11-11-17 Early Winter

Two weeks ago temps dropped and Duluth received its first snowfall. 

Biking on dirt has ended and I have found myself walking a lot more. I have adjusted and am enjoying exploring via foot. With a fresh inch of snow on the ground I grabbed the old Cannon camera and took a walk down the Superior Hiking Trail in Chester Creek. 

I walked through the Rose Garden and down to the lakewalk to the mouth of Chester Creek. The path of the creek has changed in the past 6 months. 

Two weeks ago this rock was upright. The big storm rolled in and knocked it over and also caused a lot of damage to the lakewalk. 

The tunnel with the homemade rock wall on the other side. 

A Pileated woodpecker near my house. 

Rapid City & The 4th of July

After having multiple friends make trips to Rapid City over the years I was curious about the trails and terrain. Emily and I started thinking about the trip in late May and committed in mid June. 

I drove to cable on 6-30-17 to start our journey around 430pm toward Mankato. 

A well used sprinter van along I-90

After searching small towns for a locally run bakery we stopped in Mitchell SD and found out that sunrise bakery had sold out of baked goods - DARN. We were very close to the corn palace so we walked over and gave ourselves a tour. 

Various Wall Drug signs plus one of the many Firehouse Brewery signs. Advertising is big in the plains.

After looking at the hundreds of Wall Drug signs we were convinced we needed to stop in. I have vague memories of this place from being there in 25+ years ago. So much going on in the multiple buildings. We wandered and Emily bought a fresh donut that we both enjoyed. It was mighty busy inside the buildings so we hit the road again. 

We stopped in visitor info just outside of RC and bought a map of the black hills. We went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner and enjoyed it. Sheridan Lake Road brought us out to were I hoped we could disperse camp. A small sandy path (road) with some large mud holes brought us to our camping spot. 

Our dispersed camping spot in the black hills. A good end to being on the road all of Saturday

After packing up the tent we drove the Victoria Lake trailhead for some mountain biking. 

The trails were a mix of terrain ranging from smooth to sharp rocks. 13 mile ride with 1500 feet in elevation gain. Emily was overly warm and sick of climbing by the end. It reminded me of Bellingham at times. 

For lunch we drove to Sheridan Lake for a picnic and swimming. I done some research on Black Elk Peak and was intrigued that it was south dakota's highest elevation. Feeling rested we drove south to go after the hike.


Photos from our ascent.


Steps under a rock toward the peak


The highest point - Inside the Fire Tower

After taking in the amazing views which include a look all the way out to the flat plains (to the east) we started the decent. Off in the distance were storm clouds with some rain falling. 

Some beautiful rocks in Sylvan Lake where we parked.


The rain did come but not very hard. The drive up/down the mtn. includes this one lane tunnel.
It was dinner time and we tried to find a place to eat out in Hill City but had no luck. Instead, we drove back to the dispersed campsite from Saturday night and had ramen. A thunderstorm rolled through and really rumbled the valley. Luckily we had the tent up and stayed dry through the night.
Monday 7-3-17
After packing up the tent we had breakfast at Sheridan Lake. Storm Mountain trail system was next on our list and we made the drive south. I was feeling a heavy coffee buzz from some instant coffee Emily had but that made me even more excited to climb some hills and burn it off.

Another great trail system with climbing and a variety of terrain. We beat the heat and enjoyed the ride. The first thing on our minds was a shower or a dip in a lake. We drove north on 385 and went to Pactola reservoir to cut a small watermelon on half and eat it with spoons.

Done with the watermelon and ready for a swim
After the refreshing dip in the reservoir we drove east on hwy 44 to Rapid City for some lunch. I had done some research and found the RC has good Indian food. Kathmandu Bistro is a amazing place located downtown.

After dining we walked around the fine downtown of RC. Graffiti Alley is a fascinating place.


After seen the two dozen Firehouse Brewery billboards on the drive west we went in for a pint of ale. A hoppin place that reminded me of Fitgers

Rapid City has statues of presidents all around downtown.
After the short downtown tour we hit the road and made another stop at Wall Drug to get a cup of 5 cent coffee. It actually wasn't too bad. Emily even had some.


The Monday scene at Wall Drug was much less busy.


Photos from the drive East.

The drive to Mitchell SD wasn't too bad and we arrived around 9pm with a little light in the horizon. I booked a campsite at the city park north of town and when we arrived we were the only people in the tent area. Some kids were lighting off fireworks but they didn't go to late.

Tuesday July 4, 2017
A day of driving to get back to Cable, WI.
Good weather and good roads. Made a couple stops in the Twin Cities and arrived in Cable around 5pm. A short adventure but a fun one. I will definitely go back to the Black Hills for more adventures.