Couple Drive 12 Hours To See Mount Rushmore, Nature Has Other Plans

A video of a couple’s road trip to Mount Rushmore that didn’t go quite as planned has gone viral on TikTok.
The clip posted by user @crachel14 shows the couple’s long journey, traveling 12 hours to see South Dakota’s famed Mount Rushmore National Memorial, only to be greeted by a dense blanket of fog upon their arrival.
The video, which has amassed over 1.6 million views since it was shared on June 17, opens with a message overlaid on the screen: “We drove 12 hours to see Mount Rushmore….” The footage then pans to a foggy, gray landscape, obscuring the monument carved into the South Dakota mountainside.
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Despite the underwhelming view, the clip features the man smiling against the fog-shrouded backdrop, with a caption that reads: “Well worth the drive!”
Mount Rushmore, located in Keystone, South Dakota, is one of the most iconic landmarks in the United States, attracting over 2 million visitors a year. However, as the viral clip demonstrates, weather conditions in the Black Hills region, where the landmark is found, can sometimes interfere with visitors’ plans. Dense fog and sudden weather changes are not uncommon, as echoed by several other TikTok users familiar with the area.
The viral post comes travel is forecast to hit “record highs” in 2024, with global tourism spending projected to reach U.S. $2 trillion, according to a December 2023 survey by Euromonitor International, the market research firm.
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In a global survey of over 10,000 travelers across nine countries, conducted by Ipsos and the Hilton hotel group, respondents said they will cut down on other areas of personal spending to prioritize leisure travel this year.
The video’s humor and relatability have sparked a flood of comments from TikTok users who sympathized with the couple’s misfortune. One, Rydawg93, wrote: “Welcome to SD! The land of unpredictable weather!”
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Another commenter, sam, added: “Welcome to SD. the weather has a sense of humor.”
Erika Royall said, “This is totally my luck,” and Sakura Renee noted: “How relatable.”
The couple’s experience also struck a chord with others who shared similar stories of weather mishaps during visits to iconic landmarks. TikTok user Sukitani commented: “My parents came to visit from the Netherlands, they were so excited to see Mt. Rushmore. All they saw was that. We still talk about it.”
Meanwhile, Rachel wrote: “Same thing happened to us when we went to see Mount St. Helens in Washington state!” Brittney82 noted: “Same thing happened to me when I went to the Golden Gate Bridge.”
Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via TikTok. This video has not been independently verified.
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