Adventure Ride 2018 Black Hills, Sturgis, and the Badlands

One of the first questions you get as a Harley rider is “have you been to Sturgis?”  Sturgis, SD is Mecca for Harley riders.  The annual rally attracts hundreds of thousands of riders to a town that is normally about 7,000 persons.  Even though this trip is on my BMW, and the rally is in August, I wanted to experience the amazing rides of the Black Hills.  And, I was not disappointed.

Not sure they would let a BMW in the parking lot, but business was slow this day.

Intentionally, going in July to miss the crowds, the rides were challenging, beautiful, and not crowded. I chose to camp at the city campground, in Spearfish, SD, about 15 miles from Sturgis.  Within walking distance to town, but secluded and next to a running stream, the site was perfect.

On the way to Badlands National Park, I stopped at Wall Drug.  Began in 1931, by posting signs along the road leading to the new Mt. Rushmore offering free ice water, the pharmacy today occupies an entire city block, and receives over 20,000 customers per day during the summer months.  https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2216

After visiting Badlands National Park on the way to Mt. Rushmore, I encountered the Sinclair dinosaur.  Maybe this is why it’s call the Badlands?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Rushmore

Began in 1927 and finished in 1941, this American icon has thousand of visitors daily.

The last stop on my Black Hills tour is acually in Wyoming. Devils Tower is a strange geological formation that has been revered by native Americans for centuries. Made famous more recently by Steven Spielberg in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_Encounters_of_the_Third_Kind, it is a little eerie.

Trying to decide where to go from here, so stay tuned......

Adventure Ride 2018 “On the Road”

Getting an early start to try and avoid some hot temperatures, I missed the early am rush and started on the traditional Colorado route.  Highway 287 is familiar after dozens of trips, rides, and journeys to points north.

Arriving in Amarillo about lunch time, I stopped for the first time at the Big Texan Steak House.  No, I didn’t eat the 72oz steak in one hour.  This place is iconic tourist trap Texas, kitschy, busy, and the food was not great. There was a roving musician playing and singing Willie Nelson songs, so that made the stop worthwhile.

I chatted with a lady from Fresno.  We had passed each other several times on the way, and she had stopped there too.  She was riding a big Yamaha cruiser, alone, and had traveled to Arkansas and was on her way back to Fresno.  It’s rare to see a female riding alone (she was about my age) , but it appears she rides a lot.  She was leaving for Canada in a few weeks for another long ride.

I had planned to stop in Raton, but arriving there about 3pm I decided to continue on.  Oddly, the further along I-25 I went, the hotter it got; into the upper 90’s when I arrived in Colorado Springs.  Sticking with my habit of avoiding chain motels, I found the Green Willow motel court in Manitou Springs.  Owned by the same family since 1953, it hadn’t changed much.  It felt familiar, and perhaps  I stayed there as a child, as we often vacationed there when I was growing up.  Most of the guests were from Texas.  Manitou Springs is still a popular place apparently, as most of the lodging had “No Vacancy” neon signs lit.

Fortunately, the night was cooler, as the room had no AC, but with the windows open  and a fan I got a good nights sleep, after 650 miles on the road.

Breakfast at Uncle Sams Pancake House fulfilled my contribution to “Make America Great Again” and I meandered my way north hrough Evergreen, Idaho Springs, Granby and Walden, Colorado stopping for the day in Laramie, WY.

Temperatures were all over the place, from the 90’s down to the 50’s while riding through rain near Walden.  I passed through some recent fire areas and the fire teams were still all around to prevent another outbreak.

Adventure ride 2018

While 2017 was a year filled with travel and adventure, I did not have the opportunity to take a longer riding trip as in years past.  So, for 2018, I rode my annual Big Bend ride in February and a short overnight Hill Country ride in the spring.

After a busy start to the summer with family vacation consisting of a visit to Disney World and a Disney cruise, followed by a visit to Nashville for more family time, the bike is ready and packed for hopefully cooler points to the north of Texas.  It will be necessary as in years past to dodge the wildfires cropping up across the West, and hope for cooler temperatures along the way.

Plans include my first ever trip to South Dakota and the sites of The Badllands, Mt. Rushmore, and the other myriad rides in the area.  More to follow as the trip unfolds.

Time for a picnic on the scenic road between Marfa and Ft. Davis

Beautiful sunset in 

Lajitas 

Scenery and refreshments along the Willow City Loop