Blogs from South Dakota, United States, North America - page 63

We headed out of Custer, north on SD18 and quickly arrived at the Crazy Memorial. It is going to be a fantastic mountain sculpture when it’s finished but it will be some years yet. As the official website states “Sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski and Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear officially started Crazy Horse Memorial June 3, 1948. The Memorial's mission is to honor the culture, tradition and living heritage of North American Indians. Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation demonstrates its ongoing commitment to this promise by following these objectives: • Continuing the progress on the world’s largest mountain sculpture; carving a memorial to the spirit of legendary Lakota leader Crazy Horse and his culture; • Providing educational and cultural programming to encourage harmony and reconciliation among all people and nations; • Acting as a repository for Native American ... read more

Custer State Park in the Black Hills of Dakota encompasses 71,000 acres of varied and beautiful countryside. We started by heading up to Sylvan Lake where a few people were fishing. It’s very scenic so we just filled our time by walking around the Lake and exploring a few other places. Then on to the Needles Highway on SD87, which twists and turns past towering rock formations. You have to get out, to sample the best views and there aren’t many parking places. A narrow tunnel hewn out of the rock proved a challenge for a few drivers because the paintwork of their cars is permanently etched on the rock corners. It can be a nightmare for people with large gas guzzling 4 x 4s. There’s a super view of the Black Hills at one viewpoint. ... read more

It’s not far to Chimney Rock National Historic Site, another landmark outcrop to guide the pioneers heading west. You don’t stray far here, the large museum sign stating “Danger, rattlesnakes are common in this area.” You can see why the Native Americans were in awe of this outcrop, which they called “Elks Penis” but the White Man seemed to find the phrase a little ‘Taboo’, wonder why? Now it’s off to Bridgeport, Nebraska and north on the 385 Gold Rush Highway towards the Black Hills and Custer, South Dakota, with miles of empty road. We intended to visit Carhenge at Alliance, a theme based on the Stonehenge but using smashed up cars for columns and lintels. By the time we realised that we’d missed it, too late! At Wind Cave National Park we got our first ... read more

Day 4 - Departed 6:00AM CST. Today’s trip shall take us through the rest of Minnesota (and Adrian, MN) and into South Dakota. We’re camping in the Badlands tonight. Mike and Benji upset our rich neighbors at the campsite by using the drill at 5:30 this morning. Mike also used his outside voice to help Benji hook up the camper. This resulted in the neighbors shutting their window rather violently. “Oh look, variety,” Benji said, talking about the two turns in I-90. 7:30AM - First vehicle passes us. Called G-ma. All is good on the estate. Called Kacy. Muffins misses us.  Mike witnessed two cows creating beef. World’s Largest Steer Head…it was big. The boys are looking forward to pooping in the corn palace “I don’t remember eating corn…” Prepare to be a-maize-ed Corn-see ... read more

A dramatic shift in the landscape from grassy plains to sharp, jagged spires which seem to rise out of nowhere announce our presence in the Badlands. With a name like 'the badlands' you would think of it as nothing more than a barren wasteland, but there is actually an abundance of flora and fauna if you keep your eyes peeled. The rains that came through last week caused the prickly-pear cacti to bloom and their yellow and red flowers dot the landscape, but now it's hot and dry. The previously muddy ground has now been baked by the sun and does not yield to our footprints. Before we do much exploring, we try to get a campsite at the free first-come, first-serve Sage Creek Campground. It's a bit of a drive from the main visitor area ... read more