Sturgis - Badlands

Badlands National Park

They always say, save the best for last.  I don't know if we really saved the Badlands for last, but it just worked out that way.  Since the Badlands Scenic Loops starts in Wall, SD (from the west) it meant it was a 100 mile ride for us to get to them from Spearfish.  And we had simply run out of days while were were there to take a 250+ round trip to ride the Badlands.  So when Rhonda and I decided that cutting the return trip by a day was a bad idea, we had a whole day Saturday to get 450 miles up the road.  Planned right, that left us plenty of time to ride the Badlands on our way out of South Dakota.

I will admit when we got to Wall, I almost said we should just go on.  But Rhonda said we had to ride the Badlands cause we would probably never come back.  I think she was trying to eliminate any excuse to make her ride 2000 miles to Sturgis again, but either way it was the right choice.

Awesome view from the rim

There is no possible way to even describe the Badlands.  It is like something out of a movie set.  Either a science fiction movie or an old western.  The park is about 10 miles south of I-90.  And when you enter the park, you are instantly in the Badlands.  If you stop at the first turnoff, you can walk over and look into an abyss of cliffs that look like something a giant kid has made with wet sand at the beach.  I don't really know how else to describe it.  As you ride on, you start down into the base of the Badlands, and that is where it really gets awesome.  Giant rock-only mountain-like formations tower above you on the motorcycle.  This is where Rhonda and I really appreciated the fact we were on a motorcycle instead of stuck in a car.  You could look in all directions without being hindered by the roof or windows of the car.  And you felt mighty small.

Perfect Motorcycle Riding

The roads in the Badlands are perfect for a casual sightseeing motorcycle ride.  Tons of places to turn off and take pictures of the formations or of the wildlife, and a slow pace with sweeping turns are easy to maneuver and still take in the sights.  Rhonda got some good pictures of the tons of prairie dogs that were scurrying around in the fields.  They were pretty cool, but I suspect anyone who lives in SD would laugh at us taking pictures of their squirrels.  There was probably more wildlife to see, but we ha a limited time.  The park allows hiking but even if we had the time, the sign warning of rattlesnakes would have kept Rhonda from venturing out.  I was intrigued by the sign, I have to admit.  I like snakes, but maybe the Badlands Rattlesnakes are a little out of my league.

I was not more in awe of anything I saw on the entire trip.  The Black Hills were great and very beautiful.  Wyoming was expansive and breathtaking.  But the Badlands made you feel so small and frail.  First, no one could even imagine something like this if they had not seen it.  Next, the fact that they are just "there".  they seemingly spring up out of no where.  Instantly after leaving you are back in the grasslands with no hint of something as ominous as the Badlands.

Us, having a blast!

I can say that I enjoyed my ride through the Badlands the most of the trip.  I wish we had more time to ride the drive in both directions.  The views from the opposite direction would have been totally different.  I wish we had time to walk and hike around.  But, there wasn't the time.  Somehow a 2000 mile trip staring you in the face will make you think you have to keep moving.  So maybe I do have at least one more excuse to come back!

Sturgis - Black Hills Tour (Last Day)

Friday was the last day for us to ride the Black Hills before we headed back on Saturday.  We had planned to trim the trip home from 4 days to 3 days and stay on until Sunday, but after completing the trip up, Rhonda and I knew that simply wasn't feasible.  Having three 650 mile days back to back was not going to work.  So we had to squeeze as much as we could into the last day.  The weather cooperated as it was the best day of the trip so far.  It was perfectly sunny, cool and no forecast of rain!

We started heading south into Deadwood.  It is a cool town, but unfortunately walking around Deadwood is something Rhonda and i will have to leave to the next trip.  We only drove through on this go.  We continued on past Deadwood toward Hill City in search of the Prairie Berry Winery for some Red Ass Wine.  We had seen the signs for it and also seen the ads for their Rhubarb and Raspberry Wine.  No way it could be any good we thought, but we had to try it right?

We stopped at the winery along with several other bikers and proceeded to try the wine.  I guess it won't win any awards, and I know Rhonda and I are not wine connoisseurs, but we shipped a case of it home! We really liked it.  It will be perfect sitting on the deck or porch in the summer time.  So when we get home, we will have a case of wine waiting on us.  How strange is it that we came to a biker rally and ended up shipping wine home?

After that, we headed to the Crazy Horse Memorial.  You can read more about that and the town of Custer in another blog entry here: Link to Blog Entry.

We also rode Needles Highway/Road.  And you can read more about that here: Link to Another Blog Entry.

