On to South Dakota

My parents and I arrived in Keystone, South Dakota on September 23rd. We stayed at Comfort Inn & Suites. The hotel had a swimming pool and a hot tub. It had three floors and we stayed on the second. We had lunch at a restaurant called Ruby House. The decor of the restaurant was from the 1800s. What we ate there were burgers and fries. Ruby House was located on this boardwalk with antique shops and other restaurants. 

On the morning of Tuesday September 24th, my parents and I went to The National Presidential Wax Museum. Before we took the tour, we watched a video that explained how the wax sculptures were made. On the tour, we had these hand-held machines called wands that told us about the exhibits. I took pictures of just about every sculpture in there. Later that afternoon, my parents and I went on this train called 1880 Train. We took a round trip between Keystone and Hill City. On the train rides, we heard stories about the area we were passing through. 

Visiting Mount Rushmore happened on Wednesday September 25th for me and my parents. We used the same kind of wands for the self-guided tour of Mount Rushmore to tell us about its exhibits. We were still far from the sculptures of the four presidents but we could still snap pictures of them from a distance. We also bought souvenirs from the gift shop and had lunch there. After Mount Rushmore, we visited the site called Crazy Horse which was this sculpture of a Native American carved into rock. My parents and I went into a theater room to watch a video about its history. We then viewed the artifacts on display. I also bought some souvenirs at its gift shop. On the way out of the Crazy Horse site, we saw there was a bus tour offering to take people closer to sculpture. We decided not to. 

We went on a helicopter ride on Thursday September 26th and took a tour of the area from the sky. I rode up front with the pilot while my parents sat behind us. I managed to snap a few pictures up there. We managed to pass by Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse along the way. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance to see the Badlands in South Dakota. That afternoon, my dad and I went to this place called Rush Mountain Adventure Park. I suggested that he go on the cave tour they had there. It turned out that the cave tour wasn’t until 2:30 so he never went on that. I got to ride this ride called the soaring eagle. It was a zip line so I strapped into the two person seat and rode all the way down. Then, it pulled me all the way back up. I also rode the mountain coaster that was there. It was a little longer than the mountain coaster I rode in New York State. The following day, we left South Dakota and didn’t get back home until late at night. 

I would definitely return to South Dakota if given the chance. Only this time, I would go out of my way to see the Badlands. I once again got the chance to do my laundry at the hotel I was staying at. The sites were amazing for me to see.