Biking Across the U.S (hopefully)
Keystone - Spearfish 71
I'm not sure what constitutes a 'mountain range' versus hills... but the Black Hills have to be close to the former. Some of those climbs were rough! From Keyston I hopped on the Michelson trail, which runs North/South along the spine of the hills with nothing greater than a 3% grade (thank you bajesus). It was a pretty spectacular way to see the area, going from a topography of lush rises akin to the Appalachians to sharp cliff faces to open swept fields. Getting off the trail I made a completely miserable climb, terrified of a sign warning trucks "7% grade next 3 miles". The sun also became more intense in the past hour or so, and I was feeling it. As I started pedaling again, this car pulled off on the shoulder... getting in my path. As I moved around it, this hand came out the window holding a bottle of water - exactly what I needed at that time. People can be great. Thankfully the 7% grade meant downhill. Literally for the next 20 miles or so. One of the highlights of this trip is my decent through Spearfish canyon, a semi winding road leading into the city of Spearfish that passes through high cliff faces, alongside shallow running brooks, and past a number of waterfalls. I came into the town of Spearfish, staying with Jami, an awesome/warm person who's a professor at Black Hills Stare University. The next day became a burner day, hanging around Spearfish to rest my legs. Bummed around town and hit up a bike shop and checked out the historic fish hatchery.
1 Comment
Linda Reyner
7/18/2017 07:11:57 am
Wondered if you would see Mt. Rushmore - it's on my bucket list! Amazing pics - glad the trip is going well.
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AuthorHey I'm Alex Soper, a dude living in Durham, NC. Shoot me an email if you want [email protected] ArchivesCategories |