{"id":557,"date":"2009-07-10T00:07:41","date_gmt":"2009-07-10T04:07:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/?p=557"},"modified":"2009-07-10T00:07:41","modified_gmt":"2009-07-10T04:07:41","slug":"taking-advice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/2009\/07\/10\/taking-advice\/","title":{"rendered":"Taking Advice"},"content":{"rendered":"

For better or worse we told everyone about our cross country trip.\u00a0 Part of the reason was because we were in disbelief that we were actually going and the other part was to learn from others who have taken these roads before us.\u00a0 Some of the advice was useful like don\u2019t forget to wear rubber gloves at the dumping stations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Cam

Cam taking in the Badlands<\/p><\/div>\n

Some advice was obvious like remember to pack extra socks.\u00a0 But some advice just enhanced our trip beyond our expectations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We told folks we were visiting Mount Rushmore as part of our trip and many trusted friends and family told us to visit Crazy Horse monument as well as the Badlands while in the area.\u00a0 So now I tell you, if you ever visit Mount Rushmore make sure to take the time to visit Crazy Horse and the Badlands.\u00a0 You won\u2019t be disappointed.<\/p>\n

\"Crazy

Crazy Horse Monument<\/p><\/div>\n

We were less than motivated our second morning in Keystone.\u00a0 We were still in a wee bit of a fog from the Independence Day celebration but Dennis and I weren\u2019t content to sit around and relax.\u00a0 Why should we relax?\u00a0 We\u2019re on vacation and there are way too many businesses ready to take our money.\u00a0 We opted to take our time and stay local.\u00a0 Our first decision was to visit Custer State Forest but uncharacteristically, Betty the GPS, gave us a bum steer and we missed the turn.\u00a0 Being the dedicated travelers we are, we said screw it and decided to go straight to Crazy Horse instead.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For those as ignorant as I, Crazy Horse was an Indian Chief who fought and defeated Custer in the Battle of Little Bighorn.\u00a0 About 60 years ago, the Lakota Indians commissioned a tribute to him and all Native Americans in the form of a mountain carving that makes Mount Rushmore look small in comparison.\u00a0 The carving is of the Indian Chief on his horse pointing to \u201cthe land of his people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Finished

Finished Model<\/p><\/div>\n

It was spectacular but unfinished.\u00a0 Due to lack of funding, Crazy Horse the monument probably won\u2019t be finished in my lifetime but there was still so much to see and learn it\u2019s worth the 20 minute drive from Keystone.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The visit starts with a brief and very interesting movie about the history of Crazy Horse and the monument.\u00a0 At the risk of embarrassing myself, I\u2019m going to be honest, I didn\u2019t actually watch the movie but Dennis and the boys thought it was terrific.\u00a0 I was finally coming off my 3 day stress high and just crashed.\u00a0 Yes, I fell asleep the second the lights dimmed.\u00a0\u00a0 It gets worse.\u00a0 My nap consisted of several head bobs with my mouth wide open.\u00a0 I\u2019m certain drool only moments away.\u00a0 Dennis was quick to nudge me before the snoring started to disturb the other guests.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Hand

Hand beaded Mask<\/p><\/div>\n

At least I was well rested to see all the beautiful handmade Indian artifacts and learn more about their history.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The next day, we knew we had a fair amount of driving in front of us to get to our campground in Fort Smith, Montana but we had yet to make time for the Badlands.\u00a0 Several people told us not to miss Badlands but it was 2 hours in the wrong direction.\u00a0 I wanted to go to North Dakota and Dennis wanted to stop at Deadwood but we traded in those 5 hours and backtrack to Badlands National Park.\u00a0 I\u2019m so glad we did, it was incredible.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Knowing time was limited, we opted to take the scenic drive rather than park and hike.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t know what to expect because everyone just told us \u201cYou have to see it\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Mountain

Mountain Goat<\/p><\/div>\n

I think we were only in the gate 5 minutes when we pulled over to mingle with the Mountain Goat on the side of the road.\u00a0 Part of me wanted to pet them but I kind of knew they\u2019d literally kick my ass if I went too close so I used the zoom on my camera instead.\u00a0\u00a0 Once we looked past the Mountain Goat, we were stunned by the massive and intricate natural canyons and rock formations.\u00a0\u00a0 As we continued our 45 minute drive through the park, every turn offered a different and unique sculpture and geological miracle.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t even being to describe the incredible views we experienced.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"View

View from the road<\/p><\/div>\n

Red clay rocks were layered with sandstone offering beautiful contrasts in the distance.\u00a0 Some areas were rich with vegetation while others could have been confused with the surface of the moon, lifeless craters and nothing green in sight.\u00a0\u00a0 Parts of the Badlands are known for their prehistoric roots.\u00a0 Fossils and other findings from millions of years ago make this area a treasure for geologist and geeky kids alike.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Oooo!

Oooo! Scary!<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I\u2019m sorry I didn\u2019t get to see North Dakota but I can\u2019t imagine it could have topped our visit to the Badlands.\u00a0 So take my advice, follow the advice of those you trust and you won\u2019t be disappointed.\u00a0 To see our complete photo album, visit Snapfish for Crazy Horse<\/a> and The Badlands<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For better or worse we told everyone about our cross country trip.\u00a0 Part of the reason was because we were in disbelief that we were actually going and the other part was to learn from others who have taken these roads before us.\u00a0 Some of the advice was useful like don\u2019t forget to wear rubber […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[63,90,35],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/557"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=557"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/557\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":573,"href":"https:\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/557\/revisions\/573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=557"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=557"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/\/snapshotchronicles.com\/roadtrip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=557"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}