We are spending three days in Custer to allow us to explore the Black Hills region. This part of South Dakota has historical importance and based on todays visits will be an important part of American culture in about 70 years time.
We started the day at Jewel Cave - the 2nd or 3rd longest cave network in the world - depending on which brochure we read. The caves stretch for over 150 miles. We walked through about a mile of them.
Now we've seen a lot of caves in our time - the amazing Jenolan Caves near Sydney, caves in Vietnam, France, UK, Greece and many other locations. We are not cave experts but we know our stalectites from our stalecmites.
These caves were a bit of a disapointment. They were pleasant enough but nothing special. They are 'dry' caves - so very few stalectites or statelgmites were on show. It was a nice 90 minute trip....but will not make our Top-10 things to do in South Dakota.
Onwards to the Purple Pie Cafe for lunch. This much hyped pie shop was another BIG disapointment. Firstly there were no savoury pies. So we all opted for the 'Mac and Cheese' - "Just like your mum used to make.". Well if our mums had made this we'd be very sad. It tasted like Laughing Cow Cheese, melted with Double Cream with some pasta thrown in. I like rich food - but struggled to get through half a bowl.
The Cherry Pie & Ice Cream was OK.....just.
So, an average morning. On to the Crazy Horse Monument.
Tomorrow we are visiting Mount Rushmore - the carving in a mountain of the four Presidents who were seen to have done most for the first 150 years of American life. Well the Indians were a little put out by this carving - celebrating American life in the middle of the sacred Black Mountains - so they commissioned an artist to carve an Indian equivalent - to show that the 'Red man' has heroes and great stories to tell as well.
The artist (a Polish sculputre) started work in 1948. He died in 1982. His family are continuing his work. They are sculpting a mountain into a stature of Chief Crazy Horse, astride his horse pointing out over the Black Mountains - reflecting his famous quote "My land is where my people are buried."
Once (if ever) completed it will be the largest sculpture ever made. The Mount Rushmore presidents would fit into Crazy Horse's head. The whole you see in the photo (blasted out about 10 years ago) is 10 storeys high.
The head - which was completed in 1998 (40 years after starting) is 87 feet high. Next they are working on the hand/arm and horse head.
The end result will look like this.
At 587 feet tall and 641 feet long it will be stunning. It will dwarf the largest pyramid, the Spinx, the stature of liberty etc. The fact that somebody started a project in 1948 that would consume his life in the knowledge that he would never see it completed is quite something. He started with a mountain - and has now removed 8m tonnes of rock. He mostly worked alone - only now is there teams of people starting to work to make quicker progress. It is all self-funded. 7 of his 10 children are continuing the project.
Crazy Horse was chosen as an Indian who never gave up. Never lived on a reservation, never signed a treaty. He was a warrior chief who was stabbed in the back by an American soldier while meeting under a white flag.
I am not sure if the chiefs who commissioned the work in 1948 really knew what they were creating. The plan is to have an Indian University and Museum at the base of the mountain.
I found it truly inspiring.
Emma's mum (Janet) visited here in 1960's - Janet - I'd love to know how much different it looks now...close to 50 years later.
After Crazy Horse we had a pleasant walk around a lake, a scary drive through the Black Hills - and a tunnel only 8 feet wide.....we have a big car so it was tight.
We have reached our half way point and have started week 4.....
Tomorrow Mount Rushmore.
Ken
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