I planned to participate in a 400k brevet in Colorado on May
31st. I awoke at 1:30
a.m. that morning in time to drive to Colorado Springs to make the 3:00 a.m.
check-in. I had even turned south onto
I-25 at exactly 2:00 a.m. All was
set. My gear was on, the bike was ready,
and all I needed to do was to arrive, get my bike cleared by the RBA, fill my
bottles with water, stretch a bit, and mentally prepare for a long day in the
saddle. No problem, right?
I turned around at the first exit and headed north through
downtown Denver. My reasoning came to me
just as I started to drive south. I had
slept approximately 10 hours the last three nights and was understandably tired
and admittedly a bit grumpy. The
upcoming brevet had 17,000+ feet of climbing, meaning a very challenging day
lie ahead. Finally, my work schedule had
changed such that I had to be back in the office on Monday, no excuses. How was I going to ride 20+ hours in an
already fatigued state and then drive home (safely) on Sunday? I concluded it wasn’t worth the risk. I would have to reschedule a 400k later in
the season.
Disappointed by the situation, I thought about how I might
salvage part of the day by riding somewhere along the route back to
Bismarck. Before I arrived at the
Wyoming border, it struck me. I’d ride
part of the Mickelson Trail! It’s
something I’ve always wanted to do, the weather was good (no rain forecasted),
and my schedule was favorable for getting in a good ride.
The George S. Mickelson Trail is a 109 mile crushed
limestone trail through the Black Hills of South Dakota. The trail follows the historic Deadwood to
Edgemont Burlington Northern rail line, and as such, is one of the longest ‘rail-to-trail’
conversions in the United States. The
full length of the trail formally opened in 1998, and is named after former
South Dakota Governor George Mickelson, who was early supporter of the trail’s development.
My ride started in Edgemont, which serves as the Mickelson trailhead. Arriving at approximately 8:00 a.m., the
weather was cool following a significant rainstorm the previous night. After driving six hours, I was eager to get
underway.
(Start at the beginning.
At the trailhead in Edgemont.)
From Edgemont, the trail travels east and then north past Hwy
18 (to Hot Springs). My new tires
absorbed the increased rolling resistance from the limestone, as I made good
time into Pringle where I stopped to rest my shoulder/back and enjoy the local ‘art’.
(New Compass tires provided a smooth ride on crushed
limestone.)
(Looking to the southwest approximately nine miles
outside Edgemont. Wyoming in the
distance.)
(Bike ‘art’ in Pringle.)
The
trail was quiet for most of my ride, having passed only two cyclists en
route to Custer. This allowed me to
fully enjoy the scenery without having to worry about traffic along the trail.
(Bison grazing lush grass just south of Custer.)
After a little over three hours, I entered the town of
Custer. Here I decided to turn around,
but not before refueling with lunch and cold water in my bottles. The temperature was rising fast, and when
coupled with the dry air, I was sure to need ample hydration on my way back to
Edgemont.
(Harbach Park Trail head in Custer. Time to find lunch!)
(I didn’t have to go far. Baker’s Café was just around the corner.)
Instead of retracing my path along the trail, I chose to
ride back on Hwy 89 and 18. I had ample
room along the shoulder and traffic was light, so the ride was enjoyable (minus
my aching shoulder/back). The decreased
rolling resistance of the pavement was also welcome, and I returned to the
Mickelson trailhead by 3:00 p.m.
(Final downhill stretch into Edgemont along Hwy 18.)
