SCENIC DRIVE…NEEDLES HIGHWAY

Thursday, July 5 – We drove the Needles Highway this morning to enjoy the wonderful mountain vistas.

We no more pulled into Custer State Park and there was a Bison enjoying his breakfast. He was huge and right in one of the campgrounds. Crazy fella.

Not too far down the road we enjoyed watching a couple of deer for quite awhile. I think they were watching us pretty closely too!

We drove for miles on the scenic roadways which include the spectacular Needles Highway, Iron Mountain Road, and Peter Norbeck Scenic Highway.

What a beautiful drive among the towering pines that shelter the roadway and provide hidden space for the animals. When you stop and sit it is absolute quite. Not a sound but an occasional bird or breeze blowing a nearby tree. How calming.

The interesting mountains and rock formations climb out of the forest and tease you to find a face or other shape in their unusual crack or peaks.

If you are claustrophobic, don't do this drive. The tunnels are tight.

There are always the peeks of Mount Rushmore between several trees, over the ridge or through one of the tiny tunnels. It looks so much larger looming over the forest than when at the visitor's center.

The tunnel views are so amazing! At one spot, the trees were actually trimmed to provide a breath-taking view of the Presidents. WOW!

The famous double tunnel. Can you see the reward at the end of the second tunnel?

See it yet?

How about now?

We stopped briefly at Sylvan Lake to enjoy the view and entice us to return tomorrow for some hiking around this enchanting lake. There are several trails to enjoy, just in the lake area. We've selected three for our hiking.

We walked the streets of the historical and touristy town of Keystone.

There were thousands of people enjoying the sites of this tiny (population about 350) historical town. A gold mining boom town of the old west not only has a museum, was the home of Carrie Ingalls Swanzey of Little House on the Prairie fame, and 100's to tourist shops.

We especially enjoyed walking through the carver's yard to view some amazing works of art. There's even one for you Harley riders (gotta see this Duane).

This piece cost $4100.00

Arriving back at Custer, we spotted the “Custer sign” in the mountain towering over the town. We have to get back here after dark to see if it's lighted. As a matter of fact, that's our next adventure – Mount Rushmore at night!

Every night since we arrived, we have been treated to a gorgeous sunset. Last night was no exception.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

SHRINE OF DEMOCRACY…MT. RUSHMORE

Wednesday, July 4 – We headed out early to Mount Rushmore. We know what you might be thinking.....why would they visit Mount Rushmore on the Forth of July? Isn't that like going to the mall on Black Friday? Well, what better day to visit one of the Nation's most patriotic memorials than on it's birthday.

Surprisingly the crowd wasn't too bad. The Mount Rushmore National Memorial knows how to handle crowds, that's for sure! Add to that, the fact we arrived at about 8:30 a.m., the crowds didn't get heavy until we were leaving about 12:30. We did decide to wait until tomorrow to go back to see it at night.

One observation we made is the crowds are spread out among several displays. Once parked in one of the two parking garages (Entrance to the park is free, you only pay to park - $11. The America the Beautiful pass does not cover parking.), you enter the Avenue of the Flags. We found the Ohio Flag (our original home state) and the Texas Flag (our new state) right next to each other.

Ohio flag

Look at the background for the Texas flag.

The Grand View Terrace is very well done providing magnificent views of the Memorial. This is the same area where the night viewing is held. It has stadium style seating.

We then walked the path to the foot of the Memorial and took additional photos to add to our zillion for the day.

This is what the first draft of how the Memorial was to appear.

We can't believe these workers walked up 700 steps BEFORE they began work.

These are the dimensions of each head.

Great explanation on why each President is on the mountain.

George Washington…Birth of the Republic President.

Thomas Jefferson…The Expansion President.

Theodore Roosevelt…The Development President.

Abraham Lincoln…The Preservation President.

Paul having some fun…Tickle, Tickle, Tickle.

Next was the circular Presidential Trail that has stops for more interesting photos, Ranger Interpretive stations, the Lakota and Dakota Indian Heritage Village, a view of the compressor house, the Sculptor's Studio and the stairs to return to the Information Center and Bookstore.

Indian Heritage Village

Being 4^th of July, they even had George Washington and others there to greet the tourists. Marsha joined the kids to talk with George.

FAST FACTS:

• Carving dates – 1927 – 1941
• Total cost - $989,992.32 (Nothing like being down to the penny!)
• Namesake – Charles Rushmore (Fellow mountain was named after.)
• Sculptor – Gutzon Borglum
• Main tool – dynamite (used for 90% of the stone removal)

• The rock – Harney Peak Granite

With the wild fires here in the West, one is frequently overwhelmed with the Pine Beetle infestation and the accompanied destruction. Like Colorado, the Black Hills of South Dakota, and much of the Nation, has experienced tremendous destruction from this tiny beetle. There are so many dead trees as you look over the forest.

All the brown you see in the forefront and background are dead pine trees.

To protect the Memorial's forests from this epidemic, Mount Rushmore embarked on a thinning program to remove the dead tress and the fire threat. The areas thinned look pretty good, and we pray the efforts will be rewarded with the saving of these forests.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Monday, July 3 – We had a very long day of driving, but it was worth every penny. When we left Livingston, MT, this morning we intended to stop about six hours down I-90 at the Gillette, WY, Walmart. Well, after getting fuel at the nearby Flying J and then grocery shopping at Walmart, we looked for a secure place to park in the Walmart lot. Unable to find a good spot, we decided to head down the road and stop at a Montana rest area for the night. Upon arriving we notice the “No Overnight Parking” sign so we continued East in search of a place to stop.

Upon entering South Dakota, we notice smoke up ahead.

As we got closer we heard a helicopter.

We couldn't image that was good news. As we got very close this is what we saw out of the driver-side window.

We heard on the radio that there were three grass fires in the area. They were all contained. That was very good news.

Continuing down the road, we checked quite a few places out but ended up driving the entire distance to Broken Arrow Campground and Horse Park in Custer, SD, our destination – we thought for Tuesday night. A total of about eight hours driving and 465 miles.....W-A-Y more than we have driven in a couple of years!

We tried to call Jerry, the owner of the campground, to see if we could arrive a day early, but were unable to reach him. We left several messages but were unfortunately out of cell phone coverage much of the day and were unable to make a connection. Upon arriving, he quickly set us up for one night in Site #21 for NO CHARGE! (His golfing today was the real cause of our inability to reach him, so he said, "Wait until tomorrow to start your week stay.") Now there's a great businessman that wants to please his customers. He wants us to move to a different site tomorrow with a view of the mountains. (That site is taken tonight).

This is an amazing campground. It's beautiful, with large gravel sites, gravel roads, picnic tables at each huge site, thick, green grass between each site, and a gorgeous view of the mountains to boot! And the best part is we are near Mount Rushmore and all the points of interest in the area.

Our new Site 24.

Looking right down our road.

Looking left.

Marsha thinks she is an Indian because she can say "How."

Even though there are several horse barns and corrals, we smell no horse.

They have four new full-service cabins that sleep four.

Due to the very dry weather and high fire warning, we are not permitted to use the fire pit or even a grill that uses charcoal. The only acceptable grill is a table top with a lid.

The weather forecast today includes…Areas of smoke. Please say a prayer for safety for all those in the fire's path.

We will be here a week (actually eight days) and have a great deal to see, so stop back and visit the Black Hills with us.

We wish all our USA readers a very Happy and safe Fourth of July.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!