I'm surprised by how much Ryker and Kya loved this place. We spent a lot more time there than I thought we would. They were amazed to say the least.
1980
1986....Hey Dad, you cut Mount Rushmore out!
Kya thought Abe looks like Seth. I was a bit confused but upon further explanation, it was because of the beard. Haha, I guess all men with facial hair look the same.
We walked the loop below the carving and saw some goats.
I couldn't remember if it was Jefferson or Hamilton that was the second face on the car ride down. Now Kya's messed up too, because she kept telling people after we got back that the second face was Jefferson Hamerson. It's kind of a joke between her and Ryker now, but I hope she's not sitting in History class someday stuck on a test because she can't get Jefferson Hamerson out of her head!
This was the model they made before the carving. I didn't know that they had originally planned on carving full busts of the presidents and not just heads. Time and money shortages resulted in just the heads being finished. Ryker and Kya loved this building too. They had a lot of questions that I never expected. Learning about the secret room behind the carvings really peeked their interest.
They were even intrigued by the black and white movie that showed how it was built. I thought it was great, but I thought the film quality might make them lose interest quickly. It didn't and boy did they had a lot of questions about dynamite after. They needed one more picture after they got their Jr. Ranger vests and their Mount Rushmore patch.
