My postcard shot
As I mentioned in my previous post, Jett and I visited the Mt Rushmore National Memorial on the evening of Labor Day. It was a beautiful night and I thought I got some really nice photos. But I was wrong – they were fuzzy and washed out. I guess I need to learn more about taking photos at night.
I couldn’t leave SD without at least one good Mt Rushmore photo and we were close enough that I could make a second trip there (and for free – the parking pass was good until the end of the year!). I got lots of photos and most of them were pretty darn good.
I walked the entire Presidential Trail which is not very long – maybe a mile or so – but has a lot of up-and-down. I got some good exercise to go along with my good photos. The trail takes you to the base of the sculpture, so I got some great up-the-nostril shots.
The other thing that the trail offers is a number of “isolation points” where only one of the presidents is clearly visible. These points have displays highlighting the accomplishments of the individual.
At the base of the sculpture
I have to give credit to the weather. It was an impossibly beautiful morning with crystal-clear azure skies. Couldn’t ask for better conditions for photography.
Besides the mountain, I also enjoyed the walk through the Ponderosa pines. It was strongly reminiscent of the forest scene from Hitchcock’s North by Northwest, which, of course, was filmed in this area.
Stairs on the trail
One of the isolation spots
Rubble
Ponderosa pines
Peeking over the trees