We've had a bit of a heat wave here so I decided to take a drive into the hills. Here are some photos.
Click an image for a larger view
Click an image for a larger view
Leaving Rapid City...
Leaving Rapid City - Nice Doctor Houses (Barely Visible)
Just outside Rapid City
Just outside Rapid City
Valley area outside Rapid City - Where Black Hills National Forest begins
BH National Forest sign heading East (towards Rapid City)
Neat wooden bridge area (two bridges) that takes you to Mount Rushmore (this is a highway junction)
(Low Quality) Part of the same mountain that Mount Rushmore is carved on.
More of the Mount Rushmore mountain. You can't see the monument here, though.
Mount Rushmore profile (This is George Washington's head). Since you have to pay to park to get into the viewing area, I didn't go this time. The mountain is A LOT bigger than it looks here.
Closeup of George Washington's profile.
Another wide view of the profile.
One of the various peaks behind Mount Rushmore. These are everywhere up here.
Some nature
Some rock behind Mount Rushmore.
Forest behind Rushmore
Some pine-covered granite
The side of Mount Rushmore again
Highway behind Mount Rushmore
This is the back of Mount Rushmore. Much larger than it looks here.
The back of Mount Rushmore again
Highway
A meadow and peak in the hills.
A narrow tunnel going up a mountain road.
Sylvan Lake. It's frozen over. This is on top (kind of) of Harney Peak - the highest point from the Rocky Mountains to the Swiss Alps. It's about 7,400 FT. Not a very big lake.
A dam at Sylvan Lake. Very small. Maybe 100 FT down?
The walkway atop the dam at Sylvan Lake
More Sylvan Lake. Since it's warm and the ice was melting, you could hear it cracking every second. Kind of weird.
Crazy Horse National Monument in the distance. It's the largest sculpture in the world. It's still very incomplete. It's a few miles outside of Custer, SD. They open it up for a hike a couple days out of the year.
Back to Rapid City.