We left the 'New Orleans Hotel' and headed for the Black Hills. Out of Montana, skimmed through a corner of Wyoming, and went into South Dakota. Can I just say, the landscapes of this nation are breathtaking.
We spent the night in Blackhawk South Dakota, then headed to the mountains.
Someone recommended we take Needles Highway, a scenic road that goes through the mountains. Sometimes literally.
The mountains were beautiful. We stopped a few times so I could get out to take pictures, then we headed on to the Crazy Horse Monument.
We saw a short movie of Crazy Horse, who was a great Lakota warrior and fought for the Lakota and their land. After he died, Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear created the image and he asked Korczak Ziolkowski to sculpt it. When Korczak passed away, his wife kept the project going and now his kids and grandkids are overseeing the work. They want to preserve the great history of the Native Americans and their traditions.
We loved the museum, there was so much to see.
And we got to meet Bruno. Not sure we'd be very good friends though.
'The buffalo meant everything to traditional Native life - meat for food, hides for clothing, horns for utensils.'
Then we headed out to the observation deck.
This is what it will look like when it's finished.
'A cavalry soldier mockingly asked Crazy Horse, "Where are your lands now?" And he replied, "My lands are where my dead lie buried." The gesture points to those ancestral burial grounds.'
Chuck suggested we go see this, I had no desire to visit. But now that I've been there I would highly recommend it. I would like to go back and see the areas we weren't able to get to on this visit. It's a remarkable place, honoring a remarkable people.
They had a restaurant there so we got a bite to eat before heading off to our next adventure.
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