We were more than pleasantly surprised by our short 36 hours in South Dakota. In hindsight, I could absolutely envision planning an entire trip around the sights and sounds of the area. We got our fix but it left me wanting more!
Friday, May 29
Evan and I took a couple of detours on our way to Keystone, South Dakota, again, because we weren't sure when we'd be in the part of that country again if ever.
Our first stop, Cheyenne, WY, wasn't too long into the road trip. The sun was shining but there was a slight chill in the air. It was consistently chilly for this portion of the trip but nothing we couldn't handle.
We spent the better part of an hour just walking around Downtown and enjoying the feel of the "Wild West". It was palpably different. Cheyenne is very sleepy for a city but it was charming and we really enjoyed our time there.
The Capitol Building:
Downtown/The Old Depot:
From Cheyenne we drove to Alliance, NE. That's one place we'll never have to go again. We went to the Homestead Diner for brunch where the service was very friendly and attentive but the clientele kept giving us looks that reminded me of Pace salsa commercials. As in, they must've thought we were from New York City because their demeanor said - get a rope!
From there we went to Carhenge, another place we'll never need to visit again. It was equally, if not, less exciting, than its inspiration. We weren't all that jazzed by Stonehenge but I can't tell if it's because of the weather at the time or if it's because it's just a pile of rocks. We got the same bad weather treatment at Carhenge as we did at Stonehenge. It was rainy, windy, and cold. And on top of that, the souvenir shop smelled like something had died in it but pooped one last time before expiring. Evan and I had lots of giggles over that.
Once we passed through Nebraska the scenery got a lot nicer. I really didn't know what to expect from South Dakota but it was gorgeous to drive through on the way in and on the way out. We experienced wide open spaces in Colorado but on this portion of the trip, A's rural environs looked metropolitan in comparison - that goes for South Dakota and Wyoming. Occasionally we'd see a farmhouse in the middle of a wide expanse of grassland and wonder where they went shopping or went to the doctor. That is some seriously off-the-grid living. I also saw more free-range cows than I've ever seen before. They looked so natural and content. I wish all livestock could have the freedom and roaming abilities that they seemed to have.
We arrived at Elk Ridge Bed and Breakfast early evening. Our room was comfortable and cozy and the host's breakfasts (we requested them to go both mornings) were inventive and delicious. We also enjoyed meeting Cat, their orange tabby cat, and Abby, their black labrador. Despite being perhaps the nicest option in the area, though in the future I'd probably look into renting a cabin or something, I don't think I'd stay with them again. First of all, I have an extremely sensitive nose and immediately upon entering the house I detected a smoky smell. As our time progressed I identified the odor as pipe smoke. Either way, it was extremely unpleasant and even though our sleeping quarters were separate from the hosts' main dwelling area it gave me a stuffy nose. I also found the hosts to be a bit rigid. Fortunately, we spent most of our time away from the house.
It was still bright outside when we arrived so we decided to make our first of three forays to Mount Rushmore. As we were approaching Mount Rushmore I said something to Evan along the lines of, I'm sure it'll be cool but it's probably the type of thing we'll see, take a picture of, and then never have to see again. I was so wrong!
It was so much more powerful in person than I ever could've imagined. This'll sound really cheesy but it made me feel really proud of my country, our (past) leaders, and our accomplishments.
There's a lovely promenade with all the flags of our states and territories leading up to the monument:
George Washington's profile from the road:
There's a lovely promenade with all the flags of our states and territories leading up to the monument:
George Washington's profile from the road:
From there we drove to Crazy Horse Memorial. The Colorado couple we met in Panama was spot-on with their local food recommendations but they gave us some bad advice when it came to Crazy Horse. They told us that we could see it from the road and not have to pay to go in, that it was an unnecessary waste of money. (They definitely gave off cheap vibes.)
I'm glad that we inadvertently ignored their advice by getting caught up in the drive and proceeding all the way to the ticket box without a way to turn around. First of all, it's only $11 a person so it doesn't cost a fortune. Secondly, once you go inside and see the 20 minute documentary explaining the construction of Crazy Horse Memorial you realize why you should pay. It's solely funded through private donations. When you pay to enter Crazy Horse Memorial you help to carry on its legacy and the legacy of the sculptor's family who continue to carry on his work today.
