DAY THREE – KEYSTONE, SOUTH DAKOTA TO DENVER, COLORADO

HIGHLIGHTS: Mount Rushmore, Rocky Mountain National Park

DRIVE TIME: Mount Rushmore (South Dakota) to Estes Park, CO about 6.5 hours, Estes Park to Denver about 1.5 hours

 

This is the third post in a series of posts about our week-long western road trip. Each post will break down what we did, where we went and what we saw each day. Most excitingly (that’s totally a word, guys) I’m posting my favorite pictures from the trip. Start from the beginning and check out Day One.

 

The unfortunate sleeping situation at the Econolodge in Keystone, SD might have actually been a blessing. We were up an at ’em so early, we made it to Mount Rushmore for sunrise. I cannot completely and accurately describe how magical this was!! Most people who visit Rushmore have a so-so experience. Something they can just tick off the bucket list. In the summer it can be crowded. The parking structure is so much bigger than I expected, I can’t imagine what it would be like full of tourists. And I definitely wouldn’t want to elbow other tourists for a glimpse of a carved out hill.

However, when we visited in the early morning hours at the end of the season (late October) there were maybe 3 other cars in the parking structure, maybe 6 other people in the viewing area. We had Mount Rushmore to ourselves!

It was freezing that morning, you can tell by the pictures, but we were so excited. The sunrise reflecting off the president’s faces was MAGICAL!

 

After Mount Rushmore, we stopped to catch a glimpse of Crazyhorse because, hey, we were in the area. Driving through the Black Hills was so beautiful. The mountains and the huge trees were majestic after the flat farmland of the Dakotas from the day before.

Onward

We left South Dakota heading south toward Denver, Colorado by way of Wyoming.

Spoiler alert, there is nothing in Wyoming. That’s all I have to say about southeast Wyoming. Sorry…

The landscape on this drive changes significantly. We went from the flat nothing-ness of Wyoming to the Rocky Mountains in the distance. The first glimpse of the rockies on the horizon was so exciting.

Originally, my plan was to drive straight to Denver and spend part of the day exploring the city. But my sister Sara (thankfully) suggested we head toward Estes Park, Colorado and Rocky Mountain National Park for the afternoon. I’m super grateful she made the suggestion. I looooove the mountains. I’ve been to Colorado before and I was so excited to share the rockies with my sisters. Driving toward Estes Park was unbelieveable as the mountains grew from distant ripples on the horizon to mammoth peaks that surrounded us. We cranked a John Denver Greatist Hits CD (yes, CD) and sang our way through the curvy mountain roads. We stopped singing only to whisper a few “Woahs” and “Wows” as we entered the park.

 

We spent a few hours driving through Rocky Mountain National Park and snapping a billion pictures before the sun started to get low in the sky.

 

We decided to head toward Denver for the evening and agreed to upgrade our lodging to a Radisson near downtown Denver. After the disappointing Econolodge experience the night before, we all needed something a bit more comfortable.

 

We found Denver rush hour traffic as we headed into the city (YAY!). After settling in to our hotel, we Uber-ed to downtown. I’ve been to Denver before and wanted to show my sister’s the pedestrian walk with all the fun shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, it was a cold Tuesday night and the few people out and out were wearing creepy Halloween costumes. Exhausted from our adventures, we ate our first restaurant meal since Fargo at the Tap House.

Trying to be thrifty, we packed some groceries before the trip. We’d been eating out of the car for the past few days – trail mix, granola bars, apples and clementine oranges.

We split some appetizers at The Tap House and apologized to each other for being a little cranky. We intended to see some Denver nightlife, but we were exhausted and went to bed super early. The next day we would drive across Colorado to our next destination in Utah.

 

Check back soon for my next Road Trip Diary entry where we see Arches National Park.

 

Have you visited Mount Rushmore or Rocky Mountain National Park? What was your experience like?

Comment below!