spirobulldog

I am not going this year, but might go next year. Would like to know if it is worth fighting the crowds and how crowded is crowded?

spirobulldog

One other question. Is there a standout in the lodging choices at Custer State Park? I haven't done much research on the various lodges there yet.

bc

Topping this. Does anyone have any information on this? I too am thinking of going next Independence Day. However, after reading of the "tens of thousands" of people who attend, and how early in the morning you have to be there, I am losing interest. Is anyone aware of a place that is less crowded but you would still have a decent view of the monument and the fireworks? I have seen an article that mentions "locations in Keystone" but I have no idea what locations they are talking about or how crowded that area would be. Anyone?

spirobulldog

I emailed the NPS website and asked them where the best spot was and what they do in the event of weather and if it is always on July 3.


Their answer was

Best spot is in the park

that is all the reply i got.

bc

Yes, that is all I got also. I don't necessarily want the BEST spot. I want a spot where I can actually see the monument AND the fireworks, even if it is from a distance, that is not so crowded. It sort of sounds like nothing like that exists, doesn't it?

spirobulldog

Well, I actually want the best spot and I am willing to wait however long before and after the event that is needed in order to have it. LOL. I haven't been to the Monument and would like to see it on the 4th. We dined one year in the Stratosphere in Las Vegas on the 4th and we were in Niagra Falls for both Canada Day and 4th. Vegas and the falls both had very good fireworks. There was a tremendous amount of people at the falls, but our hotel was only a short walk, so we didn't have to fight the traffic as we were on foot. I would imagine the traffic at the Monument would be pretty bad for an hour or even two afterwards. But really 20,000 people isn't that many people. I was hoping that someone could just save seats for 3 people for the day. I can't imagine there being that much to do there for the entire day. I am trying to decide to I want to go during the 4th or go on a less crowded time and just spend a few hours there.

tbsdebbie

I have been to Mt. Rushmore, but not on 4th of July. They have a seating area with a stage that shows a video presentation and then the fireworks above the monument. It was a nice show when we saw it, I can only imagine how awesome it would be on the 4th.

spirobulldog

So they have fireworks there every night?

AAFrequentFlyer

not the best quality video but you get the idea...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1UWwz3pIMM

wiggles

Just went to the celebration last Thursday and it was awesome! Estimates that we heard was there was upwards of 30,000 people there. In my opinion, every true American should get to see the Mount Rushmore fireworks at least once in there lives. It was well worth it. Not only were the fireworks over the Monument spectacular, but the entire day made us realize how lucky and proud we are to be living in the United States.

We arrived at Mount Rushmore at 9:00am and had no problem getting a parking spot in one of the two parking garages. We promptly made our way to the Amphitheater and scored great seats there as well. We brought our cooler and chairs in and carved out a little spot for ourselves and we did not feel overcrowed at all. In fact, with the museum, the sculptor's studio, the bookstore, the hiking trail and the continuous provided entertainment, the 12 hour wait for the fireworks actually went very quickly. We had my 4 and 7 year old nephews there and they don't like to be inactive and they never complained about a lack of things to do.

So in short, is it worth "fighting the crowds?" In my opinion, ABSOLUTELY!!!

spirobulldog

Thanks Wiggles, that is the kind of info I was wanting to hear. Did it take you long to exit the park? I wonder what they do in the event of rain on the 3rd.

wiggles

It took us about an hour to exit the park and that included the 15 minutes or so that we just chilled in our chairs after the fireworks ended. They hold everyone in the garages back until the vast majority of the people who walk the 2 miles from Keystone are off the streets. Once the park officials gave our level of the garage the OK to start our engines we were out in about 2 minutes. Once again, the 1hr was an extremely minor inconvienience considering the memorable events of the day.

As far as what they do in the event of bad weather on the 3rd.... I was told they reschedule for the 4th. Our biggest fear was waiting all day and then having a massive thunderstorm that would cancel the fireworks, but we ended up with great weather all day long.

spirobulldog

Wiggles,

Where do you think would be the best place to camp out for the day in order to see the fireworks that evening? we will have myself, wife, and 16 year old daughter with us. I figure that one of us can just stay with our stuff while the other two look at what is available to look at. Should we take chairs (don't know if they even allow this). do we want to sit on the ground with a blanket, or sit in the amphitheater or where????? I now think I will plan this for 2010 not 2009 because my daughter will be 16 then and to do the wild cave tours at Jewel Cave and Wind Cave you must be 16.

wiggles

Here's what we did. Got there at 9am and promptly went to the amphitheater. We brought in a couple small coolers with drinks, lunch and snacks etc. Also brought in a couple blankets, two camp chairs, a pillow, some reading material and games. The seats at the amphitheater are just wooden benches, but what was really nice is that the area where you would put your feet (before the next bench starts in front of you) was really wide... probably about 3.5 feet. It was wide enough to put camp chairs there, so we put a blanket on our 6 foot section of bench to claim as our space and then set up to camp chairs down below and there was plenty of seating for the 5 of us (3 adults and a 4 & 7 yr old). Never once did we feel overcrowded as all the early goers who got seats in the amphitheater clearly respected everyone else's space. Now, as the day went on and we ventured throughout the park, it did seem like some people were a little cramped. They set up tv screens in some select locations so that people can see what's going on at the amphitheater stage. Outside the amphitheater seating it looked like it was pretty much a free for all to find any type of a spot, though certainly alot of people still had great views of the fireworks. If you have patience, I think anywhere in the park can give you a great day, but we were very happy to have a fairly relaxing day in the Amphitheater.

We always kept one person at out little spot and no one ever had a problem with someone else trying to encroach upon us. Other than fireworks (obviously the highlight) they also had an F-16 flyover, B2 flyover & B1 flyover. There were Presidential impersonators (Lincoln and Roosevent), a performace by an army band, flag presentation to the last remaining US soldier from WWI (107 yrs old). They also had a children's motivational speaker who hosted the days events and it was basically a very patriotic / family event. As you can tell, we enjoyed ourselves. I'll stop rambling, but if you have any more questions just ask. Hope this helps some.