Mt. Rushmore Itinerary

Hi everyone!!

We will be traveling to the Mount Rushmore area June 19-22, 2008 with 2 families of 4(kids: 13, 13, 16, 17). I need some advice on my itinerary for the area, as we want to be able to see quite a bit before heading to Cody, WY and YNP. I was wondering if we would be able to squeeze in a trip to Badlands NP during the time we%26#39;re there. Here goes:

June 19-Drive from Denver to Custer, SD. Visit Mt. Rushmore and see night laser show.

June 20-Tour Custer State Park,Crazy Horse, Needles Hwy, Jewel or Wind Cave(if time)

June 21-Tour Deadwood(shops, museums, cemetary, pan for gold)

June 22-Leave Custer and visit Devil%26#39;s Tower NM, drive thru Bighorn NP on way to Cody

Do you think there is any time to fit in a drive to Badlands NP and at least do the loop drive? I know sometimes these maps and drive times are not correct. Thanks for the info!!!

TrippinMom

Mt. Rushmore Itinerary

You%26#39;ve got some backtracking here I think. I suggest that you spend the night of the 21 in Deadwood. This way you could do the Badlands on the morning of the 21st then head up to Deadwood for the afternoon/evening. On the morning of the 22nd you have less driving time to reach Devil%26#39;s Tower.

Mt. Rushmore Itinerary

What time does your flight arrive in Denver on June 19? Remember it is about a 6-7 hour drive to Custer area and allow for at least an hour to get your rental car. We are arriving in Denver at noon and we didn%26#39;t really plan anything for that day except for driving and checking into hotel, etc.

Hope you can fit in the Badlands. That is our problem also- how to fit everything in. After you leave Deadwood you might want to check out Spearfish canyon.

Hi! We will be arriving June 18 at 12/30pm in Denver from Fl. We are planning on staying in Denver overnight and attending the Col Rockies baseball game the night we arrive. We will be leaving the next day for Mt. Rushmore(staying in Custer). Do you think we would have the time to see most of MtR before the laser show? We could leave around 8 am to travel to MtR. Thanks for the idea of spending the night in Deadwood! I was trying to work out something so that we could see Badlands. How long do you think realistically it would take to travel the loop road in Badlands? According to Yahoo maps it%26#39;s about a 2 hr drive to the park from Custer. I%26#39;ve read that it is a 45 min. drive to do the loop, but that must be w/out stops. Sorry to be so long-winded!

Thanks!!

TrippinMom

To me, you need more than 2 hours to see the Badlands, but I suppose if you just drove the loop without making many stops, it would be ok. There%26#39;s a lot of beautiful overlooks, so not stopping would be tough. If I remember correctly, I think we didn%26#39;t leave the park until 2 or 2:30, and we left from our Keystone hotel (closer than Custer) no later than 9:00 a.m. But..we stopped for lunch (picnic) and at the Visitor%26#39;s Center.

I definitely would not allot an entire day for Deadwood. To me, 1/2 a day would be fine. I think I might make a stop in Deadwood on the way to Devil%26#39;s Tower, or as someone else said, spend the AM in the Badlands and head to Deadwood for the afternoon/evening, and an overnight. Staying there overnight is an excellent idea that would save time.

And yes, you can see Mt Rushmore in the daylight hours by the time you get there from Denver as long as you get an early start. You will have a very full day, but I think you already know that.

Have a great time!

Thanks so much everyone! I have changed our trip to include the night of the 21st in Deadwood. We%26#39;re staying at the Black Hills Inn and Suites(in our budget). Now maybe we can see the Badlands the first 1/2 of the day. I%26#39;m sure we will stop along the loop drive, because I have to get out and take pix, etc. I would also like to see the Wounded Knee museum. We are so excited and can%26#39;t wait for the trip!

You will not see a laser show at Mt Rushmore.

Crazy Horse is where you will see that.

At Mt Rushmore you will see the lighting ceremony,

In my opinion a MUST....

Also when traveling to Cody you go through the

Big Horn Mountains,there is no Big Horn NP.

We always took Rt 14 at Sheridan when traveling to Cody.

Make sure to leave Custer very early,so you can spend a liitle more time at Devils Tower.

We too will be taking this route right after Labor Day...

In Deadwood visit the cemetery where Wild Bill Hikock

and Calamity Jane are buried side by side..

Never enough time in the Black Hills of S.D.

Thanks joeman! I will post my final itinerary when it becomes final.(It%26#39;s changing every day) I%26#39;ll let you know how the trip was, also! Thanks!