I was exhausted from yesterday for some reason so I turned in early at 9 and I slept till 7. The stars were beautiful but I didn't have the energy to crane my neck to look very long. It was silent all night, and the morning was pretty warm. By the time I broke camp it was warm enough for riding with regular summer wear only. I finished the rest of the descent on the dirt road and turned onto Old Hill City road, which was smooth pavement. I continued descending gradually, through a beautiful valley filled with high grassland near the creek and dense pines up on the hills. Everywhere I looked there were huge boulders and cliffs. A scenic railway ran through the valley and I seriously must have crossed it at least 10 times. The road was curvy and I really had a lot of fun here. There was no traffic at all. I abruptly arrived at Keystone, which I knew at least had a store since that's all I mentioned in my route notes. I neglected to tell myself that it was basically as touristy as Gatlinburg, TN, which was a surprise because I was feeling like I was in the middle of nowhere riding Old Hill City road. I stopped at the gas station and grabbed a few things. Either business is terrific or they're thinking of closing for good because I have never been in a store that had its shelves of food so bare. But I got what I needed and rode off. I had a big steep climb up to the monument, but fortunately I had a good shoulder. Traffic wasn't terrible either. I rode through the entrance area and took a parking ticket from the machine (which I kinda had to do to let the automated gate let me go through) but the lady directing traffic told me I didn't have to pay. I parked my bike and just walked up! The Park Service gets points here in my book. Charge the cars and buses for parking. Why discourage cycling by charging a fee? I'll never understand it. Most of the money they spend on the parks is for the car infrastructure. And it was impressive at Mount Rushmore. Big parking garages and big digital displays that kept track of exactly how many spaces were available in what section. I walked the nice little granite avenue a short distance to the end, took a couple of pictures and went on my way. It was pretty impressive. It was actually visible from the road but not for very long. You pretty much have to be right in that spot to see it. The road going out was up and down the whole way and I had a good shoulder so I wasn't stressed. I jumped back on the trail and kept climbing gradually all the way to the entrance to Crazy Horse. I rode in to the gate, paid a fee(I didn't mind as it's a private endeavor) and continued right up to the visitor center. I kind of thought I would be a lot closer and while the monument was clearly visible it was still a good distance away. There were cars parked everywhere and folks walking from way away on the approach road. Hikers everywhere coming back on the gravel road from the monument. I met some other cyclists at the bike parking area, and found out that today is a very rare chance to walk up to it. I figured why not. So I walked over, and paid the small 3$ fee, and started hiking. I got a little card that was signed at 4 different checkpoints along the way where different girl scouts or boy scouts had water and snacks that you could buy to raise money. I felt great, and tried to walk fast because of my mileage goal I had in mind on the day. But I was able to enjoy it and it was amazing to be up there on top of it so close. There were tons of people hiking along with me. It was a good mix of humanity, very diverse. The temperature was pretty hot, eighties, and it was in the sun most of the time. But it turned out to be only 5 miles instead of 6 like I was told, which was nice. I felt great still, and got on the bike and rode back to the trail and in a few miles rolled into the town of Custer. I grabbed a Subway and got groceries as well, then rode off and set my sights on some public lands the trail went through just before the end in Edgemont. I went by another bison herd, and this one was right by the trail. I got to watch one chomping on some tall grass from up close. It was fascinating, and they couldn't have cared less that I was there. The trail has gotten them used to bikes and people gawking. Mercifully the trail gradually descended from Crazy Horse. In theory this should make for fast riding. I picked up a thorn on my front tire and had to patch it, first one didn't hold even though I was patient, odd. I removed it and put a bit more glue and stuck another patch and it held great. But I wasted some time and I didn't get to the place I had in mind till around 30 minutes before sunset. On the map I have of the National Forest on Avenza, I am on National Forest property, but I still had to hop a short barbed wire fence. I found a nice big cottonwood in a little draw, not too far from the trail but completely hidden and totally sheltered from the wind. Nowhere near a road so it should be silent other than maybe some mooing. And the crickets. Nice soothing white noise.