Hewlett, WY to Spearfish, SD - 58 miles

Today is a realatively short day for the riders after the last couple of marathons...only 55 miles. There are two different routes that the riders can take....one leaves Hewlett, WY and goes to Belle Fourche, SD and then goes down to Spearfish, SD.  This route would allow the riders to stop in Belle Fourche and step on the 21 foot in diameter rosette that denotes the geographic center of our nation. The other way leaves Hewlett, WY, travels to Aladdin, WY and goes down to Beulah, WY and then over to Spearfish, SD. The second route passes the Vore Buffalo Jump which is an area where the buffalo were herded off a cliff. There was an excavation going on in 2008 when I came through and there is a small museum. It is run by the University of Wyoming.

The Wyoming landscape is a lot different from Montana...

There are trees!

Shortly after leaving Hewlett, Wyoming, I came across this informational sign about the Devils Tower.

And the road finally crests and we know there is a downhill somewhere!

Many riders stopped at the top of the climb at Bearlodge Campground to catch their breath and top off water bottles at the support vehicle.

Another informational sign on the road to Spearfish, SD which talks about Custer's 1874 Expedition which violated the Indian Treaties all because of 'gold in dem dar hillls!'

We stopped in the Historic town of Aladdin and the General Store. It was a very nice stop.

Several of the bikes lined up in front of the Aladdin General Store.

How appropriate... "It's the last hill of the day!"

The Aladdin Cafe

A neat ranch / B & B entrance I saw along the way.

The Visitor's Center when we endered South Dakota had several informational signs. This one is about the Vore Buffalo Jump. The Vore Buffalo Jum is spectacular archeological site. It is a natural sink hole.
The jump was used repeatedly by many Native American groups during the 300 years when the current Plains Indian tribes were forming, migrating over vast distances and experiencing rapid cultural change. At least five different tribes used the jump as a bison trap during this period. Dozens of beautifully preserved and precisely dateable layers of bone and arifacts allow archeologists to interpret this facinating "history book" of the late-prehistoric Plains tribes.

This one explains the many species of birds in the Black Hills.

This one talks about the colors and the land of comprising the Black Hills.

One final stop before arriving in Spearfish, SD was stopping in Belle Fourche, SD which has been designated the Geo Center of the United States.

This designation is marked by a 21 foot wide granite rosette located behind the Belle Fourche Chamber of Commerce.

Also at the site was the Buckskin Johnny Cabin which was built in 1876. It is amazing how efficient this cabin is.

This sign designates the cabin as a historic structure.

That was the end of a pretty busy day!

Tomorrow finds us arriving at Keystone, South Dakota and Mount Rushmore!