Within a few miles of Rapid City, a perfectly nice town with friendly people, you can see the myths of the American past confronted squarely by the reality of modern mores. There are controversies afoot over a national monument its creators found harmless and about a new tribute to a Native American chief that some profess to be nothing more than commercial exploitation. Both, however, should be seen, if only to understand how American self-perception has evolved. The controversy surrounds the 19th-century attempt to wipe out the Native American population as the U.S. expanded rapidly westward.
At Mount Rushmore, some new improvements have been sponsored commercially--the many-stepped Presidential Trail is sponsored by Johnston & Murphy Footwear, e.g.--as efforts to make the place a "shrine to democracy" continue unabated. The results of an ongoing presidential popularity poll--voted on mostly by school-age children--always includes the current president in the top five, though Lincoln and Washington remain the top two over the years. But nobody likes to remember that the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, had unsavory political connections with the Ku Klux Klan in his past or that the Native Americans fought long and hard against the appropriation of their sacred Black Hills for the very monument to men who tried to wipe out their people and culture.
At nearby Crazy Horse Memorial, the widow and children of its originator, Korczak Ziolkowski, carry on his dream, having to make a bit of a theme park of the place in order to pay for the expensive work needed, and risking the wrath, again, of some Native Americans, who feel left out of the project, saying the money should be spent on education and social projects, not on a gigantic carving. But the goal here is to commemorate the sacred land of the Sioux, Paha Sapa (the Black Hills), which the Treaty of 1868 said would "forever be (the Sioux's) sacred land--as long as rivers run and grass grows and trees bear leaves."
The 59,000 Native Americans who live in South Dakota today are mostly Sioux, divided into nine tribal governments, six with reservation boundaries and three without.
Fall Festivals, Big Monuments and an Even Bigger Cave
The 2002 Autumn Expedition takes place from August 31 to October 14. Eighteen different events of interest will take place, including the Black Hills Highland Festival Scottish Games, the Deadwood Jam featuring live jazz, Center of the Nation Chili Cook-off, the Badger Clark Hometown Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering, the Buffalo Roundup Music Festival, the Buffalo Roundup Chili Cook-off, the 37th annual Buffalo Roundup, the Black Hills Pow Wow, Native American Day, the Mt. Rushmore International Marathon and Deadwood Oktoberfest. The Black Hills Central Reservations Company can book your air tickets, hotel rooms, activities, transfers and tours. Call them at 800/529-0105, Web site www.blackhillsvacations.com, e-mail info@blackhillsres.org.
Nobody comes to Rapid City for pleasure and fails to see Mount Rushmore, the fantastic rendering of the heads of four American presidents that is this country's answer to the Pyramids of Egypt or The Great Wall of China. Even though there are 144 cracks in the 60-foot faces of the four figures, the monument has stood since work began in 1927 (and finished in 1941), and will remain unperturbed in expression if the National Park Service and Dow Corning (which has developed a sealant) have anything to say about it.
The best time to photograph Mt. Rushmore is morning through noon, as the statues face southeast, and Washington's head casts shadows on Jefferson and Roosevelt in the afternoon. Depending on your methodology, you can visit the detailed exhibits showing how the monument was built, then go out to the viewing terrace and thence along the Presidential (walking) Trail, taking you up right under the chins of Washington, Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt and Lincoln. At 9 in the evening from May through September, there's a film in the amphitheater and a tape recording of he national anthem. At the visitors center, you can push down the handle of a replica detonator and "blow up" part of the mountain, as Gutzon Borglum did (over 90 percent of the carving used dynamite, the rest was by chisel and drill). Keystone, SD, phone 574-2523, Web site www.nps.gov/moru.
Having seen the Four Presidents, go next to the Crazy Horse Memorial, a gigantic carving out of a mountain that will dwarf Mount Rushmore when (and if) completed. The head of Chief Crazy Horse, the only portion nearly finished, is 87.5 feet high (versus Washington's 60 feet). When completed, the sculpture, depicting the chief on his horse, will measure 641 feet long and 563 feet high, including the horse's head and one leg akimbo.
The sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski (1908-82), came to the Black Hills in 1947, at the invitation of Lakota chief Henry Standing Bear, who asked him to carve Crazy Horse "so that the white man will know the red man has great heroes, too." Crazy Horse, after seeing his people betrayed and treaties giving the Black Hills to them in perpetuity, went under a flag of truce to Fort Robinson in Nebraska. There, he was stabbed in the back by an American soldier and died on September 6, 1877.
The sculptor's widow, Ruth, and their children, carry on the work by making the place into a theme park to raise money for continued carving. On the first full weekend of June, there's a Volksmarch, the only chance to get up on the mountain itself (free admission to area, $2 charge for joining the march itself). There were 15,000 people during the best of its 17-year run. From early May to late October, the Laughing Water restaurant is open for Native American and U.S. specialties. Best exhibit: a small Indian Museum of North America, followed by the sculptor's log-cabin home and studio, his workshop, a Native American Cultural Center where President Clinton paid a surprise visit and spent two hours, plus the requisite gift shops. The not-for-profit organization has a Native American Scholarship Program, and, in the distant future, plans call for an "Indian University of North America & Medical Training Center". Admission is $9 per person (under 6, free) or $19 a carload. Eleven miles north of Custer, phone 673-4681, Web site www.crazyhorse.org.
The second longest in the USA, Jewel Cave is also the third longest in the world (so far, over 124 miles of cave have been discovered, and experts feel there are many more to come). It's particularly famous for the nailhead and dogtooth spar crystals that cover its walls. A half-mile, 80-minute tour with a ranger is the most popular way to see the cave, but be warned, it does involve going up and down some 750 steps. The tour is offered several times daily from May to September, but available year round. They also have candlelight and spelunking tours. Free admission, but tour costs $6. Located 13 miles west of Custer. For information call 673-2288, Web site www.nps.gov/jeca/.
Also Worthy of Note...
Visit the Journey Museum for a high-tech trip going back 2.5 billion years. It incorporates the collections of four institutions--the Sioux Indian Museum, the Duhamel Collection of Northern Plains Indian arts and artifacts, the State Archeological Research Center and the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology's Museum of Geology. I think it is an outstanding grouping, with some interactive exhibits--some permanent, some temporary. You can find the museum at 222 New York Street, phone 394-6923, Web site www.journeymuseum.org. Adults $6, seniors and children less, kids under 11 free.
If you're into giant prehistoric animals, consider the Mammoth Site, where excavations since 1974 have uncovered the skeletons of about 100 of these elephantine beasts. It's the only in situ display of fossil mammoths in America. You can see all this and even participate in a "pretend dig," organized for children, but watch those parents jump in! In July, volunteers are welcome to help work on the excavation, but plan well ahead for this. Hwy 18 Bypass, Hot Springs, phone 745-6017, Web site www.mammothsite.com. Admission $6.48 for adults.
At Custer State Park, and en route, you'll see bison (commonly called "buffalo"), donkeys and other wild animals. Activities at the park include horseback riding ($18 for an hour), buffalo safari jeep rides ($20.50), chuck wagon cookouts ($35) and more. This is a good place for mountain biking, too. The Web site for the resorts is www.custerresorts.com, and for general information www.state.sd.us/sdparks/custer/custer.htm.
I'm usually not interested in snakes and the like, but visiting the Reptile Gardens changed my mind. In addition to the splendid collection of pythons, turtles and other scaly creatures, there is also a good grouping of birds, including parrots, falcons and eagles. You can enter the dome and let the birds approach you, as some of the more ambitious do. And for those flower lovers out there, the gardens has a display of gorgeous orchids. Among the exhibits are Komodo dragon lizards coming in at around 6 feet in length, a reticulated 22-foot python, and Methuselah, the giant Galapagos tortoise who is estimated to be at least 120 years of age. There is also a splendid gift shop, featuring authentic arts and crafts from Africa and Asia, as well as Native American items. PO Box 620, phone 342-5873, Web site www.reptilegardens.com. Admission $10, children less, 5 and under free.
