TRAVEL | AMERICA 250


BLACK HILLS Begin at Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Even for travelers who have seen photographs for decades, the scale is striking in person. Each presidential face rises


nearly 60 feet tall from the granite — Washington at the forefront, flanked by Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln. The symbolism is deliberate: Washington represents the founding


of the republic. Jefferson reflects expansion and the assertion of democratic ideals. Roosevelt embodies industrial


growth and America’s emergence as a global power. Lincoln, carved slightly forward, stands for the preservation of the Union through the Civil War. In America’s 250th year, that


progression feels especially pointed — not as nostalgia, but as a reminder of continuity through challenge. Walk the Presidential Trail for


America’s Striking Shrine to Democracy


This is the month to take in Mount Rushmore before the summer crowds. :: BY BECCA BLOND


A


s the nation marks 250 years of independence, Mount Rushmore stands high above the Black Hills,


carved into granite as a permanent statement about leadership, patriotism, and national identity. South Dakota has identified the


memorial as one of its signature sites during the semiquincentennial year, and a rare return of fireworks is planned for July 3 beneath the


78 NEWSMAX MAXLIFE | MAY 2026


monument’s stone faces. But the Black Hills are not


defined by a single celebration. They are a region best understood in open air and open space — and May is when that space feels most accessible. Before peak summer traffic builds,


the Hills offer cool mornings, green grasslands, and long, winding drives through pine forests. It is a season that allows


visitors to stand beneath Mount Rushmore without distraction — and to see the monument not as a spectacle, but as part of a much larger landscape.


closer views and shifting angles of the sculpture. The Lincoln Borglum Visitor Center explains how the monument was constructed in the 1920s and 1930s using dynamite, drills, and extraordinary engineering precision. From Rushmore, take the Iron Mountain Road, a 17-mile route of switchbacks and tunnels that were deliberately designed to frame Mount Rushmore in the distance. The pigtail bridges and narrow


stone tunnels make the drive part of the experience rather than simply transportation. Nearby, Custer State Park delivers


some of the Midwest’s best wildlife viewing. The 18-mile Wildlife Loop Road winds through prairie and forest where bison herds graze within sight of the road. In May, calves are often visible alongside the adults. Elk and pronghorn appear frequently, and the pace of traffic allows for slow observation rather than hurried stops. For dramatic scenery,


drive the Needles Highway,


MOUNT RUSHMORE/ISTOCK.COM/JIMFENG


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100