Beware of non-existant buffalos

We met up with Sherry and Rich and drove through Custer State Park in search of buffalo.  We weren't lucky enough to see any buffalo, but we did see some prairie dogs and a ton of wild donkeys.  In fact, one time we topped a small hill and immediately in front of us in the middle of the road were 2 donkeys. just standing there.  Looking at us like we were out of place.  And I think we were!  It was a good run through the wildlife loop even without the buffalo.  Some good roads and some great views.  Maybe next time the buffalo will cooperate.

We turned the bikes toward Rapid City and on to Spearfish.  That was it for riding the Black Hills.  But I think we did about as much as we could in the days we had.  Tomorrow is the ride home.  I will be happy to get home, and happy to see so many sights on the way home, but I will always wonder what things the Black Hills hold that I missed on this trip to Sturgis!

Sturgis - Needles Highway

Tight quarters on Needles

Well, any motorcycle enthusiast that has studied the roads around the Black Hills knows Needles and Iron Mountain roads.  Coming out here was a once in a lifetime chance to ride those roads and there was no way I was going to miss those.  Well, I missed one of them, but not both!  Guess you can't do it all in a single trip to Sturgis.

We chose Needles to ride.  We were alone away from the pack and had an hour or so to kill (poor choice of words when riding this road) so we decided to give it a shot.  It is a fairly technical road, especially when it is crowded.  I would not say it is as technical as The Dragon in Deals Gap or the Diamondback in Little Switzerland, but it still offers an adrenaline pumping ride even at the low speed limit (35mph).

One Lane Tunnels

The highlight of both of the roads are the one lane tunnels carved into the mountain.  They are rough, and they are not policed.  So you just stop, wait for an opening and go.  It was an awesome sound to sit and listen to so many bikes come through the tunnels, each rev'ing their engines!  The best part of needles is at the top.  Well, I am not sure Rhonda would agree it was the best.  This is where there are tight rock walled turns that will make you pull your arms and legs in (like that would help).  There are times when you can see 3 levels of road below you that you will eventually be on after a few tight hairpin turns that leave barely enough room to navigate with the large number of bikes parked in each turn.

Needles is not for the faint of heart.  It is not hard, and to be honest the slow speeds made it more difficult in my opinion as the bike was not as stable and I constantly had to monitor the speed of the bike in front of me.  But none the less, the views are spectacular and the ride had more personality than any other mountain road i have done.  I wish I could have done Iron Mountain Road, but there simply was not enough hours in the last day.  Maybe next time.  But I am glad I got to experience one of the roads!

Sturgis - Crazy Horse Memorial and Custer

Crazy Horse Monument

One of the sights Rhonda and I were interested in seeing was the Crazy Horse Memorial.  We had seen a documentary on the history and the plans and when we had a chance to see it in person, we weren't about to miss it.

The ride to Crazy Horse winds down (from Spearfish) through Deadwood and Hill City toward Custer.  We had ridden that route a couple times, but the ride on Friday was the best weather we had while we were in Spearfish and it was much more enjoyable than the last rain filled trip through there.

Driving up to the memorial, it is obvious there is something going on, but it is also obvious that there is a lot more work to be done.  The monument is already magnificent even with just the head nearly complete.  I can only imagine what it will look like when it is complete.  I am not sure I will ever get to see that happen in my lifetime however.  The progress has been slow over the past years, and there is still a lot to be done.

We came in from the north, but I would recommend that you ride up from the south at least once when you are there.  From that direction, the monument is facing straight out toward the road and you get a good look at it from the front.  But even from the side, it is awesome.  There were huge pieces of machinery working the site and they looked like kids toys in a sandbox compare to the overall size of the monument.  Rhonda fed a fixed set of binoculars a couple quarters and we god a better view of the detail in the face.  Sadly, we were 30 minutes late to see the 1000 pound explosion they set off earlier!

There is a huge complex along with the monument.  A lot of Indian crafts and a museum displaying a lot of historical items as well as a couple beautiful Indian motorcycles.

The Planned Monument (with us)

The Crazy Horse Monument is a must see.  If for no other reason it will give you a perspective on the effort that goes into creating these landmarks and give you a better appreciation for Mt. Rushmore.

Past Crazy Horse is the small town of Custer.  We stopped there and waited for the other bikes and took a quick walking tour of the town.  It has some unique buildings, and there are some really neat shops in the town that have some items you will not see in other parts of the country.  There was a General Store that had all the equipment you need to pan for gold!  I thought about getting that and starting a new profession, but I assume it is tough work.  So Rhonda told me to keep my day job!  There is also a shop with a lot of wildlife items such as antlers, skins and skulls.  It was neat to see some things that while they are in a more current setting, were items that the sold in this town in the Old West days!  Make sure you check out the many different painted buffalos around town as well!

