I had the opportunity to spend last weekend out in the Black Hills of South Dakota where I spent 4 hours each day (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) riding my Sugar 293 on some singletrack trails. I grew up in the area, but didn't mountain bike back in those days (in the late 60's/early 70's). Although I did learn to ski and kayak there. My parents and sister still live in the area, so I do get back every now and then to visit.. Since I had a 4 day weekend - thanks to the college where I teach having a Fall Break - I thought I would hop in the van with the bike and drive across oodles of miles of prairie to explore the Black Hills on my bike. It's about a 9 hour drive from Des Moines to Rapid City at 75 mph, but was worth it. I brought my camera along to capture a few shots to share.
The Lakota Sioux Indian calls the Black Hills - Paha Sapa. It is their sacred center of the universe. The geology of the area is an interesting study as it is the only "mound" type of upthrust that broke through the surface in such a manner throughout the globe. The Black Hills are 185 miles from top to bottom and at one time were over 12,000 feet at the highest point. Today, the highest point is only a little over 7,000 feet due to millions of years of erosion. The erosion off of the hills from the water and wind created the Badlands. Lots of quartz, shale rock, granite, caves, pine, dinosaur digs, pig digs and Native American and Wild West history in the area.
The first trail I wanted to try is called the Centennial Trail. It was built to celebrate South Dakota's centennial year of statehood. In its entirety, the trail is 111 miles from top to bottom. However, mountain bikes are not allowed on several sections of the trail. So I chose sections where mountain bikes were allowed. There is also a 100+ mile trail in the Black Hills called the Mickelson Trail which is a limestone chip trail built on an old railroad track bed. The Centennial is a mix of singletrack, doubletrack, rocks, hike a bike that goes through the forest, over the praire, over creeks, over ridges, over gorges, over damns, next to lakes and has a little of everything for everyone.
I spent about 4 1/2 hours riding a couple of sections. Here are some photos of those sections:
The Lakota Sioux Indian calls the Black Hills - Paha Sapa. It is their sacred center of the universe. The geology of the area is an interesting study as it is the only "mound" type of upthrust that broke through the surface in such a manner throughout the globe. The Black Hills are 185 miles from top to bottom and at one time were over 12,000 feet at the highest point. Today, the highest point is only a little over 7,000 feet due to millions of years of erosion. The erosion off of the hills from the water and wind created the Badlands. Lots of quartz, shale rock, granite, caves, pine, dinosaur digs, pig digs and Native American and Wild West history in the area.
The first trail I wanted to try is called the Centennial Trail. It was built to celebrate South Dakota's centennial year of statehood. In its entirety, the trail is 111 miles from top to bottom. However, mountain bikes are not allowed on several sections of the trail. So I chose sections where mountain bikes were allowed. There is also a 100+ mile trail in the Black Hills called the Mickelson Trail which is a limestone chip trail built on an old railroad track bed. The Centennial is a mix of singletrack, doubletrack, rocks, hike a bike that goes through the forest, over the praire, over creeks, over ridges, over gorges, over damns, next to lakes and has a little of everything for everyone.
I spent about 4 1/2 hours riding a couple of sections. Here are some photos of those sections: