South Dakota, the land of ‘Great Faces, Great Places’, offers infinite variety, reflected in the rolling prairies, glittering lakes, granite peaks, towering pines, old western towns and bustling cities. The Black Hills and Badlands to the west is home to the spectacular mountain carvings of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Crazy Horse Memorial, other-worldly Badlands National Park and historic Deadwood.
America's Shrine of Democracy, Mount Rushmore National Memorial features the 60-foot faces of four great American presidents who represent the birth, growth, development and preservation of this country. Open year-round, and near hotels, the park includes a half-mile walking trail, museum, gift shop and dining room.
The southeastern face of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest is the site of four gigantic carved sculptures depicting the faces of U.S. Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. Led by the sculptor Gutzon Borglum, work on the project began in 1927 and was finally completed in 1941. Over that time period, some 400 workers erected the sculpture under dangerous conditions, removing a total of 450,000 tons of rock in order to create the enormous carved heads, each of which reached a height of 60 feet (18 meters). Known as the “Shrine of Democracy,” Mount Rushmore welcomes upwards of 2 million visitors every year, and is one of America’s most popular tourist attractions.
In 1876, the Wild West town of Deadwood was born when prospectors came across a gulch full of dead trees and a creek full of gold. Historic Deadwood, SD is just as wild today as it was when legends like Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Seth Bullock roamed the streets. Today the town is booming; you’ll find modern-day casinos, resort hotels, full-service spas, big name concerts, and some of the best parties in the entire United States.
The rugged beauty of the Badlands draws visitors from around the world. These striking geologic deposits contain one of the world’s richest fossil beds. Ancient mammals such as the rhino, horse, and saber-toothed cat once roamed here. The park’s 244,000 acres protect an expanse of mixed-grass prairie where bison, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets live today.
The land has been so ruthlessly ravaged by wind and water that it has become picturesque; the Badlands are a wonderland of bizarre, colourful spires and pinnacles, massive buttes and deep gorges. Erosion of the Badlands reveals sedimentary layers of a wonderful array of colours: purple and yellow (shale), tan and gray (sand and gravel), red and orange (iron oxides) and white (volcanic ash).
Buffalo Roundup (28 September)
Feel the thunder at the annual Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup on Friday, September 28. Watch cowboys, cowgirls and park rangers as they roundup and drive the herd of approximately 1,300 buffalo. Be sure to plan for plenty of time at the three-day Arts Festival, September 27-29, where more than 100 vendors will offer fine arts and crafts and South Dakota made products.