A real oddity: America's largest Berlin Wall exhibit is in Rapid City's Memorial Park, in the heart of town. There are two 12-foot segments, as well as photos, interpretive placards and original tank obstacles. It's free and open 24/7. More information at the Rushmore German Club, PO Box 9331, Rapid City SD 57709.
Lay Your Head Near the Giant Heads
Hotel Alex Johnson is the place to stay, especially if you like both charming, old and historic spots, and being in the center of things. Clocking in at just a little over 75 years old, the hotel is the tallest building in town (10 floors), with a good restaurant and a smoky, locals-popular, bar called Paddy O'Neill's. Double rooms go for $59 to $135 per night, so it's a budget traveler's dream. You can expect good-sized units and big bathrooms. There is also a nice gift shop with Native American treasures. In Rapid City at 523 Sixth Street, phone 800/888 ALEX, fax 342-7436, Web site www.alexjohnson.com, e-mail info@alexjohnson.com.
Rapid City's Microtel Inn & Suites is out on I-90, near the Rushmore Mall (three blocks away) and convenient for visiting Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse. 73 guest rooms with TV (free HBO, CNN, ESPN and Disney), voice-mail, phone and free local calls, plus an indoor pool and hot tub. Rooms run a low $49-$69 per night. Located at 1740 Rapp Street, phone 348-2523 or 888/591-3255, fax 348-9761, e-mail microinn@rapidnet.com.
Out at Custer State Park, you can stay at the splendid State Game Lodge & Resort or their other three accommodations. The Lodge has double rooms sleeping up to four people from $99, cabins from $80. Their Blue Bell Lodge & Resort charges $99 and up for cabins sleeping four to eight persons. The Sylvan Lake Resort has rooms from $95, ditto for cabins. At the Legion Lake Resort, cabins run from $85, sleeping up to seven persons, making it really ideal for larger families. You make reservations at 800/658-3530, Web site www.custerstatepark.info.
Hearty Grub from a Hearty Land: Buffalo, Anyone?
The most fun place to eat, and one of the best in any case, is the Firehouse, featuring its own microbrewery. The weekly dinner specials (teriyaki buffalo, BBQ pork ribs, etc.) run from as little as $6.95 (sandwiches for two on "cheap date night") to $15.95. A big burger and fries comes to $5.95 and any of their 12 ales is $3.25 a pint. The Firehouse is at 610 Main Street, Rapid City, phone 348-1915, Web site www.firehousebrewing.com.
At the Canyon Lake Chophouse, you get a fine view of said body of water, and excellent food, whether it be a sirloin strip at $12.99 or lamb chops at $19.99. Bison burgers run $6.99, salads from $7.99. Excellent service is all part of it. 2720 Chapel Lane, Rapid City, phone 388-8000.
Up at Mount Rushmore, there's a restaurant with a spectacular view of the monument, right at the visitor center. For dinner, there's always one special, spaghetti & meatballs, for $5.99, and it comes with garden salad, dinner roll and coffee or soft drinks. The breakfast special is $3.50 and includes country-fried steak with gravy, eggs, hash browns, biscuit and coffee. Don't forget the ice cream shop, either. Daily from 7 AM to 9 PM. Phone 574-2515.
If you're at Custer State Park, try the Game Lodge for lunch or dinner. They also have an ample buffet at lunch for $8.49, but a buffalo burger goes for $6.99, Caesar salad $5.49. Cheerful service. See Lodgings above for contact information.
Summing Up
For more information about the area, contact the Black Hills, Badlands & Lake Association, phone 800/344-9834, Web site www.blackhillsbadlands.com. The area code for this part of the country is 605.
Have you taken this trip yourself, or do have an opinion about this article? Let us know in our South Dakota Message Boards by clicking here.