South Dakota Adventure

Transcription

1 South Dakota Adventure May 28-Jun 5, 2019 Join our 9-day adventure to historic South Dakota! Our spring motorcoach tour heads west to South Dakota! We will have a full schedule with visits to the Badlands National Park, Wall Drug, Mt. Rushmore National Monument, Custer State Park, Crazy Horse Memorial, and more! At a Glance: A 9-day, 8-night tour to South Dakota aboard a Royal Excursion motorcoach. The tour fee of $1,850* includes transportation, lodging, all breakfasts, most dinners, some lunches, all admission fees, taxes and gratuities. Attractions include: Badlands National Park Wall Drug Mt. Rushmore National Park Custer St. Park Crazy Horse Memorial Adams House & Days of 76 Museum & More! *Members price, per person, double occupancy. $1,900 nonmembers price. $457 single supplement.

2 South Dakota Adventure Day 1 May 28 (Tuesday) We have an early departure from the History Center parking lot in Berrien Springs right at 6:30 a.m. to begin our South Dakota Adventure. We will keep entertained with a movie on the motorcoach DVD player and win great prizes with some useless trivia games. Our new mascot, the fluffy teddy bear disguised as a duck will supervise the motorcoach stops. For this tour we will be travelling aboard a Royal Excursion motorcoach. Their coaches are impeccably maintained, their drivers are wonderful, and they re great to work with. The coaches have air-conditioning, wi-fi, comfortable seats, and a bathroom for emergencies (we always make rest stops every 2 to 2 ½ hours). We will arrive at the Days Inn in Austin, Minnesota, around 4:30 p.m. where we will stay for the night. You have an hour to settle in your room and freshen up before we depart for dinner at Perkins Family Restaurant. We will return to the Days Inn for a good night s sleep. As always, our hotel offers a complimentary breakfast in the morning. Days Inn only offers a cold breakfast, but it will surely be enough fuel to get us back on the road in the morning. Day 2 May 29 (Wednesday) After breakfast at the hotel we ll depart promptly at 7:45 a.m for our 8:00 a.m. appointment at the Hormel Historic House. Completed in 1871 by local businessman and politician John Cook, the red brick house was originally built in Italianate style. The home was purchased by George A. Hormel in 1901 and an extensive remodeling project began in As part of the renovation, the brick was covered with stucco and Classical Revival details were added to the home s interior and exterior. Many of the home s interior furnishings were imported from Europe and Quezal and Tiffany artglass are used on fixtures throughout the home. Following his retirement in 1927, Hormel and his wife Lillian moved to California, donating the home to the local YWCA chapter. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in We will step aboard our bus again for the remaining 7.5 hours to Rapid City, South Dakota. We will enjoy some more trivia and another DVD before arriving at the Country Inn and Suites, our hotel while we explore South Dakota. Dinner tonight will be on your own. There is a restaurant next to our hotel that is a wonderful option. Day 3 May 30 (Thursday) After traveling for two days it is certain that we will be more than ready to view the sites of South Dakota! After enjoying our breakfast we will board the bus at 7:45 am for our first stop of the day: Badlands National Park. First assigned as a National Monument in 1929, the Badlands protects 242,756 acres of sharply eroded buttes and pinnacles, and is home to the largest undisturbed mixed grass prairie in the United States. Redesignated as a National Park in 1978, the Badlands are co-managed by the National Park Service and the Oglala Lakota tribe and is one site where the black-footed ferret, one of the most endangered mammals in the world, was reintroduced to the wild. We will view the park from the comfort of the bus and make a stop at the Badlands Ranch Store Prairie Dog Town. The store is famous for its 6-ton Prairie Dog and is home to a large prairie dog colony. You can walk around the colony and even toss some unsalted peanuts for the prairie dogs to snack on! Our next stop will be at the famed roadside attrac-

