Mount Rushmore & Crazy Horse Monument

When we returned from hiking, after some ice cold Coors and leftovers the boys brought back from their breakfast in Hill City, we showered and got ready to go to Crazy Horse National Monument.

I didn’t know much about Crazy Horse Monument–Joel brought it up. Since it was so close to our cabin (~30 minutes) I figured we should see it.

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I love to learn about new things, and see new places, and that’s why travel is so amazing to me. However, driving into the Crazy Horse monument (after paying $30), I failed to consider my children, and what their experience might be.

I’ll sum it up: Gabe was NOT a happy camper, and wanted to leave almost immediately!

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We parked and walked into the large museum area. I could see display cases with moccasins, tomahawks, tribal dresses, a very large teepee, colorful photos and artwork on the walls… Very cool!

Very cool to me, and the rest of the family… not cool to Gabe.

Thankfully Asher spotted some jewelry, and they were momentarily distracted.

$60 and 2 arrowhead necklaces later… we were right back to “OK, can we go now?”

*Deep breath* “We just got here, Gabe.”

“I know, and it’s boring and I want to go.” Many more deep breaths (on my part) ensued.

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Hmmm… still tired/grumpy I guess? I did my best to distract him, but we ended up leaving a lot earlier than everyone (except Gabe) wanted. I had voted No to taking the buses up the top–didn’t know how long it would take, and didn’t think the kids would be that into it. Maybe it would have been better than listening to almost immediate begging to leave?

We did a quick walk outside, and I managed to get a smile from him:

After buying some Buffalo nickels in the gift shop, I took the kids out to the rental car to wait (and my mom joined, she’s very sweet and selfless like that!)

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We headed to Custer for lunch, and found that my selected restaurant (a burger place) was closed–a trend for this trip, due to the season, COVID, and/or labor shortages. We found the Buglin’ Bull instead.

This restaurant exceeded my expectations–though it was crowded, we got seated right away, got drinks right away, the menu had something for everyone (even Asher!) and the food came fast.

Definitely recommend the Buglin’ Bull!

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Afterwards, on our walk back to the Yukon, we found the most fascinating little shop. Full of animal furs, antiques, rocks, and other various cool finds:

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Instead of going straight to Mount Rushmore from Custer, we decided to take a few hours to rest back at the cabins.

I took a 30 minute power nap, and woke up energized, thankfully. I said, Kids, let’s go kayaking on the lake!

Pumped, they changed into swimsuits faster than you could skin a coon (haha).

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We walked down past the General Store, to the equipment rental, and found there were no kayaks available. But there was a stand-up paddleboard (SUP). The lady said all 3 of us could go on 1 paddleboard. I had my doubts, but paid for it anyway.

Then she said, oh wait, I have a canoe available! *Whew* that will work out much better. And it did.

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Asher sat in front, me in the middle, Gabe in the back. I didn’t take my phone, because I didn’t want to risk dropping it in the water. We had a blast though!

We paddled to the far side of the lake, explored a little cave in the rocks, and felt how cold the water was with our hands and feet. Asher desperately wanted to swim, but I told him it was very cold water, and we needed to get back. Gabe helped me paddle, but I still got quite an arm workout. I think we spent about 45 minutes on the lake, and I enjoyed every moment.

We got back, changed back to clothes, and headed to Mount Rushmore.

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About a 30 minute drive, we had awesome views from the other side of our hike that morning, and could even see the tower on Black Elk Peak in the distance! The scenic drive along Needles Highway is not to be missed–though one of my regrets of the trip is we didn’t do the southern section of the Needles Highway. Next time!

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We arrived around 4 PM, right when I didn’t want to be there–with LOTS of other tourists.

We walked right in (free admission, just pay $10 for parking), and found our state flags…

Then marveled at the 60 foot high heads of some of the most courageous, brilliant leaders in our nation’s history.

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Of course the boys didn’t want their photos taken… I had to force these.

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My parents and Joel headed down the stairs to the exhibit, while we headed over to get ice cream (J made the mistake of mentioning ice cream… )

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We sat on the patio with our snacks and watched the chipmunks eat up anything that people dropped. Asher, fascinated by all bugs and animals, watched in wonder as a chipmunk came right over to us and ate some chips. He kept calling them squirrels 😛

Later on, Asher very cutely called it “Mountain Rushmore.” 🙂

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We spent the next hour or two looking for a place to eat in Hill City… unsuccessfully. We did see some cool things while wandering Main St. in Hill City:

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We ended up having a late dinner at the Lodge (same as last night). With the hiking, sight-seeing, and canoeing, we were all beat.

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We loved Sylvan Lake, and would have stayed there an extra night if our schedules had allowed. The only complaint–from the boys–was the lack of WiFi and cell signal in the cabins. We had 1 little bar, and it wasn’t enough to do much on the phones. But a short walk up the hill would go to 4 bars.

For me, it was gorgeous, and I loved it so much, I would visit Custer State Park again!

Tomorrow, a day of driving through 4 states.