On Saturday, 7/18 we left Casper, WY and headed for South Dakota. First stop, Crazy Horse Monument. I didn't know what to expect here. I thought we would just pull up and take pictures and leave. Oh NO! First of all it cost a fortune to get in. Then once in, there is a big Indian museum and movie about the Monument. The movie was very educational. I have to admit that this venture seems…well, for lack of a better word…crazy! Although I can definitely appreciate the desire of the Indians to have a monument in the Black Hills, and to do it in a way that pays tribute to their customs and deep-rooted traditions, Derek and I were both a little bewildered at the magnitude of the project. This is what the entire monument will someday look like:
And this is far as they've gotten in 60 YEARS:
So they've got their work cut out for them. The people that manage it are actually not Indians…they are the family of the original sculptor that was hired by the Indian Council to do it. And his wife and children have continued to live out the dream as it was given to him. You have to admire their tenacity and loyalty. They refuse to take any money from the government and only use private funds, and money made from tourists. I don't blame them for that I guess – the government is not known for its integrity where the Indians are involved. But you hate to see something like this take so long. And its big – much bigger than Mount Rushmore. Hopefully it doesn't crumble (figuratively) as it is passed on from generation to generation. Will be interesting to see…
Then we headed up the road to Mount Rushmore. Again, I didn't know what to expect. It is beautiful! The grounds around it are so nice and you can walk up close to the base. We really enjoyed seeing it. It was worth the trip!
After Mount Rushmore we still had 5 hours to drive to our next stop (Sioux Falls, SD), and it was already close to 6 pm, so we got on the road. That night we saw an accident (just after it happened) – a woman had turned down the highway (on the other side from us) the wrong way and was hit. Derek stopped to render aid and was the first one to arrive at her car (in the median) and luckily found her alive and able to get out. That was scary. And we also hit a pheasant that flew right into our windshield. Thankfully no damage from that. It was a long night – we lost an hour from time zone changes and we got in after midnight.
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