My family’s first really BIG, fly/drive road trip was our summer vacation to Yellowstone National Park.
This popular National Park was our trip’s centerpiece, but there was so much more with an array of other memorable stops along the way.
This road trip involved A LOT of planning but it was so worth it. We spent 2 1/2 weeks visiting some of the most beautiful landscapes, National and State Parks in the world. This was truly a standout trip.
And it doesn’t matter whether you are single, a couple, married with kids, retired. In your lifetime, these places should definitely be on your travel bucket list!.
Since there was so much packed into this once in a lifetime family trip, I have decided to break it down into two separate blogs.
So read on..
Part 1 of this series includes the first three stops on this memorable road trip:
- CHEYENNE WYOMING
- HOT SPRINGS, SOUTH DAKOTA
- CUSTER, SOUTH DAKOTA AND THE BLACK HILLS
Our fly/drive road trip began with a flight into Denver where we picked up our rental car and started our journey. An an hour and a half later, we arrived at our first stop on our road trip …
CHEYENNE, WYOMING!
We were only spending one night here before heading up towards Custer and the Black Hills for the start of the bulk of our trip. So, we checked into our hotel, got some lunch and started to do some sightseeing.
Our afternoon was spent exploring the Union Pacific Depot, a nationally prominent landmark. It is significant because of both its transportation history and its architecture. The Depot is the last of the grand 19th century depots remaining on the transcontinental railroad.
In 1993, the Union Pacific donated the building to the City of Cheyenne and im 2006, the Cheyenne Union Pacific Depot was recognized as a National Historic Landmark.
After our sightseeing, we ate dinner at the Luxury Diner, a railroad caboose converted into a restaurant back in 1926. Quaint and retro, this place is a must stop for great food and ambiance.
The next morning, we were on our way to …
HOT SPRINGS, SOUTH DAKOTA…
where lunch and a “junior paleontology” tour at the Mammoth Site seemed to fit the bill.
The Mammoth Site is a museum and an active paleontological excavation site at which research and excavations are continuing. The excavation area is a prehistoric sinkhole that contains the remains of Pleistocene flora and fauna. As of 2016, the remains of 61 mammoths have been excavated!
Our kids got to learn all about the site and do some of their own digging. They even got certificates for their efforts!
This stop was about a 3 1/2 hour drive from Cheyenne. It gave us a well deserved break before continuing to Custer later in the day.
Read more about more unique and unusual places that my family has visited by clicking here:https://followmyyellowbrickroad.com/?p=1866
After our afternoon of exploring and digging, we had less than an hours drive to our next destination…
CUSTER, SOUTH DAKOTA …
home to some of the most beautiful and historic monuments and parks in the world.
Custer and the Black Hills has so many amazing places to see that I recommend a minimum of 4 full days. Even then, it can be quite tight. And really, why would you want to rush seeing these places.
We checked into our bed and breakfast (which sadly has since closed) and started our exploration. First stop …
Custer State Park…
is truly a place for nature and animal lovers. In 1919, Custer State Park was named our nation’s first official state park. This park covers over 71,000 acres in the Black Hills. Over 1200 bison roam this park along with other animals, including elk, mountain goats, big horn sheep and prairie dogs.
There is so much to do here. But one important piece of advice is to just slow down and take it all in.
Make sure to explore the following three scenic drives —
- Wildlife Loop Road,
- Iron Mountain Road
- Needles Highway
On the Wildlife Loop Road , you may very well be stuck in your first “bison traffic jam.” Seeing these strong, beautiful beasts with their young crossing the road was certainly a site. The park rangers have this under control, coming in to make sure animal and humans remain safe.
And, please respect the wildlife! There are too many news stories of visitors approaching these beautiful wild animals and getting hurt.
Take Needles Highway where you will wind through one lane rock walled tunnels and over pigtail bridges to see the high granite needle spires that it winds among.
Iron Mountain Road is third part of this highway trilogy. It is well known for its “pigtail” bridges. This road is a two lane road climbing 17 miles from Custer State Park to the entrance of Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
Sylvan Lake, which is within the park is a beautiful lake created in in 1881 when Theodore Reder built a dam across Sunday Gulch Creek.
The lake area offers an array of activities including hiking trails, rock climbing, small rental boats and swimming.
A bit of trivia… the lake was featured in the film “National Treasure: Book of Secrets. In the film, the lake appeared to be directly behind Mount Rushmore. In actuality, it is five miles southwest of it.
Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse Memorial…
co-exist in the awe inspiring Black Hills of South Dakota , the sacred, spiritual lands of the Great Sioux Nation. These two iconic monuments can be visited on one day together.
Both monuments are highly symbolic of the controversy surrounding the European settler brutal conquering of the Native Americans.
Many visitors are impressed with the sheer scale and beauty of Mount Rushmore with the carving of four presidents — Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.
The story of Mount Rushmore started as a vision by the South Dakota State Historical Superintendent, Duane Robinson. In 1923, he envisioned a stone mountain carving of Western figures such as Buffalo Bill Cody, Lewis and Clark and legendary Sioux warriors to attract visitors to the state.
His dream lost support until he enlisted the support of the respected U.S. Senator Peter Norbeck. Robinson was encouraged to find a sculptor for this project. And he did with Gutzon Borglum.
Borglum pushed for the carving to contain four presidents which would be an eternal reminder of our country’s birth, growth, preservation and development of our democracy. So work began on this amazing monument.
After Borglum’s death in 1941, his son spend seven months refining the monument. Construction stopped and the monument remained as we see it today.
Many visitors, however, come away with a better understanding of this sculpture when they visit the Crazy Horse Memorial nearby.
In 1948, Lakota chief Standing Bear commissioned the construction of another structure near Mount Rushmore. Standing Bear wanted to make sure that white men understood that there are great Indians too. The Lakota’s revered Chief Crazy Horse was chosen as the star of this monument. Said to have proclaimed: “My lands are where my dead lay buried”, his outstretched arm reaching towards the horizon is emblematic of this declaration.
This monument is a work in progress.
Read more about these spiritual places and other religious sites that my family has visited by clicking here:https://followmyyellowbrickroad.com/?p=2207
Jewel Cave National Monument…
contains Jewel Cave, currently the third longest cave in the world. It contains over 200 miles of mapped passageways. It became a national monument in 1908.
Jewel Cave was found by two prospectors who noticed wind blowing out of a small hole in a canyon. The Michaud brothers decided to enlarge the hole with dynamite and found the cavern to be lined with calcite crystals. Hence the name “Jewel Cave.”
The brothers tried unsuccessfully to capitalize on their discovery but news of their find soon reached Washington.
President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed Jewel Cave a National Monument on February 7, 1908. The National Park started offering tours in 1939.
Wind Cave National Park…
was the first cave to be designated a national park anywhere in the world. As one of the longest caves in the world, it has about 150 miles of explored passageways.
Wind Cave is known for its display of boxwork, an unusual cave formation composed of thin calcite fins resembling honeycombs.
The park’s mixed-grass prairie is one of the few remaining. It is home to a variety of native wildlife such as bison, prairie dogs, coyotes, elk, pronghorn, and mule deer,
The Badlands National Park..
was called “maco sika” or badlands by the Lakota people. The name is quite fitting because of its rocky terrain, lack of water and extreme temperatures. Despite the park’s name, flora have found a way to flourish here.
Bring plenty of sunscreen and water for this visit!
A bit of trivia…the movie “Tremors” was filmed here!
After you explore the Badlands, stop at Wall Drugs, a roadside attraction adjacent to the park that contains shops to buy a souvenir. It has multiples shops to pick up a souvenir or two!
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