Black Hills, South Dakota

Saying goodbye to the Badlands was hard, but we had more ground to cover in South Dakota. On our way to Rapid City it was clear that we had put ourselves smack in the middle of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. In less than 2 miles we counted 300 bikes blaze past. We stopped at the dog friendly Independent Ale House in Rapid city and decided to ask our waitress for the DL. Chelsea informed us that this year was the 75th Anniversary and there were more than 1.5 million bikes coming through and we were lucky enough to be there for the final day of the rally. Unfortunately we missed the Def Leopard concert last night but we should check it out and then head to the Custer State Park area to camp in the Black Hills.

Pulling into Sturgis it confirmed our little knowledge of the biker community, horrible taste in clothing, cheap food and the uncomfortable feeling of knowing you are an outsider with a french bulldog in a sea of leather. Let’s just say we made it a short but sweet stay and decided to opt out of the 75th commemorative bedazzled t-shirts. Next stop on the GPS: Crazy Horse.

We will admit, we were a little naive to the Crazy Horse sculpture and it’s history. Just in case you are too, here are a few facts about the world’s largest mountain carving. Crazy Horse is not a federal or state project, it was started in 1948 by Korczak Ziolkowski (then living in Connecticut) who was contacted by the Lakota Indian Tribe Chief to carve the great Indian hero, Crazy Horse. Since then the sculptor and his wife have passed but his 10 children are keeping the dream alive. The final piece will dwarf Mount Rushmore at 563 ft high x 641 ft long. Now that’s one crazy horse definitely worth the view.

The last 2 items on our agenda were to find a place to sleep and see Mount Rushmore at dusk. We headed to Custer State Park in the Black Hills and after debating which camping ground to stop at, came across cozy looking cabins at the Blue Bell Lodge and decided a hot shower was due. We secured cabin #5 for the night and headed towards Iron Mountain Road which was the suggested route to see our 4 fathers.

If you ever head to Mount Rushmore, we highly recommend this “road”, which is more like a race track from Mario Cart. The crazy windy track takes you through the Black Hills pine forest under one way tunnels carved through stone and provides one of a kind views of Mount Rushmore from a distance. We pulled up to Mount Rushmore’s entrance right as the sun was setting and the faces of our Presidents went dark. Tim’s parents had suggested going at dusk, and while it was too difficult to photograph at night, it was for sure worth the wait. We walked up to the Grand View Terrace and settled in for a explanation of the mountain. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum selected Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln to founding, growth, development and preservation of the United States. The piece took 400 workers, $1,000,000 and 14 years to complete. As the video ended, the entire crowd burst into the star spangled banner just as the lights turned on to illuminate the amazing sculpture that symbolizes our nation. Now that’s the way to make a statement! We headed to our cabin in the woods feeling extremely patriotic and were ushered all the way by an insane lightening storm hundreds of miles in the distance that can only be described as Mother Nature’s work. Thank you South Dakota for your roadside tourist attractions, amazing landscapes and a free history lesson.

Favorite scenic route: Iron Mountain Road
Best Monument View: Mount Rushmore at dusk