Crazy Horse Memorial and Custer State Park, SD

Our first stop of the day was the Crazy Horse Memorial. We were shocked when the gate attendant told us the entry fee was $27, and almost turned the car around and left. We're sure glad we didn't. The Crazy Horse Memorial offers a stark contrast to Mount Rushmore in a number of ways. First and foremost are the sculptors. Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor commissioned to create Mount Rushmore, was an arrogant Dane who spent most of his time pleading with the government for public money. Few men could work directly for him (at least not for very long). He would walk into stores and demand that his purchases be free, since he was providing this great service to South Dakota. In contrast, Korczak Ziolkowski, of Pole from Boston, never asked the government for a dime. When commissioned by the Sioux to build the Crazy Horse monument, he simply started working on the project himself. The Crazy Horse monument has been entirely funded by private donations -- suddenly we didn't feel bad at all about the entry fee. It also seems quite fitting that the Crazy Horse monument will be considerably larger than Mount Rushmore, since the Black Hills were sacred Indian grounds long before the white man first crossed the plains.

After leaving the monument, we checked out horseback riding at a local stable. It didn't look like a great place to ride, so Laura opted to wait for better alternatives down the trail. We continued south through the town of Custer, then west into Custer State Park. It too had a rather steep $12 daily entry fee (compared to the Montana parks that charge $5, and Oregon that charges $3), but something in my past gave me a soft spot for state parks systems! ;-)

Custer State Park was a real treat. We saw larger numbers of animals than we did in Yellowstone, with a fraction of the people. The kids enjoyed the wild begging burros the best (see the picture above). They were used in the park back in the 30s, but then turned loose a few years later when the outfitter left. They come right up to the window of your car looking for handouts. We also saw a huge herd of buffalo, tons of antelope, and several deer.

We were back at the KOA by mid afternoon, and the kids enjoyed playing with new friends in the pool and water slide. They also attended the nightly music program and helped the band put their stuff away at the end of the evening when a huge thunderstorm approached. Teressa and I did laundry and met another couple from Helena camped two spots down from us -- they live on Cherry street just across from one of our high school friends! Small world...