ncgrrl

I have a frequent flyer ticket and would love to visit Mt. Rushmore. I think it would be a good value to me to use it to fly to Rapid City. I would like to go mid-Mayish (before summer crowds), but I want most everything to be 'open for the season' and the temperatures at least with a high in the 60's. I know I can't predict weather, but I can pick dates by openings.

So, in my roundabout, vague way, would you recommend visiting Mt. Rushmore in mid-May.

Right now, I'm more in the early, early planning stages of this trip.

mlm59

I can't speak for normal temps at that time of year, but can tell you that it was quite chilly when we were there this past Memorial Day weekend. The crowds were not bad at all. It was cool during the day, but right down cold at night. We went to the lighting ceremony and nearly froze, although we had on jeans and jackets. We needed winter coats, gloves, and hats. The wind was quite strong and the temperatures in the 30's. We drove to Deadwood on Monday and it sleeted on us just outside of town.

ncgrrl

Thanks for your response. Maybe I ought to try for a fall trip there.

Ah, the joys of a free ticket. Maybe I'll think of another expensive place to go in spring instead of Rapid City.

mlm59

Even though it was chilly, we really enjoyed our visit to the area. Like you, we had a free ticket to use and decided to go someplace that would otherwise be quite expensive, at least from our area. Are you flying United? If so you will have to probably get on a turboprop in Denver. Not my favorite thing to do, but it was okay.

We enjoyed this trip because there was so much to do in a relative small area.
We visited the Badlands, Wall Drug, the Journey Museum in Rapid City, Mt. Rushmore both at night and during the day, Custer State Park, Crazy Horse, which are all not far from Keystone. We then went to Hot Springs and toured the Wild Horse Sanctuary and the Mammoth site and from there drove to Deadwood the next day. We really enjoyed this trip and would recommend it to anyone. The week just before Memorial Day might be a good time, just plan to take some warm clothes for the evening.

Cornelius15

You could get lucky even in Feb/Mar
with the often common
Banana Belt Weather ei 60-70 degrees
about while Wyo Mn ND and rest of sd
are Freezing. Something to Consider.

Tess

I will say that this year was strange, weather-wise. I live a few hours from Mt. Rushmore and have similar weather. It really didn't warm up until July, if you can believe it. This isn't normal for us!

The bad thing about visiting mid-May is that some of the touristy things may not open until Memorial Day. Mt. Rushmore, of course, will be open and you'll definitely escape the crowds. It should be a gorgeous time to visit--pack a sweatshirt and jacket, just in case.