Ok, about forever ago I promised you a post on our little excursion back from Il. And I am finally holding to that promise…better late than never, right?
Well, it was this guy that encouraged us to go to Mt. Rushmore….
We went early in the morning (which I would recommend…by 11 am it was packed with people–it was July mind you) and looked through the museum and did the hike up the hill. We didn’t do the guided tour (with 3 kids it might have gotten a bit long) but there were fun things to see along the way. There was a small Native American village set up with guides there, a sculture to visit and a smaller museum at the bottom to show some of the machinery that was needed to make Mt. Rushmore.
It was a fun hike, not too stressful….everyone could walk on their own (except the one in the stroller) and was lovely scenery.
I was also VERY impressed with the gift shop. I know that sounds weird but I was. We usually tell the kids they can pick one thing….(that is the same rule for where ever we are) on a trip. I was a bit leary to let them spend their money there because I knew Yellowstone was ahead of us….but in retrospect I am glad they did. The gifts were high quality without huge price tags…and the kids picked nice things. Aaron picked a Mt. Rushmore pocket knife (he’s very into Cub Scouts), and Hannah chose a charm bracelet with 5 or 6 charms on it, which were both under 10 dollars each and nice quality.
One thing I wish I would have known about is Keystone, South Dakota. We stayed there the night before, but pulled in super late….but I wish I would have known how cute and quaint it was and to plan an extra day just for the town. There was horse-back riding, gold panning (which would have been fun), and TONS of other family activities….so my recommendation if you go, is to plan a day (or afternoon?) in Keystone too.
Sorry for the travelogue…but if anyone of you are thinking about going, DO! It was a trip well worth it.
Hope you are recovering from your weekend. My garage and sewing spaces both look like disaster areas….but I got a lot done (on several projects). Now, I just need to clean up the wreckage…..motivation….motivation.
I have always wanted to go there (and my son dying to go too). Great Pictures!
I would like to take my kids there as well…and the panning for gold sounds fun. One of these days….
liZ
We have takem friends to the Black Hills on motorcycle trips and they always end up taking a family trip back there. LOTS of fun stuff all over those hills!
We went there this summer also but! We stayed in quaint little Hill City at the Lantern Inn. The owner told us to RUN down to the Alpine Restaurant and get in line….They serve one entree, a bacon wrapped filet. The most delicious dinner we had all summer! You have to be in line by 4:30. Then we went out to Mt. Rushmore and saw the wonderful presentation that night. Went back the next morning for a completely different view. Must not miss either time. Loved it. Worth the drive.