Paul had a great idea to plan a fun family trip to South Dakota for Spring Break. I'm so glad we went because we won't be able to go too many places for the rest of the year with a baby coming, and we had the best time! Joseph and Lani drove behind us to join us for the trip and it was so fun having them along. They are great travel buddies, easy going and up for anything.
We were a little nervous with how the kids would do on the 10+ hours in the car but with the help of books and games and tablets and snacks they did great!
We stopped at Martin's Cove on the way. It was closed but it was still cool to have a look around. We'll have to go back when it is open.
We also stopped in a little town called Deadwood. We had just watched Calamity Jane with Doris Day with the kids and thought it might be cool to see the old western town. We saw the saloon where Wild Bill Hickok was shot and went to a trading post and saw some neat train models. We also stopped by the cemetery in town and saw where Wild Bill and Calamity Jane were buried.
Mt. Rushmore was closed when we drove down due to a wild fire so we were relieved when it opened back up the next day. Whew, 10 hour drive, not wasted! Mt. Rushmore was so amazing. We drove around the mountain and it took our breath away when we saw it! It's amazing they were able to carve these presidents out of granite almost 100 years ago. (They started carving in 1927 and finished the project in 1941).
We also stopped at the Crazy Horse monument. The monument is still under construction and you can't get too close but we went inside the visitors center which was neat.
Custer State park was the coolest. There were beautiful lakes and so many buffalo. We stopped at a fun park to play and walked through a visitors center. Susie was limited on how much walking she could do because of her dog bite so we only did a few short hikes. The kids loved throwing rocks in the semi-frozen lakes.
There is a highway that goes through Custer State park called Needles highway and it is full of awesome rock tunnels and rock formations. It was really cool to drive through.
Braden's favorite part was buying his first pocket knife. He's wanted one for a long time and we finally gave in. He whittled sticks along the way whenever he got the chance.
Our hotel room was perfect because it had two rooms with enough beds for all of us and a full kitchen.
My favorite part of the trip was the Wind Cave. We went on a short tour with a tour guide. During the tour she turned off all the electric lights and it was so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The cave was beautiful and fascinating!
On the way home we made one last stop at Devil's Tower in Wyoming. Yet another breathtaking sight!
It's amazing to learn about how all these different caves and rock formations were formed.
Such a fun time and so many great memories. I love spending time with this family of mine!
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