2016 Summer Mountain Trip Part 6; Mount Rushmore

After completing South Dakota State Route 87 over the Needles Highway I briefly pulled onto US 16/385 and headed east on SD 244 towards Mount Rushmore.

This blog post is the 6th in the 2016 Mountain Trip Series, Part 5 can be found here:

2016 Summer Mountain Trip; South Dakota State Route 87/The Needles Highway

SD 244 is an approximately 10.5 mile east/west route between US 16/385 and US 16A which curves through the peaks of the Black Hills. My understanding is that SD 244 was part of the most northern extent of SD 87 until 1977. This seems to be backed up on historicaerials as a change from SD 87 is seen comparing the 1976 to 1983 topographical maps of the Mount Rushmore Area. For what its worth a 1949 Shell South Dakota State Highway Map doesn't show the alignment of SD 244 under state maintenance and part of current SD 87 as US 85A.

1949 South Dakota State Highway Map

Mount Rushmore National Memorial was in 1925 on the site of a granite rock formation known as the Six Grandfathers. Previously the the site of the rock formation known as "The Needles" was considered for a National Memorial but was found to be too eroded. Mount Rushmore was constructed out of the granite cliffs from 1927 through 1941 but not as originally designed. Mount Rushmore features presidents; George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. Originally Thomas Jefferson was meant to appear to the right of George Washington but the rock face was found to be unstable and was erased by blasting. The figures were also meant to be carved to the waist line but funding was found to be insufficient.

Really my honest take on Mount Rushmore is that it is probably worth the 20-30 minutes to probably stop and see if you happen to be traveling in the Black Hills. I personally found SD 87, Custer State Park, the Wind Cave, and all of US Route 14A to be a lot more fun than a tourist filled National Memorial.

Part 7 of this blog series can be found here:

2016 Summer Mountain Trip Part 7; Rockerville, SD and the bisected US 16 expressway

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The Vague Original Southern Terminus of US Route 91 in the Californian Mojave Desert

One of the more intriguing mysteries of the early US Route System in California is where the original south terminus of US Route 91 was intended to be located in the Mojave Desert. This blog is a little different than my usual behind the wheel fare and explores why US Route 91 ultimately ended at US Route 66 in Daggett instead of Bannock. What ultimately became the US Route System was first discussed during the American Association of State Highway Officials ("AASHO") during their annual 1924 meeting. Ultimately the AASHO recommended to the Department of Agriculture to work with the States to develop a system of Interstate Highways to replace the many Auto Trails in use. The Joint Board on Interstate Highways was ultimately commissioned by the Department of Agriculture and it's branch agency the Bureau of Public Roads in March of 1925. The Joint Board on Interstate Highways first met in April of 1925 and decided on the new interstate road network would be known a

Where the hell is Hill Valley? (US Route 8 south/US Route 395 east)

Recently I made a visit to Universal Studios near Los Angeles. While on the back lot tour I came across a piece of infamous movie-borne fictional highway infamy; the location of town square of Hill Valley, California on US Route 8/US Route 395. The above photo is part of the intro scene to the first Back-to-the-Future movie which was set in 1985. To anyone who follows roadways the signage error of US 8 meeting US 395 in California is an immediately notable error. For one; US 8 doesn't even exist anywhere near California with present alignment being signed as an east/west highway between Norway, Michigan and Forest Lake, Minnesota. To make matters worse US 8 is signed as a southbound route and US 395 (a north/south highway) is signed as an eastbound route. At minimum the cut-out US 8 and US 395 shields somewhat resemble what Caltrans used in the 1980s. Assuming Hill Valley is located on what would have been US 395 by 1985 what locales would be a viable real world analog?

Legend of the Ridge Route; a history of crossing the mountains between the Los Angeles Basin and San Joaquin Valley from wagon trails to Interstates

Over the past two decades I've crossed the Interstate 5 corridor from Los Angeles north over the Sierra Pelona Mountains and Tehachapi Range to San Joaquin Valley what seems to be an immeasurable number of times. While Interstate 5 from Castaic Junction to Grapevine via Tejon Pass today is known to most as "The Grapevine" it occupies a corridor which has been traversed by numerous historic highways. The most notable of these highways is known as the "Ridge Route." This article is dedicated to the Ridge Route and the various highways that preceded it. The Ridge Route is a 44 mile section of highway which was completed in 1915. The Ridge Route originally stretched from Castaic Junction north over Liebre Summit and Tejon Pass to the tiny community of Grapevine. In spite of a roadway that once utilized nearly 700 curves the Ridge Route is generally considered far ahead of it's time and one of the first modern highways constructed for automotive use.

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