Apparently the water flow is a little low this year because of the drought they've been experiencing out here.
"Monarch of the Plains" - sculpted from a 12-ton piece of South Dakota mined mahogany granite.
The park was beautiful, quiet and a nice peaceful way to start the day.
From here, we drove to Rapid City, SD, with at roadside stop at "1880 Town".
There are 30+ buildings in this town, with relics and furnishings from the 1880s to the 1920s. We had a lot of fun exploring; we were practically the only ones there, only a few other people arrived when we were on our way out. The town shuts down for the winter in just a few days, so we caught it just in time.
The 2nd floor of the main building housed actual props and set pieces from the movie Dances With Wolves.
We especially liked the saloon...
Inside an old train car...
We loved this bathtub...
The hotel, 25 cents per night (with a maximum of 3 in a bed), 25 cents for a gallon of wine (the only size listed)...
The hotel breakfast area...
I wanted to take this stove home with me...
There were lots of cats roaming around, all very friendly. This Mama cat with her baby were cute drinking water out of an outdoor pump. They were meowing at us for attention.
We got back on the road and a little while later we took the Badlands loop scenic highway, which took us on an amazing drive through Badlands National Park.
This is what some of the 32+ mile drive looked like:
What an amazing drive. It seemed never ending. The park is open for camping and hiking and it's one of the most worthwhile experiences we've had so far.
Finally, we made it to our hotel and Mount Rushmore! What a great place to have seen. It's almost unreal. Here's the monument from our perspective:
We've gone through two time changes and are now 2 hours earlier than our starting NY time. Tomorrow we're off on a Yellowstone adventure.
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