South Dakota – Mount Rushmore, Needles Highway, Custer’s Park (Jul 5, 2017)
Today was our first day experiencing the great South Dakota. We first went to a very early viewing of Mount Rushmore. This was awesome to see.
As we looked at these figures, we understood Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln but could not understand Roosevelt. According to many different versions, Roosevelt was a friend of the sculptor, John Gutzon Borglum. “On the more idealistic side, Teddy Roosevelt is a powerful figure in American myth. Borglum saw the carving in Rushmore as a memorial to the United States’ Manifest Destiny, and Theodore Roosevelt–hero of the Spanish-American War, builder of the Panama Canal, explorer, rancher, naturalist, conservator, and athlete–certainly embodied all the good qualities we associate with those who “tamed the West.” Straightdope. However, according to the National Park Service, “Roosevelt provided leadership when America experienced rapid economic growth as it entered the 20th Century. He was instrumental in negotiating the construction of the Panama Canal, linking the east and the west. He was known as the “trust buster” for his work to end large corporate monopolies and ensure the rights of the common working man. Borglum chose Roosevelt to represent the development of the United States.” So it appears that at the time the sculpture was being done, Roosevelt was held in high regard. https://www.nps.gov/moru/learn/historyculture/why-these-four-presidents.htm
There is room to carve more heads but it appears that the mountain’s current state is all that would be allowed by its size and by the geological structure. So no more heads will be carved.
What was also interesting is that behind Lincoln’s head is a secret room, called the Hall of Records, but it is not accessible to the public. This room was built by the sculptor to house documents. Secret Room.
After Mount Rushmore, we went to the Needles Parkway. What was interesting about this was that they were only accepting cash because their credit card system was not working. They told us to go to the Lodge and use the ATM but the ATM was not working either. So we decided to drive the parkway and pay at the end of it.
The drive was pretty with lots of trees and beautiful rock/mountains.
Of course, the main attraction on the Needle Parkway is the Needle Eye.
While we were there, we also interacted with a local – the goat.
Eventually we moved forward and got to see the Cathedral Mountain.
We finished the parkway and it took us to Custer State Park. It should be mentioned that entering Needle Parkway is at a cost of $20 but this also gets you into Custer State Park. Luckily their Credit Card system was working so we were able to pay for Needle Parkway and enter Custer State Park. While we were waiting for them to run the credit card, to our right was a buffalo in the field. That was fun seeing something right away.
Driving through Custer State Park, had us come across a large herd of Buffalo (aka Bison).
You are so close you could reach out and touch them but there are signs all over the place to not touch them because it is not save. Many were pulled over on the road and it was hard to move forward.
We came across the Donkeys who were so used to people feeding them they will actually reach their heads into the cars. Here is the only picture we took of the donkey as he got mad at Lorraine as rolled up her window since we didn’t have any food (carrots).
In the same area was a large field that also had other animals in it. First the Prairie Dogs. It was funny to listen to their “song” they play when they are telling others there are something nearby. They actually beat their tails and let out a hum.
From there was also some other Donkeys in the field.
We then came across the Pronghorns, which is also known as antelope due to their similar appearance. The name Pronghorns comes from the large pronged horns. They are the fastest land animal in North America and can run 60 mph for great distances.
Overall, the Needles Parkway and Custer State Park is great to see the animals in their habitats. it was a great first day and very tiring. You don’t realize how much this takes out of you especially with temperatures at 100 degrees plus. We started very early this morning to try to avoid it but the temps were high by 10am.
Hope you enjoyed this.
