Day 14: just 1 more day to half way through the trip. A short ride today, just 45 miles for Mike, 74 for Tom (although he had 6,000ft of climbing) in a random amount of time as we were indifferent to average speed since it was so short a ride. Why so short? Because there is much to see in the Black Hills of South Dakota so a short day was planned by PACTour around stops at the Crazy Horse Monument, Mt Rushmore (overrated in my book…), beautiful wildlife viewing (see pictures of buffalo and antelope), and avoiding the pickups towing campers and 40 foot RVs. By the way, we’re in the part of the world with drive through liquor stores and if you buy a mobile home it comes with its own junk car collection…
So… we had a short day, just up and down (they are the Black Hills, after all) from Custer through Keystone and out to Rapid City so our faithful readers (both my mom and Tom’s wife Laurie) can have a short time reading about it.
Early dinner tonight, early breakfast tomorrow (5:30am), 148 miles across the badlands and the flats in 90 degree heat await. Minimum road kill, I don’t think anything to report in fact.
Addendum from Tom…..my “long” short day was one of my Top 10 scenic bike rides I’ve ever done! The loop through Custer Sate Park was fantastic with numerous ups and downs on smooth quiet roads through pine forest and open meadows. The highlight was cycling on the road through a herd of buffalo as they were grazing on the sides. Lots of antelope and gophers (prairie dogs) to be seen as well. The loop took us on a small road restricted from RV’s and big trucks, mainly because of some short small tunnels carved through the rock/hillsides. One of the tunnels was lined up perfectly that one could see Mt Rushmore through the other end. I must say that Mt Rushmore from a distance is just as impressive as up close. Looking forward to a nice meal in Rapid City this evening and a good night’s rest in preparation for what could be the most challenging 2 days of riding so far this trip.
While I think you may be a bit nuts for doing some extra riding just for the scenic value, it sounds like it was well worth the effort. I'm glad Tom was more impressed with Mt. Rushmore than Mike. It's on our short list of National Parks to visit (even though I've never really had a burning desire to go to South Dakota!).
ReplyDeleteGood luck on your long day tomorrow. I can't believe you're almost half way to your final destination.
Oh! Now that I looked at today's photos, I see that you had a choice of the 45 or 75-mile trip today. I thought Tom just took a scenic route on his own! I should have know better. That would NOT have fit within the PAC Tour rules.
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