Our next overnight is in Mt. Rushmore in Rapid City, SD. Only 200 miles through the Badlands. Seems like a hop, skip and a jump compared to the last three (3) days. The Hotel in Chamberlain is primarily used as a hunting lodge during the season. So the lobby is filled with stuffed animals - stuffed animals? - I mean taxidermed, stuffed animals...
Mounted Seanhead
Bison Heads
After breakfast and loading the van, we head to the Badlands. The drive is nothing short of spectacular. An endless sea of open land and rolling hills down the entire route 90 corridor. It's a bit cloudy today so the sky even looks like something we've never seen before.
We arrive at exit 131 to take the Interior loop of the Badlands trail. We didn't know what to expect but this area is stunning - miles and miles of uneven mounds of clay and dirt over thousands - no make that millions - of years ago ....who knew it was even out there...
Family portrait
A vast wasteland
Does that make this a teenage wasteland?
Sean was truly in his element. He took samples of dirt/clay home with him so he could analyze them.
Shannon really enjoyed the Badlands too...
...always ready to pose
Sarah liked it too but was ready to go a lot sooner than the others (what can you expect from a little girl in a skirt walking through the Badlands)....
Bald is beautiful...
We even saw a deer in the distance. The only form of wildlife other than people and birds we saw out there. (Just a thought - how would you write a letter to a deer - Dear deer?)
Upon leaving the Badlands, we passed approximately 742 Billboards(strong exageration) telliing us we had to stop at Wall Drug...not to mention Gram and Grandad before we left...so we just had to...(no we didn't)
The Badlands wiped everyone out. The ride to Mt. Rushmore was extremely quiet. Four out of five of us were zonked out
It's contagious...
and so we arrive in Mt. Rushmore ready to chow down. We had dinner at the corner pizza shop which seemed to satisfy everyone. Forgot the camera so nothing to see (just imagine starving savages chowing down on awesome pizza....)
The lighting ceremony at the heads started at 9:00PM so Steve took the kids to the pool first. We forgot the camera again so imagine a bunch of well-rested, pizza-eating kids in a pool
We then wanted to see the lighting ceremony at the "heads" but the rain and fog at the top of the mountain made it impossible to view them. We will attempt to do that tomorrow. We hope the weather clears...
and so we went to DQ (Dairy Queen) for a night cap...
Shivering Sean
Could have left the camera home for this one...
No sunset picture today...the weather is too dreary....until tomorrow.....
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