Mount Rushmore National Monument, South Dakota
August 19th
It was a gray, drizzly morning. Since it wasn’t great hiking weather, we decided to visit Mt. Rushmore, an iconic American landmark. We took the scenic highway which winded its way through the Black Hills, giving tiny glimpses of the carved mountain from a distance. This highway was conceived by the South Dakota Senator Peter Norbeck who envisioned a large outdoor park with scenic highways that would attract tourism. Mount Rushmore is free to visit but there was a $12 parking fee. We walked in through the alley of state flags to the large viewing platform where we could see the enormous granite sculpture. It was an impressive (yet controversial) feat. After our first views of the sculpture, we descended a couple flights of stairs to the modern visitor center which showed a film about the conception and creation of the monument and presents a timeline of what was happening in history during the presidencies of: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. Gutzon Borglum, the head sculptor on the project, was a colorful figure who dabbled in politics and was an active member of the KKK. After the exploring the visitor center, we took a small walk to the Artist’s Studio and then on the President’s Trail where we saw the sculpture from different angles. My impressions of Mt. Rushmore are varied and contradicting. In one sense, it was an accomplishment for the country (a huge undertaking that was achieved.) In another sense, it was of huge disrespect for the Native Americans from whom which the land was taken illegally and for who the mountain had spiritual significance. On a less serious note, it was a funny idea to create this megalomaniac sculpture in the middle of nowhere.
We took another scenic road back (through “the Needles”) but the weather was deteriorating. We ended going back to the campground and relaxing (I wrote some of my previous blog posts) that afternoon. Before dinner, we took a walk down the Peter Norbeck Visitor Center and learned about the wildlife of Custer National Park. We actually passed a couple of buffalo on the way.
Posted from Nashville, TN
Tags: BIG TRIP 2011, In English 2005-2006, South Dakota
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