Day 18 - Rushmore and the wildlife trails (204 mi)
Trip Start
Jul 26, 2008
1
27
52
Trip End
Sep 24, 2008
Hot Springs,
South Dakota,
United States
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
We started off with breakfast at Denny's. Good food. Fueled up and were on our way. We decided to ride to Mt. Rushmore since we were in this area before moving on. On the way to Mt. Rushmore we rode into a storm. We pulled into a service station that had some tents up with picnic tables under so we pulled our bikes in under the tents and rode out the storm as best we could. Then it really broke loose and we retreated into the store itself with a few other bikers seeking shelter. We got to meet some other folks going the way we were also. Brad and Betty Harrison from Trego, WI on their Harley full dresser. We traded stories of the road and watched as the storm finally slowed. As we pulled out we went through a slight storm that dumped hail on us. I got hit almost in the eye. Not fun at all.
We went to Mt. Rushmore and were impressed with the scope of the amount of work that went into the building of a dream. It was much more large and breathtaking in real life
Cool car in Denny's parking lot
. We took a lot of pictures. We decided to move on to see Crazy Horses mountain where they are still carving his image into the mountain. Really impressive. Then we rode The Needle in The Black Hills National Park. This was the most exciting ride I have ever been on. The turns were so sharp that some had a speed limit of only 5 miles per hour and believe me they really meant it. They call it the needle for two reasons. There are mountains of granite that look like needles or stalagmites shooting straight up into the sky some as high as 200 feet. One of these is called the eye of the needle that not only shoots up but has a has a hole through it that looks like a needle. There were 4 tunnels through the rock walls. Three of them were one lane only. You've got to see these photos. It was one of the most awesome experiences of my life. I was even able to check one of the items off of my "bucket list". Wow!
We then rode through the National Park and saw Bison. My favorite animal of all time. The park signs said "The bison are dangerous do not approach" The first one we saw was actually walking alongside the road. We were riding our cycles right alongside him so close we could have reached out and touched him. We were only about 6 feet from him. He was absolutely huge. As he was walking we were taking pictures and going along at the same speed. Joe finally pulled away (with his loud pipes sounding his retreat) and this monster of an animal turned his head, looked at me and stomped his front foot
For my Irish friends back home
. I took this as a "get the heck out of there" hint before he did something I'd regret. I caught up to Joe very quickly. Through the park we saw deer and antelope play and seldom was heard a discouraging word and the skies were not cloudy all day. Okay so it was a little hokey but it was awesome seeing herds of these critters all over the place. It was really cool. On of the antelopes actually played chicken with Joe. Both turned at the last minute. Thank God. We ended the day by going to Pizza Hut around 9:15 pm and had Pizzones. Then we decided to stay at the new local Motel 6. Great end to a perfect day. They even had a hairdryer to dry out my shoes.
Daniel
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Joe's Entry >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Daniel did a great job of telling about our day. There isn't much I can add but some personal observations. I really enjoyed Rushmore. I have seen documentaries on it but it doesn't compare to seeing it in person. I was lucky enough to see Hoover Dam earlier this year and it just amazes me the scale of these projects at the time they were built. It's almost like we make things harder than they need to be these days. With all of our technological advances it seems like smaller more mundane projects are more complicated than what was accomplished almost a century ago. The Needles and the Wildlife Loop were amazing. I think I like them better than running Deal's gap. I took video as I rode, as soon as I can get it edited I will upload so hopefully you can get a better experience than what the photos have to offer. If you love wildlife trails at all, you have to find away to get out here and experience this. As Daniel said this is a "Bucket List" level experience. Tomorrow we are going to get back on the road and put on some miles. We did a lot in SD and now it is time to move on. We are going to head toward Colorado Springs. I have a dear friend there that I want to see and I hear Colorado is beautiful.
Keep those cards and letters coming!. Actually, more like emails and donations....
Joe
Comments
Just reading along
haha, Daniel - I love your posts. You crack me up.
I sit here and follow along and read all these stories and it still just totally amazes me. Talk about a lifetime experience. I hope you're having a blast out there Joe! It certainly seems like you are. You deserve it. Be safe and keep the stories coming. *hugs*
love always,
Your sis!