We spent 2-3 hours at the Reptile Gardens, seeing a bird show, snake show, and best of all the Crocodilian show, where the guide showed us his alligator wrestling techniques. We also saw a bald eagle, a couple of 100+ year old tortoises, Prairie dogs and walked through the main attraction, their animal dome. Once we had finished looking at animals, we went over to the food court, and tried our first funnel cake, delicious!
Next stop was what was called 'Bear Country', a drive through park where you went through Moose enclosures, (each enclosure was a few hectares of hilly grasslands), Reindeer, Mule Deer, Arctic Wolves, Long Horn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Goats, and the best of all, the biggest enclosure, the Black Bears.
There would have been no less then 100 bears walking all around you, the closest one got to me was within touching distance, bumping the tires of our car, and generally trying to create havoc. They were everywhere! Strutting up and down the road, climbing on cars, even saw a few having a go at creating new life, and right in the middle of a big pack of other bears? One of the more different experiences I've had in life, but it was amazing.
Once we had finished the drive we went area where all of the babies of each species were kept, here we ate lunch. In the babies area they also had a couple of massive Grizzly Bears, and about 60 Black Bear cubs.
We were soon finished there and on to our next destination, Custor City (named after General Custer). It was a beautiful town, and before we knew it we had spent 3 hours there, looking at all the Native Indian shops, little cafés and all the Monuments and Murals (and Gena is still toying with the idea of buying an Indian Headdress).
We had to get a move on though as we had to be at Mt. Rushmore by 9:00pm for the evening 'Light Show'. We took the scenic route, which gave us terrific views, and we also drove through 2 tunnels that were designed to give you a direct view of Mt. Rushmore as you drove through them. It would of been better if Bailey and I weren't as green after we finished driving it - very windy roads.
From left to right, George Washington (1st President who went from War Hero to the first leader shaping the way for future leaders), Thomas Jefferson (3rd President who wrote the Declaration of Independance), Theodore Roosevelt (26th President, visionary who set the country up for their future as a world power) & Abraham Lincoln (16th President, wrote the Emancipation Proclimation, ending slavery. He also guided the country through and out of a Civil War, somehow keeping the States United at its conclusion).
The light show was great and gave us a great in look of the creation of Mt. Rushmore, and the story behind each of the presidents carved in granite, how they impacted on the history of their country, leaving no doubt why they were the ones chosen to be immortalised.
~Riley.
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