Building our Mount Rushmore travel plans

We think we have our date picked in July. We plan to stay at the Rafter J Bar Ranch. And we are going to see Mount Rushmore. We need to pick a few more things to do in the are for fun.

I'm thinking we'll probably make at stop at the Mammoth Site at Hot Springs. It has great reviews at Tripadvisor.com. It is the world's largest mammoth research facility.

http://www.mammothsite.com

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60995-d144846-Reviews-Mammoth_Site_of_Hot_Springs-Hot_Springs_South_Dakota.html

I'll be adding to this post with additional revisions as we find more attractions.

Trout fishing in Kansas?!?!

Wow, I have lived here my entire life and had no idea that there was a "trout season" in Kansas.  See this blog post that I came across today.

http://kansas-outdoors.blogspot.com/2012/11/fish-pays-landowners-to-allow-fishing.html

Rafter J Bar Ranch

We think we have made a final camping selection; the historic Rafter J Bar Ranch.

We like it because it has a more open layout, less crowded, and far more rustic camping than the KOA.

There are many sites type to choose from, ranging from the typical pull through, back to back, RV Park types, to no-service tent sites in the trees. We'll probably end up with a 30 amp full hookup site in the "Ranch Camp" loop.

"Ranch Camp"
*Heavily Shaded
*More Remote
*Tents & Full Hookups
*400 Yards from Activities & Office
*Campfires
*Bathhouse & Laundry

There is a swimming pool and a great playground for the boys. Not to mention woods, hills, and a creek. I'll probably make our reservation next week and finalize which site we're in.  We are super excited for the coming year's camping season, and this should be the main event! Here are some more images from their website.

Mouse Free?

I'm wondering about this product.

http://www.mouse-free.com/about-our-mouse-repellent/


We left our pop-up parked in the grass, next to a dilapidated old barn on the far side of my mother-in-law's property for YEARS and never had anything worse than a small ant issue.  No mice, no squirrels, nothing.  This pop-up was not what I would have considered "locked up tight" by any means.  The door didn't even seal up well.

I'm just thinking that with our new travel trailer parked in the middle of a gravel storage facility, is a product like this even needed?

Mount Rushmore and the Black Hills

So now we are thinking camping near Mount Rushmore.  Yellowstone might just be too far this year.  When the boys are a little older, and we can spend more time out, we'll take that trip.  I'll be posting more as we develop our plan for travel plans for South Dakota.