My Father’s First Hike–and National Park

Last December my father turned 70 years old. We planned to go on a 70th birthday trip this summer. I’d hopes to go on Amtrak but summer is their busiest season and we weren’t able to get the trip we wanted so we opted to road trip it.

After much back-and-forthing, he confessed to wanting to see Mt. Rushmore and to an interest in Native Americans. I pulled out a National Parks map and off we went.

You are now entering Kansas.

He wanted to visit some friends in Missouri so off we went. But where would we go afterwords? I began looking at a route to get us to Mt. Rushmore.

• Effigy Mounds National Monument, Iowa
• Pipestone National Monument, Minnesota
• Badlands National Park, South Dakota
• Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota

As we drove, Daddy and I talked. I learned that he’d never been to a national park. We’d be fixing that at Effigy Mounds.

We arrived early. (My dad gets up early so we usually do.) We opted to check out the mounds. We knew nothing about the park. We knew nothing about the mounds. But, it turned out to be the site of my father’s first hike. He’d never hiked before.

Trail sign for the three trails.

The Wheelchair Accessible Route

 

If you haven’t already,–and you’re eligible–buy a senior pass now. The current price for a lifetime senior pass is $10. In August, the price will rise to $80. My father bought his and it brought us much enjoyment.