June 18, Sunday

A few stats:

trip so far                 19    days
yesterday               223.9 miles
overall                 6424.4 miles
avg speed                55.0 mph
max speed               90.9 mph
distance home   ~2,000  miles


I stayed at the KOA park at the foot of Devil's Tower in Wyoming Saturday night.  I was going to make it a 2 night stay, but I had my tent pitched in a gravel RV spot so I could have electricity, and it was all just a little bit awkward. 


At the 11:00 AM checkout time, I made the decision to take off.  I paid the 5 bucks to take a ride up the 3 mile road to the base of Devil's Tower and then did a 45 minute hike out near the bolder field. Very impressive piece of rock. If you ask a geologist how it was formed, he would tell you from the surrounding sandstone eroding away. If you asked a native Indian, he would tell you it was from a rock and a tree and a buffalo helping a young girl escape from an Indian who had transformed into a bear and killed the rest of the tribe.  I like the second version.

Wyoming was beautiful and the ride thru the red sandstone formations very nice. It was a bit windy, as seems to be the case anywhere west of the Mississippi, at least for me. The South Dakota ride on the other hand, probably can't be beat. The road thru the Black Hills is amazing, and I am sure when I hit the badlands it will not fail to be impressive.

I stopped at the Crazy Horse Monument and at first glance it was a little underwhelming. After sitting through a 20 minute orientation movie, checking out the visitor's center and looking at the monument again, I was very impressed. It is after all, a complete mountain they are carving, and doing a lot of the carving with dynamite.

I then headed to Deadwood but just did a drive through. It was very cool how they preserved the old west feel with the architecture and brick streets. The hills surrounding Deadwood have a medium to light covering of pine trees and they are all dead. I'm not sure if that is how they got the name for the town, but it seemed very fitting.

The temps yesterday hit 100+ degrees and the roads were up and down the hills, with tight and sweeping curves. Very nice to ride, but I was a little concerned with the tires due to the heat, the speed, the weight and the stress of the constant cornering, along with the substantial wear they have now. I had a couple font end wheel wobbles, but I think it was due to the wind, the tires are okay. They are both wearing a flat band around them now, more like a car tire than a bike tire, but I'm pretty sure they are going to be able to get me home.

I had some time to kill so I headed south through Custer City, Pringle, Hot Springs and the Wind Cave national Park scenic wildlife drive but didn't see any wildlife. The terrain and view on the other hand was well worth the trip.

I finally made my way back north to the Mt. Rushmore area and found a KOA about 5 miles from the park. Just sitting at the entrance, I knew this would be my first (elective) two night stay. I'm not sure how big the campground is, but wouldn't believe it is under 100 or more acres. It is a community as much as it is a campground and much larger than a lot of the towns I stopped in up north. There are pools and restaurants, pavilions, off-road vehicle rentals, overnight horse and chuck wagon excursions, golf cart rentals, stores, and on and on. My cabin sits on a little ridge, about 25 feet above and overlooking the front part of the park, very cool place.

When I first pulled in the park, I met Bill, one of the attendants cruising around on golf carts, which are very necessary for them to get around. Its a good thing I met him because he was a great help in helping me find my cabin, or rather the road to it. His fist attempt failed which made me feel a little better for not finding it on my own. Later that evening I was able to hitch a ride with him back to my spot with a bundle of wood and a bag of "supplies". On the ride back he told me that there is a must-see light show at Mt. Rushmore after dark. A bus leaves the campground at 7:30 and brings you back after the show. It would be quicker and more timely if I just took my bike, but I have been trying very hard to stay off the road after dark. I've seen about 20 deer and animal strikes on the road so far, and have had deer run in front of me during the day. I don't want that at night.

I think I may make the stretch run home tomorrow - I'll hit the freeway and take the most direct route. Man, I'm going to miss these roads I've been on ... a lot.