A quick trip to South Dakota

Time to check another state off the list: South Dakota. Flew in for a conference and the first night it snowed! And then we lost power at the lodge. Very exciting first night. I stayed at the Game State Lodge in Custer. This was the “Summer White House” for President Coolidge. It was really cozy and nice. I was there for a conference where I had to speak on a panel and also met up with my old coworker Nancy.
And today I went on a Buffalo Safari!! My first safari.. well I guess technically my first was at Animal Kingdom. But first ‘real’ one. And yes, I have worked at the sister company of a safari operator for 15 years but no, I have never been to Tanzania or any safari. So this is exciting. We rode through the park off-roading in open air Jeeps. (It was definitely cold so pack accordingly if you ever do this - even in September). And the buffalo - they are massive! HUGE. Over 1,400 currently living in Custer State Park.
We also visited Mt. Rushmore National Memorial. Completed in 1941 it took 14 years to carve the 60 foot high faces of 4 presidents into the mountain. I do wish I brought an actual camera. You can see from the photo using an iPhone didn’t really capture it. We were there at dusk and you walk up a long path to a viewing point but you aren’t super close. Still impressive.
Oh and the airport was really small. I flew in/out of Rapid City, located in the southwest corner of the state. When I got to the airport to check in for my flight home there were only four people ahead of me so I thought it was going to be super fast. And then was surprised to realize each of them was over five minutes because they all had rifles and there is a specific process for checking them in including showing paperwork and dismantling. Apparently this part of the country is really popular with the hunters!

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