Vacation Idea #7 - Mt. Rushmore

WISH i was on HOLIDAY

Every Monday from January to September

- Vacation Idea #7 -

Mount Rushmore

Today for Presidents Day I am featuring Mount Rushmore as the Vacation idea of the week. Located in Keystone, South Dakota. Mt. Rushmore is of the most amazing places to visit.  The monument is open year round with, the exception of Christmas. Evening programs are held May- early September in an amphitheater with the mountain lit in the background. The idea for Mt. Rushmore came from Doane Robinson a historian who resided in South Dakota. In 1924 he met for the first time with Gutzon Borglum who is the sculptor of Mt. Rushmore. The name Rushmore came accidentally years earlier by a new york attorney named Charles E Rushmore. It was suggested that the unnamed mountain be named after him while he was checking on titles in the area. At that time the mountain and its future potential were unknown. The four presidents (from left to right) are: our first president George Washington, the third president Thomas Jefferson, the twenty-sixth president Theodore Roosevelt, and the sixteenth president Abraham Lincoln. Mt. Rushmore was carved to represent the first one hundred and fifty years of American history. These presidents were chosen to represent the preservation and expansion of America. 

Entrance to the park is free, however, you will pay (at time of this posting) a $10 parking pass which is good for 1 year. Only certain forms of payment are accepted so checking www.nps.gov/moru/index.htm before you go is a good idea.

Some nearby things to get information on before you go:

Horse back riding tours 

Crazy Horse Monument

Custer State Park

Wind Cave National Park

Jewel Cave National Monument

Badlands National Park

Minuteman Missile National Historic Site

Devils Tower

And things at the mountain to request information on:

The Rangers Walk

Sculptors Studio Talk

The Evening Program

Hall of Records

And Audio Tours - These are especially great with kids (helps to keep everyone together focused on the same thing at the same time).