3 tion of Wall Drug. Since 1931, Wall Drug draws thousands of visitors because of a simple offer: free ice water. Due to quick thinking on the part of the owners, the Husteads, and a lot of signs pointing the way, free ice water turned into a milliondollar idea. More than 2 million people come through Wall in order to stop at the popular drugstore for a meal, 5 cent coffee, and, of course, free ice water. We will stay in Wall for lunch on our own and to explore the shops. Returning to the Country Inn and Suites we will freshen up before our dinner at the Circle B. Chuckwagon. Nestled among the Black Hills, the Chuckwagon offers fun and family-friendly western entertainment.we will enjoy our fixin s (foil wrapped baked potatoes, cowboy beans, chunky applesauce, biscuits, spice cake, hot cowboy coffee, and cold lemonade) while a cowboy show entertains us. Once we ve had our fill we will return to our hotel for a good night s rest. Day 4 - May 31 (Friday) After our scrumptious breakfasts of our own designs, we will board the bus again at 7:45 am for the infamous Mt. Rushmore. Mount Rushmore National Memorial focuses on a sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills in Keystone, South Dakota. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum created the sculpture s design and oversaw the project s execution from 1927 to 1941 with the help of his son Lincoln Borglum. The sculptures feature the 60-foot (18 m) heads of Presidents George Washington ( ), Thomas Jefferson ( ), Theodore Roosevelt ( ), and Abraham Lincoln ( ). South Dakota historian Doane Robinson is credited with conceiving the idea of carving the likenesses of famous people into the Black Hills region of South Dakota in order to promote tourism in the region. His initial idea was to sculpt the Needles; however, Gutzon Borglum rejected the Needles because of the poor quality of the granite and strong opposition from American Indian groups. They settled on Mount Rushmore, which also has the advantage of facing southeast for maximum sun exposure. Robinson wanted it to feature American West heroes such as Lewis and Clark, Red Cloud, and Buffalo Bill Cody, but Borglum decided that the sculpture should have broader appeal and chose the four presidents. Senator Peter Norbeck sponsored the project and secured federal funding; construction began in 1927, and the presidents faces were completed between 1934 and Gutzon Borglum died in March 1941, and his son Lincoln took over as leader of the construction project. Each president was originally to be depicted from head to waist, but lack of funding forced construction to end on October 31, The monument welcomes over 2 million visitors each year. From Mt. Rushmore we will venture on to the Iron Mountain Road. Stretching 17 miles, this stretch of roadway will leave an impression--either good or bad. With curves and switchbacks a plenty, the design of the road is intentional to force you to slow down, to take the time to see and feel things that you don t experience every day. Looking out the window we may see pigtail bridges, one lane tunnels that showcase Mt. Rushmore, a herd of buffalo, turkeys, antelope, or even some big horn sheep! Upon finishing the Iron Mountain Road, we will arrive at Sylvan Lake Lodge for lunch. Surrounded by the beauty of the Black Hills and Custer State Park, you will drink in the views while you consume your meal, leaving refreshed and invigorated.

4 Custer State Park is the largest (71,000 acres) and first state park in South Dakota (est. 1912) named after Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer. During the 1930s, amidst the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps built miles of roads, laid out parks and campgrounds (still used today!) and built three dams. The park is home to a herd of some 1,500 free roaming bison. Additionally you may encounter elk, coyotes, numerous deer, mountain goats, prairie dogs, bighorn sheep, river otters, cougars, pronghorn, and begging burros who have an inclination to wander right up to vehicles looking for food and a good ear scratch. We will view the park via the Wildlife Loop - an 18-mile expanse that will take us through the various terrains and landscapes of Custer State Park. Afterward, we will return to our hotel for the rest of the day. progress since 1948 and is not close to being completed. If finished, it will be the world s second tallest sculpture. We will have a step-on-guide join us at the monument. We will have an early lunch at Laughing Waters restaurant. Laughing Water Restaurant takes its name from an area creek with headwaters at the bottom of Crazy Horse Mountain. It runs south to the town of Custer where it joins French Creek. During the drought of the 1930s, Laughing Water Creek was one of the few in the area that did not dry up. People from miles around would bring their wagons and barrels to fill them with water. The menu includes a Native American Taco: home-made Indian fry bread topped with taco meat, refried beans, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, onions, salsa, and sour cream. Day 5 - June 1 (Saturday) Today we will have a little more time in the morning (hooray!) and will board the bus at 8:45 am to head to Crazy Horse Memorial. Located on private property in the Black Hills, Crazy Horse Memorial is still under construction. Commissioned by Henry Standing Bear, a Lakota Elder, the monument will show Crazy Horse, an Oglala Lakota warrior, riding a horse and pointing into the distance. The monument has been in Boarding the bus again we will go to Deadwood City where we will tour the Adams House. Built in 1892, the Queen Anne-style home is well-known for its oak interiors, hand-painted canvas wall coverings, stained-glass windows, thoroughly modern 19th century plumbing, electricity, telephone service, and original furnishings. The house sat silent for more than 50 years after W.E. Adams death in His second wife, Mary Adams, left everything intact, from the sheet music on the piano, the books in the library and the china in the pantry to the patent medicines in the bathroom, and even cookies in a cookie jar. The home was purchased by the Deadwood Historic Preservation Commission in 1992 and restored as a house museum in Following our tour of the Adams House, we will have time to explore the Days of 76 Museum on our own. The museum is dedicated to celebrating the early pioneers of Deadwood who came in 1876 as part of a gold rush. From Deadwood we will go to Spearfish Falls. Considered by some to be off the beaten path, the Spearfish Falls is well worth the stop and will prove a good way

