When I told people my next stop on my magical mystery tour through America was South Dakota, I got two common answers. One was “Why?” And the other was “Did you go to Mount Rushmore?”
The first question first: I went to South Dakota because it is fucking rad. Western South Dakota in particular is jam packed with incredibly cool things. The Black Hills area is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been; the landscape is breathtaking and incredibly varied, and the wildlife is fascinating and abundant. It’s easy to see why the Lakota people consider this a sacred place.
By the time I was leaving Arkansas, a lot of the national fear of covid was starting to wane (read: people were losing interest in it) and things were starting to open. But, I’m aware of the fact that my travel, no matter how careful, still looks and/or is risky, so despite the general lack of fucks I have seen most people give lately, I am still pretty diligently social isolating as much as possible. After my (semi) disastrous time in the Ozarks, I was looking forward to having some actual opportunities to get outside and do some hiking and backpacking. And in the Black Hills I had endless opportunities for both social distancing and outdoor recreation.
But now for that second question: did I go to Mouth Rushmore? In a word: no.
When I was 13 my family took The Big Family Road Trip across the US where we went to all the big spots like the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore. While we were in South Dakota we also did other Black Hills attractions, and now that I’m back here a couple decades later, I did end up redoing some of the things we did on that trip. But despite the number of people who asked me about Mount Rushmore, that wasn’t one of the things I redid.
I had two reasons for not going back to Rushmore. The first is that, despite the fact that I have forgotten a lot of things we did on that trip, I very clearly remember Mount Rushmore. It’s carved out of rock, so I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be all that different if I went again. Going back felt unnecessary.
In fact, here’s a literal photo I took of Mount Rushmore in 2001:
But the other reason I didn’t want to go back is that I have a hard time looking at Mount Rushmore and seeing anything but a monument to white supremacy. The Black Hills are a sacred place to the indigenous people who call the upper plains area their homes. Their sovereignty over this area was also promised to them in multiple treaties over many years. They have both a cultural and legal claim to this area. So the fact that some white folks came in and were like, “we’re gonna requisition this sacred area to carve the literal faces of white American government–the very government that actively destroyed these indigenous communities–into the side of this mountain” is super duper fucked up.
If you think I’m being dramatic, consider that literally today the Lakota people are still fighting to preserve the rights that were promised to them in these treaties, a century and a half later.
Honestly, I think Mount Rushmore is tacky. South Dakota has so many incredible things going for it that it is astonishing to me that they are so into Rushmore – it’s on their flag, and their license plates, and their state quarter. Their state nickname is “The Mount Rushmore State” and their state motto is Great Faces, Great Places. Guys. Have you been to the Black Hills? Have you seen the Badlands? Have you laid eyes on a herd of buffalo grazing majestically across the fuckin prairie?? Rushmore is honestly the very least interesting thing in a state packed full of very interesting things.
The one occasion where I came close to accidentally seeing Mount Rushmore was on my drive to Custer State Park. On the Iron Mountain Highway into the park, there is an overlook that normally has a perfect view of the monument; but on the day I drove that road, the fog was so thick I couldn’t see a thing.
You can see some more details about the things I did in South Dakota on my photos page, but here is a quick roundup of the things I did that I loved:
- Badlands National Park: This was one of the things my family did not do on my original trip to South Dakota, and it was one of my favorite things that I did on this one. I actually went to Badlands twice: once on my way into South Dakota, when I spent a night camping in the campground and driving on the scenic road through the park (because I was only about 4 days out from shredding my hand in Arkansas and had an open wound still, I couldn’t be too active just yet). The second time I went back a couple weeks later and backpacked in the backcountry. Both times were so worth it. Badlands is unbelievable. Getting to set up my tent right under the rock formations is one of the most amazing campsites I’ll ever have in my life. It was my first time backcountry camping solo, and it was the perfect first trip.
- Custer State Park: Is Custer the most famous state park in the country? Possibly, and for good reason. I drove the 18 mile Wildlife Loop Road and saw deer, pronghorn antelope, rabbits, wild turkeys and of course so many buffalo. Two different buffalo came up so close to me that they touched my car and left buffalo smudges on my fenders!!
- Climbing Black Elk Peak: There is a trend of renaming mountains that used to have indigenous names that were changed to English names, back to their original indigenous names (or at least to names that honor the indigenous people). I’m super here for this movement. Denali in Alaska is such a case; Black Elk Peak is another. Black Elk Peak is in the Black Elk Wilderness, part of the Black Hills National Forest, but the trail I took started within Custer State Park. It’s the tallest mountain between the Rockies and the Pyrenees mountains. The hike itself was a challenging but enjoyable day hike and the view from the top was unbeatable.
- Hiking in the Black Hills National Forest: I did so much hiking while I was in SD, which is exactly what I went there to do. There is an insane number of hiking trails with ample opportunity to see wildlife. On Bear Butte I got to hike among the prayer flags and offerings tied to the trees to the top of what the local tribes consider one of their most sacred places. In Spearfish Canyon I got to see the American Dipper which might be my new favorite bird. I got to paddle my kayak in the crystal clear waters of Black Hills lakes. On one hike I came around a corner and was maybe 20 feet from a pair of white tail deer.
- Guided Trail Ride: One of my more whimsical ideas for my time in SD was to go on a horseback trail ride. I went with Andy’s Trail Rides, and what a great experience. I got grouped in with a family from Chicago (the closest I’ve been to other people since mid-March!) and two guides who took us on a 2 hour ride through the Black Hills. My horse’s name was Sasha and she kept going too slow and stopping to eat, so she and I got along great.
I was afraid when covid started getting bad and everything started shutting down that my epic journey through America would be over. And for a while things were pretty dire, I won’t lie. But I think going to South Dakota is how my trip got its groove back. I’m still being very careful about the virus, don’t worry. My plan for the rest of the year more or less is to avoid cities and people as much as humanly possible while still getting out there and seeing the country – just a country without people. South Dakota was maybe the best place for me to get my adventure feet back under me again – no stone faces needed.
Alyson Gagne 