Mount Rushmore & Custer State Park

Carved into the granite rockface of Mount Rushmore, the sculptures of four US presidents rank among North America’s most iconic sites. In the Black Hills of South Dakota near the former mining town of Keystone, Mount Rushmore National Memorial is world-famous, and it’s quite something to stand below the stern faces of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt looking out over the hills.

Known as America’s Shrine to Democracy, work on the memorial took 12 years, beginning in 1927, with each sculpture about 60 feet high. Learn about the sculptor Gutzon Borglum’s painstaking work, hike the Presidential Trail and in the evening, there is a nightly lighting ceremony from May to September.

About 15 miles to south-west of Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse Memorial is another highlight, immortalising an icon of Native Americans. It has been a work in progress for decades with the Sioux leader’s head complete.

Note that, as one of the USA’s top attractions, Mount Rushmore gets particularly busy during school holidays at Easter and mid-summer.

Custer State Park

A visit to Mount Rushmore is easily combined with nearby Custer State Park, which boasts exciting encounters with wildlife and some of the USA’s oldest geological formations.

Custer State Park is one of the few truly wild places remaining in the United States, and a visit here is a visit to an America of old. Spanning 71,000 acres of magnificent scenery and home to an impressive range of wildlife, the park offers ample opportunities for outdoor adventure, from hiking and rock climbing to biking and camping. But the real highlight is the local herd of 1,300 bison that freely roam the prairies and hills of this beautiful state park. Close encounters can be had along the 28km Wildlife Loop Road that winds around the southern edge of the park, and a guided safari tour is highly recommended to go off the main roads deep into their habitat. You’ll also get to encounter other native wildlife like pronghorn antelope, elk, burros, deer, coyotes, bighorn sheep and prairie dogs.

Custer State Park also boasts one of the most scenic drives in the state on The Needles Highway – a 22.5km stretch of road that winds you through stunning pine and spruce forests, towering granite pillars and spires, lush meadows surrounded by birch and aspen, and the serene waters of Sylvan Lake – where you can go swimming, paddle boarding and fishing.