5 to break up the day. Spearfish Falls was actually one of the most popular tourist stops in the northern Black Hills around the beginning of the 19th century when a Burlington Railroad line took passengers directly over it, parts of which can still be found on the trail today. The trail to this 47 ft waterfall starts at the parking lot for the Latchstring Restaurant and is roughly 3/4 mile in length. Between 1917 and 2003, the water that created the waterfall was diverted to a hydroelectric plant that helped power the Homestake Gold Mine. Because of the near 100 year diversion, the waterfalls fell off the radar and is now a less-common tourist attraction. Hopefully the walking at Spearfish has worked up an appetite for dinner. Tonight while dining we will be joined by Professor Kelly Krik from Black Hills State University who will share with us the history of the Black Hills area and Native American legends. After dinner we will return to our hotel for another good night s rest. Day 6 - June 2 (Sunday) Today we will leave the hotel for the day at 9:15 a.m.! We will head straight to downtown Main Street Square, Rapid City where we will have time to explore the area on our own. Take the time to find all 42 life-sized bronze sculptures of U. S. Presidents and visit the Prairie Edge Galleries where you can find Native American arts, crafts, and artifact reproductions. Once you ve found your favorite item to purchase, make your way to Murphy s Pub & Grill where we will all meet for lunch. After lunch we will visit the Journey Museum. The Journey Museum & Learning Center brings together five major prehistoric and historic collections to tell the complete story of the Western Great Plains - from the perspective of the Lakota people and their unique Native American history, and the pioneers who shaped its past, to the scientists who now study it. From the Journey Museum we will make our way to Bear Country, U. S. A. Nestled over 200 acres amidst towering pines and along rolling meadows just eight miles south of Rapid City, Bear Country U.S.A. offers visitors intimate views of most North American mammals. We will take a leisurely three-mile drive through several enclosures and encounter black bear, elk, reindeer, deer, cougars, bobcats, rocky mountain goats, bighorn sheep, dall sheep, pronghorn and buffalo. We will return to the hotel to freshen up for dinner at the Ruby House Restaurant. When we walk through the doors of the Ruby House Restaurant it will feel like we ve walked through the doors of a time machine to the turn of the century and the days of the Wild, Wild West. Red velvet draperies and wall hangings blend with period pictures and prints beautifully displayed in antique frames. Also displayed are antique handguns and rifles, carnival glass and china. You may also step next door into the Red Garter Saloon for a strong drink. We will finish our evening by enjoying the Night Lighting at Mt. Rushmore before returning to our hotel. Day 7 - June 2 (Monday) We have an earlier start today and will want to eat breakfast as soon as possible so we can load the bus at 7:45 a.m. We will head for the Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary. The Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary began 30 years ago when Dayton O. Hyde raised funds to place a down payment on a sanctuary near Hot Springs, South Dakota, and convinced the Bureau of Land Management to send him the

