50 States Day 66

Day 66, Touring, 83 miles

 

 "Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are."

~Malcolm Forbes

 

In an attempt to avoid large crowds, we struck out early for Mount Rushmore. What a magnificent accomplishment! Okay, name the four faces. They are Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln. Since I have a construction background and it is close to mining, the daunting task of removing the loose rock and shaping the faces amazed me. 90% of the carving was done with blasting, the remainder with chipping and grinding tools. They removed over 450,000 tons of rock. For an idea of the size, the noses are between twenty and twenty-one feet. Look closely at the images and note that the project is not complete. See the brown model with us standing in front of it? What's missing on the real rock one? The bodies, and more rock should be removed around Lincoln's face. The sculptor died and his son carried on, but WWII stopped the project. Now the Park Service considers the project completed. Come on! Let's get some cash together and finish it. No, not tax money. Anybody else but me should pay for it. Okay, maybe not.

Back on the scooter and we rode the Needle Highway, named for a slit of a tunnel at the summit. This is the place to ride for a biker. Tight turns, up and down, close, narrow roads and beautiful vistas treat the rider for a good hour, with turns as slow as first gear affairs.

We took a turn West and we toured Custer. The Buglin' Bull Restaurant looked attractive, so we stopped for lunch, a pheasant wrap for me and buffalo chicken sandwich for Quilter Girl, delicious, and the speed was pleasantly mediocre. At 90 plus degrees outside, the slower the service the better.

A bit of shopping and back to the campground through winding and pleasant roads, perfect - save the temperature and smoke.

Nothing like an invigorating plunge into the pool to shake off the heat. Most adults stayed in the water a few minutes and the kids only left when parents dragged them out.

Now just a great time to sit and blog. The sun is setting, the temperature cooling, kids playing at the pool and mini golf course, and folks cooking on the grills. I may break out the (PP!) Windex and a rag and knock the worst of the grime off the scooter.

Tomorrow we head for Pierre, the capitol of South Dakota.