The day started out beautifully. The sun was up but my tent is under a tree so I can sleep for a bit longer if I want to. The two guys who put me onto this campsite were up and about after a busy Saturday night. Ron and Larry-o told stories about their previous trips here. They've had some crazy times and they've been doing this for fifteen of sixteen years. When they talk it sounds like like something from the south and I have time keeping up with them. Things were a bit rough on Sunday morning partly because someone made a pot of what Ron calls 'John Wayne' coffee. It was so strong you could almost stand a spoon up in it. Both of them have a list of places that is too long for me to see in the time I have so I may have to go back later to do those rides.
Ron (l.) & Larry-o (r.)
Sunday was a day for riding around the Black Hills area. I headed west about thirty miles to Spearfish to ride the Spearfish Canyon loop. This is one of the best roads I have seen on this trip. There are an incredible number of curves and turns on this road and the river and rock formations are really beautiful. One of the stops was at a waterfall called Bridal Veil Falls.
Bridal Veil Falls
Every road is filled with Harleys and you can't wait for more than two minutes to hear then see another group of riders coming around a corner and passing by.
Riders in the Spearfish Canyon
Rock formations in Spearfish Canyon
One of the things I really enjoyed seeing was three guys, a young man of about 17, his father and his grandfather were all trout fishing in a pool on the Spearfish River. I spoke to the mother of the boy who said he has been fishing since he was five and now his grandfather doesn't want to go fishing with him becaause he's getting to be so good.
Fly fishing for trout on the Spearfish River
Two brown trout in the Spearfish River
A midway point is at Latchford which is a resort which I guess is open in the winter as well. There were hundreds of bikes with stalls set up to sell food, beer, massages, pictures, and even pinstriping on bikes. Further on the canyon opens up but the river is really beautiful. Along the way if you stop to look, you can see brown trout hovering in the water while the stream upstream and down foamed over the rocks.
Spearfish River
Spearfish River
Pool on the Spearfish River
Further on I came to the towns of Lead and Deadwood. I didn't go to Boot Hill but did spend time wandering around the old town. For some reason Deadwood has casinos, at least three or four, but it seems to be the only town in the area that has casinos. Why? I have no idea. It does have an impressive court house and US Post Office building which was built in 1907, but like many towns that were built on mining, it is sandwiched in a narrow, steep-sided valley so it expanded up and down the river rather than up the hills.
Deadwood Court House
Saloon in Deadwood
I left Deadwood and finished the loop in Sturgis where I again walked around downtown under a threatening afternoon black cloud. A strong wind came up and a few drops of rain fell but within thirty minutes everything cleared up and life went on.
You can see all sorts of people on the streets of Sturgis. One favourite outfit seems to be leather biker chaps with tight panties and a bikini top. this would be well and good if most of the people wearing these outfits were on the south side of their fifties. I have seldom seen such a plethora of sagging, overtanned human female flesh. Public semi-nudity should be a privilege, not a right! I saw the unique jacket of the trip on Sunday as well. Here it is.
The best jacket in Sturgis, 2011!
The saloons are doing a great business. I don't know how much they were charging for beer but the places were full. One place had some sort of 'beauty' contest with crowd input. Another place had another type of contest that is a bit too crude to describe here but people seemed to be having fun with it
'Beauty' contest. And yes, she's topless.
I returned to the campsite at about 5:30 and wrote yesterday's blog before returning to my tent. I was asleep by 10:00. The rain started at 10:30 and after a heavy ten minute downpour things quieted down except for the roar of motorcycles on the road that runs by the campsite. Monday is time to leave Sturgis and continue the ride home. This has been an incredible three days and perhaps in the next year or two I can come back and do some more riding in this area. One can only hope.
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