Keystone, South Dakota

   Welcome back to my blog. Remember we had planned and researched for this trip for about 5 or 5 and a half months. Now it was time to go. We the had an early flight and a quick connecting flight in Charlotte, North Carolina. We just did make it.

   We arrived in Rapid City, South Dakota about 10 AM Mountain Time. We picked up our Tacoma rental and headed out. The first stop was Millstone Family Restaurant for breakfast. This is a regional diner with locations around the western part of South Dakota. The breakfast was good and we headed 30 miles southwest to Keystone.

   Arriving in town, you notice American Flags everywhere and how clean it is. We stopped for coffee at a quaint little place called Grapes and Grinds. You guessed it; they have the coffee drinkers and the wine drinkers covered. The day started very early for a 5:20 flight, so it already seemed long. The coffee hit the spot. We still had about 3 hours before we could check into a VRBO cabin we had booked just outside of town. We were prepared for this when we were planning this trip and crossed the street to Rushmore Adventure Park. The park is very pretty and offers zip lines, mountain coasters, hikes and picnic areas, but we only wanted a chair lift to the top of the mountain. It takes you up to a garden area of beautiful flower beds, waterfalls, and trails. There is also a small cafe overlooking the valley. Across the valley, we got our first look at Mount Rushmore. Breathtaking is an understatement.

This was our first look at the iconic carvings atop the mountain. We had plans to go to the actual Mount Rushmore National Park later in the trip, and this view just heightened the anticipation. We sat at a table looking at the view and enjoyed a refreshing drink.

   We then walked around the gardens and trails taking in the beauty and overlooks from on top of the adventure park

   We came back down the chair lift and headed downtown to the famous Red Garter Saloon. It is like stepping back in time with the chandeliers, stained glass, and so many guns from a long ago time period.

   We left and drove the 8 miles to our cabin. We saw deer on the drive there. We pulled into our front yard and there were two deer in the yard. Pretty animals.

We unpacked and freshened up a bit before going back into town to eat. We had selected Powder House Lodge and Restaurant. What a meal! This place is a must if you enjoy eating something you can’t get every day. The regular items on the menu also looked appealing. Darlene and I were adventurous and split the “wild game platter”; plenty of food for both of us. We had buffalo short ribs (fall off the bone tender), stuffed quail with blackberry glaze, elk medallions with pear sauce, a smoked buffalo sausage, and a smoked mixed wild game sausage. I highly recommend dining here. We finished the meal with creme brulee and coffee.

   We left the restaurant with about an hour or so of daylight. We took a very scenic drive around Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road. There are a lot of one lane tunnels and hairpin curves but also some beautiful scenery to enjoy; valleys, mountains, streams, and meadows. Look close and you will notice wildlife all over the place. The moon began to appear signaling the end of a very long but very enjoyable day. What a blessing to have the health and eyesight to see.

   Check back in a few days to see and hear about day two in “The Black Hills”. Custer State Park did not disappoint.