Day 24 was Mount Rushmore Day. We awoke at a crisp 5:30 am to get ahead of the crowds at Rushmore. We had a 45 minute drive to the memorial that “Lola,” our self named GPS, in an attempt to direct us around construction turned into a 1.5 hour drive and onto a road that ran out of pavement. We were tooling down a dirt road in our RV in the Black Hills of South Dakota. It was quite a sight. Signs read “open stock prepare to stop.” This had nothing to do with the NYSE but with the cattle in the road. We arrived at Rushmore and spent the rest of the morning viewing the monument and the surrounding museums. Took in the short movie and walked the Presidential Trail that allows one to get up a little closer. Impressive how they were able to give the sculpture so much detail. We did a short scenic drive out of the Black Hills and down onto the plains. After a few errands we checked into the hotel in Rapid City.

This ends the “vacation” portion of our trip. We will be focused on putting miles behind us as we spend the next five days heading back home.

Day 23 This was a travel day. We drove from Miles City across eastern Montana, pretty cattle country. We entered North Dakota and stopped at the state line to take a picture. This was my 49th state!!!..only Hawaii left to go. Think I will move on to the Canadian Provinces if I have anyone left that will travel with me. From N. Dakota we turned South into the sister Dakota and settled into Deadwood, South Dakota. Deadwood is an old mining town. Hotel was great with a nice pool and hot tub, which was sorely needed. My left shoulder problem has returned and it was good to soak in the hot tub for a while. After a few hands at black jack (lost again) we turned in for the night.