South Dakota/Mt. Rushmore vacation recommendations

My husband and I are planning to vacation in SD in late August. I am contemplating 5 or 6 days. There is so much to do and we have never visited the area.

We will be flying in to Rapid City and I was debating an itenerary. Day One-perhaps drive out to Badlands and spend the night touring it on Day Two.

Day two after touring Badlands drive to Custer and see Rusmore, Rushmore CAve, and Crazy Horse on Day Three. Day Four Drive to Custer Park, See Jewel Cave and perhaps Mammoth Site (didn%26#39;t know if this could all be done in one day). Day five travel up to Spearfish, perhaps spend the night there and drive to Devil%26#39;s Tower and see Deadwood.

Is this too much for one trip and is there anything I am missing? I didn%26#39;t know if I should switch hotels/cabins that many times or if it would be better to stay in a central location and just drive back and forth. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Oh and I will be six months pregnant at the time. This is my first pregnancy so I am not sure how I need to take that in to account when planning activities.

South Dakota/Mt. Rushmore vacation recommendations

Kathy,

What time does your flight arrive on day 1? I would try to tour the Badlands on your arrival day to maximize your time, unless your flight has a very late arrival. If you%26#39;re concerned about heat, you can try to see the park in the early evening (you can see it in about 2 hours as long you aren%26#39;t doing a lot of stopping). On Day 2, I%26#39;d get up and head right to the central hills to see Rushmore, Crazy Horse (You can cut out Rushmore Cave if time runs short--Jewel %26amp; Wind Caves surpass it by far.)

Your Day 4 is really too much for one day. A possible option could be driving the Wildlife Loop in Custer SP, seeing Wind Cave and heading down to the Mammoth Site. These are all in close proximity to each other. Jewel Cave is closer to Crazy Horse. I believe Wind Cave has fewer steps, which will probably be better for you with the pregnancy. Wind Cave has a great concentration of a formation called Boxwork, which resembles spider webs. You won%26#39;t see this formation every day.

I think I%26#39;ve covered all your questions for now. Feel free to ask anything additional and we%26#39;ll be glad to help.

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