Mount Rushmore
So this is one of the best places to visit. Not only for the view but the history of how this was created. It is absolutely awesome and we love coming here! We also visited one evening to enjoy the awesome view at sunset and to see the evening program which included a ranger talk about each president and their contributions to our country, lighting of the monument after sunset, and a movie to discuss how important the monument is to our history. At the end of the program, they invited all veterans to the stage and officially thanked them for their service. It was one of the most patriotic experiences we have had in a long time!
The Black Hills and surrounding cities
We believe some of the best motorcycle riding is in the Black Hills and the Badlands. In my opinion, this area is better than the Dragon Tail (Tennessee/North Carolina) simply because of the scenery. I also believe it is more challenging due some of the multi-level 180-degree turns and single lane tunnels on Iron Mountain road. The video below (made by Patti while we were riding) shows just a sampling of what I am talking about. Pay attention to the tunnel we go thru and what is in the view at the end of the tunnel.
Black Hills Central Railroad
Keystone is a unique town in the Black Hills that has great shops and restaurants but the most unique item is the steam railroad that you can ride to Hill City and back! The steam engine and passenger cars are authentic to the 1880 era and was really cool! A little pricey but worth the experience!
The Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, SD
This was a great visit. In 1974 a contractor was doing some excavation work in Hot Springs and came upon what looked like a tusk. His son had taken archaeology classes in college and had an idea of what they found. He called his professor who came out and sure enough, they realized the tusk was from an ancient mammoth! The site became protected, and over the years bones from over 60 different mammoths have been uncovered … so far. It is still a “live” site where they meticulously find and clean the mammoth bones they find. When we were there, there was some excavation taking place and a new bone had been discovered just days before. The site is enclosed and controlled to protect the specimens. It was really cool!
4th of July!
Great fireworks show in Rapid City. I was impressed with the amount of fireworks used and how professional the show was. Patti and I found a nice parking lot next to the golf course where the fireworks were. Had a great time.
Badlands!
Just south of Wall, SD (Wall Drug!) is the entrance of the Badlands! A unique area that has unbelievable rock and hill formations with awesome colors. It was a nice bike ride thru the Badlands then back to Wall Drug for a late lunch and of course – donuts!!!
Overall we had a great time and plan to come again in the future!
I was fortunate enough to experience these locations, including Yellowstone, as a young child with my parents. I was just telling Brooke the other day that it is beautiful land and well worth a trip!
Thanks Darlene! Indeed our kids should start going to great national parks like MT. Rushmore. Fortunately Tori flew out to Yellowstone (future post) and we had a great time with her and seeing all of the sites Yellowstone offered. One of our favorite places to visit. Tell Bill the lasagna is done…. 🙂 And of course congratulations to Brooke!