End The Insanity!
A year and a half ago, I wrote a piece on a problem we've had at the camp for quite some time. Given that the iPhone 5 (I suspect) has perpetuated this issue, I thought it was worth revisiting.
So.
This is Mount Rushmore.
Mount Rushmore is a national monument. With carvings of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln that stand sixty feet tall, it is one of the most visited monuments in the country. You reach it from Rapid City via a multi-lane highway that is clearly marked by large green interstate-style signs. You will see it before you reach it.
This is Storm Mountain.
Note the lack of granite.
It has a United Methodist church camp reached via a winding gravel road. The camp has a lot of great features but no phenomenal sculptures. There is no view of Mount Rushmore from our trails, lodges, or parking lot.
This week alone, there have been at least five cars that have appeared looking for the heads. Two of those have gotten stuck because, well, it's winter, and there's that "winding gravel road" thing combined with a fair bit of snowfall and subsequent melt. Plus rear-wheel drive cars from Florida. (Just sayin'.)
This may be South Dakota, but we are not so backwoods that we won't give millions of visitors easy access to our most popular attraction. Please, please -- don't trust your phone. Keep an eye on the roadside signs. They've been there longer and they're smarter than your smartphone.
Help us help you. Put the phone away and enjoy the scenery of the beautiful Black Hills. Don't worry -- you'll get to Mount Rushmore without turn-by-turn directions.
So.
This is Mount Rushmore.
Mount Rushmore is a national monument. With carvings of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln that stand sixty feet tall, it is one of the most visited monuments in the country. You reach it from Rapid City via a multi-lane highway that is clearly marked by large green interstate-style signs. You will see it before you reach it.
This is Storm Mountain.
Note the lack of granite.
It has a United Methodist church camp reached via a winding gravel road. The camp has a lot of great features but no phenomenal sculptures. There is no view of Mount Rushmore from our trails, lodges, or parking lot.
This week alone, there have been at least five cars that have appeared looking for the heads. Two of those have gotten stuck because, well, it's winter, and there's that "winding gravel road" thing combined with a fair bit of snowfall and subsequent melt. Plus rear-wheel drive cars from Florida. (Just sayin'.)
This may be South Dakota, but we are not so backwoods that we won't give millions of visitors easy access to our most popular attraction. Please, please -- don't trust your phone. Keep an eye on the roadside signs. They've been there longer and they're smarter than your smartphone.
Help us help you. Put the phone away and enjoy the scenery of the beautiful Black Hills. Don't worry -- you'll get to Mount Rushmore without turn-by-turn directions.
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