Tuesday, June 4, 1996
Day 24
Rapid City, South Dakota to Badlands, South Dakota
Today's Miles: 99
Cumulative Miles for the Tour: 1531
Degree of Difficulty: Easy to Medium
Terrain: Rolling
Find of the Day: Badlands National Park
The open grasslands stayed with us as we rode out of Rapid City. When is the last time YOU were on a country road where you didn't get passed by a vehicle for over an hour? The countryside here isn't barren...it's teaming with wildlife hiding in the grasses. It's the human noise that is missing. I stopped several times during the day just to listen. No manmade sounds...that's an interesting concept.
We spent the morning pedaling towards Wall, South Dakota along farm roads. The plan was to get to Wall Drugs for lunch and then spend the afternoon touring the Badlands. All worked well except for the time schedule. The ride was so relaxing in the morning, no one felt like pushing very hard. We arrived in Wall at about three o'clock and spent an hour cruising the main street and having lunch.While riding through Montana and Wyoming, I had been on the lookout for a "real" cowboy shirt like Gene Autry and Roy Rogers used to wear...you know the kind I mean, with the raised embroidery stitching? Well, I finally found one in Wall, South Dakota of all places. It will be be my "dress up" shirt for the rest of the trip.
Sarah, swallowed in the heart of the Badlands
The bike ride through the Badlands was all it was anticipated as being. Lee and I bought one of those disposable, panoramic cameras and used the whole thing on the trip through the park. We exited the southern entrance a little after the sun went down, chased over the horizon by a Maxfield Parish sky. Twilight held on for over half an hour as we caught up with everyone at the campground.
99 miles used to be a inconceivable distance for me to do on a bike. Now, 75 to 100 miles a day is a comfortable norm. My body has adjusted well, but is always searching for something else to eat. Dave tells me that the next few days will be barren in the food department as we pass through a large Indian reservation. I'm looking forward to getting to the center of the Great Plains. It will be the greatest challenge of the trip.When you train for a bike tour like this, the mountains and hills are expected...they are the physical challenge. It's the plain's states that contain the unknown. The distances of unchanging landscape and visual similarity concern me. I have to find the place within myself that will make these places tolerable for days at a time as I pedal for 6 to 8 hours a day.
Lee, looking southeast towards tomorrow's ride
Bike America Tours
dblair@wtp.net
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