I’m glad you all are enjoying my vacation recap! It’s good for me to get it all typed out before I forget all the little details.

Our day four itinerary originally included a trip to see the Crazy Horse memorial and a visit to Mount Rushmore. We quickly realized that we needed a little more to fill up our day. (Because we can’t have any down time, don’t ya know!) We decided to add a drive around the Wildlife Loop in Custer State Park to our morning. We were so glad we did! We saw…

Pronghorn antelope

This dappled burrow standing in the trees. I wonder what he was thinking…

He was thinking “FOOD!” As were these other two. They went running for the line of cars in front of us.

Bison. The herd was on the move.

As we were coming to the end of the wildlife loop, Wade pulled over to the Gordon Stockade. The meadows next to the stockade were rippling in the breeze. It was so beautiful. I wish I could have captured that in a picture.

The boys had a grand old time locking each other in the little buildings in the “fort.” They were crawling in and out of the windows, in and out of the fireplaces, generally being boys.

And then I got a bright idea! These next three are going up on the picture wall…

Does this picture not personify these three perfectly???

Next stop…Crazy Horse! The boys loved this place. I’m *still* hearing about Crazy Horse. It was so awesome to see the progress that they have made in the last nine years. But the amount of work they still have to do is staggering. If you ever get out to the Black Hills, go to Crazy Horse. It is a cause that I believe in with my whole heart. I told Wade that I think that I must have been Lakota in a previous life. I feel such a deep feeling when I go to this memorial.

On the observation deck there were these three binocular machines. One short, one medium, one tall. Perfect for these three…

We let Tyler have the camera to take a picture of the two of us.

We tried to have Avery take a picture of us here, but it didn’t work out so well. Some kind lady stepped in and helped out. Although, I guess she couldn’t wait for the guy in the background to move… LOL!

Our final destination for the day…Mount Rushmore! The only thing I’ve heard more about than Crazy Horse is Mount Rushmore. Benji is obsessed! The sunshine was brutal for photography. It really brought to my attention that I am lacking a hood for my lenses. Gotta get that on my shopping list…

We stayed for the evening ceremony of lighting the memorial. The presentation was very educational, even Benji was talking about “Thomas Jefferson, our third president” on the way back to camp. The lighting for photographing the memorial became much better as the sun went down. I think this was my favorite shot.

Tomorrow, Day Five: Hitting the Wall. Good night!