Today’s ride was a beautiful 48 mile climb from Rapid City to Deadwood. The day started out warm and sunny but we had a little bit of rain in the afternoon. I, fortunately, lucked out of most of the rain. It’s cool, with a starting temperature tomorrow of only 45° rising to the mid-50s.

The Black Hills aren’t black at all. The name “Black Hills” comes from the Lakota words Paha Sapa, which mean “hills that are black.” Seen from a distance, these pine-covered hills, rising several thousand feet above the surrounding prairie, appear black. They’re a mixture of sedimentary rock, sandstone, shale, limestone, and conglomerate. Of course, sedimentary rock implies sea floor, which is pretty hard to imagine when you’re up here.

Deadwood is a town of 1300 dedicated to celebrating its infamous past. It was originally settled by people squatting on territory granted by treaty to the Lakota people. There was a gold rush starting in 1874, with the town thriving mostly on prostitution. It has been nearly destroyed by fire twice, and now is a stretch of historic buildings with casinos serving motorcyclists. Not a place I want to move to.

Tomorrow it’s south to Hill City. We’ll be riding entirely on the Mickelson Trail, a 109 mile railroad segment converted to a multi-use trail.