Sturgis - Spearfish Canyon and Falls

Welcome to Wyoming

Today took a little longer to get started.  Not sure of it we are starting to get tired, or if it was just one of those days where you can't get the coffee to do it's trick.  Either way, we were a little late leaving.

Deciding what to do is always tough since there are so many great rides here in Sturgis, but deciding when the forecast calls for severe thunderstorms here in hail country makes it even more challenging.  So we decided to take the same route through Wyoming to start the day.  We had some other riders who had not made that run and riding it in the morning instead of the afternoon meant the sun would shine a little differently on the canyons and on Devils Tower.

Sundance for Coffee

We headed into Sundance to start the day.  We beat most of the crowd there, but we were by no means the first people in town.  I didn't even go into the HD store.  I think I am getting a little HD Store overload right now.  But taped in the window was a sign to buy a raffle ticket for a quilt.  I didn't need a quilt, but the wife is a quilt fan.  So the quilt was on display at the local espresso shop (I am a fan of espresso) so I thought I would be a good husband and suggest we go to to see the quilt!  Long story short, the quilt was raffled off and gone and I had five shots of espresso.  That helped.  Now, I was ready to ride.

Devils Tower Trading Post

We headed off to Devils Tower.  And as we approached we could see the light really made a difference in the look.  You could really see the character of the tower and all the canyons on the ride in.  It was a big difference over the shadowy view we had the afternoon before.  We even drove over to the Devils Tower Trading Post which gave us a great view of the tower and of the tourist trap shops.

We decided not to go walk around the base.  Not sure if that was the right decision or not.  I wanted to, but there was a lot to see other places so I was torn.  Anyway, we were off to Hulett to stop and be a part of their bike rally for a little while.

Hulett is a cool town.  I didn't realize until we stopped that they were having a bike week.  I thought it was one of the impromptu gatherings like at Hill City or Deadwood.  But I picked up a Hulett 2011 patch there so I guess it was official!  If you ever go to Sturgis, go to Hulett and make sure you check out  Rogues Gallery.  Tour the shop and get your picture made in the coffins or in the gallows around the side.  It was really fun to act like we were in the old west and play cowboys and indians for a while instead of biker dudes.  Big kids is all we are.

Spearfish Canyon facing north

We had to wait out a fairly severe storm that produced hail in some areas, but not Spearfish.  And after we were sure it passed, we headed into Spearfish Canyon for a run there.  Spearfish Canyon is very impressive.  The road runs north and south, and is lined by a steep canyon wall on the west side and creek and a canyon on the east side.  The speed limit on the entire route is 35mph which at first will seem a little slow, but it is perfect for taking in all the sights.  As well it is easier to dodge the rocks in the road that have fallen from the canyon wall.  Honestly.  I can't really describe how awesome the views are.  Rhonda videoed while we were riding and I will get that posted soon.  But at least there is a picture here that doesn't do it justice.

Spearfish Falls

A little farther down the road in the town of Savoy, there is a dirt path that takes you to Spearfish Falls.  We walked the path through the woods to a really nice waterfall.  It drops into a pool and you are so close the spray gets all over you (and the camera).  The water is pristine and sound is so soothing.  I could have sat there all evening just watching and listening.  We even saw trout swimming in the water!  Don't miss this if you ever go.  It was about a 35 minute walk down to the falls, but it is easy and really a beautiful walk.

Instead of completing the loop (it was getting late) we turned around at Cheyenne Crossing and headed back into the canyon riding the opposite way.  This was the right choice.  This route was totally different.  Riding north puts the creek on your side of the road and offers great views of both it and the canyon face.  A lot of times we were riding into a curve and it looked like we were just going to ride into the canyon wall.  I don't know how high it is, but the feel of riding in the canyon was something I have never experienced on a motorcycle.  The Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway reminds me of the Blue Ridge Parkway in some ways.  It is a slow pace with easy sweeping turns and it offers great views.  The difference is the Parkway offers the best views at the top looking out over the mountains and valleys.  Closed in between two canyon walls made the feel different.

It was a great day.  Again, not so many miles on the bike (only ~175) but some great places to stop and take in all the Black Hills area has to offer.

Sturgis - Wyoming and Devils Tower

Riding to Devil's Tower

After the trip downtown, we were all itching for a ride.  The weather was perfect.  About 80 degrees and low humidity.  Perfect riding weather.

We needed some lunch and we are all getting a little tired of eating out.  Plus we needed to empty our bags and drop some stuff off at the house.  So we headed back to Spearfish form Sturgis and grabbed a sandwich and planned a trip over lunch.

