We planned two days in the southwest corner of South Dakota. Major attractions are located there — Mount Rushmore National Memorial and the Badlands National Park for starters. It seemed logical to stay overnight in Custer State Park. The park contains a whopping 71,000 acres in the Black Hills region of South Dakota.
With State Game Lodge as our base, we traversed the narrow rock passages on the Needles Highway. It’s a 14 mile wispy road through spiky granite formations and an evergreen forest.
We also drove the 18 mile winding Iron Mountain Road between Custer State Park and Mount Rushmore. Two of the narrow stone tunnels provide keyhole vistas framing the four presidents’ faces on Mount Rushmore.
We booked a room in the State Game Lodge. Not a gun-rack-toting type affair, it’s a stone and timber inn with an upscale dining room, complete with its own cocktail designer. There are eight guest rooms in the original lodge above the dining room. We declined the opportunity to sleep in the room Calvin Coolidge occupied when he came to inspect Mount Rushmore but extended his visit for the entire three month summer of 1927.
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| Creative Cocktails |
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| Bighorn Sheep Lolling About |