13.5.2012 – 13.5.2012  17 °C

After a fairly basic brekky we headed straight to Mt Rushmore to see it with full sun on the sculpture. (Note for anyone else thinking of seeing the monument, morning is the best time as the monument faces east). We arrived to find the monument very quiet (we picked a great time to see it). You can see the monument from quite a distance. Each of the heads is about 50ft high and probably about the same wide.

The entrance to the monument is via a flag lined colonnade. The flags represent all of the states of America and are attached to pillars that mark the dates that each state joined the union. New York state, for example, joined the union in the year 1788.. Pretty good year that one!

At the end of the colonnade you get a terrific view of the four presidents, (L-R) Washington, Jefferson, T Roosevelt and Lincoln. They were chosen by the sculpture to represent important milestones in America’s first 150 years of white settlement. Washington to represent the foundation of the country, Jefferson to represent the expansion of the west (encouraging white settlers to move westwards), T Roosevelt to represent the integration of the US into the international community and Lincoln to represent his attempts to preserve the union during the Civil War.

After following around a ranger for an hour (how else did you think I knew what each president represented?) and a good fifty photos of the monument we headed northwards to the town of Deadwood. The ‘baddest’ western town that was!

The drive up to Deadwood was fairly uneventful, we passed thru more of the beautiful Black Hills and arrived just in time for lunch. Deadwood, was not the town I was expecting… I had in my mind another western town similar to what I saw in Durango, lots of wooden shops a couple of hitching posts.. this wasn’t too be! Deadwood burnt down a couple of times in the late 1800s, so the town we see today is all stone and was rebuilt after the second fire. Deadwood is known as the town where Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickock resided. Its also the town where Wild Bill met his end (he was shot from behind at close range whilst gambling). Today, Deadwood is a restored historic town. To fund the full restoration Sth Dakota issued Deadwood with gambling licenses (back in the late 80s) on the proviso that gambling was taxed and that a certain percentage of the money was put straight into the restoration and upkeep of this historic town.

The other disappointing thing about Deadwood is the lack of costume and period actors.. I think this town could really rock if they had a fake shoot-out in the main street every day, sheriff riding around, saloon girls hanging out the windows.. you know the style I mean!! Instead it’s a Vegas that is set in 1880s style saloon halls with poker machines and uninterested bar staff! It really didn’t work for me!!!

Lunch was at a 50s diner (again, how does this fit into the theme??) before we headed over the road to Bullocks Hotel. According to D (who watched the whole series of Deadwood) this is where Seth Bullock ran the town. The real Seth Bullock was the local sheriff and he owned one of the shops in town. He arrived in town the day before Hickock was killed and was named sheriff not long after his death. Today he is remembered as a hotelier and his hotel is well restored inside but really lacks the panache when it is filled with bell ringing poker machines…. Where’s the poker tables and six shooters??

We continued our wander up the road with our next stop being the infamous #10 saloon. This really had a wild west saloon feel to it.. It is the saloon where Wild Bill met his end. It is dark and dingy, set up with long bars and poker tables and plenty of memorabilia on the walls of the wild west. The best part was that the floor is covered in saw dust (I guess to soak up the spilled beer and blood?)

Our last stop in town was down at the local tourist info to hear more about the characters that really made the town. Believe it or not, the ‘baddest town’ probably wasn’t that bad! Like everything the stories have been embellished over time. The town was so respectable that it had a ladies club (sewing circle style of thing) and the opera and theatre came to town every so often!!

After being a little disappointed by Deadwood we chose to continue our drive back west towards Yellowstone so that we could allow more time in the Tetons. This meant, we drove for a couple of hours late in the afternoon until we arrived at the town of Gillette, Wyoming. Our accom for the evening was surprisingly cheap but good (although I’ll hold all votes until I see how I sleep).. hot tub, brekky all for 62 dollars! Time to go find that hot tub….

Song of the Day  Peaches, Presidents of America