MT. RUSHMORE

 After we went to Custer State Park, we decided to stop at Mt. Rushmore to see it at night.  We had heard that they light it up and that there is a very patriotic show each night at the lighting. 

When we arrived, it was still daylight and as I walked through the gates to the monument, I was in awe of seeing this monument. A friend had commented on my blog the other day that when she first saw Mt. Rushmore, she felt a great sense of patriotic pride, sort of like when she had first seen the Statue of Liberty. Well, that's exactly how I felt. I felt this extreme swelling of pride within me that makes me thank God that I am an American. 

As you walk down the walkway to the observation deck, all of the flags for each state are lined on both sides. I, of course, went straight to the Texas flag and of course, I had to take a picture. We sat down on the benches and started talking to some of the people sitting around us. As the sun started going down, the light got brighter on the monument.  We found out from one of the other people there that the evening show had ended last week! Usually after the show, they light up the monument with red, white, and blue lights.  That was not going to happen either. Dang it!

One very touching thing happened.  Everyone was very quiet and sitting, watching the monument. All of a sudden a lady started singing God Bless America.  Everyone there stood up and started singing with her.  It made me teary eyed. This is our country. With all the division and hate going on now, here are Americans standing together and singing God Bless America. Isn't this how it is suppose to be?

We have had quite a bit of haze since we arrived in Rapid City.  It is really smoke from the fires on the West Coast. We had a change in wind direction which cleared out the haze. So, we went back to Mt. Rushmore the next morning so we could make sure we got good pictures.

We walked the Presidential Trail which gets you a little more up close and personal. One side of the trail is ADA accommodating, the other side is not.  We started out on the side that is not and you do a lot of steps up and down until you reach the point where you are the closed to the monument. Fortunately, we had a much easier route on the way back. 

After we left Mt. Rushmore, we drove to the town of Keystone and had lunch and did some shopping. It is a small, little town with some shops down about 3 city blocks.