On the Road: Hill City, SD Nearby Attractions

We’ve been seeing the sites near Hill City, SD for the past few days. It sure is pretty country here and the roads make it a pleasure to drive along and see the sites; precisely why this has been the spot for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally forever I am sure. More on that topic later.

Mount Rushmore is no doubt the one place every visitor to South Dakota puts on their list of things to see and do and we were no exception. Gutzon Borglum and 400 workers created the sculpture of the four presidents (Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln) using dynamite and jackhammers to carve the granite on the hillside. The project took 14 years between 1927-1941 and cost approximately 1 million dollars. Each presidential face is 60 feet tall.

Democracy is the meaning of Mount Rushmore . How apropos. Did you know that the sculptor’s vision included a hall of records to be carved into the vertical wall behind the presidential faces which was intended to house The Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights? Worked started on the Hall of Records in 1938, but ultimately the U.S. government did not approve funding for the addition and work stopped after carving only a doorway and small hallway.

Although the hall was never built, in 1998, Borglum’s daughter was part of a team that buried a teakwood box in a titanium vault at the entrance of the Hall. The box contains 16 porcelain panels bearing the words of the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. The panels also contain presidential biographies and information about how and why Mount Rushmore was carved.

Also at Mount Rushmore is the Avenue of the Flags with a flag for each of the 56 states, districts, territories and commonwealths of the U.S. So that’s your history lesson for the day.

Then, it was off to Custer, SD which is the site of the Flintstone’s Bedrock City. Of course, we stopped at the Bedrock Drive-In Diner for lunch. I had a Chickasauras sandwich and Mark had Brontosauras Ribs. Unfortunately, Fred and Barney were hard at work at the quarry when we stopped. Oh, and for Denise…Bamm Bamm’s pet’s name was Hopper.

Our last tourist attraction around Hill City area was Cosmos Mystery Area. Okay, I really am at a loss as to how to describe what this is. A guide escorts you up a hill where you encounter “the force” where the laws of gravity seem to go berserk. Water flows uphill. People shrink or grow depending on where they stand. A ball which appears to be sitting on a slanted board remains in place rather than rolling off. It’s just plain strange.

Next stop, Sturgis, SD.