Wednesday, June 17

Sylvan Lake

For those who are reading my blog and don't know, you can click on the pics to see a bigger version of them.

We had another full day of adventure. Todd, LW, Ray, Bud (Idaho), Jeff, and I decided to head over to Sturgis this morning before the afternoon rides. It's about 70 miles away but with the roads around here, it takes a little longer to get there. It was an, "I can say I've been there," kind of trip. We headed down 385 out of Custer and later picked up 16 to Hill City and on to Rapid City. We picked up I-90 so we could get there and back before the afternoon rides. We went to Hot Leathers to pick up souveneirs and such. I tried on about 6 pairs of leather chaps. Finally found a pair that fit only to find bad places in the leather. The gal got me another pair, tried them on, decided to buy. Got to the checkout and saw some bad places in those. Heard a big crack of thunder and told the girl I didn't have time to try on more. We had to go!

Bud(Idaho) and me right outside of Hot Leathers

This afternoon, I went on the Custer State Park Wildlife Loop, Needles Highway, Iron Mountain ride. What a fantastic ride that was too! Narrow roads with great curves including switchbacks.Todd and I hung in the back. We backed off from the group so we could play a little on the curves. He scraped his floorboards a few times. I never did get leaned over that far. Anyway, we cruised into the state park and stopped by Sylvan Lake and took a few pics then rolled on. We traveled up to the Needles Eye. It's a rock formation where the middle has eroded away and it looks like the eye of a needle. This is also where there is a very narrow tunnel and it's a tight squeeze for a vehicle to come through, let alone a bus. We watched a bus come through while we were there.

When we left there, we made a stop for a sighted buffalo. What a big animal that is. He was eating contently on the side of the road. He looked up oddly when I tour bus rolled by. Interesting animal.

We cruised on and came across the wild donkeys in the park. They are funny to watch. They will walk right up to cars, I guess in hopes that someone will feed them. We stopped the bikes to take pictures. When I tried to get them to come to me, they walked away. I guess they know bikers don't carry food with them. LOL.

We rolled on to turn off on Iron Mountain Road. We could see Mt. Rushmore way off in the distance. We stopped to take pictures from different perspectives.

Mt. Rushmore is in the background.

A zoomed in version from the same area. As close as my camera will get.

On to ride more of Iron Mountain Road. We came to the pigtail bridges. That was a fun one to ride. Todd said it was neat to be in the back of the pack and watch the bikes wind down the bridges. A pigtail bridge is designed to let the road pass over itself when there are sharp changes in the area. These bridges were originally constructed from wood. You can see the construction when you wind down to the bottom of it. Neat idea. I didn't get pics of these. From there we cruised on through the various tunnels on the route. One tunnel has a pullout where you can park and take a picture of Mt. Rushmore in the distance through the tunnel.

Mt. Rushmore through the tunnel on the left side of the mountain are where the faces are.

From here, we rolled on and took the road that runs right in front of Mt. Rushmore and around to the side where you can see the profile of Washington. From this stop, we decided to go into Hill City and check out a local bar and eatery, The Mangy Moose. I wanted to check it out so the guys obliged. Todd suggested eating there then going to the night program at Mt. Rushmore. What a way to end a fantastic day. The sculpture in the mountain is an amazing feat in itself. I have been to Mt. Rushmore before this trip, but it is still awesome to see.

Profile shot of Washington

I'm not sure what I'll do Thursday. I want to go to the Badlands but also need to rest up some to make the trip back home. I think Todd, Scott, and I may take a quicker ride over to Wall Drug and into the Badlands. Stay tuned.

ttfn