Mickelson Trail

We decided that it was time to do some bike riding while we were in South Dakota.  The Mickelson Trail is over a hundred miles long, stretching from Edgemont to Deadwood.  We tend to like rails to trails. They are less congested, no cars, and relatively flat, all features we appreciate for our leisurely pace. 

The first time we rode the trail, we rode from Edgemont to Sheep's Canyon. The canyon was approximately halfway between Edgemont and the next trailhead. It was far enough for us. We rested at the trailstop and returned back to Edgemont. 

Determined to get our value from the annual passes, we rode a second day. We left from Custer and were almost to the next stop, our turnaround point, when it started to pour. We donned emergency ponchos and cruised back to Custer.

Our third time on the trail, we headed for the Mystic trailhead. Our goal was the halfway point back to Hill City.  It may not be overly steep, but six miles uphill was enough. Those electric assist bikes are starting to look good. I'm not going to tell you how often we got off the bikes and walked. 

If you were to look at an elevation map of the trail, you'd notice that we planned our rides so that we rode uphill first and downhill at the end. I want to end on a good note, not an exhausted one. 

So, I'm satisfied that we got our money's worth. If we make it back to South Dakota before the annual passes expire, we'll ride again.  There's plenty of trail left to explore. 

Sheep Canyon Shelter

Sheep Canyon

Railyard at Edgemont

Bicycle sculpture near Pringle

One of two tunnels south of Mystic

Thankfully headed down on return to Mystic

Bike station on the Custer trail spur