Day 17 – Mount Rushmore SD

Last night we wandered down to the office because we had heard that people start lining up here at the campground to get tickets on the shuttle buses that will take campers to Mt Rushmore tonight for the fireworks. Tickets were to be passed out starting at 6am today, but there were at least 30 people in chairs lined up at 11pm last night. And it was cold! Bill went over a little before 6 this morning, but they ran out before they got to him. I am just as glad.

Today we drove the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway. It is 70 miles long and is truly beautiful. First we had to get past the humongous crowds going to Rushmore. The parking lot was already filled at 10am, and there were tons of cars trying to find a place to park. But then we were off. The first neat photo op was the first one-lane tunnel. It frames the Rushmore Monument. There were many of these tunnels on the byway.

We passed a lovely lake and went back to see it. Only one couple was there with their picnic. We stopped at a Wolf People store to get some water. They had 2 wolves out back that we went to see. Up close and personal. Soon after that the bus in front of us stopped, and there were 4 pronghorn antelope on the hill right next to the road. Cool wildlife! We passed the Game Lodge which Eisenhower and Coolidge had visited and decided to stop for lunch. A busload of people had just unloaded, and we were seated with John and Barbara, bus people. They were lovely lunch companions. We had a buffet that wasn’t bad. As Bill was paying, he reached for a toothpick which were in a dispenser. Shades of Rainman, they all went flying all over the floor!

The Cathedral formation was amazing. However there was a haze over the entire area. We were told that it was from the fires in California. There was a crowd of cars at the needle’s eye, so we didn’t get to stop and see that, but the entire drive was amazing! The weather today was perfect – sunny but still cool. Several photos are up on the Rushmore Area link to the left.