Oct 2, 2008

Day 11 - Dakota Meets the Presidents

We had a great day exploring the Badlands. The next morning we headed for Mount Rushmore. We tried to explain the monument to Dakota but we're not sure he understood it completely.



Once he saw the monument Dakota was REALLY excited. We thought it was pretty cool too!




In addition to the monument, there were some great exhibits about the Lakota indians. The Lakota indians were in the Black Hills long before the European settlers and are an important part of American history. We've added a tiny tipi (tee-pee) to our shopping list...




We thought Dakota had a pretty good understanding about Mount Rushmore until he started talking about Paul, John, Ringo, and George. Charles tried to set him straight again.



We gave Dakota a few quarters to play with the powered binoculars while we grabbed a bite to eat.




After lunch, we hit the road and headed for Wyoming. Our next destination was 450 miles away - Yellowstone National Park. As we drove through Wyoming we noticed the signs for "Devils Tower" and realized it was only about 25 miles away. We made a short detour to check out this natural wonder.



In 1906, Teddy Roosevelt declared Devils Tower the first National Monument of the United States under the newly formed Antiquities Act. Along with being a geological wonder, it is also part of an important symbol for the Kiowa indians (click here to read the legend). If the picture of Devils Tower looks familiar to you, it's because it played a big part in the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind".




Tomorrow we head for Yellowstone National Park!
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4 COMMENTS - Click here to leave YOURS!:

Designing Hilary said...

Did ya pan for gold while in the Black Hills?

Enjoy Yellowstone ... I've been there three times, about 10 years between each visit. Each time it was a different place. It's that dynamic.

Don't feed the bears and buffalo are dangerous! We wouldn't want a gored Dakota.

Anonymous said...

after the devil's tower make sure you keep dakota away from mashed potatoes.

Auntie Dis said...

Looks like Dakota is behaving himself for the most part, and you guys seem to be enjoying your trip! :)

elphabainwicked said...

Thanks for the added history pieces...I am a history buff and this is cool!

Love the pic from Devil's Tower...

Glad to see Dakota was able to find the nose hairs...always wondered if they added them for fun.

What is George holding to his ear??? lol

I am starting to see Dakota starting in John Wayne re-make movies soon. The tipi is a great idea!

Nice to see a pic of you and Dakota.

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