9-28-12 Mt. Rushmore

Joey does not remember when he last visited Mt. Rushmore.  Judging from photos, he must have been 2 1/2.  Grandpa Bill and Grandma Estell were with us.  Because I spent time with mom and dad, I didn't do the fun things in the hills we normally do in a summer.  Dan and Joe would go out adventuring together, while I spent time at the nursing home & hospital with dad. They had not visited Mt. Rushmore, so we decided to do that together.  One of the benefits of Joe growing, is that he can start taking pictures of us!

The National Park Service really did a beautiful job of the Mt. Rushmore redesign.  While we loved the old, traditional trail of flags and viewing terrace, the new parking, avenue of flags, ampitheater, and facilities really are magnificent.  On of my favorite enhancements, however, is the Presidential Trail. It is a trex walking trail that takes visitors right up to the foot of the carvings, and is wonderful.  After walking the presidential trail, we stopped to watch the 15 minute movie about the planning and carving of Mt. Rushmore. it felt good to sit down! We also stopped at one of the giftshops.  My author friend, Jean Patrick, has written three wonderful books about Mt. Rushmore.  Joey was very excited to see them, and I told him we can have Jean autograph them.  When I was checking out, the woman told me for $30 I could purchase an annual membership that would allow me benefits, which included two free audio tours which could be used within the next year, and 15% of all gift shop purchases, not only there, but at 100 national parks all over the country.  O.k...count me in.  We walked all the way back to the audio tour booth, which was at the entrance to the park.  Oh the fun! Joey was all about the little audio machine, which allowed selection of languages, and users press numbers while walking along the presidential trail. (Yes, we walked the entire thing AGAIN.  At least it was a beautiful day!)  I highly recommend the audio tour.  It's only $5 regular price, and is very informative.  You can press the # sign for more information about just about everything along the way.

Joe also loved the viewing machines, where 50 cents buys you a magnified, close up view of the faces...

We spent over 4 hours there, and enjoyed it.  We will go back again! Joey, age 7 1/2.

George, Thomas, Theodore, and Abe. Simply magnificent.

The diversity of the guests is always wonderful.  While there, we heard people speaking Japanese, Spanish, German, and other languages we couldn't identify.  There was a group of Buddist monks there, with red robes and shaved heads. We decided that any trip we can take to places like this outside the tourist season, we should do.  There were many guests, but it was not so overly crowded, and the traffic was managable.  Not to mention the beautiful weather.  Temps in the 70's beat summer temps of over 100 degrees. A good time was had by all!