Visited this before Mount Rushmore. A very interesting and informative experience. The video was very enlightening and allowed you to understand the scale of the project. A close-up view required extra payment. Exhibitions were very good.
3,347 - 3,351 of 4,093 reviews
I love the mini movie they ask you to watch before walking around the memorial. It was very informative and it's really an amazing story about how this memorial started and even how it got to where it is today. It has a long way to go before it's finalized the way the artist, Korczak Ziolkowski, wanted it to be. He passed away but his family is making sure his dream comes true - with the refusal of government funds. The fee for getting in seems reasonable and all of the proceeds help keep the dream going. I've read reviews that there are pieces that are a part of this memorial that don't make sense - i.e. Shaq's sneaker. The wife of the artist has had lots of things donated to her and the project - they're just put out for people to see. I don't think they intend for people to think they have anything to do with the memorial but every little bit counts/helps for the project.
The day we came was not the best because it was very windy and that meant only generated power. Disappointed that we could not get closer than the visitor centre as you are a long way away from the actual sculpture. Glad that it is privately funded but I hope the time will soon come when they let a team of experts go to work rather than just family or it will never be finished.
If you need something to do, then go. If you have other options, then skip this one.
1: Way too expensive for what you see
2: You are too far away from the mountain, to get closer they want more money for a bus ride.
I don't think this project will ever be completed.
On October 22, 2012 following our tour of Mt. Rushmore we went to "Crazy Horse". It is about 5 minutes away. This is a private project and has taken much longer to develop. It is an example of what can be accomplished without Government support. Currently the face of "Crazy Horse is finished. The remainder of the sculpture is roughly sketched out on the mountain.
The mountain is currently being sculpted, so you can get a very real sense of what is involved in carving a mountain. The grounds contain several buildings. A Museum, An local artists building, a tour of the home of the designer, (Currently being lived in by the designer's wife..87 and still directing the project) a restaurant, several replicas of what will eventually be carved into the mountain, also a documentary and a bus ride to the base of the Mountain. We were there on Sunday so there was no one working, but all of the gear was there. It is highly possible we missed things due to time constraints.
This is truly an example of following a dream. Don't miss it if you are in the area.
As an aside, We came from Colorado Springs,(8 hrs) did both Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse and then started back to Denver to catch a plane We went down through Nebraska. The roads are not a good as coming up through Colorado and Wyoming, but it is much more interesting and comes in very near the Denver airport. Time wise it isn't much different. We stayed in Alliance Nebraska at the Holiday Inn Express. It took us about 4 hours to get to the Airport. A very nice place.
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