South Dakota may not seem like a popular vacation destination, but surprisingly, there is a lot to see and do in the Mount Rushmore State, including that National Memorial depicting four of our nation’s Presidents.

Earlier this month, I had the privilege of taking my wife, her sister and brother-in-law, and their son (the McCarty’s), on an 850-mile road trip to the Hot Springs, S.D. area.

We had never been to Hot Springs before, but I had traveled to Rapid City, 57 miles to the north, with the Tulsa Oilers a few years ago.

Also, when I was with the Oilers, a few of us with the team took a little drive out to Mount Rushmore, so this was my second time to see that magnificent memorial, but everyone else’s first time there. Mount Rushmore is located just outside the old western town of Keystone, which in itself, is a real neat place to shop and dine.

I don’t care how many times you see Mount Rushmore, and you can actually see it from Highway 244 as you approach the area; to me it is spectacular. Just to think of the work that went into carving the faces on the side of a mountain and how dangerous it was, really is breathtaking.

The only negative thing about this visit was that the Lincoln Borglum Visitor Center was closed for maintenance, and will remain closed through the rest of the year. It was disappointing that my family didn’t get to see all the exhibits that tell the history of the memorial and how it came to be.

The visitor center is named for the original sculptor, and has many of his personal effects and smaller scale models of Mount Rushmore, as well as a movie that tells the whole story.

One thing we did, that I did not do before, was hike the Presidential Trail. This walking tour takes you to the base of the mountain where the Presidents are carved and gives you a view practically straight up their noses.

On this trail, you do get to visit the Sculptor’s Studio where you do get to see a couple of the smaller models, and a park ranger tells a little bit about the history.

Another interesting and educational thing we did in Hot Springs is visit The Mammoth Site. I had never heard of this until I began doing research on what there is to see and do in the area. The Mammoth Site was actually found by accident, as it’s described on the attraction’s web site.

In June 1974, heavy equipment operator George Hanson was leveling ground for a Hot Springs housing development planned by landowner Phil Anderson.  Hanson was grading a small hill when his blade struck something that shone white in the sunlight.  Hanson got out for a closer look.  What he saw was a tusk, about seven feet long, sliced in half length wise, along with other bones.

Long story – short, the archeological dig site was ultimately enclosed in a building where scientists and volunteers continue to dig and uncover thousands of bones believed to have belonged to dozens of Columbian and wooly mammoths. The building also has a theater where you watch a movie that gives you the background of The Mammoth Site, before taking a guided tour. There is also a museum and gift shop.

Finally, we went cave exploring at Wind Cave National Park. Well, we didn’t really explore, because we were only allowed in the portion of the cave that has already been explored and opened to the public. I’m not a huge fan of walking around four-stories underground, but this was a neat experience.

Wind Cave is one of America’s oldest National Parks. Many of the cave’s walls are covered with honeycomb-shaped calcite formations known as boxwork. The park’s rolling hills and pine forests are home to bison, elk, prairie dogs and pronghorn antelopes. We saw all but elk while driving through the property, and some buffalo were right next to the road.

We wrapped up our trip by spending a night atop a mountain outside Hot Springs, at my friend Scott Olson’s cabin. The views from up there were spectacular and you could see 30-40 miles away.

The trip up and down the mountain in his Jeep was a bit treacherous, since there isn’t a road that leads to his cabin. In fact, one of our days on the mountain was washed out by torrential rain that made the trek too dangerous.

All in all, if you’ve never explored South Dakota, it’s worth a shot. I’ve been to Sioux Falls, in the southeastern part of the state, many times, but the Black Hills region, in the southwest, sure has a lot to offer.