6 unadoptable wild horses. Now, the sanctuary is home to hundreds of wild horses who can roam free and flourish. We will have lunch at Mornin Sunshine Coffee House before traveling to Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, SD. In 1974, Phil Anderson was developing his land in Hot Springs for a housing development. George Hanson, a heavy equipment operator, was grading a small hill when his blade struck something: a tusk about seven feet long! After contacting several universities who were not interested, Mr. Hanson s son, Dan, who had taken courses in geology and archaeology, reached out to his college professor, Dr. Larry Agenbroad from Chadron State College in Nebraska. In 1975, Dr. Agenbroad and Dr. Jim Mead led a team of volunteer students who began excavating the site revealing an unprecedented number of specimens recovered. By the end of that summer, Mr. Anderson realized that his property of 14-acres would be much more valuable as a resource for scientific study rather than a housing development, and the Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, a non-profit organization, was created. Day 8 - June 4 (Tuesday) We will enjoy an early breakfast and board the bus at 6:45 a.m. to head to Austin, Minnesota. We can rest on the bus, watch some more DVDs, take some more useless trivia quizzes, and share photos with each other that we ve taken on our adventure. We will be sure to stop every few hours to get out and stretch, use the bathroom, and grab some food en route. Once we arrive in Austin, we will enjoy dinner at the Old Mill Restaurant, a local eatery. As the name implies, The Old Mill Restaurant has been around for a long time. The structure was originally built in the late 1850 s by two brothers from Lancashire, England, and has gone through several changes and owners over the years. In 1949, it became a restaurant using the old framework and beams while preserving the twin hand hew posts in the main dining room. Dave and Ann Forland, owners since 1988, are continuing to carry on the tradition of one of the most historic restaurants in southern Minnesota. We will be staying in the same Days Inn we stayed at on our way out to South Dakota. Day 9 - June 5 (Wednesday) After breakfast we will load the bus at 8:45 a.m. to make a visit to the Spam Museum. Yes, the Spam Museum. When the first SPAM Can came off the production line in 1937, the world was forever changed. This revolutionary new product won over the hearts of soldiers, world leaders, celebrities, chefs, kids and parents. Gracie Allen, Dwight Eisenhower, Margaret Thatcher and Monty Python all have sung praises of SPAM products. And future generations continue to enjoy it as a versatile, high-quality and great-tasting meal-time favorite. The whole world can t get enough of the iconic taste and the effortless meal creativity contained within this little blue can. At the museum we will learn more than we ever thought we would need to know about the iconic blue can. We will reboard the bus and finish our journey back to the Berrien County Historical Association. After our tour of the Mammoth Site we will return to our hotel for a free evening where you can decide what to do and where to eat; but be sure to get enough rest as we will be loading our bus early in the morning to begin our trek back to Michigan.

7 Yes! Sign me up for the History Center s South Dakota Adventure! Name(s): Address: City: State: Zip: Telephone: A $500 per person deposit will reserve your place on the tour. Balance will be due at the reservation deadline, April 26, Deposits are fully refundable 60 days before departure. Reservations at members price, $1, per person Reservations at non-members price, $1,900.00* $ single supplement Enclosed is a check in the amount of $ Please charge $ to my Visa/Mastercard/Discover Card No.: Exp. Date: * Join now and take immediate advantage of the members discount. We cannot refund deposits or payments made after April 26, Join the History Center Today! Name (s): Phone: Address: Fax: City: State: Zip: Membership categories: [ ] Individual $20 [ ] Contributing $40 [ ] Family $30 [ ] Sustaining $50 [ ] Institutional $40 [ ] Patron $100 [ ] Benefactor $500 Additional donation $ Amount Enclosed: $ Please make checks payable to the Berrien County Historical Association or Please charge my credit card: (Circle one) MasterCard Visa Discover Card Number: Expiration Date: Mail or fax to: BCHA, PO Box 261, Berrien Springs, MI Phone: (269) Fax: (269) We encourage the purchase of travel insurance in case unforeseen events force you to cancel at the last minute. Contact Kay Walker at / or kaywalker@cruisesinternational.com.

8 Join our South Dakota Adventure, May 28 - June 5, 2019 Questions? Call us at (269) or Museum Services Coordinator Kelsey Curnutt: kcurnutt@berrienhistory.org Berrien County Historical Association PO Box 261 Berrien Springs, MI CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED Non-Profit Org. U. S. Postage PAID Berrien Springs, MI PERMIT No. 38