Beyond the Badlands.

The Ranch - HittingTheWall - BlackHillsUnderground - CusterCapers - Wild Life - Corny

Naturally, we had to do the tourist thing and go to Mt. Rushmore. I'm happy to report it was far better than I expected, and worthy of a good ol' patriotic rush. Perhaps seeing it earlier from a mountaintop miles away gave me a different perspective, but I was impressed by the size and scale of the place.

Keysone, SD is the gateway town to Rushmore and has all the interesting sightseeing stuff, including helicopter flights to view the monument. Being on a budget, we elected to take the Tramway to a peak only several miles away and a good vantage point. The tram ride was smooth and reminded me of the MN State Fair....

Like I said, impressive from a distance.... Interestingly, this little hilltop terminus for the tramway also had an open-air chapel. Weddings? This was also the place where we took the step-in photos where "you can be on Mt. Rushmore." (see photo top of page.)

The actual monument is reopening July 4 and is quite a nice place with restaurant (quite a view!), gift shop (I got something for Marilyn), and information/visitor center. To find out how they made Mt. Rushmore, click Here. I was impressed with the short trails that allow you to walk to the base of the debris field for a very close view!

One of my personal assignments (like the feet shots...) this trip was to photograph the Presidents' noses. If you've been to my home, you might have seen my '81 photo of the Statue of Liberty, looking up her dress. I thought with the Noses, I could start a series of "National Landmarks From The Ground, Up."

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