Just days ago I didn’t even know what it is now we have been on one.  A pretty impressive one at that; typically it is a once a year Spring opportunity to hike Crazy Horse Memorial Mountain.  Luckily this year they also held a Fall Volksmarch and we got the rare chance to come face to face with the larger than life image of the great Chief Crazy Horse as it emerges from Black Hills granite.

Chief Crazy Horse Monument

We hiked 6.2 miles through woodland, across blast debris zones, and up the mountain along the progressive blast lines to find ourselves standing right at his chin.  When complete all of Mt. Rushmore will fit in the space occupied by his head.  This is a colossal undertaking driven forward by the sheer will of one family and the dollars of thousands of individual private donors.

The project is awe inspiring no matter how you feel about the politics or the ecological impact.  This was a great way to see it up close.

Model and Mountain