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This is a must stop after you see Rushmore. Don't go see Crazy horse first or Rushmore will seem tiny!
After visiting this monument I was searching around to see when the projected finish date is. There currently isn't one.
I really like that I will be able to compare my pictures when I eventually go back 30 years from now and see the progress that has been made. It reminds me of Gaudi's church in Barcelona in that respect.
If you think Mount Rushmore is big, Crazy Horse, a monument still in progress, once completed will be the largest monument in the world. In fact, Mount Rushmore will fit just in the hair of this Nativie American memorial which will feature the Native American Crazy Horse.
Located pretty close to Mount Rushmore, this project has been going on for a number of years. The original artist has passed away sadly, but all of his children and his wife are still working on finishing the project. They don't believe in getting federal support so progress is REALLY REALLY slow. My brother and I believe in foundations and causes and purposes but this project turned down millions of dollars of help....
So when this project is actually done it will serve as a giant cultural center for all Native Americans, as the one tribute to them, since they were here in the United States first. It is definitely a monument that is needed and a center than is needed, and I can't wait one day for the entire center to be finished. Because as of now, there really isn't much to do at this memorial other than look from afar at the progress that has been made. There are a few museum rooms and exhibits, but they won't entertain you for too long, but just coming and paying your admission fee, knowing you have added to he funds of such an amazing idea of a project is worth going.
An interesting sight.
Please go with people that can appreciate. I was not so lucky and therefore didn't get as much time as I'd liked to see and take it all in. All the other reviews here say it all. Another outstanding accomplishment like Mount Rushmore.
very impressive monument and should be taken in at the same time as Mt. Rushmore National Park.
This Monument is a completely privately funded operation and begun as a request by the Lakota Tribe to a single man that also worked at Mt. Rushmore.
The shops and museum are huge along with a fine cafe.
tip...leave a donation and grab a rock from the pile inside the museum, the sculptor's son brings the rocks down everyday from the dig site.
Also take the 4 dollar bus ride to the base of Crazy Horse you will get an up close view and a fun narratred ride with the bus driver.
must see #2 on my road trip.
Located near the Mt. Rushmore monument, this is an easy drive over to glimpse the partially completed Crazy Horse and his horse in the mountainside. Much larger than Rushmore, it hasn't changed much in 20 years since I'd last seen it... the museum itself had a few new things about the site, but no noticeable change in the blastings or work on the monument itself... stalled?
Native Americans are divided over this monument, noting that Crazy Horse avoided taking photos and that they're carving up a sacred mountain instead of preserving the land as it was... so the debate goes on, and without public funding, the foundation will continue its efforts until either finished or bankrupt.
I LOVE this place. Seriously, this memorial will always stand out in my mind. I came here about 13 years ago and revisited just a few weeks ago. The scale of this carving is incredible, simply incredible.
Since I visited the first time, they've built a really neat museum that talks about all sorts of different aspects of First Nation culture. They also developed a theater and a few restaurants, it's a really neat spot.
If you're contemplating not paying the admission and just looking at it from afar, you're missing out.
Coming back to Crazy Horse 23 years after my initial trip, not much has changed with the monument itself. The group I was with did not wish to pay the admission to get inside but I could see from where we parked at the end of the road that the sculpture has not progressed much in all that time.
The story of the Ziolowski family is a pretty amazing one, but one that you can read about on the internet. From reading the other reviews I didn't miss much by not paying the admission and going inside. I would probably recommend doing the same.
You're familiar with the Greek myth of Sisyphus, right? He was a king whose punishment was to roll a huge boulder up a hill, only to see it roll down again. He rolled that rock up again and again for eternity. Korczak Ziolkowski, the designer and original sculptor on this mountain, must have been a Sisyphean character on a grand scale. His actions were certainly not unrewarding, but they must have seemed endless.
