Day 7: Little Bighorn

Mari and I read The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick on this trip, and this enhanced our battlefield experience. Visiting the battlefield also enhanced our reading experience. The book demonstrates how the incompetence (Reno) and childishness (Benteen) of some of Custer's fellow officers contributed to the destruction of the 7th cavalry. The Little Bighorn valley is beautiful, and the pleasant weather we enjoyed while we were there highlighted the poignancy of the contrast between the natural features of the place and the disgusting machismo and moral blindness of Custer's mission.

That's Last Stand Hill, where Custer was killed, on the horizon.

Custer's retreating soldiers were butchered as they retreated up this hill from the Deep Ravine below.

It wasn't until almost 100 years after the battle that red granite markers for the Native Americans killed at Little Bighorn were added to the battlefield.

This monument to the Native American who fought at Little Bighorn was also a recent addition to the battlefield.

The stone marker with the black shield on it commemorates Custer, who was killed nearby.

After we walked the Deep Ravine trail and visited Last Stand hill, we had Indian Frybrea at a Crow Agency cafe.

After lunch we walked the Reno-Benteen battlefield, where the besieged remnants of the 7th cavalry defended themselves on the second day of the battle.