Sweet Success in Western ND: Rushmore Mountain Taffy and Hurt Ridge Candy - Pride of Dakota
Rushmore Mountain Taffy began in South Dakota in the '60s, but the Taffy Shop in Medora, North Dakota began in 1994 by company president Anita Stverak's parents. in 2024 the family-friendly perennial favorite celebrated thirty years. Incredible taffy flavors, seasonally rotated, jewelry, and more grace this fun little shop near the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park South Unit. Customizeable gift boxes, bulk taffy, fudge flavors, and even peanut brittle are available at Rushmore Mountain Taffy--a must-not-miss Medora staple--and Anita has teamed up with another Pride of Dakota business just down the road in Dickinson and supplies them with brittle for THEIR candy business! Frank and RaeLea (pronounced Ray-Lee) Hurt had a hiccup in their plans to freeze-dry vegetables from their farm atop a windswept clay hill near Dickinson...the grasshoppers won, decimating their crop. With the encouragement of some friends, they pivoted and instead began experimenting with freeze-drying sweet candy treats! Things ballooned, and Hurt Ridge Candy was born. The couple moved the manufacturing process to a space in a former Dickinson hospital, and now supplies stores with their light and crunchy candy across the state. Snacks like: "Squirrel Bait," "Kittles," "Sammiches," and now the new freeze-dried Peanut Brittle from Rushmore Taffy.