The best loop we could find that would get us back before dark was a loop over through Wyoming past The Devils Tower and back.  About a 120 mile loop that none of really knew anything about.  I had seen the Devils Tower in the move Close Encounters, but until we planned this trip I had no idea it was real.  Honestly, Americans should know more about their own country.  That may be the best lesson I have learned on this trip.

The ride started out on I-90 from Spearfish down to Sundance.  I am tired of the interstate to be perfectly honest and so I wasn’t expecting much.  But about 10 miles outside of Spearfish we crossed over into Wyoming and the landscape changes.  It was unreal how different everything started to look.  The hills were harsh and rocky with cliffs and we could see a mountain range on the distance.  that ride into Sundance was anything but boring.  It was beautiful!

Burnout in Sundance

We dropped of the interstate in Sundance and headed for a Harley dealer there.  I had to have a shirt form Wyoming.  Like every other town, Sundance was packed for it’s mini-Sturgis rally.  Complete with a burnout stand in the middle of town.  The entire town smelled like burnt rubber and all you heard was an engine running wide open, a loud bang, some flopping of the tire as it shredded and a huge roar form the crown.  It was amazing to see.  Something that you hear about at a rally but we were watching!

We left Sundance and headed up to route 24 that would take us pas the Devils Tower.  The roads were windy and scenery spectacular.  Red canyons and cliffs and hillsides lined with different colors of rocks.  You felt like you were staring at a painting!  Finally as we topped the mountain we got our fist glimpse of Devils Tower.  It looked big from there but it tok us 20 minutes to finally pass the base!  It was massive.  How something like that ever got formed, I will never understand.  But it was amazing to see.

Hulett, Wyoming

We left there and winded thorough the mountains to a sleepy (again, not this week) town called Hulett.  Again, the population of Hulett had grwon by probably 10x with all the bikers having their own rally.  The shops looked like something out of a movie!  It was a blast to ride through!

We left and made our way back to Spearfish though more of the awesome Wyoming countryside. We stopped only once to get our picture by the “Welcome to Wyoming” sign.  When the kickstands were down back at the house, we all looked at each other and said “Best ride yet”.  If you are ever in Sturgis for the rally (or any other time for that matter) don’t miss this loop on a motorcycle or a car.  You will not be disappointed! 

Sturgis - Downtown

Downtown Sturgis

No trip to Sturgis for the rally would be complete without a trip downtown.  I will admit the actually rally and downtown Sturgis were not high on my list of things I wanted to do.  I knew we had to do it of course, but I was most interested in the riding and the sights to see around the area.  I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun we had wandering the streets and taking in the sights and sounds.

One tip if you are ever visiting Sturgis for the rally.  Unless you like sitting in wheel to wheel traffic constantly shutting off your engine due to the overheating of it and you I would strongly recommend you go early. It seems the biker crowd for the most part is a late rising crowd.  I won’t speculate on the reasons here, but just know that the earlier you go, the easier it will be to park and walk.

We got to town at 8:00 and parked across form the Harley Davidson dealer in a nice lot only charging us $5 to park there.  There weren’t so many folks there yet, but there were still enough to know that soon, the place was going to be packed.  

Highlights of the day?  Well only a few of them can be posted in picture form here.  Some of what you have read or saw on TV was true, but for the most part everyone was  “normal”.  There was the occasional person who should have added a few more layers or at least less transparent ones.  And a few that looked like they took a couple weeks to ride in and would have done good to ride through a rain shower at some point.  But really it was as close to family friendly as a biker rally could be.

A friend of Rich's

We did see our first Hell’s Angels in person.  Something that everyone has heard about but I had never actually seen.  I have to tell you they were a little intimidating to me, but not so much to Rich.  He decided to see if he could get a picture with one.  He was nicely told him “No”, but at least he left the conversation in one piece.  I mean he had one of his new Sturgis shirts on and it would have been a shame to ruin it the first time he wore it.  

We saw a biker man and woman come in on bicycles.  We saw a lab that had a kennel mounted to a Gold Wing so he could travel with his master from Colorado.  We saw a couple riding a trike that had to be 80+.  We saw a lady at the S&S booth wearing nothing up top except 2 S&S stickers.  And more...  For another time.  It was the best people watching you could do.

We wandered all the booths and vendors, bought some shirts and had the very best corndog we have ever had in our life.  Honestly.  And I have had a lot of corndogs.  

A friend of Chris'

It was worth the visit.  Once for the trip.  We ended up staying for nearly 6 hours!  When we left it was almost impossible to walk down the street without bumping someone.  It was tough to talk due to the roar of the bikes.  It was, in a word, Sturgis.