George Washington's powerful profile appears so perfectly placed that it seems intentional, but it resulted from a change in design when poor-quality rock prevented Gutzon Borglum from carving Thomas Jefferson on Washington's right. Workers had already blocked out Jefferson's rough features there before Borglum decided to move him, and the partial carving was blasted away with dynamite and the rock smoothed, leaving a clear view of Washington's profile from this spot. Jefferson was then placed on Washington's left, next to Theodore Roosevelt. Washington's head is 60 feet tall, with a 20-foot nose, an 18-foot-wide mouth, and eyes 11 feet across, and if his entire body had been carved to those proportions, he would have stood as tall as a 40-story building. Granite Mountain goats, introduced to the Black Hills in the 1920s, adapted well to the steep granite cliffs, spending most of their time on rocky ledges though they may also be seen along the highway.

Photo: Mark Parker

Photo: Mark Parker

Keystone, South Dakota · USA