behind the quad. Yet another very good day here.