We arrived at the Mount Rushmore monument in time for lunch -- which was a good thing because it was cccoooollllllddddd! It couldn't have been over 40 degrees (a far cry from yesterday) and we had to break out the coats and mittens for the first time this trip.
Mount Rushmore is a beautifully kept monument with hiking trails and views all around complete with educational signs and further museums. It is one of my favorite national parks as it is rarely crowded and is a fantastic display of human ingenuity and artistry in the midst of God's amazing creation.
The four Presidents featured (Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt (Theodore), and Lincoln) are all there for a reason. We have studied about the making/sculpting of the mountain by inexperienced local miners under the guided supervision and direction of the eccentric American sculptor Gutzon Borglum. It's a fascinating story and one worth learning should you get the chance.
Inside the sculptor's studio is a model of what the monument was originally intended to look life. For a variety of reasons (mostly financial), the work on the monument came to a halt and stands as we see it today with no intention of completion in the future.
These swings are what the workers sat on as they hung over the side of the mountain, using jack hammers and loading dynamite to shape the massive granite mountainside. That harness does not look strong enough for me!
In one of the museums you can see an air compressor and jackhammer used for the sculpting of Mount Rushmore.
As we left the monument and headed to our RV we were met by a family of wild mountain goats grazing along the mountainside. They looked so soft, but their horns looked very sharp so we kept our distance! :-)
We arrived at the Mount Rushmore monument in time for lunch -- which was a good thing because it was cccoooollllllddddd! It couldn't have been over 40 degrees (a far cry from yesterday) and we had to break out the coats and mittens for the first time this trip.
Mount Rushmore is a beautifully kept monument with hiking trails and views all around complete with educational signs and further museums. It is one of my favorite national parks as it is rarely crowded and is a fantastic display of human ingenuity and artistry in the midst of God's amazing creation.
The four Presidents featured (Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt (Theodore), and Lincoln) are all there for a reason. We have studied about the making/sculpting of the mountain by inexperienced local miners under the guided supervision and direction of the eccentric American sculptor Gutzon Borglum. It's a fascinating story and one worth learning should you get the chance.
Inside the sculptor's studio is a model of what the monument was originally intended to look life. For a variety of reasons (mostly financial), the work on the monument came to a halt and stands as we see it today with no intention of completion in the future.
These swings are what the workers sat on as they hung over the side of the mountain, using jack hammers and loading dynamite to shape the massive granite mountainside. That harness does not look strong enough for me!
In one of the museums you can see an air compressor and jackhammer used for the sculpting of Mount Rushmore.
As we left the monument and headed to our RV we were met by a family of wild mountain goats grazing along the mountainside. They looked so soft, but their horns looked very sharp so we kept our distance! :-)
Time to come home - Isabelle's hair looks longer!!!!
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