Wednesday:
Bear Country USA/Rapid City/South Dakota
We did little else than tour our large campgrounds on our bikes this morning.  Stan puttered with the RV and we both enjoyed chatting with our 'neighbors' so the morning passed quickly.  After lunch, we drove to Bear Country USA, which is a tourist location/wildlife safari where you drive around their facility and view the wildlife in their own habitat.  The animals all looked healthy and fat...my only objection was that they had about 50 black bears roaming together.  We've never seen that many bears in one place!!!  They seemed to get along ok, but it surely isn't the norm for them to live in such close proximity with each other.  The babies are only left with the moms for a few months and then moved in with other cubs in the Baby Zoo for protection from the males, they said.  Not ideal to separate them from their moms so young, but at least they seemed to be enjoying life with their own swimming 'pool' (see head photo).
Photos under Montana/Wyoming/South Dakota
FYI:  A South Dakota man told us today that the South Dakota game preserve says there are no black or grizzly bears free and at large anywhere in South Dakota!