South Dakota -- Mammoth Site

At long last, it was time to head home.  We split the 12-hour drive into two days, which gave us lots of time to poke around along the way.  As we started south, we stopped in Hot Springs, SD.  Hot Springs has some really distinctive sandstone architecture along its main street.  The area is full of natural hot springs and spas.

Hot Springs, SD

We didn't really have time for a soak, so we checked out Mammoth Site, which was awesome!  A few years back, a developer started construction and dug up a mammoth tusk with his backhoe.  Paleontologists came in to examine the site, and to date they've uncovered the bones of 60 mammoths (as well as 85 other species of animals, plants, and insects.)  Mammoth Site is run as a nonprofit and volunteers come in every year to help excavate new bones.  Sweet!

Mammoth Site

The rest of the ride home was ... boring.  We wanted to check out the Oglala Grasslands, hoping it would be our last shot of rolling green prairie before heading back to the desert.  No such luck.  It was flat, gray, and bleak.  Oh well.  At least now I know never to move to Scottsbluff, NE!

The most boring hunk of highway in the history of the world.

All in all, it was a really fun vacation.  It was nice to soak up some green and explore places I hadn't seen since I was a little kid.  Of course adjusting back to reality is annoying (oh boy, maintenance audit!) but fall is just around corner and it's time to plan some desert-y autumn adventures.  :)

South Dakota -- Sylvan Lake + Mickelson Trail

Our vacation was winding down, and we were jonesing for a relaxing, beachy day.  Surprisingly, it's tough to find oceanfront property in South Dakota, but a sunny day in a canoe on Sylvan Lake did the trick.  Sylvan Lake is a man-made reservoir in Custer State Park.  It was dammed up in the 30s and while I'm not usually the biggest fan of fake lakes, the green water surrounded by granite peaks was definitely pretty.  We rented a canoe at the Sylvan Lake Lodge and paddled around the lake perimeter for an hour.

Sylvan Lake

Later that afternoon, we ducked into Hill City and rode for a little bit on the George S. Mickelson Trail.  This trail winds through the Black Hills for 109 miles from Edgement to Deadwood.  Most of the route follows an abandoned railroad line, so the path has a nice, easy grade.  The surface is a fine packed gravel -- we rode our mountain bikes but I bet a roadie with biggish tires would do fine.

South Dakota -- Deadwood + Hill City

I hate to say it, but we had our first monster dud today -- Deadwood.  Before the trip, Jordan and I had been cheesing out on the Deadwood HBO show, and I was pumped to drink whiskey and play some blackjack.  My guidebook called the town "edgy and dynamic."  What's not to love?

Yeah, huuuuge letdown.  The town is tacky and touristy to the max.  Casinos full of octogenarians alternated with bars full of dorky Harley-riding accountants.  We saw an equal mix of white shoes and black leather.  Don't get me wrong -- I can get into cheesy Americana every once and a while, but this was awful.  As Jordan put it, "It felt like when you need to take a crap -- uncomfortable and sort of dirty."  According to the parking meter we spent a grand total of 19 minutes in Deadwood, which was about 18 minutes too long.

Deadwood = terrible

We redeemed the day by spending the afternoon in Hill City, which was near our campsite.  Much better.  Hill City is still touristy, but in a gallery / chocolate shop / winery / cowboy hat sort of way.  There's an old train from the 1880s and the Black Hills Institute Museum.  We ducked into the Prairie Berry Winery for a tasting.  I'm not a huge fan of sweet berry wines so their stuff didn't knock me out, but I liked the Phat Hogg red.

South Dakota -- Spearfish

Next up, we drove north from Custer towards the town of Spearfish, SD.  This was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip.  We rented a little cabin (RimRock Lodge) for a couple nights and explored the area.  Spearfish Canyon is one of the best recreation sites in the Black Hills -- there's loads of waterfall hikes, bike trails, and fishing.  We started out the day by hiking up to Roughlock Falls, which was gorgeous and crystal clear.

Roughlock Falls

Later that day, we road the Big Hill mountain bike trails.  I'm definitely used to rocky desert riding, so I loved the swoopy, tree-lined dirt trails.  Some of the uphills were nasty lung-busters, but the downhills were worth it.  :)

Big Hill trails

Spearfish is also a surprisingly fun town.  There's a low-key outdoorsy college vibe and some great restaurants.  We had sourdough-crust pizza for dinner at the Dough Trader, then grabbed a few beers at the Crow Peak Brewing Company.  The Pile O' Dirt Porter was supertasty.

South Dakota -- Harney Peak

Today we hiked up Harney Peak!  At 7,242 feet it's the tallest point in South Dakota and the highest summit in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.  We started at the Sylvan Lake Trailhead in Custer State Park and started climbing into the Black Elk Wilderness.  The trail is only 6-miles round trip and moderately strenuous (the climb is steady, but not steep.)  We walked through forest meadows, marshes, and streams.  As you climb, spruce and pine give way to granite outcroppings.

The view from the top was amazing.  You get a 360 degree panorama that encompasses most of the Black Hills.  The CCC built an old stone fire tower on the summit, which was really cool.

starting out by Sylvan Lake

scrambling off-trail

old CCC fire tower

7,242'

view from the top

South Dakota -- Jewel Cave + Wildlife Loop

Today we hit up Jewel Cave National Monument.  I'm glad we got to see both Jewel and Wind Cave and have two different experiences.  I liked the wild cave tour at Wind Cave better, but I thought Jewel Cave was prettier.  We went on the 1 hr. 20 min. Scenic Cave tour, where a ranger takes you along a lighted walkway.  The cave walls are lined with glittering calcite crystals, cave popcorn, flowstone, stalactites, and stalagmites.  Our guide was pretty ridiculous, but we still had a good time.