Korczak Ziolkowski, his wife, and their ten children have worked tirelessly to build this monument to the Lakota leader, Crazy Horse. When completed it's supposed to portray Crazy Horse on top of his horse pointing toward his land. Ziolkowski was courted by Lakota elders to build a monument to honor all native peoples after he won first prize for a sculpture at the New York World's Fair in 1939. He devoted the second half of his life to Crazy Horse, living and dying in the Black Hills. His wife was also heavily involved until her death and six or seven of his adult children still contribute to the project.
Unlike Mount Rushmore, which had 400 workers at any given time, Crazy Horse's construction crew has never consisted of more than fourteen people. Another fun tidbit - Ziokowski worked on Mount Rushmore as one of Gutzon Borglum's crew.
It's a beautiful story and I truly hope that Crazy Horse will be completed in our lifetime because I'd love to see it again.
This is the closest we got to the Memorial but there are at least two options to see it closer provided you're willing to pay extra once you go inside the Visitor's Center. They're currently working on his hand and his horse's mane.
We had a very ho-hum dinner (the food was disappointing across the board so I won't mention it) and then made our way back to Mount Rushmore for the 9:00pm presentation and lighting ceremony.
A park ranger gave a short 5-10 minute speech and then a video was shown in the outdoor amphitheater explaining the origins of the monument and what each President represents. I learned that the monument was originally supposed to feature Lewis & Clark. Who knew? But the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, decided on the final four that we see there today. And did you know that the Presidents were meant to be constructed as far down as the waist? The government cut off funding on the eve of World War II, understandably, Borglum had passed away prior to that, and Borglum's son lost interest in doing any further work.
Each man represents the growth and ideals of our country. George Washington was the father of our nation, Thomas Jefferson was the father of the Declaration of Independence, Lincoln preserved our Union, and Teddy Roosevelt fought to conserve our natural resources. It's because of him that we have national parks. Thanks Teddy!
After the video they turned the lights on Mount Rushmore and had a special ceremony honoring veterans. I couldn't tell if that was something they do every night or if it was related to Memorial Day. Either way, it was very touching. Each serviceman and servicewoman in the audience went up to the podium and announced their names, ranks, hometowns. It was a lovely way to end the evening.
I'm glad that we inadvertently ignored their advice by getting caught up in the drive and proceeding all the way to the ticket box without a way to turn around. First of all, it's only $11 a person so it doesn't cost a fortune. Secondly, once you go inside and see the 20 minute documentary explaining the construction of Crazy Horse Memorial you realize why you should pay. It's solely funded through private donations. When you pay to enter Crazy Horse Memorial you help to carry on its legacy and the legacy of the sculptor's family who continue to carry on his work today.
Korczak Ziolkowski, his wife, and their ten children have worked tirelessly to build this monument to the Lakota leader, Crazy Horse. When completed it's supposed to portray Crazy Horse on top of his horse pointing toward his land. Ziolkowski was courted by Lakota elders to build a monument to honor all native peoples after he won first prize for a sculpture at the New York World's Fair in 1939. He devoted the second half of his life to Crazy Horse, living and dying in the Black Hills. His wife was also heavily involved until her death and six or seven of his adult children still contribute to the project.
Unlike Mount Rushmore, which had 400 workers at any given time, Crazy Horse's construction crew has never consisted of more than fourteen people. Another fun tidbit - Ziokowski worked on Mount Rushmore as one of Gutzon Borglum's crew.
It's a beautiful story and I truly hope that Crazy Horse will be completed in our lifetime because I'd love to see it again.
This is the closest we got to the Memorial but there are at least two options to see it closer provided you're willing to pay extra once you go inside the Visitor's Center. They're currently working on his hand and his horse's mane.
We had a very ho-hum dinner (the food was disappointing across the board so I won't mention it) and then made our way back to Mount Rushmore for the 9:00pm presentation and lighting ceremony.
A park ranger gave a short 5-10 minute speech and then a video was shown in the outdoor amphitheater explaining the origins of the monument and what each President represents. I learned that the monument was originally supposed to feature Lewis & Clark. Who knew? But the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, decided on the final four that we see there today. And did you know that the Presidents were meant to be constructed as far down as the waist? The government cut off funding on the eve of World War II, understandably, Borglum had passed away prior to that, and Borglum's son lost interest in doing any further work.
Each man represents the growth and ideals of our country. George Washington was the father of our nation, Thomas Jefferson was the father of the Declaration of Independence, Lincoln preserved our Union, and Teddy Roosevelt fought to conserve our natural resources. It's because of him that we have national parks. Thanks Teddy!
