South Dakota

Bethlehem Cave: Read the showcaves/showcaves description and history. Note that at the bottom of the page it tells about the cave being closed and no longer open for tours. I had noted what was their website saying that the domain name was for sale. There were no photos or history so I didn't include it on this page.

Black Hills Cave & Karst Bibliography, Wind Cave National Park. Wind Cave seems to be the subject although it is also titled Black Hills Cave. There is a LOT of history and I stayed for the longest just reading the History. Though it hasn't been updated in years, the exploration of the cave is not complete. They find new rooms and entrances, passages, etc. Fun to read when you have plenty of time. Outdoorplaces has a page with some info and a photo.

Rushmore Cave says they are in the Black Hills and the biggest. It's where National Treasure II was filmed. Look across the line at the top of the page to find the geology and history but also find plenty of photos.

The above were all listed as being part of AllBlackHills . com though their descriptions and history are short. No photos.

Jewel Cave National Monument, the nps site The cave is currently 143.03 miles long. From July 11 - 13, 2008 explorers spent 60 hours underground and mapped 2,660 feet of cave passages. Visit the Wikipedia page for lots of history and a few photos. The Waymaking page has some photos but a shorter history account. Webshots has lots of beautiful photos. Showcaves/showcaves has even more history and useful information and several beautiful photos.

Mount Rushmore National Memorial Carved into the southeast face of a mountain in South Dakota are the faces of four presidents, a memorial to American history. The faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln look down from their stoney heights and remind everyone that even the impossible is possible.

Sitting Bull Crystal Caverns' home page has lots of information and history but only a few photos. Showcaves/showcaves has good info and describes the extremely steep stairs making it more of a ladder. This prevents people with limited abilities from entering. Photos by a visitor.

National Presidential Wax Museum, visitor's page has some history and good photos. Official website is where you'll find beautiful photos and all the history you could wish for.

Stage Barn Crystal Cave is said to be Black Hills' largest private cave system. It is reported to have a steep walk to the entrance but the tour is not difficult with three different levels. There is a notice about the cave being closed for roadwork to the cave and how it is unclear if and when the cave will be reopened. There is no date or update. This is from Showcaves/Showcaves.

Crazy Horse Monument, webcam page has a photo of something though it is hard to tell what it is. That's why they include the story and info about carving a mountain. I will yet read it all. This is the official website but looks just like the first one. The photos are just as confusing but it does make me wonder how and why the big rock is burning in such an odd pattern.

Black Hills National Forest is their main web page. Find a very brief history of the Black Hills. In the center of the page find a line for choices of video or Images. The images show the hills but the focus is on some sort of pest bug. The Wikipedia page offers some interesting history. Webshots has photos.

Thunderhead Underground Falls is a waterfall deep inside a mountain from the mountain's mining days. The walls of this corridor are dark purple from the rock's natural manganese in the area. Showcaves has some info but the writing is oddly poor on this page. The Panoramio page has one beautiful photo you can see in the smaller size or the huge bigger than your screen size. It wasn't worth the wait for my dial-up connection. There is also a little history included.

Waterfalls, Sioux Falls and more of Sioux Falls (with houses for sale in the area), City of Sioux Falls (all about the city) with more photos, Just click on the one photo for the gallery. Webshots of Sioux Falls. Waymarking site of Fall River Falls- Hot Springs, South Dakota. Photos and description of the river and area. I went through page 10 of google and these are the only falls in South Dakota according to them.

Castles: There are two amusement park castles but be sure you look at Harney Peak Castle, a fire watch tower. It is South Dakota's high point as well as being the highest point in North America east of the Rockies. Follow the link down the page to near the bottom for South Dakota.

Note: I looked for other State and National parks, forests and monuments in South Dakota but google gave me nothing at all... but then I was looking in North Dakota and found the following:

Custer State Park, the oldest and largest state park in South Dakota, was established in 1919. Before that it was a state game preserve. At 71,000 acres, it also is one of the largest state parks in the country. National parks about the same size as Custer include Arches National Park in Utah (77,000 acres) and Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota (70,000 acres). Nearby Badlands National Park encompasses about 243,000 acres.

Bridges, The Wikipedia Page and the Bridgemeister page for footbridges and a pipeline suspension bridge.