Since I was ending a vacation and going back to a world full of stress, I wanted these days with my Mom to be fun and carefree. She and I were about to return to visit an area we last visited more than ten years earlier. I had been playing our schedule by ear since I wasn't really sure how much time it would take to get home. When we arrived in Rapid City, I announced that we would be visiting Mt. Rushmore! We had been here once before with my nephew, who was three years old at the time. That meant that we were somewhat restricted in what we could do on that trip, although we still had lots of fun.
This time we could do whatever we felt like. At Mt Rushmore, we hiked the trails around the base of the carvings, attended a lecture and exhibit on the history of the mountain, and explored the huge gift shop. We also took some time to eat lunch.
While hiking around the base of the mountains on the trails (they were roped off), I looked around on the ground for some small rock that I could take in order to have a piece of the mountain. It was amazing how clean the area was - and free of loose rocks! I did manage to find a small sliver of rock about the size of a fingernail. I sometimes now pick it up and look at it and it always stirs my memories of the trip. It was an excellent visit - the weather couldn't have been nicer and the crowds, while large, did not hinder us from getting to see everything we wanted to see. We left in a great, upbeat mood and the day was not over yet. I had one more place I wanted to see...
Crazy Horse Mountain
We had also stopped here on our last visit. My nephew was into all things "Indian" and this was an excellent place for him to see. Of course he was too young at the time to appreciate the educational aspects of this location. This time we spent more time here. We watched a movie that showed the history behind the carving of the mountain and described future plans.
I had noted that the mountain didn't appear to have changed much in the ten years since out last visit, but it turned out that quite a bit of work had taken place - mainly on the head.
There was a fascinating gift shop here, too, and I bought a souvenir wind-chime that I later hung in my office.
Finally we moved on. On the way out I picked up a rock that had been blasted off of the mountain as an additional souvenir.
I highly recommend both of these locations as places to visit if you pass through South Dakota. I'm sure there are caches nearby as well! Next time I'll have 'em loaded and ready!
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