Down the road at Mount Rushmore, Gutzon Borglum had an army of carvers, machinery, explosives and government money to help him tame a mountain, but Mr. Ziolkowski worked in almost solitary fashion with no government funding for the rest of his life. Would you have accepted that task?
His family carries on his mission and when the Crazy Horse memorial is complete, if this gargantuan sculpture is ever complete, it is expected to be the largest sculpture in the world. A visit to Crazy Horse is a testament to tenacity and the power of one individual to make a difference.
its great to see. Fun for kids and the family. I wish they would build it faster but its all being funded without gov asst. Great for kids to do a school paper on.
Yes, there's the sculpture being carved out of a mountain but there's also a whole complex containing a welcome center for visitors, The Indian Museum of North America, The Native American Educational & Cultural Center and the sculptor's home and studio.
It's in stark contrast to Mount Rushmore which a few miles away. Its less garish and crowded and honors the indigenous peoples of the area.
Wow.
I did not realize that this monument was being constructed thru the diligence of a single family and their supporters. The story of how Korczak Ziolkowski came to sculpt the model is probably as interesting as the legend of Crazy Horse, himself. The fact that Mr. Ziolkowski's family is continuing the project is a marvel to me. Although we will never live to see the outcome, it's still interesting to visit the site and see the progress.
Don't expect to spend a ton of time here, I think I only spent a little over an hour here.
They have a serious racket going on here. They charge $10 a head to get in, which you will realize is a ridiculous price when you consider that the entire experience is little more than a short movie and a far-off view of the mountain (not a whole lot better than what you can see from the road). Want a closer view of the mountain? Well, pony up the cash - only people who donate hundreds of dollars get the bus ride to the mountain. Compared to the other great things you can see in the Black Hills, Crazy Horse is way overpriced.
I'd say skip it, but since you're already in the area, I suppose it's a required stop just to say you went there. Tragic, really.
Apart from the view and the movie about the mountain's construction, most of the complex is taken up by a large gift shop and half-assed exhibits of Native-American stuff. Some of it is interesting, but after a while it just seems like they just put stuff in there so you don't feel like you just wasted all of your money coming here.
The whole experience is flirting dangerously with bad taste. Once you're done watching the, the rest of it just screams "tourist trap!" The signs pleading for donations, the massive amount of crap they have for sale, and the laughable way they tried to preserve the sculptor's house and shop: I thought I had been transported back to Graceland, possibly the ultimate tourist trap.
The worst thing, apart from the experience, is the agonizing pace of the memorial's progress. My parents took me here when I was in like 4th grade. I have now graduated from college - it still looks more or less the same. In the movie they try to justify the slow progress with some idealized notion of capitalism and the supposed virtue of constantly working on a never-ending project - but until it is done, it's an eyesore and an insult to the natural beauty of the mountain.
Go to Mount Rushmore to see the professional, tasteful way of operating a memorial.
I was impressed with the size of the mountain craving. It made Mt. Rushmore very small in comparison. This place is very friendly and hands on and very enjoyable. This is a real American Place. Someday I will go back.
Just another amazing sight to see. This is when madness and genius overlap and you don't know what you're looking at. This is supposedly the largest monument in the world. It's $10 per person to get in, but when you see what it helps pay for, you realize that it's nothing. I wouldn't come all the way to S. Dakota just for this, but with a combo package of Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse, definitely worth the trip.
An absolute must if in the Black Hills. Don't be put off by the unfinished nature of the work. It is like the construction of a great European Cathedral during the Middle Ages, but on a much vaster scale, and will probably not be completed in your lifetime. The main thing to see here if the terrific museum devoted both to native American Art and Ziolkowski's work. Native American vendors, many of them Lakota, sell their own crafts and there is a terrific museum shop as well. This is the work of a true visionary and is much more impressive than Mt. Rushmore. After all, it is a tribute to the REAL founding fathers (who commisioned it, by the way).
Custer, SD
Category: Campgrounds
Custer, SD
Category: American (New)
August of 09 I got married. I took some time to…
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