Stuck in South Dakota

 22 June      Hermosa - Custer Park, SD         13 miles        30 minutes

We spent an extra day at Southern Hills RV Park. Joe noticed our hitch was sagging, upon expecting it, he found the frame on the hitch was cracked. So that means no towing until we get it fixed. Joe's been in contact with Tiffin. They should be sending a new hitch soon. 

We moved to Game Lodge Campground in Custer Park, South Dakota's first and largest state park. The sites here are only electric for $31 per night. We got a very nice site, very roomy with nobody close. We stayed 3 nights but didn't do any hiking. Joe's gout acted up and he wasn't feeling good for a couple of days. 

Our spacious site

 We got up very early one morning and drove around the wildlife loop. This loop travels through 18 miles of open grassland and pine-speckled hills that much of the parks wildlife calls home. 

We still enjoyed ourselves. We went for some drives in the park and made good use of our electric bikes. Very relaxing stay for us. 

25 June     Custer Park - Spearfish, SD            84 miles       2 hours

Our original plan was to stay at Spearfish City Campground for 5 nights. We had a delay in the shipment of our new hitch so we had to extend our stay. We ended up staying for 12 nights and moved 4 times to different camp sites.

Our 2nd site 

The sites are $45 per night for full hook ups and $30 per night for primitive camping. Our 3rd sight was primitive camping, which means no hook ups. We stayed 4 nights at this campsite, it was over the July 4th weekend so campground was full. We enjoyed this site, it was right by the stream so we could sit on the bridge and cool off.

 Kind of bummed because we had to cancel our trip to North Dakota but that's all part of rving, shit happens and we have learned to just go with the flow. 

4th Site

The Spearfish City Campground is a beautiful shaded campground nestled along Spearfish Creek. The campground is located adjacent to the D.C. Booth Historic Fish Hatchery and Spearfish City Park. The campground was well maintained and the staff exceptionally friendly and helpful. There's walking and biking paths all over. 

We drove out to Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming, about 1 hour away.  On the way we stopped in Sundance to see the statue of the Sundance Kid sitting in his cell. 

Harry Longabaugh, bank robber and train heist criminal, got his nickname here because it was the only jail he ever sat in. His sentence was 18 months for stealing a horse. 

 Devils Tower National Monument attracts nearly one half million visitors annually. A striking geologic feature of northeastern Wyoming, the Tower rises 867 feet from its base and 1,267 feet above the red banks of the Belle Fourche River. The summit width is 180 x 300 feet and it was formed 50 to 60 million years ago. 

We hiked the Tower Trail. It's about 1 1/2 miles around the base of  the Tower. It's the most popular hike in the park and was kind of crowded. There's stretches of moderate elevation change so we got a good workout. There were a lot of benches along the way to stop and rest. 

This is definitely a bucket list item. Stunning natural phenomenon out in the middle of nowhere. Pictures can not do it justice. Highly recommend visiting this park.

We drove through the Belle Fourche River Campground just to check it out. It's a 2 loop, 46 site campground with no hookups and its first come, first serve.  If we're ever in this area again, I would stay here. The limit is 35 feet which is what we are, and we found that there were several sites where we would fit comfortably. 

D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery was created in 1896 to propagate, stock, and establish trout populations in the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming. 125 years later D.C. Booth still produces trout, but also serves as a living fisheries museum.

The Hatchery is a free family attraction located right next to the campground and city park. The grounds are beautiful.

Though many gold rush towns died almost as soon as they started, Deadwood was different. The nearby mines went through booms and busts, but the gold kept coming. Generations of miners toiled underground, and when their shifts were over, they came to Deadwood saloons, brothels and gambling halls to unwind and relax. It didn't matter that this was all mostly illegal; Deadwood had always been a town on the edge of the law, and the people who came for a good time didn't mind bending a rule or two.

 Wild Bill Hickok remains Deadwood's most famous resident, even though he was only in town a few short weeks--and he's been dead since 1876. His likeness is all over Historic Deadwood. 

