Seeing Mount Rushmore has been near the top of my bucket list for a while now. On the original bucket list, it is the first one under the US Places and Things to Do heading which means it was one of the first things to go on the original list.
Since driving straight through to Denver was not feasible and the Omaha Stormchasers were on the road at the beginning of our trip, it made the most sense to go through South Dakota to get to Denver. Then I could finally get to Mount Rushmore.
The hubby was not exactly excited about going to Mount Rushmore. He begrudgingly agreed to go. I am not sure why he was not all about Mount Rushmore. Knowing this, I decided to keep our visit as brief as possible. Really all I needed was a picture of the heads anyways.
Mount Rushmore was completed in 1941 by Gutzon and Lincoln Borglum. There is museum of the Borglum father and son in Keystone if you want a really in depth look at the artists that created Mount Rushmore. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln were all carved out of granite by this artist duo and took over 14 years to complete.
Mount Rushmore, located in Keystone, SD, is open year round and the hours vary by season. There is no cost to visit the Monument but there is a $10 parking fee which is good for the entire year. It is part of the National Park Service but the National Park pass is not good for parking.
Like I said the hubby really didn't see more than the heads. We walked in and once we cleared the entry way, we took pictures at the start of the Avenue of Flags. We did not walk down the Avenue of Flags or around the monument. We did not check out the museums. Besides being ungodly hot, the hubby wasn't interested. I would have liked to at least walked the Avenue of Flags and find Wisconsin's flag.
Besides taking a few pictures and trying to pick George Washington's nose, we checked out the gift shop, got my passport stamped, and got ice cream. The Memorial Team Ice Cream has the original recipe for Thomas Jefferson's vanilla ice cream which was sadly sold out when we got there. I had mint chip and the hubby had some caramel one. They were both very good.
The hubby said the views of Mount Rushmore were better as you were driving into the park. I would almost have to agree with him.
Mount Rushmore is definitely one of those places you need to see in the US. It is iconic, full of history, and where else can you see 60 foot granite heads of presidents. When you go, do take time to explore all everything the park has to offer and not just snap a picture to say you were there.
No comments:
Post a Comment