Crazy Horse Memorial
The Crazy Horse Memorial is a colossal sculpture in progress and the world’s largest mountain carving. The project began soon after the completion of Mount Rushmore in order to highlight and preserve the Native American heritage of our nation. The entire carving is 641 feet long and 563 feet high — as compared to Mount Rushmore, on which George Washington’s face is only 60 feet long.
A popular fall event at the monument is the Volksmarch, an organized 10,000-meter hike that gives participants the chance to walk up the world’s largest monument; it is held annually at the end of September and in the spring.
Another special fall event is the Native Americans’ Day celebration, held each year on the second Monday of October. The celebration was established by the South Dakota legislature to honor the history and heritage of the country’s Native Americans. The celebration includes Native American singing and dance performances, storytelling and, weather permitting, a blast on the mountain. This year’s celebration is scheduled for October 10.
Custer State Park
The Buffalo Round-Up at Custer State Park is a must-see event for those visiting South Dakota in the fall. The 2015 Buffalo Round-Up was the 50th anniversary of the event and hosted more than 21,000 visitors to watch the annual corralling of Custer State Park’s 1,300 head of American bison. It was also named the American Bus Association’s top event in the United States for 2015.
The morning of the event starts with an early wake-up call to get a good spot in one of the two viewing areas before the roundup begins at 9:30. I spoke with many of the locals, who said they wake up around 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. to head to the park. Luckily, our group didn’t have to set out nearly so early, but we still had prime spots to watch the herd as it thundered over the hills into the valley below and the cowboys and park rangers herded the bison to the corrals to be sorted and the calves vaccinated.
In combination with the roundup, Custer State Park also holds the Buffalo Arts Festival. The festival hosts around 150 vendors that feature examples of fine art as well as many South Dakota-made artisan products. Also at the park are the Annual Buffalo-Wallow Chili Cook-Off, a bison chili cooking competition, and the Cabela’s Challenge Dutch Oven Cook Off. I would also suggest that visitors take the drive around the park’s Wildlife Loop, where they can see a number of animals, among them pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, prairie dogs, elk and burros, as well as bison.
Badlands National Park
SD 240, better known as the Badlands Loop Scenic Byway, is a gorgeous stretch of highway that highlights the variety of landscapes that fall within the borders of South Dakota. The stretch of highway has around 30 scenic overlooks that make great photo-worthy stops, with the landscape often varying from stop to stop. We saw many-hued strata streaking the rock layers and tall, spindly rock formations created from years of erosion. The wide stretches of protected grasslands had their own mesmerizing beauty.
My favorite spot was the Pinnacles Overlook. From the road, we were able to catch only a glimpse of the landscape, but once we pulled off and walked toward the path, the stretch of land opened up to reveal a stunning view. I walked down the path to its lowest point and stood on the edge of the cliff. From that point, the perspective includes multiple pockets of land. Directly beneath, the steep ravine is crowded with pine trees before opening up to grasslands below and the stretch of hills and rock structures in the distance.