This is our second visit to Deadwood and we enjoyed it as much as our first visit. We spent several hours walking historic Main Street and a little bit on some other streets. 

We had fun walking in and out of the casinos, hotels, saloons, shops and admired the beautiful old brick buildings. Even though it's pretty touristy with a lot of t-shirt shops, Deadwood is still historical and main street takes you a step back in time. 

Beautiful Views

 Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway is a year-round destination known for some of the most spectacular views and outdoor recreation in the Black Hills. Take in the limestone cliffs, sparkling Spearfish Creek, pine, spruce, aspen, and birch, and three waterfalls along the 19-mile drive. 

This is an exceptional drive, with Spearfish Creek running alongside this route providing some very beautiful views along the way. 

Bridal Veil Falls

Bridal Veil Falls is the most easily accessible waterfall in the canyon. The stunning falls cascades down a sheer 60-foot cliff right alongside the road and a small wooden viewing platform makes it a definite photo stop. 

Roughlock Falls is a breathtaking multi-tiered waterfall along Spearfish Creek. An easy, beautiful hike, that was very well maintained. This trail follows the stream giving great views the entire way. We enjoyed our 2 mile hike to this beautiful spot with stunning scenery.  

Spearfish Falls

 

Spearfish Falls is slightly off the beaten path, but well worth it. It is located at the base of the Canyon at Savoy. The trail guided us to the bottom of the canyon and took us beneath a canopy of trees as we approached the roaring waters of Spearfish Falls.

     

I must say, we really enjoyed our time in Spearfish. This is a great place to be stranded for an extra few days. We did a lot of hiking, biking, eating, and exploring the surrounding area. I wish Hawaii had city parks like Spearfish. They had a nice walking path, huge playground for the kids, lots of picnic tables, free concerts, basketball and pickleball courts, and the best part was it was located alongside Spearfish Creek where people could go swimming and tubing. We would take a walk everyday. Such a beautiful spot. 

07 July     Spearfish - Rapid City, SD           53 miles      1 hour

Floyds Parking Lot

 

Our hitch finally made it to Rapid City. We drove out to Floyds Truck Center and boondocked in their parking lot for our appointment tomorrow morning. They will replace the hitch, replace a part that had a recall, and do the yearly service on our rv.

We checked in at 7am and found that the hitch that we've been waiting for has not been delivered. Joe immediately got on the phone and found the trucking company that had it. We drove to the trucking company and picked up the hitch ourselves instead of waiting for delivery.

The work on the RV was going to take all day so we got in the truck and went to explore Rapid City, which is nicknamed City of Presidents. Along the streets and sidewalks of downtown, we came across life-sized bronze statues of our nations presidents. 

Harry Truman

Jimmy Carter

Barack Obama

We hopped on the City View Trolley for a narrated trip through the historic districts. This trolley was only $2 and took about an hour. Because we're seniors, we paid only $1. hahaha

After the tour, we jumped in the truck and went back to visit a couple of sites on own. 

Nestled at the foot of the Black Hills, on the western edge of Rapid City,  The Chapel in the Hills is a quiet retreat open to all visitors. The chapel itself is an exact reproduction of the famous Borgund Stavkirke of Laerdal, Norway. The chapel was built in 1969 and visitors from all over the world find the chapel to be a place of beauty and inspiration.

Dinosaur Park was an idea conceived by the Rapid City Chamber of Commerce to capitalize on  tourists coming to the Black Hills to see Mount Rushmore during the 1930s. The Works Progress Administration built five dinos out of iron pipe, wire mesh, and concrete. Two additional dinosaurs were added a short time later. The park is located near a spot where real dinosaur tracks were found. 

We went back to Floyds to pick up the RV around 3pm but they weren't done. We were tired and they had a nice waiting room so we just waited....and waited....and  waited.... Finally around 630pm they were done. Everything was fixed and the bill was $1124. A little less than Joe thought is would be but still a lot of money. 

It was getting late and we could have boondocked another night in Floyds parking lot but we just wanted to hit the road. So at around 7pm, we hit the road and drove towards Gillette, Wyoming. The sun goes down about 9pm so we thought....why not!