Scenic Cave tour

test crawl for the hardcore cave tour

CAVE MONSTA

That evening back at Custer State Park, Jordan and I drove around the Wildlife Loop.  If you drive this road in the morning or evening, you're almost guaranteed to see loads of critters.  We saw pronghorn, bison, whitetail deer, and turkeys.  We also brought some apples and peaches to feed the feral burros.  The burros aren't native to the region and aren't considered real "wildlife," so you're allowed to feed them.  Yeah, I know it's cheesy, but they were supercute but really ornery.  One burro stuck his head through the window of my car, slurped up a peach from my hand, then sneezed/drooled peach juice all over me.  Nice ...

Wildlife Loop

pronghorn

nom nom nom

We were about to head back to the campsite when someone told us about a big herd of 34 bison down the road.  Incredible -- they're so huge up close.  Luckily the bulls were distracted by the ladies and didn't seem too interested in the Aveo!

bison herd!

South Dakota -- Mt. Rushmore + Custer State Park

On our second vacation day, we drove up to Mt. Rushmore.  We didn't spend a lot of time there, but if you go to the Black Hills you pretty much have to check out this iconic hunk of Americana.  I do have mixed feelings about the whole thing, though.  Four huge faces of white guys seems like a gigantic middle finger to all the native people who were kicked out of the Black Hills.

We drove out to Mt. Rushmore from Custer State Park on Iron Mountain Rd. (16A) which was fun, windy, and swoopy.  It curled around sparkly granite needles and ponderosa forests.  It's not the quickest route, but it's definitely the most scenic and dramatic.

Mt. Rushmore

checking out Mt. Rushmore from Hwy 16A

Ice cream = Thomas Jefferson?

For the rest of the day, we explored Custer State Park.  This place is HUGE -- at 71,000 acres, it's one of the biggest state parks in the United States.  It's also gorgeous.  The landscape ranges from rolling grasslands to rocky pinnacles to ponderosa forests.  The four of us camped at the Game Lodge Campground, which had a great centralized location and a couple ponds.  I'm glad we made reservations -- the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally was just finishing up, and the hills were still swarming with bikes.

prairie dogs

Game Lodge Campground

South Dakota -- Wind Cave National Park

Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for VACATION 2012!  For a week and a half, 'Red Rock Adventures' will become 'Black Hills Adventures' as Jordan and I head up to South Dakota for summer vacation.  I know South Dakota doesn't sounds like the most riveting destination, and as a fugitive from the flatlands, I was skeptical at first.  But as we started researching the trip my mental image changed from flat plains to granite pinnacles, monster caves, bison, and canyon waterfalls.  Sweet!

Here's the plan:

Day 1 -- Drive from Moab to Custer State Park

Day 2 -- Wind Cave National Park

Day 3 -- Custer State Park + Mt. Rushmore

Day 4 -- Jewel Cave National Monument

Day 5 -- Harney Peak

Day 6 -- Spearfish Canyon

Day 7 -- Deadwood + Hill City

Day 8 -- Sylvan Lake

Day 9 -- Mammoth Site

Day 10 -- Drive home

Jordan's buddy Trenton and his wife Kathleen live in Brookings, SD where they go to South Dakota State.  We'll meet up with them at Custer State Park on the second day of our vacation, but Jordan and I spent the first day by ourselves at Wind Cave National Park on their Wild Cave Tour.  Wind Cave was amazing!  The surface of swaying grasses and prairie dogs cover a labyrith that makes up one of the world’s longest caves.  Its name comes from barometric winds that make a whooshing sound at the cave entrance. 

Jordan and I went on their Wild Cave tour, which was ridiculously cool.  The Park Service suits you up with knee pads, helmets, and headlamps.  Then you crawl after a ranger for four hours through tiny crevasses and echoing chambers.  There were loads of the rare boxwork formations.  It was seriously surreal and very cool.  I wish I had photos, but we weren't allowed to bring cameras along because the squeezes were so tight!

We're Gettin' Hitched!

Awwwww hey!  We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming because ... WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!  I was all ready to write a blog entry about hiking around the La Sal Mountains, but sufficed to say I'm a little distracted now.  Dark Canyon Lake was already one of my favorite places, but this seals the deal.  It's a pretty little alpine lake on the east side of La Sal Mountains -- loads of pine trees and jumping fish.  We pulled the teardrop and set up camp right on the lake's edge.  During the day a couple people were fishing and hanging out on the shore, but eventually we had the place all to ourselves.  Pretty romantical, eh?  I can't wipe this huge goofy grin off my face. :)

So in my girly, gooshy haze I've been scanning over old photos and remembering all the adventures Jordan and I have been on together.  We've covered some ground and explored some really incredible places, and marriage seems like our next big adventure.  Jordan kicks ass and I can't imagine anyone I'd rather have as my travel companion and partner in crime.  I can't wait to be old people sitting in our rocking chairs thinking about all the cool stuff we did together.  Yay!

Dark Canyon Lake

Dibs.  :)

BIG TREE.  Thanks for the head's up.