After the video they turned the lights on Mount Rushmore and had a special ceremony honoring veterans. I couldn't tell if that was something they do every night or if it was related to Memorial Day. Either way, it was very touching. Each serviceman and servicewoman in the audience went up to the podium and announced their names, ranks, hometowns. It was a lovely way to end the evening.
Saturday, May 30
We got up extremely early because we knew we had an ambitious day ahead of us. With 12-13 hours to "see it all" we had to hit the road hard!
Our first stop was Mount Rushmore. Again. It felt special to see it at all times of day - afternoon, evening, and morning. Evan and I discussed and agreed that it's better and more meaningful to visit it as an adult than as a child. We had so much more appreciation for it and what it represents as thirty somethings.
A bust of Gutzon Borglum:
From Mount Rushmore we drove to Custer State Park and did the 18-mile Wildlife Loop. We were in there for a good two hours taking our time to spy as much wildlife as possible. While there we saw yellow-bellied marmots (fancy-looking groundhogs), white tail deer, pronghorn, prairie dogs, turkey, and of course, buffalo.
Babies in the foreground!
Burro were introduced to the park at some point and then they became wild. We saw people get out of their cars to pet them. Didn't your parents teach you anything?!
A little more than midway through our drive we stopped at a visitor's station to ask them about buffalo sightings. They recommended going down a dirt road a little ways off the loop and there they were - dots on the horizon.
As we were exiting the park we saw some buffalo that were a little closer than the last ones.
We saw pronghorn everywhere. Such beautiful and graceful creatures.
We felt pretty satisfied with what we had seen and so we ended that portion of our day by taking pictures at the Custer State Park sign (we must have come in the backend of the loop and ended our drive at the start).
While there we chatted briefly with some other tourists. They recommended turning down Iron Mountain Road, which is perpendicular to the park sign, for some up close buffalo watching. They said there was a herd of 400. We thought, great, we'll definitely do that. Not even two minutes later we were back in the car and making the turn down Iron Mountain Road when several buffalo with their calves began to rapidly progress toward us. I've never seen Evan back up so fast! It wasn't exactly a stampede but they were moving like a flowing river. There were brief breaks but we must've seen at least a hundred pass through as we were alternately trying to get away from them and take as many pictures as possible.
One of the men we spoke to had just gotten done telling us that he knew or had spoken to someone who had their car "creamed" by buffalo. We definitely didn't want to risk that, not to mention that we didn't want to get creamed. All I could think was that each adult had a calf in tow and we all know what mothers are like when they sense that their young are in danger.
Fortunately, we made it out unscathed. We were a little scared but also exhilarated by the experience and glad to have had the opportunity to witness it while also being safely tucked away in our rental car.
I think what scared us the most is that we were standing right in front of that sign just minutes before. What would have happened had we been two minutes later?!?!?!
It took a little while for our adrenaline to die down but we had plenty of time since it was about 30 minutes to Rapid City where we stopped for a forgettable lunch.
From there we started an hour long drive to Badland National Park. On the way there you see signs every 100 feet for this ridiculous, too-kitschy-to-be-cute tourist trap called Wall Drug. If you can, skip it. It was good for a pit stop but I wouldn't be caught dead buying anything edible from there. The whole place has an "ick" factor.
We did the 35 mile loop around the Badlands and took our time absorbing it all. It's not like anything I've ever seen before. It's absolutely gorgeous and no single picture could capture the immensity of it. It looks like the ruins of an ancient city or an alien empire. In some places it looked like melting rainbow sherbet. Yum!
As we were driving out of the park we saw two big horn sheep, ewes, I believe, because their horns were small and not curved around their ears like rams.
Last and least, we ended the evening with a cursory visit to Deadwood. It wasn't worth it. There are casinos and saloons and really trashy people walking around. Even as early as 8:30pm it came across as a seedy place. I had heard or read that nothing of the original Deadwood remains, which is why I didn't care to explore it any further. We made the right choice to spend our time elsewhere during the day.
Sunday, May 31
We got up bright and early to head back to Colorado since we had to fly home the following day. Fortunately, we were able to skip Nebraska on the way back. We drove solely through South Dakota, Wyoming, and of course, Colorado. South Dakota and Wyoming have some of the most beautiful grassland that goes miles and miles in both directions.
I'd absolutely go back but more urgently, it whetted my appetite to visit western Wyoming and do Jackson Hole, Yellowstone, and the Grand Tetons.
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