Rushmore

Hearing and seeing pictures of Mount Rushmore, growing up, in school books and history class makes you wonder if it will still be as awesome to you when you finally get to see it in person. Anticipating it makes you wonder, but we were not disappointed. We went to Rushmore mid afternoon, driving up the twisting road, looking out as far east as you can see (where we had just traveled from), and before you know it there it is, the faces peering out into the beyond. Each face with its own personality, each president looking his own direction. Entering the memorial, flags fly from every state of our nation. After walking on the paved path, Presidential Trail, around the monument we decided to take our own path, hiking down some old cement steps we climbed some rocks, and got a view less seen. Chris and I tried our hardest to get around to the back of Mount Rushmore but it was FEDERALLY CLOSED to the PUBLIC, signs everywhere. We had hopes of finding the supposedly unfinished Hall of Records, but we did not succeed this time. Making our way out to the Skamper, we had about an hour and a half until the night lighting ceremony, that a lot of people had told us, don't miss, so we made some dinner and reentered the park. Before finding a seat in the amphitheater we walked into the gift shop to find a man, special guest of the night, that was one of 400 men that worked, chisseling away, on the construction of Mount Rushmore.