Experience Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills

"An emerald isle in a sea of prairie," as they are sometimes called, the Black Hills rise up from the western South Dakota plains just over the Wyoming state line. Their tallest summit measures only 7,242 feet, and they cover a territory just 50 mi wide and 120 mi long. Still, these ponderosa-covered mountains have a majesty all their own. The Black Hills can also claim one of the highest concentrations of public parks, monuments, and memorials in the world. Among the more famous are Badlands National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, and Mount Rushmore National Memorial, whose giant stone carvings of four U.S. presidents have retained their stern grandeur for more than 60 years.