Our drive from Glacier National Park to Mount Rushmore started off with a bang! The first night, we stayed at Great Falls KOA in Montana. Since it happened to be Canada Day, they put on a great fireworks show for everyone. Good job KOA!
The next night we stayed at the very first KOA in the US, in Billings MT. It was a very nice campground, but that evening the power pole next to us blew a breaker and the lights went out in the whole park with a very loud BANG! Part of the breaker shot down on our roof, putting a hole in the fiberglass about the size of a dime. I didn’t notice it until I was washing the roof back at home, but it didn’t go all the way through the fiberglass so I just dabbed a little sealant over the top of it. All is good.
After Billings, we said goodbye to the Rockies for awhile.
Our first stop was Little Big Horn, the site of Custer’s Last Stand. The visitor center is small but very well done. While we were there, an older gentleman was reciting from a historical document revisiting the battle. It was riveting. The site was named a national cemetery just three years after the battle. Five years later, this monument was erected on Last Stand Hill to honor those killed in action.
Just ten years later, 7th Calvary officers met former Cheyenne and Sioux adversaries, and conducted a joint tour of the battlefield. Here an elderly Indian in ceremonial dress walks through the battlefield.
I was very moved by the visit and wish we had more time to spend there. Next time we will plan an entire day.
Our next stop was Devils Tower! I’ve wanted to visit since I watched Close Encounters of the Third Kind as a teen 🙂
Devils Tower rises abruptly from the surrounding land and literally towers over everything else. It didn’t start that way, but the surrounding land is made of softer rock which eroded more quickly than the tower. They say that water and time caused everything to happen, just like at the Grand Canyon.
By the way, you can just see the RV Park at the bottom third of the photo in the middle.
The Tower has a natural beauty that is magnificent, but also changes depending on the direction you view it from. I think it’s best viewed from a distance like this.
However, there is a 2-mile trail around the base we wanted to hike. Be aware that parking is limited, and we had a 15 minute wait to get in. I hear it can get MUCH worse!
The hike was very rewarding, and the views of the tower and the surrounding area were amazing.
It’s as if the tower continually changes shape as you walk around it.
And, of course, someone looked at it and decided they had to climb it!
We finished our hike, enjoyed the scenery, and made it back to the campground.
The KOA shows Close Encounters on an outdoor screen every night, so time to pop some popcorn!
We really enjoyed Little Big Horn and Devils Tower, but that was just a taste of the beauty we would see just next door in South Dakota.
Al & Deb
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