Wandering Retirees

We set off for a fun ride to the Mt. Rushmore and Chief Joseph monuments this morning. The roads are twisty and a bit challenging and filled, this holiday weekend, with a lot of vehicles filled with people with the same idea. Mt. Rushmore is a fantastic emblem of our nation’s heritage carved into a solid granite mountain. Washington, Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt and Lincoln are among our greatest presidents (Lincoln has my vote as number one) and it is fitting they should be memorialized this way. Coming to this memorial should be a ritual for all Americans if they can afford it. We decided to forego the pleasure of paying Xanterra Inc. their parking fees and the very long line into their parking lot, but enjoyed the view from several pullouts along the highway. The view is especially fitting on this July 4th weekend.

We then headed toward the monument honoring Chief Joseph (aka Crazy Horse) that is still under construction. It is also fitting to honor one of the great chiefs representing all tribes of the first Americans. When completed, it will depict the 19th century Chief of the Lakota pointing from horseback to the land where his people are buried. The welcome center is filled with memorabilia and pictures recording important moments from Native American history. This was definitely worth the modest entrance fee with proceeds going to the continuation of the monument. Glad we stopped.

From there, we set out to do some serious riding, first on the Needles Highway. The highway, Rt. 87, winds through the Custer State Park within the Black Hills. There’s an entrance fee ($10) in case you’re interested in trying it some time. There are distinctive vertical granite pinnacles akin to hoodoos (sandstone) all along the way, with multiple one lane tunnels through the rock. There are no lights, so whoever gets there first, and has a bit of guts, goes first. We were happy to follow on the heels of several humongous SUV’s at those junctures. This was one of the twistiest roads we’ve been on, with 5, 10, 15 and 20 MPH curves. Remember to keep your head turned through the curves and your hand easy on the throttle. They were fun and even a bit thrilling. There were a lot of bikes out, including a club from Montana composed of Harley’s from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. Helmets are not required in SD, so some of the hats and headgear were authentic and fascinating. We felt just fine wearing our helmets, thank you. The traffic was heavy, though, and even slower than conditions called for. We would suggest visiting and riding on a non-holiday weekday.

Not having enough mountain riding, we headed immediately north onto the Iron Mountain Road, a 17 mile stretch of seriously challenging curves and changes in altitude. It’s lots of fun unless you get stuck behind someone who’s intimidated. Fortunately, most folks going slowly will pull off into one of the many turnouts to let quicker folks pass. Now “quick” is a relative term. The speed limit is 35, but no one reaches that exalted velocity. The key is to take your time and pull off to take in the sights. There are many views of Rushmore and beautiful mountains from many spots along both the Needles and Iron Mountain highways. One tunnel framed the monument as though through a telescope. Fascinating and beautiful. Though there are folks who will stop their vehicles mid-tunnel to catch that pic. Some do a family portrait. Good for them. Really, I mean it. So saying while holding our bike on a 10% grade, but I digress.  

We covered about 170 miles today, which brings us into spitting distance of 10,000 miles. We’ll cross that marker tomorrow on our way to western North Dakota. Still excited about seeing what’s on the other side of the hill with my Queen. Still looking forward to the beauty of our country. And looking forward to visiting (brother) Jeff and Rose and Joe in Minnesota in a few days. In sum, we’re still having fun. See you.

Chief Joseph, Crazy Horse

The plan for the completed monument to Chief Joseph and the Lakota.

The landscape is more lush than yesterday.