A note concerning tangents: (XV)

Current Location: Chamberlain, SD

(coordinates unavailable)

Distance traveled leg 14: 354.6miles

Total Distance traveled: 5197.3miles

Expedition Outlook: Circling like a dog about to go to sleep

Worst President Ever: Warren G. Harding

For the sake of completeness I’ll write up leg 14 as its own entry. As previously indicated, we didn’t get a chance to broadcast since we pulled a bit of a night drive and crashed in Corona at a rest stop for a few hours before moving on. So without further ado, the Black Hills:

Keystone by night.

We had high hopes for the Black Hills and South Dakota. Many people we spoke to recommended them over the Bad Lands and North Dakota. Without speaking for my companions, I can say that I preferred the Bad Lands. I thought the country was a little more beautiful and it was definitely less commercialized. There was certainly more to do in the Black Hills, but the bulk of it was kitsch and glitz and tourist trap sort of things. We did not get an opportunity to do more than drive through one of the national park grounds, so I can’t speak on the hiking aspects of the region.

Don't judge us.

Our first excursion was into Keystone, the town closest to Rushmore. Like many towns in the Hills it was a gold boomtown. It’s official population is listed at just over 300 and there are probably five times that many in transients at any given point. The party browsed the shops, which while similar to what Moab had to offer were in general less tasteful and engaging. It was a cute town, but the large press of people and our own time constraints prevented us from making the best we could of it. 

In order:P. McCartney, R. Starr, J. Lenon, G. Harrison.

Afterwards we went to Rushmore again, and in the daylight it did seem more grand, but I was not as impressed as I thought I’d be when we were still discussing the visit in potentia. I found the memorial grounds and museums to be more engaging than staring at the mountain, and they were informative and well put together. Of note was the uncompleted Hall of Records. Did you know that there is a valley behind the heads? In that valley Gustov Borglum, the sculptor, began to excavate a massive chamber that he would use to house records of the monument’s constructive, the stories of the men memorialized, as well as important documents, histories, and other information of significance to the United States. The erosion rate of granite on Rushmore is one inch every ten thousand years. Borglum felt is was important that if the monument was discovered long after our civilization was dust that whoever found it should know why it was there. He didn’t get very far before Congress shut him down and told him he could only work on the statue. Since Borglum died and the money ran out before he even completed his plan for the presidents, the Hall languished until the late nineties when his children tried to complete the project. Unable to raise enough funds, they settled for sinking a time capsule with copies of some important US documents, info about Borglum and the presidents depicted, and documents detailing how and why the monument was built. This area is inaccessible to the public and can’t be seen except from the air. I think its unknown qualities are what appeal to me most.

I'm sorry, but this is right on the border of Big People.

After Rushmore we hit up the Presidential Wax Museum. It was a neat place. I learned some stuff about presidents I had likely only ever heard of back in grade school when we needed to learn who they were. The sculptures were a mix of uncannily realistic (Teddy Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower) to unsettlingly creepy (Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter). Most of them were set up in dioramas. Overall the experience was an unexpected treat.

We followed up by driving through Hills, briefly hitting Rapids City, taking a brief stop to visit an underground waterfall, and then moving on to the infamous Deadwood. By the time we got there all of the historical bits were closed, so we missed out on the street shows and seeing the Boot Hill cemetery (where folks like Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane were laid to rest). As it turns out, casinos are very big in Deadwood, to the point where to get to most of the shops and restaurants you have to walk through a casino first . We trotted around town, soaking in the atmosphere, before selecting a restaurant at random and grabbing a bite to eat. Once we were done, it was back to the road with us.

Deadwood, also by night.

Overall the Black Hills were fun, but not as fun as expected. I would be curious to go back and poke over some of the areas of Deadwood that were closed, and even more curious to hike around some of the national park cave systems. Maybe next time.

Edison, anything to add?

[Notes from Edison

 It was nice to see the flags for all of the American Territories represented alongside the states, and I did feel a twinge of national pride looking at the Faces on the mountain. Also, I found many of the words of the (early) presidents very inspiring, and plan to look into quotes by especially Jefferson and Roosevelt when I get the chance. Great words by great men, and not duplicated in our time, in my opinion mostly because the cheating scum don't write their own speeches. Yes, I'm biased.

 The crass commercialism of the whole area left me cold. They could have done so much better, and they didn't even try. The best time I had on this leg was walking into the Thunderhead Falls mine site, an old gold mine that was abandoned when blasting released a waterfall into the mine, which still runs out today. Keep in mind that this is a 600-foot shaft in solid granite, blasted by digging holes with hand tools and then packing it with black powder, since trinitrotoluene still hadn't been invented. Amazing. Also, the kid who did the talk at the Rushmore workshop was really good, and had everyone involved and interested. Kudos. 

Also, the people at the hotel totally rooked us. And I, right now, psychically punch them in a sensitive place. 

On a more zen note, I give you a familiar quote for many of us from my personal favorite president, Teddy Roosevelt: "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs; even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much, nor suffer much; for they live (not dwell, Kil) in the grey twilight that knows not victory, nor defeat."

Love and Peace, and take an extra moment to appreciate each other out there. Ciao and veloma! We're the ones who make it better!]

Thunderhead falls was indeed very nifty. Wonderland Cave, on the other hand, can eat a big bag of d... Hrmm, I suppose I'll leash my tongue on the behalf of our gentler readers. Suffice to say Wonderland Cave is getting put up against the wall (along with Idaho) when the revolution comes. The past though, is the past (unless it comes back as a zombie), dwelling is a verb best used with houses and we explorers must remain ever bright and ever moving (because if you look down, you'll realize the cliff ended 30 yards ago). Thank you, America, and good night. This is the Nickness, signing off:

Thank you for tuning in! On our next episode: Well You Can Just Read About It Right Now, Can't You? Get On With It Then.