Wizz bang tour of southwest SD

After our fun time in TRNP we drove due south and punched out 3 National Park Service sites in 24 hours. Mount Rushmore, Jewel Cave and Wind Cave sites were all interesting in their own rights.

As soon as we left TRNP we went back to the flat plains of North Dakota. It was interesting to watch the landscape change as we transitioned to the hillier and relatively more forested South Dakota.



We went to Mount Rushmore and learned that Jefferson was supposed to be on the far left but the granite had a crack that couldn't be designed around so the artist had to move him to the right of Washington.



We (I) made a wrong turn out of the park. While the drive through Custer State park was pretty the detour probably cost us a tour of Jewel Cave NP. In addition, I think the South Dakota Dept of Natural Resources is running a racket by charging cars for driving through the park as they leave. (18 bucks for driving on a road I didn't even know was in a park!!)


We spent the night at Hot Springs which turned out to be a really nice little town with a few nice restaurants in town. The Long Horse Ultra marathon was finishing up in town. We ran the last few miles and I confirmed I was glad I didn't sign up for it. (Most is apparently on asphalt or gravel roads. No thanks. )


Sunday morning we took a tour of Wind Cave which is the 4th longest cave system in the world. It is the most complex cave system by cramming in 132 miles of cave in one square mile. It also holds 95% of the world's boxwork. (Boxwork is made of the same stuff as stalagtites just formed in a different manner. Stalagtites are formed by deposits of drips, boxwork is formed when the deposits fill cracks in rock then the rock is eroded away. )

Neat stuff. Still having a good time on the trip.

-- Post From My iPhone on our way to the Badlands of South Dakota.