We awoke to another bright beautiful sunshiny day but this time we’re in South Dakota. On our way back to the paved road we stopped at Roughlock Falls Nature Area. The falls were very nice, as were the restrooms.
We then drove east through the town of Lead, SD and then south to the town of Hill City, SD. There we played tourist and took a scenic ride on an historic 1880 steam engine train. We very much enjoyed the two hour tour, twenty mile tour through the South Dakota countryside where we saw both deer and turkey and also learned about the mining history of the area.
Next we drove a few miles east to Mount Rushmore National Memorial. We had been here 30+ years ago and, while the sculptors themselves remained the same, the park has changed dramatically. There is now a large multi-level parking garage and a grand promenade with flags from all of the states and a large viewing area. We walked the Presidential Trail along with just about everybody else in order to get the best views possible.
We are now exploring the Black Hills of South Dakota. We first drive the Iron Mountain Scenic Drive where the road does a series of 360° turns using “pigtail bridges” and drive through three tunnels. We then enter Custer State Park and drive west on the Needles Scenic Highway. We drive through two more tunnels, one of them only being 8’4” wide. The needles are eroded granite spires of varying shapes and sizes and seem to be everywhere.
We then drove south to the town of Custer, SD where we grabbed a quick dinner to go and headed to the Crazy Horse Memorial. We didn’t have time to see it all but that was ok as we were able to get a return pass for the next day. After dark we watched their Legends in Light colored light and laser show projected onto the rock mountain being carved.
We then drove back to the town of Custer, SD where we parked the van for the night at the National Forest Service Office. We enjoyed another quiet night.
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